Modern Mysteries

Was Amelia Earhart really eaten by giant crabs ?

By T.K. Randall
April 22, 2023 ·  8 comments



Did coconut crabs make off with the evidence ? Image Credit: CC BY 3.0 Anne Sheppard More than 82 years after Amelia Earhart disappeared over the Pacific Ocean during an attempt to circumnavigate the globe in her Lockheed Model 10 Electra, the question of what happened to her continues to remain one of the biggest unanswered mysteries of the modern age.

In recent years, clues have been found suggesting that Earhart's plane may have gone down somewhere in the remote Pacific atoll of Nikumaroro and that the aviator and her navigator Fred Noonan may have even survived for several days on a small island while awaiting rescue.

If that's true, however, then why have their remains not been found there ? Interestingly, 13 human bones were actually found on the island in 1940 by British colonial officer Gerard Gallagher, however these have sadly since been lost, making further study impossible.

Some researchers believe that the reason so few bones were found was because Earhart's remains had been devoured or dragged off by coconut crabs which can grow up to 3ft across.

If so, they argue, some of her bones could still be scattered (and possibly buried) across the island.

If it were possible to locate even one such bone, it could help to solve the mystery once and for all.

Source: IFL Science | Comments (8)

Tags: Amelia, Earhart

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