At a campsite on Christmas Island, an Australian family was having their barbecue when a crowd of giant crabs suddenly came out from nowhere.

Amy Luetich and her family were enjoying an evening of barbecue at their campsite. Out of the blue, a multitude of gigantic crabs crashed their get-together. As a result, the family was not able to sleep throughout the evening at all.

The giant crabs most likely smelled the tasty food Amy's family was cooking. However, the group stayed at the campsite and took their smiling photos with the crabs as company in the background.

The Giant Crabs Turned Out To Be Robber Crabs

The multitude of giant crabs who swamped the family gathering turned out to be robber crabs. Parks Australia stated that robber crabs or coconut crabs are considered the world's largest land crustacean. They could grow and weigh as much as 4 kilograms and measure up to one meter wide. These giant crabs could live as long as 50 years and are rather known for taking with them anything that suits their fancy.

Amy Luetich shared some photos from their family experience with the robber crabs with the Christmas Island Tourism Group. With the photos, the tourism board wrote, exclaiming, "Robber Crabs Behaving Badly!".

Hashtags were circulated, saying "A couple of local #christmasisland families had a few extra mouths to feed at their BBQ over the weekend and #coconutcrabs have an incredible sense of smell, and for slow-moving creatures, they sure move quickly when there's food around…would you like to share your picnic with these guys?"

The tourism board also noted that Robber Crabs are protected and respected on Christmas Island, inviting people who live in Western Australia to see the wildlife for themselves.

There Never Were Too Many Robber Crabs at Christmas Island

Christmas Island is estimated at around 1,500 kilometers or 930 miles west of mainland Australia. It is located in the Indian Ocean. Luetich spoke to Daily Mail Australia and said she had never experienced seeing so many robber crabs before. The family had camped several times in the area and had never experienced a similar event before until recently.

The family began to cook, and the robber crabs quickly swarmed around them. Amy's son was able to count as many as 52 robber crabs at the time. The robber crabs climbed over the table. Another one found its way to the barbecue. The family kept their tents away from the swarm of giant crabs where they were eating. Still, one family member sensed that one of the robber crabs was tapping on the outside of their tent the entire night.