Will it Crab?

Each of the tents at Concordia comes with a 1", 3-ring binder of information, instructions, etc. This may seem overly complicated for people trying to relax, but it is not immediately obvious how some of the eco-features of this place work. For instance, how does one fill the shower tank for best results?

One thing the book explicitly told us about was that we could toss most kitchen scraps to the hermit crabs. As it turns out, there are large numbers of them skittering on the scrub slopes between water and summit. Our friend steve was taken aback the morning after our arrival when, when stepping out of the tent to the bathroom, he discovered a dozen of them, each the size of a lemon, milling around just off the boardwalk.


Taking the book's advice to heart, we tried them out on lots of different foods over the week, and here are our findings:

Orange peel? It eventually disappears, but they don't seem to love it.
Rum-soaked limes? Not so much.
Mango and pineapple peel? Gone within an hour.
Tomato and Pepper flesh? Delectable.
Avocado skin? It goes faster the more avocado you leave on it.
Coffee grounds? Call all your friends because we are having a party!


B got a huge kick out of feeding the crabs each morning (and, despite the potential for disaster, no nightmares about crabs attacking in the night). We looked at it like appeasing the gods.

All in all, this seems like a much faster and more efficient way to deal with scraps than composting. Alas, I don't think that they would do well in New Hampshire.

If you don't understand the title's reference, try here.