Outside A mo Few invertebrates spend time climbing


trees. Yet the robber crab does. It climbs palm trees to look for coconuts. T e robber crab might look tough.


Yet it mostly eats plants. It likes coconuts best. When it finds one, the crab snips it with its claw. T e coconut falls to the ground. T ud! T e crab climbs down to look for its dinner. Crabs belong to the largest group


of invertebrates. T is group includes lobsters, spiders, and insects. All of these animals have hard shells called exoskeletons. T ey all have jointed legs. T eir bodies are separated into sections. Some have wings and can fly. T ousands of insects belong to


this group. One beetle has a beautiful exoskeleton. It sparkles like gold. If danger is near, its shell protects it.


No Backbone? No P oblem! Crabs and other invertebrates come


in diff erent sizes, shapes, and colors. T ey swim, glide, climb, or stay put. None of these animals have


backbones. Yet that’s not an issue for these animals. Each is built to survive.


15


Wordwise characteristic: a feature or quality


classify: to put into groups exoskeleton: a tough external covering for the body of some invertebrates


invertebrate: an animal without a backbone


robber crab


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