Weaving Scuttlecrab

The weaving scuttlecrab branched off from the mud-scooping scuttlecrab. The burrows of the mud-scooping scuttlecrab had a tendency to collapse due to the fact that they were dug in moist, muddy soils. The weaving scuttlecrab is very similar to the mud-scooping scuttlecrab, except that it has developed a silk producing gland at the end of its tail. The Weaving scuttlecrab uses its silk to structurally reinforce the tunnels of its burrow. The silk is unlike an Earth spider's silk or the silk of the silkworms in that once applied, it will harden into a strong stiff grayish substance which is very hard to break and absorbs impacts well. A problem with this development is that the tunnel walls would become very heavy and would sink deeper and deeper into the soft soils they were built in. To combat this problem, the weaver scuttlecrabs began building their burrows in the firmer soils at the edges of the swamps and eventually moved out onto the plains. Because of the newfound strength of the tunnel walls, tunnels could now be dug much wider and burrow systems could become much more extensive and could therefore support much larger populations. To deal with the population increase, the weaver scuttlecrabs developed slightly more advanced brains and began a primitive hierarchy, similar to that of Earth's ant or bee colonies. The colonies are ruled over by a group of three to five females who were all born in the same brood. While other females are still capable of breeding, these females are the only females that will. All other scuttlecrabs in the colony, including the males, will be killed if they do anything that the alpha females don't like. When the alpha females have all died, they will be replaced by the next strongest group of females. A brood of eggs will always be of the same sex. If the hatchlings are female, they will bond at birth and will work together for their entire lifespans. If the hatchlings are male, however, they will join all of the other males and won't form any special bonds. Females are expected to tend to the eggs, raise the young, and feed the queens while males are only expected to hunt and gather food as well as defend the burrows from attacks.