Crab season is Marine Ranger Karlina See Kee's favourite time of year. Photo / Karlina See Kee, @IslandGirlDiscovery
Crab season is Marine Ranger Karlina See Kee's favourite time of year. Photo / Karlina See Kee, @IslandGirlDiscovery
Christmas Island crabs come but once a year.
For around a fortnight during the wet season a red tide of crustaceans envelops the island.
From October to November, spawning season sees crabs crawl from their forest burrows out to the Indian Ocean. 65 million of them swarm the 20km-wide Christmas Island. It's hard to avoid.
A distant outpost of Western Australia, in a country of spectacularly odd animals, it's up there.
"For some residents it's their most favourite time of the year, others hate it," says local guide, Karlina See Kee.
"This is all part of the island so you just live with it."
The red tide: Christmas Island Crabs come but once a year. Photo / Karlina See Kee, @IslandGirlDiscovery
The 41 year old originally from the Torres Strait came to the island six years ago. As a naturalist and marine park ranger, she came for the crabs.
"I'd known about this island all my life, mainly for the red crabs. When I got here, I fell in love with more than just the red crabs and knew that I would end up living here."
Preparing the island for the annual arrivals is no small undertaking. With her experience working as an outdoor guide for tourists the crabs are easily the most disruptive guests on the island.
65 million crabs is hard to imagine. It's a number of animals that affects everything from traffic management to trails and tourist attractions. If you visit during crab spawning season you need to have a lot of patience.
While crab-related delays can leave tourists cranky, the crustaceans are easily the most needy of visitors.
Each year See Kee helps put out infrastructure to help direct the red tide away from roads and out to sea.
Preparing the Christmas Island crab fences, ahead of the rainy season. Photo / Karlina See Kee, @IslandGirlDiscovery
"There are crab fences put up to guide the crabs towards underpasses and the crab bridge," she says.
It's customary for locals to carry a rake to remove the animals from the roads. The visitor centre even hands out rakes for travellers to help them get around.
The Christmas Island crab overpass. Photo / Karlina See Kee, @IslandGirlDiscovery
"Anyone visiting must know to be patient. The crabs will definitely slow you down and also restrict where you can go on the island as many roads and tracks to tourist attractions are closed. So come to the island with realistic expectations. If you come for migration, it's amazing to see, but don't get cranky when you can't get from A to B!"
Despite the wetter weather and general crab-related disruption, spawning season is something many tourists come to Christmas Island specifically to experience.
The Christmas Island Tourism Board works with rangers like See Kee to forecast possible dates and publishes them on their travel information site.
Locals clear roads of Christmas Island crabs. Photo / Karlina See Kee, @IslandGirlDiscovery
Normally her work as a Marine Biologist means she doesn't hand around in one place for long, but with much of her projects still disrupted by pandemic travel restrictions she'll be around for the whole thing.
"This will be the first time I'm on island for a full migration cycle from start to finish." As you can tell, she is one of the locals that counts down the days till crab spawning season.
It's the most wonderful time of the year.
Patience is a virtue during Christmas Island crab spawning season. Photo / Karlina See Kee, @IslandGirlDiscovery
