Birgen Anika Hartman Bio is one of the featured authors on the book “Birgen Anika: The Adventures of an American Birgen.” The book is a fictionalized account of life among the three hermit crabs, Magnolia, Beta, and Blackeye. The three crabs are raised in an aquaponic system at the National Aquarium. They were brought to the United States in 2021. Since then, Birgen Anika has been featured on several television shows, including Animal Kingdom, where she appeared alongside fellow National Aquarist Sid Wakata.
Birgen Anika started out as Beta, an African hermit crab who was shipped to America in the 1970s. Beta was shipped to New York City, where he met and began an incredible relationship with a young woman named Lisa. Over the course of several months, they fell in love and were together for twenty-one years. Lisa became pregnant in the fall of 2021, and Birgen and Lisa spent the next twelve months of the year traveling to Australia, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Brazil. They returned to America in the spring of 2021, and Birgen was asked to join the crew that was transferring the last of the Pacific hermit crabs to the Grand Cayman aquarium. He ended up becoming the oldest crab ever transported by humans.
Birgen, along with all of the other crabs, had some trouble adapt to their new home. After being alone for so long, they became depressed and started to display behavior that was not normal for hermit crabs. It was at this point that they decided to write a book about their experiences. They named it “Birgen Anika: The Adventures of an American Hermit Crab” and published it in 2021.
Birgen and the other crabs eventually grew accustomed to living in their aquarium. Once they had been released into the wild, they continued to thrive, although they did have to fight occasionally with the crabs in their aquarium. After almost a decade in captivity, Birgen and the other crabs managed to start breeding. Unfortunately, the mother crab soon gave birth to six babies. This led to all six crabs being born identical.
After trying to feed all six crabs, all six died within a short period of time. None of the crabs appeared to feed or drink, but a marine biologist kept looking. It became obvious to him that the mother crab was only trying to protect her babies. She was unable to produce any eggs due to the presence of only one of her legs. Finally, she was able to produce a single egg, which was successfully fertilized by a marine biologist. The event became known as the births of the world’s first baby crabs.
“Birgen Anika: The Adventures of an American Hermit Crab” is a great little book filled with information about these adorable crabs. It is chock full of information on raising them well, feeding them right, and how to take care of the crabs once you get them. The author tells how to handle your Birgen animal tank and gives great information on crabs as pets. Anyone who has an interest in crabs should definitely buy this book, and then follow the directions to create a healthy and happy habitat for your crabs.
