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"Journey to the Subnivean Zone" "When Fish Fly"

"The Hermit Crab Shell Exchange", sometimes styled as "Hermit Crab Shell Exchange", is the 1st episode of Season 3 of the PBS Kids show Wild Kratts. It is the 67th episode of the series overall. It premiered on April 7, 2014.


In this episode, after a series of pranks, Chris and Martin discover a hermit crab on the beach. They alert the rest of the team, who become increasingly interested in the hermit crab and its shell. Not far from where they are, Chef Gourmand begins collecting hermit crabs to make "hermit crab poppers".

Plot[]

The episode begins with a live-action segment. The Kratt brothers find a hermit crab on the beach. Afterward, they ask their "What if?" question, and the show transitions into the cartoon segment.

After a series of pranks, Chris and Martin stumble upon a hermit crab on the beach. They see it get finicky over a couple of shells to choose from, leading Martin to name it Picky. They wake the other Wild Kratts members up to get them to pay attention to the hermit crab and its shell. They arrive at the beach. After the Kratt brothers explain why the hermit crab changes its shell, Aviva gets inspired to make Hermit Crab Powers and returns to the Tortuga. Not far away, Gourmand prepares to fish, when he notices the Wild Kratts. Not concerned, he propels his boat to another part of the beach to set up his restaurant there.

Aviva returns to the beach and hands the Kratt brothers the Hermit Crab Discs and their Creature Power Suits. They successfully activate their Suits, but they end up without shells. Aviva tells them that the shell is not naturally part of the hermit crab, so the Kratt brothers search the beach for one. Gourmand sets up his cafeteria. Chris and Martin are unable to find any shells and they start crying. Once they stop, they see Gourmand picking up hermit crabs. They realize that they have to find a shell fast, but there are no shells big enough for them, so they improvise – Chris puts on a chest while Martin puts on a tire. They reveal themselves in front of Gourmand, who fires pastry dough at them using his dough canon. They end up rolling away (Martin's makeshift shell is a tire) after the ensuing encounter and both of them lose their "shells". As Gourmand nears them, Jimmy teleports them the Miniaturizer, but Gourmand's dough balls damage it just as the Kratt brothers shrink in size. They continue their search for shells and soon find ones that fit their current size; however, it does not take long for them to start outgrowing their shells. This is due to Gourmand disrupting the miniaturization and making it unstable. Jimmy then calls and suggests that they head for the water to avoid Gourmand and find more shells. The Kratt brothers do what he says, but they start to have trouble breathing. Aviva tells them to activate sea hermit crab powers. Luckily for them, they are able to activate "Sea" Hermit Crab Powers in time. As they try to find a shell that fits and avoid predators, they witness hermit crabs lining up and Martin thinks that the hermit crab are going to the movies. Chris says that doesn't make sense. Martin and Chris also witness the hermit crab cutting the line and moving them to a different part of the line. Martin then admits that he doesn't know the rules to hermit crab line-ups. Aviva tells them that hermit crabs line up in front of a shell from big to small. While they wait in line, Koki tells them that the hermit crabs are lining up to change shells. The Kratt brothers see the hermit crab changing their shells and they join, and they all leave their old shells behind and enter the shells right in front of them. Koki is able to fix the Miniaturizer, and Jimmy teleports it to the Kratt brothers. Now the Kratt brothers won't outgrow their shells anymore.

Gourmand sets his pot of hermit crabs aside, when the Kratt brothers resurface, normal size. They flip themselves onto his restaurant. Gourmand first attacks Chris and ends up hurling him into the water using an over-sized mixer. He then fights Martin, but Martin is able to take advantage of the spinning mixer. Gourmand is flung away, and he admits defeat before retreating. The Kratt brothers then release the hermit crabs.

The show transitions into the concluding live action segment. The Kratt brothers watch as a hermit crab chooses a shell. Afterward, they conclude the episode by saying "Keep on creature adventuring; we'll see you on the creature trail!"

Characters[]

Animals[]

Animation[]

Note: Featured animals are in bold.

Mentioned[]

Note: Mentioned animals are linked to Wikipedia.

Trivia[]

  • Both types of hermit crabs in this episode look exactly the same, although there was some individual variation.
  • This is the first time the Miniaturizer doesn't work properly.

Key Facts and Creature Moments[]

  • For their size, starfish are the strongest echinoderms on the planet.
  • The hermit crab is a scavenger. They'll eat whatever they find.
  • A hermit crab uses its shell for defense.
  • Sometimes, to exchange shells more quickly, a group of hermit crabs will line up in front of a shell from biggest to smallest. They all then leave their old shells behind and enter the shells in front, which are guaranteed to be larger than their previous shells.
  • There are 15 species of land hermit crabs and 785 species of sea hermit crabs.
  • If hermit crabs cannot find any shells big enough for them, they use other things as shells.

Gallery[]

Wild Kratts episodes
Seasons: 1234567
Season 1

"Mom of a Croc" • "Whale of a Squid" • "Aardvark Town" • "Flight of the Draco" • "Mystery of the Squirmy Wormy" • "Platypus Cafe" • "Polar Bears Don't Dance" • "Build It Beaver" • "Voyage of the Butterflier XT" • "Honey Seekers" • "Bass Class" • "Fireflies" • "Mystery of the Weird Looking Walrus" • "Tazzy Chris" • "Octopus Wildkratticus" • "Walk on the Wetside" • "Elephant in the Room" • "Let the Rhinos Roll!" • "Kickin' It With the Roos" • "The Blue and the Gray" • "Falcon City" • "Koala Balloon" • "Cheetah Racer" • "Kerhonk" • "Mimic" • "Caracal-Minton" • "Zig-Zagged" • "A Huge Orange Problem" • "Seasquatch" • "The Food Chain Game" • "Masked Bandits" • "Flight of the Pollinators" • "The Gecko Effect" • "Little Howler" • "Quillber's Birthday Present" • "A Bat in the Brownies" • "Stuck on Sharks" • "Birds of a Feather" • "Googly Eye: The Night Guru" • "Raptor Round Up"

Season 7

"Outfoxed" • "Clever the Raven" • "Race to Goat Mountain" • "Owl Odyssey" • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA • TBA

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