This is the heartbreaking moment a hermit crab was seen struggling along a beach, stuck inside a doll’s head.

The fragile creature had been living inside the plastic toy, which washed up on the shore of Wake Island in the western Pacific Ocean.

Volunteer Joseph Cronk, who was on the tiny Micronesia island for an environmental project, was walking along the beach on May 10 collecting trash when he saw the crab.

Joseph filmed the creature to show the devastating effects of plastic pollution and waste on marine creatures. However, removing it from its makeshift shell could have harmed it.

He said: ''I see a lot of these crabs exchanging their shells for many things. Film canisters and soda cans are pretty common. But this one really gets the point across.''

Wake Island is a coral atoll in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, some 1,991 miles southeast of Tokyo and 1,501 miles east of Guam.

Joseph visited the island in December last year and took part in a beach cleanup. But the rubbish had already covered the beach again by the time he returned on his most recent trip at the start of May.

This is the heartbreaking moment a hermit crab was seen struggling along a beach - stuck inside a doll’s head.

The fragile creature had been living inside the plastic toy which washed up one the shores of Wake Island in the western Pacific Ocean.

Volunteer Joseph Cronk, who was on the island for an environmental project, was walking along the beach last Friday (10/05) collecting trash when he saw the crab.

Joseph filmed the creature to show the devastating effects of plastic pollution and waste on marine creatures. However, removing it from its makeshift shell could have harmed it.

He said: ‘’I see a lot of these crabs exchanging their shells for many things. Film canisters and soda cans are pretty common. But this one really gets the point across.’’

Wake Island is a coral atoll in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, some 1,991 miles southeast of Tokyo and 1,501 miles east of Guam.

Ocean currents mean that vast quantities of plastic pollution and rubbish wash up on the island’s shored.

Joseph visited the island in December last year and took part in a beach cleanup. But the rubbish had already covered the beach again by the time he returned on his most recent trip at the start of May this month.