This claw-some scene shows tens of millions of red crabs flooding Australia's Christmas Island as they make their annual migration to the ocean.

The sea of crustaceans swamped roads and bridges on November 11 as they fled from their forest homes and trekked towards the Indian Ocean.

The stunning sight creates an amazing scarlet mass and is considered one of nature's most colourful and beautiful migrations.

Every year, the island’s community spends months preparing for the epic movement, putting up temporary barriers along roadsides to funnel crabs toward specially constructed crab bridges.

Signs are erected showing mass road closures in place to accommodate the event, which brings traffic to a standstill.

Christmas Island National Park acting manager Bianca Priest, said: “Christmas Island National Park staff put up kilometres of temporary barriers, erect signs and close roads across the island to protect millions of crabs leaving their forest homes for the coast.

“Together, with the ongoing support of the Australian Federal Police, Shire of Christmas Island and the community, these efforts help protect the island’s keystone species.”

“World-renowned naturalist Sir David Attenborough described the red crab migration as ‘like a great scarlet curtain moving down the cliffs and rocks towards the sea’ and considered filming the spectacle as one of his 10 greatest TV moments.

“Over the years visitors have travelled from every corner of the world to witness this wildlife phenomenon.”

The annual red crab migration is an extraordinary natural process triggered by celestial, tidal and meteorological forces.

It begins with the first rainfall of the wet season with the speed of the migration determined by the phase of the moon.

Red crabs always spawn before dawn on a receding high-tide during the last quarter of the moon.

It is then that each female red crab will release up to 100,000 eggs into the ocean.

Baby red crabs may return to the shore about one month later to make their journey back into the tropical forest of Christmas Island.

This claw-some scene shows tens of millions of red crabs flooding Australia's Christmas Island as they make their annual migration to the ocean.



The sea of crustaceans swamped roads and bridges as they fled from their forest homes and trekked towards the Indian Ocean.



The stunning sight creates an amazing scarlet mass and is considered one of nature's most colourful and beautiful migrations.



Every year, the island’s community spends months preparing for the epic movement, putting up temporary barriers along roadsides to funnel crabs toward specially constructed crab bridges.



Signs are erected showing mass road closures in place to accommodate the event, which brings traffic to a standstill.



Christmas Island National Park acting manager Bianca Priest, said: “Christmas Island National Park staff put up kilometres of temporary barriers, erect signs and close roads across the island to protect millions of crabs leaving their forest homes for the coast.



“Together, with the ongoing support of the Australian Federal Police, Shire of Christmas Island and the community, these efforts help protect the island’s keystone species.”



“World-renowned naturalist Sir David Attenborough described the red crab migration as ‘like a great scarlet curtain moving down the cliffs and rocks towards the sea’ and considered filming the spectacle as one of his 10 greatest TV moments.



“Over the years visitors have travelled from every corner of the world to witness this wildlife phenomenon.”



The annual red crab migration is an extraordinary natural process triggered by celestial, tidal and meteorological forces.



It begins with the first rainfall of the wet season with the speed of the migration determined by the phase of the moon.



Red crabs always spawn before dawn on a receding high-tide during the last quarter of the moon.



It is then that each female red crab will release up to 100,000 eggs into the ocean.



Baby red crabs may return to the shore about one month later to make their journey back into the tropical forest of Christmas Island.



ENDS