A colony of crabs – including one of the biggest in the world – is poised to invade North Yorkshire.

People need not worry though, the expected “pincer movement” will see the invaders safely behind glass in the Scarborough’s Sea Life Centre in a new exhibition opening in February.

A bulky 18lb Tasmanian King Crab will take centre stage in the new £100,000 feature appropriately christened Claws!

The display tanks themselves will be designed to look like giant crabs, and there are other features to give visitors a real insight into how a crab’s claw works and even how it eats.

Displays curator Lyndsey Crawford said: “Tasmanian King Crabs are the second biggest species in terms of body mass in the world. They are just one of the species we’ll be featuring though, and the others are also pretty remarkable. They include common lobsters and Norway lobsters, better known to most as scampi, and some amazing tropical hermit crabs which spend most of their lives out of water.”