Ocean City Continues Pageant Week With Miss Crustacean

OCEAN CITY, NJ — The 2019 Crustacean Beauty Pageant was held on Wednesday, Aug. 14 in the Ocean City Sports and Civic Center at 6 p.m. The event was to take place on the beach at Sixth Street but heavy rains forced the pageant indoors.

The annual tradition celebrates the beauty of hermit crabs and promotes responsible ownership of the crustacean. The hermit crabs were featured in themed dioramas and the competitors vied for the Cucumber Rind Cup.

Special Events Director Michael Hartman was the master of ceremonies for the evening while mascots Molly and Martin Mollusk entertained the children in the audience. The judges of the pageant were 2019 Junior Miss Ocean City Julia Wilson, 2020 Miss Ocean City Mary Grace Jamison and 2019 Little Miss Ocean City Stevie Wright.

"This event has been going on for decades now," Hartman said. "It's a long standing memory for Ocean City residents."

"It was an honor to be a judge for the Miss Crustacean Pageant," Jamison said. "It was hard to judge because people put so much work into their displays."

Among the competitors were stands outs Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW), Crustice League and Crabs Got Talent, who came with their own music playlist. A hermit crab race followed the pageant. The race had four heats and the winner of each heat met in the championship round. The hermit crab race was won by "Taffy" from Crustice League with 32 seconds.

According to pethermitcrabs.org, hermit crabs can live from 5 to 15 years and are nocturnal. They are omnivores and will eat insects, fruit, vegetables and even feces. Hermit crabs can grow up to six inches in length depending on the species and the water temperature should be kept between 70 and 80 degrees fahrenheit.

"Ocean City has so many interesting events," Wilson said. "It's a very unique community and it's awesome to be a part of it."