Passengers aboard a train were left astonished when a crab claimed a seat for itself.

The resourceful traveler, later dubbed Craig, was discovered on Wednesday evening while aboard a South Western Railway train traveling from London to Portsmouth. Fellow passengers joked that the crab had ventured out for a night on the town away from the city.

Train driver Mark Walsh initially thought a co-worker was joking when informed that a crab was occupying a first-class seat. However, upon reaching the train’s final destination, he found the crustacean “relaxing” on a seat.

Walsh expressed his surprise, questioning how the crab had managed to board the train without anyone noticing. One passenger, however, mentioned that it had been in its seat since she boarded at Guildford.

“Some passengers were quite alarmed when they saw me walking around the station with a crab in hand, but most people didn’t seem to mind at all,” Walsh noted.

“They probably thought it was just another usual day in Portsmouth.”

He remarked that passengers humorously pointed out that the “shellfish” creature had its claws resting on the seat, while others teased that it was avoiding paying fare.

Walsh, who considers himself skilled at handling crabs due to experiences crabbing with his children on vacations, said he gave the crab a gentle pet and noticed it was still active, though it appeared unwell.

“Clearly, it was quite worn out from its journey,” he told the BBC.

He mentioned that his options were limited due to the busy schedule, as he had to prepare to drive a train back to London shortly thereafter. “I couldn’t hold up the train indefinitely while I played hero for a crab,” he humorously remarked.

He found a way to make the crab as comfortable as possible in a nearby park with a pond.

“It’s hard to say if it escaped from a fisherman’s bag or if a group of young people was having a laugh, but I genuinely can’t fathom how it made its way from London,” Walsh remarked.

South Western Railway has been contacted for further details.