Fiddler Crabs

This perspective often distorts the view of large crabbing businesses on their harvesting methods which, although are seemingly humane, are actually very detrimental to the crab population. For instance, when Hal Herzog, a Professor of Psychology at Western California University, ventured to Florida’s Gulf coast, the crabbers there explained to him the two varieties of crabs which they harvested; the “lucky” stone crabs and the “unlucky” blue crabs (Herzog). The blue crabs were considered unlucky because they were killed on the spot; however, the stone crabs were considered lucky because of their ability to regenerate their claws, and so crabbers would simply rip their claws off and then throw them back into the sea (Herzog). However,

It’s almost Mardi Gras time, and we can’t think of a way we like to celebrate better than a big old crawfish boil (or crayfish, or crawdads, or mudbugs, or whatever you call them). These tiny, freshwater crustaceans are basically tiny lobsters, but that doesn’t stop them from perplexing people from outside Fat Tuesday’s homeland year after year.

You scratch Giant Crab 1 in the left first leg from behind, fracturing the chitin and bruising the fat!

The Callinectes sapidus also known commonly as the Maryland Blue Crab, is a crustacean found in the Chesapeake Bay. The blue crab is found in aquatic environments, most often in estuaries. It characterized by it’s blue claws. The blue crabs undergo a life cycle of: zoeae, megalop, juvenile, and adulthood. The blue crab’s hard shells serve as a protective barrier for external dangers. The Callinectes sapidus comes from the order of Decapods, whereby it’s carapace has now evolved to be better suited for swimming. Of interest is the blue crab’s mating

Each spring, the Delaware Bay becomes the site of one of the most spectacular and ancient phenomena in the natural world: the spawning of horseshoe crabs and the flocking of ravenous shorebirds that depend on them.

The horseshoe crab and the trilobite do share a common ancestor. There are many pieces of evidence in the anatomy of both species that support this claim. A first piece of evidence is that both species have an outer exoskeleton but no internal skeleton. This separates both of them from vertebrates, making both of them invertebrates. The second piece of evidence supporting walking legs of both species are also positioned on the underside of the animal, protected under the shell. Both the trilobite and the horseshoe crab have one horseshoe-shaped cephalothorax with a raised ridge in the middle of it and two eyes positioned on either side of the ridge. The mouth of both species is on the underside of the body as well, unlike crustaceans and insects

In the article entitled “SeaWorld tanks or sea pens? Dispute over which is best for orcas continues,” the Los Angeles Times is mainly focused on a dispute over releasing killer whales, SeaWorld thinks orcas would be safer in a large tank while animal activists and SeaWorld critics want orcas given a sense of freedom in a sea pen. First, the Los Angeles Times explores how marine biologists agree that these whales will most likely never be freed and if a compromise is made, the closest they would get to freedom would be a limited environment: “But marine biologists — including SeaWorld critics — agree that the orcas probably will never be released to the open seas. Even if the killer whales don’t spend the rest of their lives in the theme park, the closest they would get to freedom would be retirement in ocean coves.

Now, this kind of crab can often be confused with other shore crabs, but there are a few characteristics that distinguish the European Green Crab. First, the European Green Crab has five spines on either side of the eyes, and three round

“Horseshoe crabs are some of the most successful life forms on earth.” They have been around for over 445 million years. Longer than even the pesky cockroaches. They have a blood that turns to jelly, creating a barrier between them and pathogens, keeping them safe from any diseases. But for the physical harm, they have adapted a hard shell or carapace to protect them from attacks. Horseshoe crabs also have gills as thin as the pages of a book, allowing them to breathe out of water for as long as they are wet. This is especially good for spawning. Speaking of which, they can also produce 90,000 fertile eggs a year, increasing the population. They seem unstoppable.

Maryland is known for their blue crabs, but if crabbers exploit the blue crabs’ population, Maryland’s famous blue crabs will be extinct. Blue crabs play a large economic role in Maryland as they bring in money for the state, whether it be from people going crabbing or eating crabs. With all the benefits of blue crabs in Maryland, the government has taken a stand to ensure a large blue crab population in the future.

I used to be able to wake up to the sound of my fiddler crabs scuttling. I would wake up, check on them, and go get ready for school. Unfortunately, they died when we left them with the neighbors. Now, my parents won't let me get any more replacements. Arguably, they should let me keep two female fiddler crabs. This has been concluded, because I take care of them myself, they are also cheap to purchase, and they are easy to keep while on vacation. I really love fiddler crabs.

BuccalWafers: A formulation consist of wafer with surface layers possessing adhesive properties, while the bulk layer consists of antimicrobial agents, biodegradable polymers and matrix polymers

In our effort at keeping algae away from our tanks, algae eaters can be great allies. Here is a short list of some saltwater algae eaters I know (more will be added later). If you know any other fish or invertebrates that should be added to this list or would like to add some information to this list, please use the comment box bellow. Thanks!

This study is designed to assess the hypothesis that the exoskeletons from decapods, specifically of shrimps and crabs, are capable biosorbents for the removal of heavy metals in waste water.

All are carniverous and have four pair of walking legs, one pair of pedipalps, and one pair of chelicerae. (Spiders, W.Shear) Each chelicerae consists of a base and a fang.