#fiddler crab

[daily-crabbys]

Today's crab is: waving

[captain-kuppa]

Click here for a big ass database all about crustaceans. [No, they didn't sponsor me :( ]

[alphynix]

Strange Symmetries #20: The 16 Million Year Fiddler Crab Rave

Many decapod crustaceans have slightly asymmetrical pincers, often with one claw being chunkier and specialized for "crushing" while the other is more slender and used for "cutting".

But fiddler crabs take this sort of asymmetry to the extreme as part of their sexual dimorphism – males have one massively oversized claw, which is used for both visual display to potential mates and for physical fights against rivals.

Some of the earliest fiddler crabs are known from the Miocene of what is now northern Brazil. Although the fossils have been given several different taxonomic names since their discovery in the 1970s (including Uca maracoani antiqua, Uca antiqua, and Uca inaciobritoi) they're currently considered to be indistinguishable from the modern Brazilian fiddler crab, Uca maracoani, meaning that these crabs have remained externally unchanged for the last 16 million years.

Up to about 4cm in carapace width (~1.6"), modern Uca maracoani are found in coastal mangrove swamps and tidal mudflats around the northern and eastern coasts of South America – and some of these environments have also undergone little change since the Miocene. Males of the species can develop their enlarged pincer on either side of their bodies, with lefties and righties seeming to occur in equal numbers.

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NixIllustration.com | Tumblr | Twitter | Patreon

[ketrinadrawsalot]

Decapocember Day 7: Brachyuran crabs can be found in the ocean, in freshwater, or on land. They are characterized by a pair of pincers up front and very short abdomens that are usually tucked under the thorax.

(No one knows what infraorder Cheese belongs to)

[chunkfunkgunk-offishal]

Today, on CHUNK, FUNK, GUNK! We rate

the FIDDLER CRAB:

0/10 Chunk

4/10 Funk

0/10 Gunk

Not the coolest crab I’ve ever seen, but the asymmetrical look IS bold, so it can get some funk points. All exoskeleton, no chunk. Does not appear to secrete slime, no gunk.

[doubledealer93]

You know what time it is?

[feather-bone]

CRAB TIME

[ID: an illustration of a fiddler crab against a sandy background. Its claws are raised and it is surrounded by white motion lines. End.]

[sitting-on-me-bum]

A fiddler crab at Kiribati’s uninhabited Line Islands. The first destination of the Pristine Seas expedition will be the southern Line Islands to study the reef system.

Image by OggiScienza via Flickr (CC BY-ND 2.0).

[rachelsrandomsphotos]

Fiddler Crab (Uca)

Taken at Turkey Creek Sanctuary in Palm Bay, FL

[crabsinvideogames]

Katamari Damacy REROLL

[tofuthebold]

[daily-crabbys]

BIG

MEATY

CLAWS!!!

(Fiddler crab)

Today's crab is: big meaty claws

[captain-kuppa]

Atlantic Ghost Crab, [The Cannibal]

[Ocypode Quadrata]

Ready to learn about the Hannibal Lecter of crustacean family? Hop on board!

Starter : The Atlantic ghost crab, Ocypode quadrata, is a species of ghost crab. It is a common species along the Atlantic coast of the United States, where it is the only species of ghost crab.

Some fun facts about this good spooky fella!

A 2023 study using the well known mirror test found that these crabs seem to be capable of recognizing themselves in a mirror. They are self-aware.

The atlantic ghost crabs must return to water periodically to moisten their gills, and when larvae must be released into the sea, but they are otherwise terrestrial.

Their stalked compound eyes can swivel to give them 360° vision.

Fun Fact! Ghost crabs are arguably the fastest terrestrial invertebrates, capable of running at more than a meter per second.

The Atlantic ghost crab lives in burrows (like fiddle crabs!) in sand above the strandline.

These burrows can be up to 1.3 m (4'3) deep, and can be closed off with sand during hot periods.

Young crabs are cryptically colored to blend in with their sandy habitats. This way predators are less likely to see them.

Ghostie mate can produce a variety of sounds by striking the ground with the claw, by stridulation with the legs, and an incompletely explained "bubbling sound"

O. quadrata is more active at night than in the day, and is an omnivore, eating clams, mole crabs, insects, plant material, detritus, and even other crabs. They also feed on the eggs and hatchlings of sea turtles.

CANNIBALISM!? Traitors shall walk the plank!

Ghost crabs are both predators and scavengers, and they feed at night. Their prey can be influenced by the type of beach they live on.

These fuckers arr' also mostly carnivores. They got taste, don't they?

Pic by Eugene Bobylev | [Credits] | [Credits]

[chris-makes-art]

Fiddler Crab - Colored Pencils on Paper - 8 1/2" by 11"

[catwyk]

crab. do you agree?

yes. very powerful. very beautiful.

[mama-ino]

It's MerMay, and I've missed painting