Rising Tide Images
Excavating a Sandcastle
Shoveling sand to build a burrow and an adjacent sandcastle, this horn-eyed ghost crab scoops and carries with the smaller left claw then flings the sand onto the pile. Individuals exhibit laterality so they are right or left clawed. Males heap the excavated sand high in the intertidal zone of a broad sandy beach, thought to be a territorial signal to other crabs or to attract a potential mate. Able to run along the beach at speeds of 5 to 10 mph, they must be the world’s fastest crustacean.
Excavating a Sandcastle
Shoveling sand to build a burrow and an adjacent sandcastle, this horn-eyed ghost crab scoops and carries with the smaller left claw then flings the sand onto the pile. Individuals exhibit laterality so they are right or left clawed. Males heap the excavated sand high in the intertidal zone of a broad sandy beach, thought to be a territorial signal to other crabs or to attract a potential mate. Able to run along the beach at speeds of 5 to 10 mph, they must be the world’s fastest crustacean.