Living Fossils Under the Stars
By Charlie Nick / Chesapeake Bay Program
Living Fossils Under the Stars
By Charlie Nick / Chesapeake Bay Program
When the sun began to fade behind cotton candy clouds, campers waited for high tide as a cool breeze swept across the sand at Flag Ponds Nature Park. Hosted by the Calvert Nature Society, the event was an opportunity for nature lovers to witness the late-night spawning of one of the Chesapeake Bay’s most ancient creatures, the horseshoe crab.
“It's a chance to experience something that you might not get to see otherwise, and that up-close nature experience is so valuable,” said Kimberly Curren, a naturalist with the Calvert County Natural Resources Division. “It only happens for a few weeks every year, and you have to be in the right place at the right time.”
The entire beach was open to camp, and everyone spaced out to find their own alcove. Once tents were pitched, Curren began building a fire pit while the rest of the campers bundled up in their layers, wandered the shoreline at Flag Ponds and took in the Bay’s calming air. At around 10:00 p.m., campers gathered around the fire where flames illuminated the faces of the newly acquainted friends. Conversations about each other’s lives sparked warm smiles and laughter as marshmallows roasted over the fire.
When the sun began to fade behind cotton candy clouds, campers waited for high tide as a cool breeze swept across the sand at Flag Ponds Nature Park. Hosted by the Calvert Nature Society, the event was an opportunity for nature lovers to witness the late-night spawning of one of the Chesapeake Bay’s most ancient creatures, the horseshoe crab.
“It's a chance to experience something that you might not get to see otherwise, and that up-close nature experience is so valuable,” said Kimberly Curren, a naturalist with the Calvert County Natural Resources Division. “It only happens for a few weeks every year, and you have to be in the right place at the right time.”
The entire beach was open to camp, and everyone spaced out to find their own alcove. Once tents were pitched, Curren began building a fire pit while the rest of the campers bundled up in their layers, wandered the shoreline at Flag Ponds and took in the Bay’s calming air. At around 10:00 p.m., campers gathered around the fire where flames illuminated the faces of the newly acquainted friends. Conversations about each other’s lives sparked warm smiles and laughter as marshmallows roasted over the fire.
When friendly chatter naturally came to a close, Curren began her presentation to educate the group about the horseshoe crab’s anatomy, behavior and history.
Having survived nearly 450 million years with little changes to their anatomy, the horseshoe crab is considered a living fossil.
“Their design is basically flawless,” Curren said.
The horseshoe crab has many evolutionary features that have helped them survive this long, including their gills, shell, tail and mating habits.
When friendly chatter naturally came to a close, Curren began her presentation to educate the group about the horseshoe crab’s anatomy, behavior and history.
Having survived nearly 450 million years with little changes to their anatomy, the horseshoe crab is considered a living fossil.
“Their design is basically flawless,” Curren said.
The horseshoe crab has many evolutionary features that have helped them survive this long, including their gills, shell, tail and mating habits.
With their shells keeping them protected, the horseshoe crabs’ gills are designed like pages in a book, allowing them to store water more efficiently. This adaptation allows them to survive until the return of high tide to right themselves if they ever flip over. Their tail also gives them the unique ability to position themselves in the sand to help them in that process.
“My favorite part was learning about their anatomy,” said Melissa Eckloff, who works at the Calvert Library in Lusby, Maryland. Witnessing the spawning event has been on her radar for years. “Getting to learn about the book gills and seeing them turn like the pages in a book resonated with me.”
With this event fueling her passion for the environment, Eckloff’s goal is to continue volunteering and attending more environmental events, such as the campout.
“This is important because if people don't have exposure to nature, they don't know what there is to appreciate,” Eckloff said. “Fewer people are spending time outside, and you can't care about or conserve if you don't know what exists, how it functions or how you relate to it.”
With their shells keeping them protected, the horseshoe crabs’ gills are designed like pages in a book, allowing them to store water more efficiently. This adaptation allows them to survive until the return of high tide to right themselves if they ever flip over. Their tail also gives them the unique ability to position themselves in the sand to help them in that process.
“My favorite part was learning about their anatomy,” said Melissa Eckloff, who works at the Calvert Library in Lusby, Maryland. Witnessing the spawning event has been on her radar for years. “Getting to learn about the book gills and seeing them turn like the pages in a book resonated with me.”
With this event fueling her passion for the environment, Eckloff’s goal is to continue volunteering and attending more environmental events, such as the campout.
“This is important because if people don't have exposure to nature, they don't know what there is to appreciate,” Eckloff said. “Fewer people are spending time outside, and you can't care about or conserve if you don't know what exists, how it functions or how you relate to it.”
Flag Ponds Nature Park is an adequate habitat for horseshoe crabs to spawn due to its sandy bottoms and protected coves. Reaching sexual maturity after about 10 years, a female horseshoe crab can lay about 80,000 eggs in one season, with only 1% surviving. Their eggs are also a valuable resource to the ecosystem as they provide food for shorebirds and other scavengers.
Having the ability to lay so many eggs in one season enables them to have a higher probability of the number of crabs reaching maturity.
“It's an incredible evolutionary design that has allowed them to survive this long,” Curren said. “They seem to have been doing okay for themselves, certainly until humans came along.”
From the 1850s to the 1970s, horseshoe crabs were used as a popular source of fertilizer for farmers, as millions of them were collected every year and ground into a powder for crops. Although regulations have been put into place to restrict this practice, horseshoe crabs are still harvested to be used as bait for anglers and for biomedical purposes. Habitat loss from development on beaches is another threat to the ancient critter, which is one reason why places like Flag Ponds Nature Park are so important.
Flag Ponds Nature Park is an adequate habitat for horseshoe crabs to spawn due to its sandy bottoms and protected coves. Reaching sexual maturity after about 10 years, a female horseshoe crab can lay about 80,000 eggs in one season, with only 1% surviving. Their eggs are also a valuable resource to the ecosystem as they provide food for shorebirds and other scavengers.
Having the ability to lay so many eggs in one season enables them to have a higher probability of the number of crabs reaching maturity.
“It's an incredible evolutionary design that has allowed them to survive this long,” Curren said. “They seem to have been doing okay for themselves, certainly until humans came along.”
From the 1850s to the 1970s, horseshoe crabs were used as a popular source of fertilizer for farmers, as millions of them were collected every year and ground into a powder for crops. Although regulations have been put into place to restrict this practice, horseshoe crabs are still harvested to be used as bait for anglers and for biomedical purposes. Habitat loss from development on beaches is another threat to the ancient critter, which is one reason why places like Flag Ponds Nature Park are so important.
After the campfire lessons came to a close, everyone turned in for a few hours until 1:00 a.m. to witness peak spawning at high tide.
Phone alarms and campsite chatter woke everyone from their sleeping bags to witness the spawning event unfurl. Flashlights and headlamps painted the shoreline, revealing groups of the prehistoric horseshoe crabs piled on top of one another for their annual ritual.
When spawning, female horseshoe crabs bury themselves in the sand as the males surround them, attempting to latch on. Male horseshoe crabs have a unique hook-like feature on their front leg, making it easier to latch onto the females. Curren bent down and lifted a male horseshoe crab by its shell and flipped it over to showcase its legs, gills and mouth.
“Don't grab it by its tail; always pick it up by the round part of its shell,” Curren said. “They're harmless, so they cannot hurt you. They don't bite, pinch or sting. If you see a horseshoe crab and it is upside down, feel free to flip it over.”
After the campfire lessons came to a close, everyone turned in for a few hours until 1:00 a.m. to witness peak spawning at high tide.
Phone alarms and campsite chatter woke everyone from their sleeping bags to witness the spawning event unfurl. Flashlights and headlamps painted the shoreline, revealing groups of the prehistoric horseshoe crabs piled on top of one another for their annual ritual.
When spawning, female horseshoe crabs bury themselves in the sand as the males surround them, attempting to latch on. Male horseshoe crabs have a unique hook-like feature on their front leg, making it easier to latch onto the females. Curren bent down and lifted a male horseshoe crab by its shell and flipped it over to showcase its legs, gills and mouth.
“Don't grab it by its tail; always pick it up by the round part of its shell,” Curren said. “They're harmless, so they cannot hurt you. They don't bite, pinch or sting. If you see a horseshoe crab and it is upside down, feel free to flip it over.”
As the night turned into sunrise, the mating horseshoe crabs scurried back into the Bay’s waters, leaving behind a few stragglers on their backs in their wake. With the flip of their shells, they escaped back into the waves, awaiting the next generation to join them in the future.
Campers packed up their tents, ate a light breakfast by the shore and took in the Bay's breeze one last time before the park opened at 9:00 a.m.
“Getting to see the crabs doing what they do, it's going to make people more mindful of what's going on with horseshoe crabs,” Curren said. “Anytime you see a crab, you'll think of this night and you’ll know all these cool things.”
As the night turned into sunrise, the mating horseshoe crabs scurried back into the Bay’s waters, leaving behind a few stragglers on their backs in their wake. With the flip of their shells, they escaped back into the waves, awaiting the next generation to join them in the future.
Campers packed up their tents, ate a light breakfast by the shore and took in the Bay's breeze one last time before the park opened at 9:00 a.m.
“Getting to see the crabs doing what they do, it's going to make people more mindful of what's going on with horseshoe crabs,” Curren said. “Anytime you see a crab, you'll think of this night and you’ll know all these cool things.”