Buhairi Rifqa Moustafid
The horseshoe crab is an ancient crustacean that has persisted to this day, exhibiting various unique characteristics.
It possesses a hard exoskeleton and ten legs utilized for walking on the ocean floor.
The Horseshoe Crab, known by its Latin name Tachypleus gigas, belongs to the arthropod phylum, sharing kinship with scorpions and spiders.
Its habitat encompasses shallow waters, such as mangrove forests and shallow marsh areas. Horseshoe crabs are nocturnal creatures, actively hunting for prey during the night.
The male Horseshoe Crab is smaller than the female, with males measuring between 14-15 inches or 36-38 centimeters and females measuring 18-19 inches or 46-48 centimeters from head to tail.
During the breeding season, they migrate in groups to the shore, depositing their eggs in sand burrows they dig.
Typically, they can lay a substantial number of eggs, ranging from 2,000 to 20,000. Successfully fertilized eggs hatch into larvae within a few weeks.
Read also: Black Stork, The Genius Hunter in a World Without Enemies
Contents
The Blue-Color Blood Older than Dinosaurs
As an ancient creature that existed for over 400 million years, the horseshoe crab surpasses the age of dinosaurs.
This creature, closely related to scorpions, is sometimes referred to as a living fossil recognized to have appeared since the Ordovician Period.
Another unique feature is its blue-colored blood, devoid of hemoglobin or red blood cells, but containing hemocyanin.
Hemocyanin, a copper-containing oxygen-carrying protein, emits a bluish-green color when exposed to air. Interestingly, it is this blood that holds significant value for humans.
This was discovered in 1956 when it was found that their blue blood contains special amebocyte cells capable of detecting bacteria.
This ability is utilized to test the sterility of drugs or vaccines before human use.
Since 1970, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has mandated testing all injectable drugs and vaccines using horseshoe crab blood.
Three-Part Body with Nine Eyes
Its body comprises three parts: the prosoma (head), opisthosoma (abdomen), and telson (tail).
The prosoma, resembling a horseshoe, contains various organs such as the brain, heart, mouth, nervous system, and glands.
The opisthosoma has a triangular shape with spines on each side and a protrusion in the middle.
The lower part of the abdomen contains muscles for movement and gills for respiration. The telson is long and pointed, used to flip its body backward.
This blue-blooded arthropod possesses nine eyes scattered across its body, with light receptors on its tail.
Its two largest compound eyes are used for finding mates, while the other eyes and light receptors help determine movement and changes in moonlight.
Read also: Mantis Shrimp, The Beatiful Sea Creature ‘Aged’ with Lethal Strikes
Prefers Upside-Down Swimming
As an ancient crab with numerous legs, it typically moves by walking on the ocean floor using its legs.
However, it is also adept at swimming and even enjoys swimming upside down, utilizing ventral eyes beneath its body and its tail to determine direction.
The habit of swimming upside down is particularly common among young Horseshoe Crabs and diminishes as they grow.
They swim to search for food in their habitat, with a diet consisting of small marine animals such as small fish, worms, and crustaceans with thin shells.
These creatures feed by capturing their prey with their pincers and transporting it to their mouths.