By Madeline Rozmus
The Conservation Commission as well as Friends of Greenwich Point collaborated to host a Horseshoe Crab Celebration on Saturday, June 17 around the Greenwich Point Yacht Club area. The celebration was intended to educate citizens about horseshoe crabs and their importance within the Long Island Sound.
The Conservation Commission, around since 1964, consists of 7 members who have been appointed by the First Selectman. Their terms are 4 years long, and they typically meet at 7pm on the first Thursday of each month. The town of Greenwich states that their ultimate goal is “to assist the Town with planning and management of its natural and cultural resources.”
Secondly, Friends of Greenwich Point is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting conservation, education, and recreation around the Point. During high tides throughout June, the Conservation Commission explained to attendees how they count the number of horseshoe crabs present as well as tag some of them that need further monitoring.
Firstly, they measure the crab’s width in centimeters on the widest part of the shell, and write it down on their chart. Secondly, they rate the crab on a scale of 1-3, one being perfect condition. Typically a 2 or 3 rating will be a crab that shows signs of age, such as barnacles, cracks, or marks on its shell.
Lastly, attendees assisted members of the committee to tag the crabs, with an awl that pierces the lower back corner of their shell. The tag has a website and a tag number, so anyone that comes across a tagged crab can submit a form to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Following submission of the form, they can get back to you with information about where the crab was originally tagged and released.
To fill out a form if you have found a tagged horseshoe crab, visit https://www.fws.gov/crabtag/.
Furthermore, members were educating attendees about horseshoe crabs. The Town of Greenwich found from recent fossil evidence that Limulus polyphemus (horseshoe crabs’ scientific name) have been around for at least 445 million years, and are found today all along the Atlantic coast. They can reach the age of 20 years old, and they molt around 18 times before they reach maturity, the town states.
Sacred Heart University explains that males and females are distinguished by their first pair of appendages: females have pincers, and males have a different set of claws, their nickname being “boxing gloves.” Another way to usually tell males and females apart is that the female is generally much bigger than the male.
The town reports that horseshoe crabs typically spawn around “predominantly mid-May to the end of June,” thus many attendees were able to see horseshoe crabs mating with one another. Females can hatch up to 100,000 eggs at the end of their spawning period, and the eggs can be a food source for “migratory shorebirds and finfish.”
The crabs themselves are another food source for “Atlantic loggerhead turtles and sharks,” says the town. Furthermore, they can be bait for commercial fishing of eels and conch.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission reported recently, according to the town, that the mid-Atlantic population of the horseshoe crab is declining.
Spawning Surveys by Project Limulus, which was created by the Sacred Heart University Biology Department contributes to research and potential conservation efforts. To learn more about the Project, visit https://www.sacredheart.edu/academics/colleges–schools/college-of-arts–sciences/departments/biology/project-limulus/.
