Hello Mr. Krabs - Part 2 (Horn eyed Ghost crab - Oxypode Brevicornis)

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I continued to observe the crabs every day for the next 4 or 5 days. I just sat and watched them go on with their usual activity.

I was getting curious to know more about my new friend. With the help of the pictures that I had taken, I tried to match it with similar crabs I found online. This eventually led me this website called Inaturalist.org

INaturalist.org is a worldwide community of nature lovers who share their everyday observations of species in their natural habitat. In here, I found a local guide for Chennai coast called Coastal biodiversity of Chennai. Through this link, I was able to identify my crab.



The common name of this crab species is Horn eyed Ghost crab. 

Its scientific name is Oxypode Brevicornis.(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocypode_brevicornis).

More from Wikipedia on Ghost crabs:

Ghost crabs are semiterrestrial crabs of the subfamily Ocypodinae. They are common shore crabs in tropical and subtropical regions throughout the world, inhabiting deep burrows in the intertidal zone. They are generalist scavengers and predators of small animals. The name "ghost crab" derives from their nocturnality and their generally pale coloration.[1][2] They are also sometimes called sand crabs, though the name refers to various other crabs that do not belong to the subfamily


Now comes a little bit of Zoology lesson. Below is its scientific classification. I have added my own simplified notes for each.

Kingdom: Animalia (aka Animals)

Phylum: Arthropoda (Arthropods are segmented animals that do NOT have an internal spine. Instead they have an exoskeleton - an outer shell of some kind for their protection. Example: Crabs, Lobsters, Insects, Spiders, Millipedes etc)

Subphylum; Crustacea (Crustacea are aquatic Arthropods that go through a larva stage. Crustacea also have biramous limbs (limb that branches into two) as opposed to Uniramous limbs (limbs that do not branch into two) in other Arthropods. Examples: Crabs, Lobsters.

Class: Malacostraca (These are crustaceans that have 20 body segments).
Order: Decapoda
Family: Ocipodidae
Genus: Ocipode
Species: O. Breviconnis.

Here is a small clip that I captured of the Ghost crab slowly and cautiously moving out of its burrow.






Hope to learn more about this fascinating animal in future. Thanks for reading this and for following me in my journey.
















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