August 30, 1984 - The Fiddler CrabSFCOND SFCTION
Tbr 61iffolh Ti=5 August '30, 1984
The Fiddler Crab
By PAUL STOUTENBURGH
Most everyone has heard the name
fiddler crab, but few actually know that
we have three species here on the East
End. Two are the sand and mud species
and the third is a much larger variety
seldom seen. These fast - moving little
crabs are found most commonly along
our creek edges, where they dig their
tunnels in either mud banks or the
sandy shores.
When we were kids we always went
to what we called the Point to go swim-
ming or fishing and on the way out to
the Point we walked along a treadworn
path just above the muddy marsh. It
had been used by generations of people
to get to this favorite spot and all along
its course were fiddler holes.
No kids then, and I'm sure even
today, could go by these fiddler holes
without investigating them at one time
or another. We'd look ahead and see the
little fellows scurrying as you ap-
proached, ducking down their holes to
safety below. Of course, a stick thrust
down alongside the hole and then
pushed up would usually dislodge Mr.
Fiddler Crab or sometimes Mrs. Fiddler
Crab. Mr. has the large "fiddle" and his
other claw is a smaller one used for eat-
ing. The large claw is used for defense
and to rhythmically wave in the air.
This must be some sort of nuptial dance,
for you can often see them waving this
fiddle.
Just recently I had the pleasure of
renewing my acquaintance with these
curious little crabs. Barbara and I had
taken the dinghy on one of our explor-
ing trips and had found the banks of a
less - trodden creek literally swarming
with fiddlers. An army couldn't have
moved more in unison. They scurried
away in such a mass it seemed as if the
beach wes actually moving. Large ones,
small ones, males and females all
traveled together and as I approached
they headed for shelter in the tall
thatch grass that bordered the area.
Here in no time they disappeared into
holes. In many cases I'm sure it was
someone else's but like any port in a
storm it gave refuge and safety. These
holes go down a foot or more and are
excavated by the crab rolling grains of
sand or mud into balls and then carry-
ing them out and depositing them some
distance away. .
Often you'll see two males with their
big claws held out in front like gallan
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swords sparring for what must be the
rights to certain territory.
As we watched these fiddlers from the
-boat they seemed to go to the water's
edge en masse, for I imagine there the
feeding on the minute algae is much
better than on dry land. They feed both
places and often with binoculars I've ob-
served the females feeding with one
claw then the other in rapid succession
picking up the minute algae from
amongst the grains of sand.
I surely must have looked like the
giant in Jack and the Bean Stalk as I
towered over this swirling mass of
fiddlers when I stepped ashore. Their
bodies are only about 1/2 to 3/4 of an
inch long but their little legs propel
them rapidly across the sand.
They have beady eyes that sit on the
ends of little horn -like stalks and the
eyes must be extremely sharp for they
disappear down their holes and stay
there until �o,
sic real stu ,
then another, and another but as soon
as you went to swat a mosquito or chase
a gnat from your face the are came
alive with moving crabs scurrying back
down their holes.
We saw some of them carrying balls
of sand out of their holes. It must have
been quite a job holding this huge sand
ball half the size of their body and also
walking at the same time.
Once years ago, Barbara's sharp eyes
saw a female carrying eggs. Like all
crabs, the female eggs are attached
under her body until they hatch.
It was good to see these huge colonies
once again. There was a time back in
the 50's when aerial spraying just about
wiped out our entire population of fid-
dler crabs. This was the era of ignorance
in spraying when blanket spraying was
the way to go. Today we've become
much more selective and will not see
such loss to our natural population of
insects, crabs and fish as we did in those
days.
Everything is 2undview
Special at the
DIRECTLY Ou.l. D We stw i
raIlt
GREENPORT,NEW YORK
Complete Luncheon $595
Dancing in the Gold Room every Saturday Night 9 -1
Don Lee at, the Piano Bar
Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday Nights
Soundview Summer Theater Presents Neil Simon's Star Spangled Girl
Curtain 9:00 p.m. Wednesday Sept. 5th
Monday thru Saturday
LUNCH 12 -3'9 DINNER 3 -10.
FOR YOUR ALL MAJOR CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED 9 OPEN 7 DAYS RACHEL
Ynoio Dy r-aul owuw ... u v
FIDDLER CRAB - -You can always tell a male fiddler by its big claw.
The female has only two small ones which she uses exclusively for
feeding.
th/ ems►
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