The creator of goodmorninggloucester.org Lover of all things Gloucester and Cape Ann. GMG where we bring you the very best our town has to offer because we love to share all the great news and believe that by promoting others in our community everyone wins.
View all posts by Joey Ciaramitaro
10 thoughts on “Horseshoe Crab”
I remember seeing these in Smith Cove when I was growing up. We used to love watching family groups all connected to each other – one time was a line of five crabs, all connected.
Then they just stopped coming into the cove.
We’ve always wondered if it was because the harbor got cleaned up… Good to know they’re still around a little bit.
They are endangered. They are used by eel fishermen as bait. It seems that horseshoe crab is THE BEST bait for catching eels. The plight of the horseshoe crab shows a real symbiosis that other animals have with this creature. The Red Knot feeds exclusively on horseshoe crab eggs, and since there are fewer crabs breeding and fewer eggs, there are in turn fewer Red Knots.
There are now regulations on the number of crabs that can be collected for bait.
Are eel traps similar to lobster traps with
smaller holes to get out? I know eel has become
a delicacy in some very fancy restaurants, did you ever hear of glass eels? They serve that
at Del Posto in New York, a Mario Batali/Lidia Bastianich Restaurant. I do not think it would be
something I would order. I find this story of
the Horseshoe Crab and the Red Knot Bird, fascinating and sad. I’ve passed it on to friends and family, people need to be aware of consequences of decisions.
Good Morning Gloucester 
I remember seeing these in Smith Cove when I was growing up. We used to love watching family groups all connected to each other – one time was a line of five crabs, all connected.
Then they just stopped coming into the cove.
We’ve always wondered if it was because the harbor got cleaned up… Good to know they’re still around a little bit.
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I hadn’t seen one in a while and when one of our lobstermen saw it, he said he hadn’t seen one in a while either.
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They are endangered. They are used by eel fishermen as bait. It seems that horseshoe crab is THE BEST bait for catching eels. The plight of the horseshoe crab shows a real symbiosis that other animals have with this creature. The Red Knot feeds exclusively on horseshoe crab eggs, and since there are fewer crabs breeding and fewer eggs, there are in turn fewer Red Knots.
There are now regulations on the number of crabs that can be collected for bait.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/crash-a-tale-of-two-species/introduction/592/
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Incredible story. Fragile universe. Did you find
the baby duck, Joey?
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Uhmmmm, yeah. It was reunited with its parents 🙂
They are planning a summer trip to Six Flags to celebrate.
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Your nose is growing…..
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How do fishermen catch eels with Horseshoe Crabs?
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The horseshoe crabs would be used for bait in the eel traps.
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Are eel traps similar to lobster traps with
smaller holes to get out? I know eel has become
a delicacy in some very fancy restaurants, did you ever hear of glass eels? They serve that
at Del Posto in New York, a Mario Batali/Lidia Bastianich Restaurant. I do not think it would be
something I would order. I find this story of
the Horseshoe Crab and the Red Knot Bird, fascinating and sad. I’ve passed it on to friends and family, people need to be aware of consequences of decisions.
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I can’t say that I have head of glass eels.
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