Fiddler crab

Big scissors like pliers are cool

Scientific name	Uca arcuata
English name	Fiddler crab
Japanese name	Shiomaneki
Classification	Malacostraca
Classification details	Decapoda Ocypodidae
Full length	35mm (crustacean)
Distribution	coast west of Shizuoka Prefecture

Characteristics

A crab belonging to the family Poor crab, in which one of the pincers of the male becomes very large. It is the largest fiddler crab that lives in Japan. The large pincers of the male have a rough surface, and the shape resembles pliers and is powerful. The body has a light red color, but the color becomes difficult to distinguish when covered with mud. The eyes are elongated and green in color, protruding from the center of the shell.

Fiddler crab scissors

Males have one pincer as large as their shell, while females have smaller pincers. This is an easy-to-understand example of sexual dimorphism, where males and females differ greatly in morphology. It is said that the Japanese name "shiomaneki" was given because the male waving his pincers when courting a female seemed to invite the tide to rise. .

Habitat status of fiddler crabs

Their main habitat is tidal flats, but their numbers are declining due to the reduction of tidal flats due to human activities. In 2006, it was upgraded from near-threatened to endangered.

How to eat freshwater crab

It can be eaten boiled in soy or deep-fried.When I was a child, I also tried to eat it fried. It's delicious if you fry it until it's crispy. If the method of frying is not sufficient, a fishy smell will remain.

Ecology

Inhabits coastal areas near tidal flats and river mouths. At high tide, they dig burrows that are barely submerged in seawater, and quickly escape from predators such as herons and sandpipers. For food, they mainly eat plankton and detritus in sand and mud, filter them in their mouths, and ingest them.

Habitat

Found in the tidal flats of Higashiyoka tidal flat in Saga Prefecture. There were countless people walking on the tidal flats at low tide. It is very cautious, and when it senses a human approaching, it burrows into its burrow. I was able to observe fiddler crabs, which appeared on the road along the tidal flat and could not return to their burrows, up close. Many herons landed on the tidal flat and were eating something out of the mud. I think fiddler crabs were probably eaten as well. If you use the free telescope on the embankment, you can observe mudskippers and other tidal flat creatures.