How Old Is The Oldest Horseshoe Crab?

450 million years old. They’re living fossils. These ocean critters predate the dinosaurs! The oldest known horseshoe crab species, (Lunataspis aurora) was discovered by scientists in 2008 and is estimated to be nearly 450 million years old. How long has the horseshoe crab lived? 445 million yearsHorseshoe crabs are “living Read more…

Do Horseshoe Crabs Swim?

Horseshoe crabs swim or crawl as their primary means of locomotion. Both larvae and juveniles are more active at night than during the day (Rudloe, 1979; Shuster, 1982: Thompson, 1998). Why is my horseshoe crab swimming? Well first, let’s explore why horseshoe crabs swim at all. Scientists believe swimming my Read more…

Do Horseshoe Crabs See?

Eyes. Horseshoe crabs have a total of 10 eyes used for finding mates and sensing light. The most obvious eyes are the 2 lateral compound eyes. These are used for finding mates during the spawning season. Do crabs see with their eyes? The crabs’ eyes are made up of 8,000 Read more…

Why Do Horseshoe Crabs Have Copper Blood?

Horseshoe crabs use a copper-based molecule called hemocyanin to distribute oxygen. In nature, copper turns things blue or blue-green. So that’s why their blood is blue; it’s copper-based. Why do crabs have copper blood? While our blood cells bustle around carrying red iron-containing hemoglobin to deliver oxygen to our tissues, Read more…

Why Are Ardennes Horses So Big?

They have been crossbred with several different breeds to make them bigger and stronger. The breed with the biggest impact is the Belgian breed, which this horse breed shares many genes with today. Are Ardennes horses big? In France, Ardennes stallions stand about 1.62 metres (16 hands) high, and mares Read more…

Can Horseshoe Crab Survive?

Horseshoe crabs went on to survive the extinction event that wiped dinosaurs from the planet 66 million years ago. Four species survive today — one found in the Atlantic coastal waters of North America and the Gulf of Mexico and three found in Asia’s coastal waters. Are horseshoe crabs immortal? Read more…