Fiddler crab hiding
Beaufort, SC
The crab’s smaller claw picks up a chunk of sediment from the ground and brings it to the mouth, where its contents are sifted through (making the crab a detritivore). After anything edible is salvaged, be it algae, microbes, fungus, or other decaying detritus, the sediment is replaced in the form of a little ball. The presence of these sediment balls near the entrance to a burrow is a good indication of its occupation. Some experts believe that the feeding habits of fiddler crabs play a vital role in the preservation of wetland environments; by sifting through the sands, they aerate the substrate and prevent anaerobic conditions.
Folly Beach is officially my favorite place in the world. Within minutes of each other today, I have seen a blue crab prying a claw off a dead, (but still very large-sized) hermit crab, a flock of pelicans, sanderlings, turnstones, gulls, a starfish, a willet, and a wet and shaggy but very friendly dog. But to top it off, after seeing their backs and fins surface repeatedly for a while, I just witnessed a pod of four or five dolphins beach themselves (something they do in play, or to catch food) not twenty feet from where I was standing with my feet in the water. I watched them in surprise and awe for a full thirty seconds or so before they sunk back into the water and left, fins still gleefully hailing me as they went on their watery ways.
