The horseshoe is not a true crab. It is a large sea animal more closely related to spiders and scorpions. Because it looks like a crab and lives in saltwater, most people think it belongs to the crab species, failing to notice that it does not have the visible claws of true crabs.
Its name comes from the fact that from the top its shell looks like a horse’s hoof, and from the bottom it looks like a horseshoe. Every year its shell is discarded and a new one grows in its place. A large shell can be more than a foot across. The crab’s whole body is covered by this shell, including one pair of eyes and five pairs of legs. The other parts narrow down to a long, sharp, rigid tail about six inches long. This tail is a weapon of defense and is also a support in moving along the ocean bottom. It also helps the crab to turn over when a wave has turned it upside down.
The back pair of legs push the crab along the sand or mud in shallow water, and there are stiff flaps at the back to keep the crab from sinking into the sand. It moves rather quickly along the bottom in search of food, by scooping with its legs and pushing with its long, rigid tail.
Its food includes sea snails, worms, mussels, oysters and clams. It is understandable that oyster and clam fishermen kill these crabs whenever they can, but there are always millions more to replace them.
Horseshoe crabs leave their winter homes in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea in early summer, migrating north to islands off the Atlantic coast of North America. They crawl up on the beaches to the high tide mark to scoop shallow, basin-like holes in the sand or mud. The females lay from 60,000 to 120,000 eggs in batches of a few thousand in these holes, covering them over before returning to the sea. In about two weeks, these eggs hatch out in great quantities. Hordes of birds have an instinct given by the Creator to know each year just when the migrating crabs have laid their eggs, and the birds are on hand to enjoy a big feast.
What a contrast was the response of King David who wrote our opening verse when he thought about the wonders of God’s creation, compared to those referred to in Romans 1:2121Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. (Romans 1:21): “When they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful.” How wonderful to know the love of God and thank Him for His Son, the Saviour of sinners. Are you a thankful person or an unthankful one?
ML-07/10/2011