Crab Salad

Copyright 2011 Christine's Pantry. All rights reserved.

Horseshoe crabs are among the world's oldest and most fascinating creatures. They are estimated to be at least 300 million years old. The earliest horseshoe crab species were crawling around the Earth's shallow coastal seas for at least 100 million years before the dinosaurs even arrived, which was about 200 million years ago. Since that time, the Earth's land masses have shifted dramatically, thousands of other species have come and gone, but horseshoe crabs have survived and today remain much as they were those millions of years ago.

Horseshoe crabs have been used by people for centuries. More recently, they have been instrumental to scientific research that has contributed significantly to human health.

It takes eight to ten years for horseshoe crabs to reach adulthood. Scientists are not sure how long horseshoe crabs live, but some speculate that they can live for 20 years or more. Because very few horseshoe crabs live to maturity, the ones that do must have a life span that enables them to reproduce for a number of years.

The horseshoe crab has remained virtually the same for millions and millions of years. In virtue of that fact, the horseshoe crab, which is estimated to have inhabited the Earth now for over 300 million years, is often called a “living fossil”.

Most scientists believe that horseshoe crabs are the closest living relative of the trilobite, a marine animal that has long been extinct. Scientists believe that horseshoe crabs were among the dominant creatures some 300 million years ago. There may have been many different species of horseshoe crabs.

Today, four species of horseshoe crabs inhabit the earth's oceans. Limulus polyphemus is found along the western Atlantic and Gulf coasts from southern Maine to the Yucatan Peninsula, with the Delaware Bay as the center of the population.

Tachypleus gigas and Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda are found in the Indo Pacific region from the Bay of Bengal to Indonesia and Borneo. Tachypleus tridentatus ranges from the Philippines to the southwestern seas of Japan.

By http://www.ceoe.udel.edu/horseshoecrab/index.html

Blue Crab... In spite of their colorful name, blue crabs are mainly grayish to bluish green. Only the claws are blue, and the claws of mature females also have bright orange red tips.

There’s another easy way to distinguish males from females: Maryland locals look for the "apron." Males have a “t” shaped abdomen, and females have triangular abdomens that become rounder as they age.

Crabs grow by shedding their shells, a process called molting. They take in water to expand and break out of the old shell. A new soft shell underneath hardens quickly.

With three pairs of walking legs, they generally walk sideways, clearing a path with sharp lateral spines. Large, powerful claws are used for defense, digging, sexual displays, and to gather food. 

Males typically grow larger than females, sometimes reaching seven or eight inches from point to point, although five inches is the legal size for harvesting. Reportedly, some males have grown to about ten inches.

Crabs are bottom dwelling predators that live along the Atlantic Coast from Cape Cod to Florida.

Loss of habitat, combined with the blue crab’s popularity as a food for humans, has led to serious drops in populations. Population of Chesapeake Bay crabs has grown since 2001, but the future remains uncertain.

They are not only predators, they are also prey: some bony fish, as well as some sharks and rays, feed on juveniles and larger crabs, and the blue crab is the preferred food of the Atlantic Ridley sea turtle.

By http://www.aqua.org/animals_bluecrab.html 

Award... thank you, Elisabeth at http://foodandthriftfinds.blogspot.com for the award. I truly appreciate it very much. 

Crab Salad

Copyright 2011 Christine's Pantry. All rights reserved.

Ingredients:

1 (6 oz) can fancy white crab meat, drained

1 (6 oz) can lump crab meat, drained

1 (8 oz) Pollock & Crab mix, chuck style

1 small onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon creole seasoning

1/2 teaspoon dill

6 oz sour cream

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together. Store in airtight container. Chill until ready to serve. Enjoy!