This is an amazing animal – the horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus). A relic of an age before the dinosaurs, they have been plowing the sediments of our marine and estuarine waters for over 400 million years. They are thick ... READ MORE
Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural Resources
One of the programs I focus on as a Sea Grant Extension Agent in Escambia County is restoring the health of our estuary. One of the projects in that program is increasing the encounters with estuarine animals that were once common. Currently ... READ MORE
Category: Coasts & Marine, Natural ResourcesBack in the spring, I wrote an article about the natural history of this ancient animal. However, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is interested in the status of horseshoe crabs and they need to know locations where they ... READ MORE
Category: Natural ResourcesGrowing up in the Pensacola area, I do not remember seeing many horseshoe crabs around here, but I do remember them. What I actually remember was how common they were further east in the Panama City and St. Joe area. These animals are big ... READ MORE
Category: Natural ResourcesGrowing up in this area, I do not remember seeing many horseshoe crabs around here, but I do remember them. What I actually remember was how common they were further east in the Panama City and St. Joe area. These animals are big fans of grass ... READ MORE
Category: Coasts & MarineThis is a very old, ancient creature. Fossil records suggest they may have existed, in the present form they are now, 450 million years ago. This predates the fish and dinosaur fossils. Once found in several oceans and seas, today they are ... READ MORE
Category: Coasts & Marine, WildlifeTalk about weird and cool at the same time! The horseshoe crab is one of the oldest living species we have in the Gulf of Mexico. Fossils of this animal date back to almost 500 million years… this is before there was such a thing as fish! ... READ MORE
Category: Natural Resources