Cute Little Rascals!

  The Bayou seems to be the source of never-ending discoveries.  Whether it be from the life found within or from that washed ashore by a storm, new things can be found each day.  This morning, those new things were truly "new".  Mark and I were checking the crab traps and soft-shell boxes when I found something far more interesting.  Baby crabs!  Yep, teeny, tiny crabs were clinging to the boxes.  They had obviously just molted into their true crabby form and sought safety from the wooden boxes.  It was quite the amazing and humbling sight to see something so tiny trying to survive in this wild (and sometimes cruel) world.

  Blue crab eggs hatch into something that looks far different than the shape we all know.  This larvae sort of floats around with the waves for a month or so.  It munches pretty much on a diet of plankton until its next molt which makes it look a bit more like its parents but is rather elongated.  This tiny tot rides the tides into places like the Bayou where it food is plentiful.  Once there, it eats and eats until it molts again and this time, it is a miniature version of its parents.  At this stage, it is only about twice the size of a pin head!  The wee crab must find lots more food in order to continue to grow and molt but it also has to keep a wary eye out for predators!  Just about every other critter in the Bayou is bigger than it at this point!

  While it was fascinating to observe the tiny crabs, it was also very reassuring.  If the Bayou and surrounding Bay area is home to millions of baby crabs, the waters must be healthy.  The Bayou is flourishing with the cutest, little rascals ever!