Horseshoe Crab Facts: NOT true CRABS | Animal Fact Files

[@krumpnug9181]

I fell in love with them the moment I let one rest on my hand when I was young. It was on a field trip to a marine wildlife convention or something, I forget what but it had alot of shell fish and other marine related stuff. One of the people had various different shelled fish and one of them was the crab. He showed us their biology and even allowed us to hold it, I was the first one to hold it and it felt like a moving brush. After that they were my new favorite animal. They're just cool

[@AnimalFactFiles]

What an excellent experience!

[@cascadianrangers728]

Fun fact: Horseshoe crabs are not actually crabs; neither are they horseshoes

[@dranzerjetli5126]

Spiders

[@sirherothebrave]

Damn, I have been bamboozled!

[@steven200023]

what next are you going to tell me sea pickles are not pickles?

[@CreeseDF]

@@steven200023 😱😭 oh the humanity

[@imdeaded]

Forgot that they are neither horses or shoes

[@williamjordan5554]

They looked pretty much like they do now 200 million years before dinosaurs. The design is perfect for their lifestyle. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

[@redmist6630]

i love trilobites

[@Adventist1997]

I love how that's the explanation for why they haven't changed. Random mutations couldn't randomly make more changes over that long of a time? Not even a way to defend themselves or anything? Random chance doesn't wait to be needed, so how are they the same?

[@williamjordan5554]

@@Adventist1997 Mutations only get a foothold when they provide an advantage. That's high school level biology.

[@Lh0000]

@Adventist If you’ve already more or less perfected your lifestyle then any mutation that isn’t purely benign is most likely to be harmful, and therefor harm the host, and therefor prevent them from passing on their genes, mutation included, as the other guy said a mutations usually only stick around when they are in someway helpful to the animal, otherwise they don’t get passed on. If hypothetical a cat mutated and got a honey club on its tail it wouldn’t exactly help the cat very much, and could easily end up harming it so that cat isn’t likely to pass on its “club tail” gene. This is, as he said high school level stuff.

[@Adventist1997]

@@Lh0000 And yet they're seemingly endangered and so many are easily killed by their predictors. Their little spike tail couldn't even do much as it is... So how could they get this far and be so easily killed by everything, and not even any note worthy change? It takes millions of years for such change right? So why is there none of that change?

[@RGA301092]

I don't know what surprises me more: Kabuto is real, or that Kabuto is still alive.

[@lol5776]

At least Kabutops isn't.

[@Sungura_Kaiser]

@@lol5776 ...yet?

[@matteojames2312]

Most fossil Pokémon are based on real animals, most of which are extinct but all are at least quite old

[@tomsmith6379]

@@lol5776 are you sure?

[@lol5776]

@@tomsmith6379 I honestly don't know :(

[@FelisBX7]

Crazy how a species that's been around for millions of hears is suddenly classified as vulnerable

[@AnimalFactFiles]

I was reading a book that discussed how all species in same way have an "expiration date" in the sense that they will either die out, or evolve into something new. Whether you follow that or not, it's still an interesting concept to consider, y'know? So many species came before the ones currently inhabiting out planet today.

[@fmx6555]

Humans

[@114bleachfan]

@@fmx6555 humans aren't solely to blame for this in fact other things such as birds and Crustaceans have evolved to hunt horseshoe crab babies killing millions of them

[@K.Marie119]

Environmental pressures do not remain static. And the issues is not that their climate is changing. The problem is the speed at which it's changing. It took thousands of years for the last ice age to pass. Now we're causing the same changes to happen in less than 100,

[@alphatrion100]

@@114bleachfan Denial. Its us.

[@ReallyJustPlainProductions]

Remember, kids, if you see an ocean roomba on it's back at the beach, just flip 'em!

[@ElementofKindness]

I always flipped them upright, when I was a kid. Long before it was the ethically popular thing to do.

[@kaytlinjustis5643]

Thanks for this video! As a child, I saw a documentary on Horseshoe Crabs and have indeed seen one flip itself to right-side-up with its tail, though I'd forgotten much of the other information you have mentioned. They are fascinating creatures, and I love anything related to dinosaurs and the prehistoric! Keep up the great work! ^^

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Oh that would be awesome to see! Thanks for watching!

[@dominicsommer7187]

You just reminded me of something from my childhood. While growing up on the coast of Virginia, we would see Horseshoe crabs on the shores. My dad always told me never to touch them, he told me the horseshoe crabs cant harm us, but just never to touch it. Well... me being a 10 year old that never listens, i went down to the beach alone (it was a 2 minute walk away from our house) after school and looked around for horseshoe crabs. I had seen what they looked like form the bottom already but for some reason i really wanted to touch one. About 10 minutes of searching later and I see one about 30 feet away from where the shoreline was. In case it was still alive, 10 year old me had the great idea of helping it back into the water. I stand over it and lift it up by the sides of it's head shell thing/ While walking it to the water, i notice something didnt feel right about the crab. It felt really light for something that had to be at least 2 and a half feet long (including the tail). I look down at the crab and realize that im only carrying the head. The body and tail were still on the sand where i picked it up. It gets worse... I notice a crap ton of maggots all over the legs and body and what looked like a trail of maggots that fell out of the head while i carried it to the water. I did what any 10 year old in that situation would do... I dropped the horseshoe crab head, ran home traumatized by maggots, and understood the reason not to touch the crabs on the beach. Looking back on it... I 100% think that my dad made the exact same mistake as me.

[@frostandfire7164]

@@dominicsommer7187Shit yeah that must have been hella traumatizing 😂

[@laurindesjardins1363]

"That video was good!" - A Grade Two Teacher and a Student

[@AnimalFactFiles]

So glad you enjoyed it!

[@F-18Super]

I love how they always look angry

[@muddigger-to3xz]

I love watching these guys come up to the shoreline to lay eggs. There so cool looking. Love watching tyem.

[@AnimalFactFiles]

That would be awesome to see!

[@vincentbismonte3497]

You've been blessed by the youtube algorithm gods! Have a like from me

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Thanks so much!

[@draconicusmathiusanytherio7630]

Always thought it was cool how this species has existed for so long, despite being freaky looking under that shell(and one pinched me hard once at an aquarium when I let it on my hand)

[@PartyDude_19]

I remember one morning when I was on vacation, I stumbled upon a large population center of Atlantic Horseshoe crabs

[@valor1omega]

I remember doing research on this animal when I was younger. Humans almost wiped them out over their blood and left them to die. Mind you this was information found back in the early 90s so maybe I found misleading information but I remember hating those who harmed these creatures. I still am not not happy with humanity for their selfishness. Forgive my harshness, I just like them and I want them to be around for all generations to come. I became drawn to wanting to know more about the horseshoe crab when I got to see one at the zoo and then watched some wild ones come out of the ocean but always kept my distance. Not because I felt like I was in danger but because I didn't want to intrude on their natural cycle. My grandmother once told me "Take pictures of nature but leave nature where it is meant to be for it's beauty is there for all of us not just you to take home with you" I took that advice to heart, I take photos but I never take nature with me. Sorry didn't mean for a long winded response.

[@AnimalFactFiles]

I like that advice ❤️

[@tomsmith6379]

If they caught more and harvest a far lower amount of blood (say 1%) the crabs wouldn't be damaged as critically. Such majestic creatures to watch

[@wolfancap6897]

To me it sounds a bit counter-productive to go out of one's way to catch a crab, just to harvest blood and then release it, even more counter-productive if it affects their overall population negatively. Wouldn't it be more efficient to farm them? It would be a convenient way to have a "limitless" supply of blood plus it doesn't hurt their numbers, harming any future attempts to harvest their blood.

[@Kurominos1]

dont forgett many ppl catch tousnads of them bevor they even can lay eggs to cook them as an delicacy

[@miketheskepticalone6285]

They have been trying to, both as a resource and to give the wild population a bit of a buffer. As I understand it, they're painfully difficult to propagate away from their home ranges. Wish the lab boys luck, if they can pull this off rebuilding biodiversity becomes a viable goal in a lot of different areas.

[@wolfancap6897]

@@miketheskepticalone6285 Makes sense, well, here's hoping that it can be achieved!

[@quantumblur_3145]

Crab-likes in general seem averse to reproducing in captivity.

[@AnimalFactFiles]

This is one of our oldest videos! If you enjoyed this, we encourage you to check out our newer videos with better audio quality and improved editing. Here's our recommendation: King Crab Facts - kzbin.info/www/bejne/n56naGdnpdqEhMk We're also on Patreon! If you enjoy this content, and are able, please support us so we can continue to grow 👉 www.patreon.com/animalfactfiles

[@nja3224]

Many years ago, I went canoeing in a creek across the street from marine park in Brooklyn, and the shoreline was covered, blanketed with horseshoe crabs. I never seen anything like that. The creek is now a wildlife preserve, but I have to believe what I saw is an annual occurrence at that location. The sand was completely covered with them, had to number in the thousands.

[@hingadinga5694]

This video feels oddly cozy. Just a real cute and comfy documentary on spiky boi horseshoe crabs. It’s nice. Y’know, besides the decimation of half a million horseshoe crabs for medical purposes and the children being left by their parents to fend for themselves, though most creatures do that anyway.

[@AnimalFactFiles]

😺 💀

[@rodia_the_smg_guy5575]

Horseshoe crabs are so cool! There's so much to learn about animals

[@ryanmac1228]

"I was like a one eye frog or something in the primordial soup" "Lyle the one eyed guy"

[@unclebillsoutdoorandwildli8489]

Had no idea they were used so much. Was fun and informative to watch. Awesome video

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Thanks so much!

[@Envy1359]

1:51 That one boss from Dark Souls.

[@DonVigaDeFierro]

Damn, I found out that they aren't actually horseshoes either. Fascinating creatures.

[@ericmikesell5252]

Horseshoe crab babies are ultra cute

[@thetruthbyeli6124]

Can you do the three-toed sloth? I love them and your videos, so I'd appriciate if you did!

[@FurdemonLar]

Triops. I've often wondered how closely related they are to Horseshoe Crabs. Or if the similar appearance is mere coincidence. ❓🤔

[@firesighnavatar3283]

the most important fact about horseshoe crabs is I love them

[@thedukeofswellington1827]

Just an example of how fleeting humans existence is to the age and history of earth

[@Tallzom]

I love horseshoe crabs they are cute small funky boys

[@cascadianrangers728]

I have this re-ocvuring nightteeeor where I'm scubadiving, and get attacked by Horseshoe Crabs leaving the water, they chase me up onto dry land, hundreds, thousands, a moving, undulating ride of chittering bulbous terror. They begin trying to mate with me, and although I try to fight them off, or run, all my struggles are in vein. 🦀 🦀 🦀

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Whoa that sounds pretty awful!

[@melancholygirl840]

I love the horseshoes!!!!! I always make sure they are right side up!!

[@ashdruu]

not only are they not crabs, but theyre not horseshoes either.

[@yeeturmcbeetur8197]

I think they are adorable. Idk what it is. But they just give off that cute vibe.

[@harley8047]

Kabuto!

[@JS-jn8ku]

I never screamed so high and loud like a 3 year pld, when asked to flip one over back on its feet. The right thing to do, I guess. Yes, public embarrassment, but I was glad I was able to provide some comedy for the beach goers.

[@tenmiltenmil1770]

Monday December 19th 2022 Thank you for this vital and valuable information ! ❤️❤️❤️👍👍👍⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️😊😊😊

[@sararestivo6044]

THEY ARE in FLORIDA too

[@stephenl2571]

I’ve always loved these things, don’t know why

[@oofityoof1144]

are you guys willing to do videos on paleofauna? If so you should definitely do gorgonopsids.

[@AnimalFactFiles]

In the future we want to cover a broader range of animals, including prehistoric creatures. I'll keep this in mind when we're ready to take that step! Thank you. =)

[@Col28]

Fascinating!

[@Myrdden71]

Seen many of these over the years here in NW Florida at a state park. I thought they were cool and they never messed with me so I didn't mess with them, just watched them slowly scurrying along, especially the babies.

[@longboardcamify]

I had one of these crawl onto my lap when i was younger. Scared the crap out of me.

[@uni4786]

I found 2 horseshoe crabs mating on a beach and I swear I thought one was eating the other for a sec but when I realized I walked away and gave them privacy lmao

[@rfpt7576]

Could you do a video on sea spiders?

[@AnimalFactFiles]

I think those guys are already on the list! Hopefully we'll be able to get to them within the next month or two. =D

[@jamesotis4310]

Ok so you never answer how I owe my life to this thing .

[@quartzskull8772]

Yeah he did, their blood is special

[@VictorianTimeTraveler]

Horseshoe crabs are cute so long as you don't flip them over

[@The_Minds_Butterfly]

Pretty much the definition of if it ain't broken don't fix it.

[@earljohnson2676]

I used to go fishing every weekend with my dad before he died to young . It was Duxburry and we fished off the bridge and the beach was loaded with horseshoe crabs so cool I was scared of them but picked up a couple with my pop

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Those sound like wonderful memories

[@knotsoangelic]

if you haven’t already (i assume you haven’t) can you make one about rats…? Pets or wild ones, either or. Both are severely misunderstood. :)

[@rogerhuber3133]

Besides all this interesting info they hurt like hell when you step on them!

[@graveyardoperations7407]

Thank you, Horseshoe Crabs.

[@AngelusNielson]

I understand there's an alternative in the works, thankfully for both the crabs and the people who depend on them.

[@quantumblur_3145]

Lab-grown synthetic stuff can't come soon enough

[@joanmelnick1704]

Alligator Point is full with them. Nearly year-round, that is.

[@snopji2423]

this video has gotten reccomended to me so many times now, there has not been a day in the last 2 weeks where i didnt see it. Now here i am, watching this video about funny crab shoehorse while i need to catch up on sleep. God bless the algoritm

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Hope you enjoyed it! ❤

[@snopji2423]

@@AnimalFactFiles i certainly did learn a lot about this funny pancake with spikes. 10/10 would get saved by again

[@snopji2423]

@@AnimalFactFiles Even though i watched the video it is still getting recommended, i cannot escape it. please send help.

[@AnimalFactFiles]

@@snopji2423 😭😭🤡🤡🙏🙏

[@Base_Bass_Forte]

*Kabuto. That evolves into Kaputops* (my favorite ancient pkmn)

[@jakobylevan1694]

What are triminite

[@Darrylizer1]

You forgot to add that occasionally horseshoe crabs will attach themselves to some unwitting passers by's face and with their two foot long ovipositor deposit their eggs in the victims digestive tract. Following a two week gestation period, the immature horseshoe crab will burst through the victims chest and then go on an a nigh unstoppable killing rampage.

[@shadowprincess9817]

And that is how Kabuto evolves in Kabutops.

[@h4nkh4tchk1ns9]

Ngl I actually wanted one of these guys as a pet when I was little

[@AnimalFactFiles]

I liked them a lot as a kid too. Still do!

[@t-rexstudioproductions781]

Horseshoe crabs back 300m years ago looked alot more like Trilobites

[@fmx6555]

Start taking 1/4 blood instead of 1/3

[@Nil_25k]

My favourite shelled animal gets some love.

[@SpaceWaterfall1]

Closer related to arachnids than crustaceans? No wonder they kinda reminded me of spiders and therefor freaked me out a bit. I would not mind touching horseshoe crabs, scorpions and big spiders however can stay atleast 100 meters away from me please

[@skyguard1an]

They look kind of cute, but also pretty terrifying, do they make as good pets?

[@petejoseph8257]

The geniuses of alien. Don’t let one lay on your face.

[@quantumblur_3145]

These are earthlings through and through, not aliens. Do not disown your fellow animal!

[@Hyperion-5744]

I've only seen dead one's at the beach.

[@blendn3240]

Tides controlled by the moon? Possibly waves maybe. I always thought the tides were controlled by the caps melting and re-freezing every day and night but I may have read it wrong

[@monica012077]

Moon's gravity tugs on the oceans.

[@priestofronaldalt]

Fun fact: they are so unthreatning that some zoos will even let you pet 1!

[@maxsundux]

always see these guys dead on beaches or dead floating in the water while kayaking/canoeing they look really cool.

[@WeRNthisToGetHer]

That is so adorable

[@margarethe-jz1bm]

i love horseshoe crabs

[@R3dAnt89]

so the shell thing how and why is

[@melissathomas882]

Creepy like a spider

[@chop25official]

I have saved a horseshoe crab. :)

[@Sparky5]

Thank you for pronouncing "Species" correctly! The less educated pronounce it "Speeshees".

[@AmstradExin]

A Map with no Japan? Neat!

[@benmcreynolds8581]

The babies look adorable. Do the adults actually have any meat to eat or is it mostly shell and feet? lol have anyone been seriously injured with it's spiked tail?

[@AnimalFactFiles]

I don't think they have much meat. I believe their eggs are more commonly consumed than the crab itself (though I don't think they're frequently eaten?) and I haven't heard of any seriously injuring a person. Thanks for watching!

[@youtubeshark4yts461]

I saw one in Florida on a beach flipped over but i wasn’t if it was dead or not

[@AnimalFactFiles]

I've seen something like that too also in Florida!

[@adriennebodry4711]

There was a special spot i would go to in cocoa Beach Florida to sit by the water and contemplate life. One time I came and they were all on the beach like that. It was an amazing site to see. So I would go back regularly to watch them. Now there is a condo building there. 😡

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Aww that's so sad! Hate to hear that!

[@zebedeemadness2672]

That's why i leave the "crab" part out of their name referring to them a Sea horseshoe, because they aren't "crabs" they aren't even crustaceans.

[@SnuuySnuuy]

What came first the horseshoe or the horseshoe crab

[@batcat2338]

NICE

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Thanks!

[@hulick6910]

Horseshoe crabs have 10 eyes, placed all over their bodies.

[@DustyTheDog]

Just imagine if people just left their babies in the woods as a standard practice for parenting. It's damn wonder how something could last for so long doing something like this. I mean, the legend goes that Rome was founded by someone who was left in the woods and raised by wolves. Maybe horseshoe crabs and turtles, yet another to abandon their babies in a totally different environment, are onto something with the way they do things. hahaha, joking(I have to say this because it's 2021 and people can't make jokes).

[@quantumblur_3145]

Alternate hypothesis: the un-funnyness of your jokes is a constant, regardless of year. Also if our babies had hardened exoskeletons covering their entire bodies, it may well be a viable strategy

[@equanimity92]

Thats why they survived for Millions of Years - Not many guys have tried the dating strategy of just climbing onto girls back to reach her home. And you wonder why u cant get a date

[@youmadbro3961]

Probably will see us die too

[@alanrollf2856]

Your thoughts on horseshoe crabs

[@dannyspitzer1267]

Weird that they're called crabs when they're not crabs

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Common animal names have quite a few oddities like this 🥴

[@hectorzuniga8951]

TRILOBITE

[@kapigo4855]

just like we bananas are berries and we call non berries berries we call this arthropod a crab

[@acidshroom4717]

Oh this looks neat

[@shotforshot5983]

Ok. But what do they TASTE like? Do you boil them ? Serve them with butter??

[@quartzskull8772]

Typically you don't eat them

[@shotforshot5983]

@@quartzskull8772It's quizzical, one culture wouldn't think of eating ______'s, another prizes them as a basic staple or even a delicacy. I've always wanted to try giant tortoise for example. Every report I've read said they were absolutely delicious! (But they are endangered, I'll just have to remain curious. )

[@quartzskull8772]

@@shotforshot5983 fair enough

[@ruthlessrude6014]

Had them as pets and prey mantis.

[@AlexTCGProYT]

Hey, you see that thing? Let's draw its blood - Some scientist some years ago

[@sciencetroll6304]

OK gunna Troll here a bit. There is a species of these that live in freshwater in central Australia. You missed them.

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Oh! What's the species?

[@sciencetroll6304]

@@AnimalFactFiles Sorry, don't know the species . . . I'll look up horseshoe shrimp and get back if I find more. They hibernate in saltpans and the like for ten years and more. Back. U-tube ' Desert shield shrimp '. ' Triops ' because apparently they have three eyes. Where I lived the Aboriginals said the saltpan could stay dry for 20 years sometimes, but they still survived. ( as eggs ) . While I have your attention, has anyone else from Australia ever reported something that fits the description of a Maned Wolf from here ? Different colour pattern , everything else exact. My theory is they evolved in Antarctica and migrated north into South America and Australia, along with the marsupials.

[@AnimalFactFiles]

Ah tadpole shrimp. We have a video on them too: kzbin.info/www/bejne/omirhXRsYseDr5Y They're not related to horseshoe crabs but they look similar. And no I'm not sure I'm familiar with what you're describing. I'm aware of the Thylacine but I wouldn't personally describe them as mane wolf like because their legs aren't long enough. And then of course there are dingos but it seems like you're describing something else. I'm not sure!

[@ax.discord6002]

*Trembling* “ th-then what are they?”

[@elcoqui9513]

They can actually swim fast. Also they have a sort of rotating propeller which is weird of nature to utilize such technology. While funny I'm serious.

[@WILDWOODislandder]

You forgot one important fact horseshoe crab pincers don't have enough Force to hurt you you can stick your finger right in there and you'll just feel a little pressure not even remotely close to pain

[@CreativeUsernameHere-r1k]

Their carapaces look like german stahlhelms... wich are just the coolest.

[@FACELESS_VOID_00]

Does Seahorse wear this things?

[@GranRey-0]

They can make sheep that have spidersilk wool...so why not make another monster?