Horseshoe Moon

Horseshoe Crabs (Limulus polyphemus) mating on the shores of Jamaica Bay. It was the day after the full Moon, when the high tide lets them get farther up the beach, where they deposit their eggs.I have written much about these amazing non-crabs and how important they are to our health.

I saw a headline the other day about how nobody picks carrion beetles, worms, slugs, & etc. as their “spirit animal,” which is a pity. Plenty of people owe their lives to Horseshoe Crabs and have no idea that they do so. Other living creatures depend on Horseshoes as well, but in a different way. Laughing Gulls (Leucophaeus atricilla) are one of the bird species that gorge on Horseshoe eggs this time of year.