This morning the students walked a short distance down to Pottery Creek and went on a hunt for the invasive green crab. We are collecting data such as the carapace size and sex of the crabs that are found. Each crab then receives a small spot of nail polish to mark it before being released. The students found 178 crabs this morning, with only 66 of those being female. The largest crab was 7 cm and the smallest was about 0.5 cm. You have to have some good eyes to see a 0.5 cm crab! Thank you for helping us collect important information about this invasive species.
After lunch the group converged in the lab to conduct an experiment to determine how temperature affects the feeding rate of barnacles. The students were quite surprised to see the cirri of the barnacles extending.
Collecting data.
Marked crabs.
The hunt is on!
A female green crab.
Everyone got excited when the biggest crab of the day was found!
Counting the cirri extensions.
Patiently waiting for the temperature of the water to change.
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