Crab Campaign: An Invasive Species Tracker's Journal
still expects me to help out especially in the summer when school’s out I don’t mind so much when I have the time but I have other stuff on my mind besides corn peas squash and tomatoes When I ask Mom why she doesn’t help she says she does the books and that she’d much rather take care of people than vegetables Guess that’s why she’s a nurse I need to get my parents to see the big picture the someday picture Instead they want to cramp my style with lists of chores I need to check off At the very least they should understand that I need to relax a little this summer Mom has her book club and Dad carves decoys of Eastern Shore ducks paints them in colors that are true to life and sells them in the stores in town He says it supplements his income Mom says it gives him an excuse to hang out with his buddies at the woodworking shop Still as the leader of the Guardians of the Bay the name our Science Squad gave to ourselves I probably should spend less time in the hammock and more time planning our next project At least that should get Dad off my back Boring summer here I come SCIENCE SQUAD
Invasion of the Mitten Crab Maybe I was wrong about this summer Maybe it’ll be interesting after all Today as I was drinking some of my mom’s icy mint tea and hanging out in the hammock no need to rush into this Squad leader business too quickly Dad came racing around the corner of the house He jumped onto the porch two steps at a time and waved a Wanted Dead or Alive poster in front of my face It had a picture of a fierce-looking crab on it Its name the Chinese mitten crab I found this nailed to a pole down by the docks he said They’re an invasive species that’s wreaked havoc right here along the Chesapeake Why don’t you check out the website Maybe you and the rest of the Guardians of the Bay should investigate these crabs this summer
In other words Stop lying around and go do something Chinese mitten crabs Talk about destiny I asked him to hand me the poster SCIENCE SQUAD Wanted dead or Alive Distinct Notch between eyes furry claws with White Tips Carapace Maximum Width of Four Inches Chinese Mitten Crab
He said You can borrow it but when you’re done with it return it I had to hold back an eye roll Put things back where you found them he always says Even though his advice gets old he’s often right After waiting a decent amount of time I didn’t want him to think I was too interested in his suggestion I went to the Mitten Watch website listed on the poster Here’s some of what I learned The Chinese mitten crab is from East Asia and has hairy claws with white tips and a notch between its eyes Its exoskeleton called a carapace is usually four inches wide in adults and its legs are longer that its body is wide just like me The scientific name Eriocheir sinensis translates as wool hand the Chinese Their mittens are actually patches of bristles called setae pronounced see-tee This crab looks like a troublemaker and it is It eats other species food and hogs their space so it poses a special threat to the blue crab It also causes erosion because it burrows into riverbanks causing them to collapse Crab Campaign
