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Post by Tim Abbott on Aug 15, 2017 19:05:02 GMT -5
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Post by Ira Runyan on Aug 16, 2017 9:15:03 GMT -5
Tim, I did not realize that there was different species of fiddler crabs in the state of Florida. I looked up some information on them.........
There are three types of fiddler crabs common to Florida: the sand fiddler (Uca pugilator), the mud fiddler (Uca pugnax) and the red-jointed or brackish water fiddler (Uca minax).
The sand fiddler (Uca pugilator) occurs along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts from Massachusetts to western Florida. Its carapace is typically a pinkish-purple with a bright patch of purple in the center. The leg color ranges from orange to brown. Sand fiddlers will occur in the same areas (and intermingle) with mud fiddlers, but are often found in marsh areas where the substrate is more sand than mud.
The mud fiddler (Uca pugnax) ranges from Massachusetts to Florida, and is common in Florida marshes along the Atlantic coast. The carapace is brown in color, with the front of the shell and eye stalks ranging from blue to turquoise. The large claw of the male is yellowish orange to yellowish white, and the walking legs are dark and banded. The mud fiddler generally prefers a muddy marsh habitat where the substrate is relatively free of heavy plant roots, but stable enough to dig a burrow.
The red-jointed fiddler is found along both the Atlantic and Gulf coasts from Cape Cod to Texas. This crab is slightly larger than the mud or sand fiddler, and identified by the red color at the joints of the male’s large claw. It prefers a slightly different habitat and is more common in low salinity or even freshwater marshes. This crab can tolerate low oxygen conditions, and may actually move closer to terrestrial areas away from the tidal zone of marshes.
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Post by Tim Abbott on Aug 17, 2017 5:07:41 GMT -5
Thanks Ira, These didn't look like the fiddler crabs I saw at Pine Island.
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