Photo of the Week

We are excited to bring back our Photo of the Week section so stay tuned for new content coming soon! In the meantime, take a look at these fantastic pictures from our teachers.

You can come out now, buddy, 2020 is over!

January 4, 2021
TAS ’18 Roy Moffitt took this photo of a hermit crab, one of many sea creatures found hanging out on an ocean-bottom mooring retrieved on his mission aboard USCGC Healy.

Photo: Roy Moffitt

The mooring is called a DAFT (Direction Acoustic Fish Tracker).  On the DAFT there are instruments that measure ocean temperature, salinity, and pressure.  The primary instrument is an echo sounder that records any schools of fish that may pass overhead. What the DAFT was not designed to do, but does well, is catch sea life. The fiberglass pallet has 1 1/2″ square holes in it that allow water to pass through on retrieval and it also catches sea life as if it were a net. Yesterday we pulled two of these “Legos” from the sea and they were covered with marine life. The most remarkable sight were the large blue king crabs, (around half dozen on one pallet). On the smaller size, we found a hermit crab (shown here hiding in a shell).
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12 photos for crab · Clear

This Earth Week, Celebrate BiodiversityApril 19, 2021You can come out now, buddy, 2020 is over!January 4, 2021While this bashful crab might be too shy to admit it, we aren’t: WE <3 TEACHERS!May 4, 2020Two Blue CrabsJanuary 13, 2020Consulting the GuideDecember 3, 2018Just what IS “plankton,” anyway? Does this small swimming crab count?February 27, 2017Just what IS “plankton,” anyway? Does this small swimming crab count?February 27, 2017Let it snow crab, let it snow crab, let it snow crab…December 12, 2016Not surprisingly, the common name for this deep sea species is “porcupine crab.”November 28, 2016Northern stone crabMay 26, 2014“Camouflage in the Sargassum. Can you spot the crabs?”April 28, 2014“The flaming box crab, Calappa flammea, uses its scissor-like claws to act as a can opener. It has a special modified appendage to open hermit crabs in this way.” – Kaitlin BairdJanuary 7, 2013