Begun in the 1990s, Project Limulus is a partnership by researchers at Sacred Heart University, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and citizen scientists, to monitor the population ecology of the eastern horseshoe crab, Limulus Polyphemus, a remarkable species of Marine Arthropod that has been around for 400 million years.
In the late spring, Limulus Polyphemus visits various locations along the Connecticut shoreline to mate. When volunteers find a crab specimen, they carry out scientific measurements and then give the crab a tag to help monitor population and habitat changes over time. Bioregional Group member Aaron Goode has been a volunteer tagger for the last two years. These photos were taken at a tagging expedition last night (June 2, 2015) at Calf Pasture Beach in Norwalk.
We’ll be talking more about (and hopefully seeing specimens of!) this amazing species on our CT Trails Day walk this Sunday at Sandy Point. Join us!