Townsville - Soldier Crabs

We’ve been to Saunders Beach several times now, but we always manage to see something new. Our most recent visit was at low tide and we witnessed millions of marble-sized soldier crabs scurrying along the shore like massed armies. They feed on tiny organic particles in the sand and leave behind little round sand pellets. In addition to the pellets, the intertidal zone is riddled with little holes from which the crabs emerge at low tide, and into which they dive if you venture too close, waiting until the coast is clear before popping back out again. Very entertaining.

Light blue soldier crab.

This one has a beautiful pattern on its back. I'm not sure why there are the differences in color. Could be male vs female, adult vs juvenile, or maybe even different subspecies, but they were all marching together.


A couple of holes and lots of sand pellets.



Lots and lots of holes and pellets.








I'm not sure what the white stuff is, but it makes for an interesting pattern (photo by Deborah)




Video: Soldier crabs on the move (16 sec).


Video: This little guy eventually decides he can't outrun me so instead buries himself. Notice that unlike almost all other crabs, these move forward instead of sideways (12 sec).


Deborah's crab-eye-view video (19 sec).




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