Nocturnal ghost crab (Ocypode ceratophthalma) predation on turtle hatchlings: Rekawa beach surveys?
How do horned ghost crabs utilize burrows and sensory tactile hairs to ambush newly emerged green turtle hatchlings scrambling across the night surf zone?
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3 Answers from travellers
On the dark, unlit nesting beaches of Rekawa and Kosgoda, Horned Ghost Crabs (Ocypode ceratophthalma) function as fierce nocturnal predators of emerging sea turtle hatchlings. Large adult crabs excavate deep burrows near the high-tide line. As hatchling clutches erupt from sand chambers between 9:00 PM and midnight, ghost crabs detect sand vibrations using sensitive tactile setae on their walking legs. Scurrying at speeds up to 2 meters per second, crabs ambush hatchlings, piercing their soft carapaces with sharp chelae and dragging them into subterranean burrows before the young turtles reach breaking waves.
TCP community beach wardens patrol nesting stretches at night, gently guiding hatchlings to the ocean foam to reduce predation mortality.
Ghost crabs possess large periscopic eyes with terminal horn-like stalks, giving them 360-degree panoramic vision across open beach sands under starlight.
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