Some cool intertidal organisms

 

This decorater crab was wearing a hat! (made of sponge)

This octopus inked so many times!

    In the intertidal zone, we observed many different species. For example, one creature was the octopus; part of the Mollusk phylum. We observed the octopus use an ink spray as a form of self-defense in order to deter predators. We saw the organism ink several times in an attempt to scare us away. We also observed the 8 tentacles that are used by this organism to swim, hold things, and get around on land. This was the first of many octopi we would see!

    We also saw a strange occurrence of a decorator crab using a chunk of sponge as a protective shell. It seems that the protective sponge also acts as a sort of camouflage in its environment, and helps to keep it safe from predators. These crabs are of the anthropoda phylum and must molt in order to grow. They also have 6 legs. In the second image, we observed a swimming crab. These crabs are characterized by the flat fifth pair of legs, which resemble broad paddles, these help them swim much better. It was so interesting seeing the different types of crustaceans! Even the hermit crabs that were everywhere along the shoreline had their own unique shell, which they replace with a new empty shell if they need a bigger one. 

Savannah Cole