tide pool crab

What the heck is a tide pool crab doing here? Isn’t he or she a long way from home?

Yes, indeed. This one was photographed last October while I was in Oregon and California. I found it in a tide pool along the coast near Brookings, Oregon. I came across the photo this evening while looking through my Oregon pictures and decided to post it to see if anyone knows which species this might be (click on image for a larger view). As I recall, the crab wasn’t very large — what was visible of the body was probably 2 or 3 inches across. At first I didn’t even realize it was a crab as it was squeezed into a tight crack in the rock with not too much of its body exposed. What particularly caught my attention was the incredible emerald green coloration. It was so jewel-like and beautiful.

Anyhow, if you recognize this crab, please do post the ID in the comments.

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16 Responses to “tide pool crab”

  1. neil Says:

    My guess is that this is a shore crab in the genus Hemigrapsus. The ones I’ve seen in northern CA I usually call purple shore crabs H. nudus. But yours might be a different species, perhaps an Oregon shore crab H. oregonensis? Hopefully someone else can verify…

  2. Wren Says:

    I don’t have the faintest idea what he is, other than beautiful. I’ve never seen one so brilliantly colored in real life.

  3. bev Says:

    neil – Thanks for that information. I’ll do some more looking around for info.

    Wren – It was very beautiful. I was quite startled by those brilliant green areas in the joints of the legs.

  4. robin andrea Says:

    This puts one more check mark in the column marked Brookings, Or when it comes time to consider where to move. What a beautiful creature. The colors are just stunning.

  5. bev Says:

    robin – Brookings would definitely be on my short list. Beautiful coast and tide pools.

  6. Mark Says:

    Hey Bev, I am typing this on my new Verizon wireless internet connection. It’s not as fast as yours but it’s much, much faster than the old dialup. It was a little flakey at first, but it eventually just started working. And it works just fine with my Mac. Now I can look at your pictures when I’m at home!

  7. bev Says:

    Mark – That’s great! One thing I’ve been thinking with these wireless systems is that the coverage may even improve over time as new towers are added, etc… That’s been the case with cell phones in our area as they used to be dodgy at best, but are fairly good now.
    Regarding the high-speed connection — it has certainly made a difference in how I’m using the net after just a few days. I’ve been finding that I’m spending much less time online, and yet have time to visit far more of my favourite places on the net. I even listened to a podcast earlier this week! (-:

  8. Cathy Says:

    A beautiful crab. It makes me want to travel. Doesn’t the idea of stepping into the cool ocean sound good in all this heat.

    I went to your post about your 2006 trip and had to smile. We share more than birthdays and our love of nature and sweet dogs. “I’m not exactly a happy flier . . ”

    It’s a real handicap for me, Bev. I do fly, but I know my ‘iffiness’ has affected my decisions about travel.

    (Speaking of sweet dogs . . you haven’t mentioned Sabrina. I hope she’ s ok.) PPS I’ll keep an eye on those leaf eggs as you suggested/

  9. bev Says:

    Cathy – I’ve been thinking about the ocean a lot these last few weeks. We usually go to Nova Scotia for a couple of weeks each summer and it seems weird not to have gone this year. I may spend some time in the PNW this autumn. If so, I’ll be sure to do a bit of wading around in the ocean then.
    I don’t care much for flying, although I don’t seem to be quite so nervous as many of the people around me. Considering how rarely I fly, for some weird reason, I’ve managed to be on some really bad flights with a lot of turbulence. Last autumn, on my return home from the west, the plane took a sudden dive and one of the flight attendants got tossed to the floor. I should probably write a post about flying some time. I’m sure that everyone has some good stories about hair-raising experiences.
    And yes, Sabrina is doing very well, Until the past couple of days, we haven’t been doing so much walking around together as the deer flies were bad and she hates them so much that I’ve been leaving her in the house. However, we were out for a few walks over the weekend. Last week, I shot this photo of her with one of the Monarchs that eclosed last week. It was flying around the house that morning, and I took this photo of it walking on Sabrina. She had been sleeping and looks as though she was having a bad hair day, but I think she’s feeling pretty good.

  10. Wayne Says:

    Good on Neil to have proposed an answer to your id request, Bev. That’s a jewel of a crab, but well beyond my expertise!

    Great to hear that Mark has improved his connection speed at home!

  11. Cathy Says:

    Awwwwww. . . . . . :0) Thanks, Bev. Just melts my heart.

  12. bev Says:

    Wayne – Crabs are well beyond my expertise too. I’ve tried to learn as much as I can about sea creatures found along both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, but feel I know very little.

    Cathy – She’s such a soft-hearted dog.. even with small creatures such as the butterflies. But then, I’ve found that most of the Rough Collies are much the same.

  13. Kathi Says:

    Wonderful photo of your Collie – I am a dog mom myself, and that picture touched me. The crab is beautiful, but well beyond my range of knowledge. I am interested to hear about Mark’s Verizon service. I still have pokey old dial-up (no cable access in my rural neighborhood) and have been wondering about alternatives. I have Verizon as my phone company – maybe I could get them for Internet connection, too. Oh, to see videos and hear a podcast!

    ~Kathi

  14. bev Says:

    Hi Kathi – Thanks! Sabrina is a truly lovely dog. Regarding internet services, I’d definitely recommend checking with cell phone companies and keeping up with the latest news from internet providers. There’s so much going on in the way of new technology, that there may be something available now or very soon. The outdoor WiMax modem I just got has only been available in my area since around April and I just found out about it a little over a week ago.

  15. Mark Says:

    As a diver, I thought I had seen a lot of colorful crabs, but this is a surprise to me. Great markings. Tide pools (ie. salt water) are incredible things to explore aren’t they? I only wish I had them here in Michigan!

  16. bev Says:

    Mark – Yes, I love tide pools. I’m really hoping that I make a trip to the PNW this autumn. If I go, I definitely intend to spend more time observing creatures around tide pools.