Aiden Steltzer - Hughes The Great Crab Migration Text

The Great Migration
They lurk for months in the damp swamps and moist forests along the coast of Cuba, an island
country. But like clockwork, each spring, millions of red land crabs begin making a long trip. They seek
the warm blue waters of the Caribbean Sea.
It is the annual migration of the red crabs of Cuba. The seasonal journey is so large that it changes
the Cuban way of life for about one month.
Journey is Difficult
On a route that can cover six miles, the red crabs skitter across main roads, causing traffic delays. If
they take a wrong turn, the red crabs can end up in any homes or businesses that might be between them
and the seacoast. This can be an annoyance because some red crabs end up in resort or home swimming
pools. Others climb walls or get underfoot. They face many dangers, such as cars and birds. Once they
reach the water, they might be pursued by fish.
Although the red crabs grow only to about five inches long, they can travel from two to five miles in
an hour.
Migration Assures Survival

Why do red crabs make this annual, dangerous dash to the sea? Ironically, it is so their species will
survive. The red crabs are seeking the seawater because this is where they will lay millions of eggs. The
eggs hatch into a new generation of red crabs.
The migration usually lasts for weeks as waves of red crabs, most laden with eggs carried in their
pouches, leave the forests and swamps and head for the sea. An average female red crab will carry about
85,000 eggs.
One might wonder why the red crabs live in the forests and swamps if their future is linked to the
sea. It is because red crabs once lived in the sea.
Scientists say that more than four million years ago, the ancestors of the red crabs called the sea
their home. But through a process spanning centuries, the red crabs learned to live on land. Their new
homes became swamps and shady forests.
Since red crabs breathe with gills, like a fish, they continue to need a moist habitat. To stay wet in
the forests and swamps where they live most of the year, red crabs dig tunnels and caves.
Then, during the early spring rains, they come out to begin their egg-laying trip. Red crabs travel
mainly at dawn and again at dusk to avoid the hot sun that can prevent them from getting the moisture
they need.
Red Crabs Can Halt Traffic

One area of Cuba significantly affected by the red crab migration is at a coastal area known as the
Bay of Pigs. It is a bay of shimmering clear water along the southern coast of the island nation. At times
traffic is brought to a halt along a 20-mile stretch of the coastal road dividing the sea and forest.
Many times, drivers discover that the sharp claw pincers and shells of the red crabs have slashed
drivers’ tires, flattening them. Stranded cars with flat tires are a common sight along the road on days
when the red crabs are most plentiful.
The red crabs that manage to scamper over curbs and other obstacles and dodge cars face another
challenge when they reach the sea. Most of the seacoast the red crabs have journeyed to is rocky. Red
crabs must navigate over rocks even when waves crash against these rocks.
The red crabs release thousands of tiny eggs when they finally reach the sea, but it is vital the red
crabs return to swamps and forests as soon as possible because the red crabs will not survive long in the
sea.
After they leave the water, the red crabs start the risky trip back to the forests and swamps where
they began their journey. Baby red crabs will hatch from the eggs in the sea and climb onto land within a
few weeks. Baby red crabs must then find the path to the forests and swamps where they, as a new
generation, will repeat the cycle of sea migration.
For about three years, the youngest red crabs will live in tunnels or burrows of older crabs and eat
food brought back by the older red crabs. The red crabs typically eat a variety of plant matter, such as
fallen leaves, seeds, or flower parts.
Efforts to Continue to Protect Red Crabs

The narrow road that borders the Bay of Pigs might be a hazard to the migrating red crabs. But it
also might help make their journey safer someday. It is the main route into a town where fine hotels and
beautiful white sand beaches lure tourists from around the world. As a result, Cuban officials have begun
creating “crab crossings.” They do this by closing some parts of the roads and sidewalks. Also, hotel
visitors and tourists are often told to travel in the afternoon and return before dusk to avoid the largest
red crab migrations of the day.
Officials are trying to find more ways to avoid disrupting traffic during the yearly red crab
migration. For example, on an island near Australia where similar crab migrations are common, little
tunnels have been built under roads. Barriers have been put into place to guide the crabs into these
tunnels, discouraging them from scampering amid traffic and flattening tires.
Cuban officials may adopt similar measures if only to keep tourists coming back.
After all, having one of these migrating critters puncture a car tire would surely be enough to make
any vacationing tourist a little crabby. :)

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Aiden Steltzer - Hughes The Great Crab Migration Text

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The Great Migration

Migration Assures Survival

Red Crabs Can Halt Traffic

Efforts to Continue to Protect Red Crabs

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