Hundreds Of Horseshoe Crabs Spotted Dead In Japan

Horseshoe crabs, which originate 450 million years ago and considered one of the Earth's oldest creatures, have been spotted dead on a beach in Southern Japan. A conservation group found 5 to 10 bodies of horseshoe crabs and totalled to about 500 of the said creature washed dead on shore.

A local official said that the conservation group has observed the number of arthropods that died this year was unusually high. Kenji Sato, a city official of Kitakyushu said that the conservation group saw about five to 10 bodies every day during the egg-laying period, so they started to tally them. He further said that in total the number of dead horseshoe crabs reached about 500, as noted by ABC.

The number of deaths of horseshoe crabs found is about eight times than normal and that is around 20 percent of the local population. This is a foremost setback for the species as it takes a long time to mature.

Horseshoe crabs dying in Japan https://t.co/kP937lRJDC

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The scientists are still investigating the cause of the death. Some theories stated that it could be a parasitic infestation, rising temperature or a disease that is strange to horseshoe crabs. Other said that there was an oxygen shortage due to higher sea water temperature, according to Gizmodo.

Horseshoe crabs or also known as "warrior helmet crabs" in Japan belong to the family of Limulidae. They are considered the "living fossils." The blood of horseshoe crab is blue because of the copper that is visible in hemocyanin that carries oxygen.

According to reports, the blood of horseshoe crab has a sensitive coagulant that can identify tiny amounts of bacteria. Scientists have been using their blood to test the sterility of medical equipment and arterial drugs since the 1970s. One liter of the horseshoe blood costs around $19,960.