Horseshoe crabs appear to be disappearing from their familiar spawning grounds along Chandipur and Balaramgadi coast in Odisha’s Balasore district.
- Scientists have urged Odisha government to immediately come up with a robust protection mechanism before the living fossil becomes extinct due to destructive fishing practices.
- They have also appealed that the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change must place the Horseshoe crabs in the list of marine species for which a Species Recovery Plan has to be developed.
About Horseshoe crabs
- Horseshoe crabs are medicinally priceless and one of oldest living creatures on the earth.
- The blood of Horseshoe crab is very important for preparation of rapid diagnostic reagent. All injectable and medicines are tested with the help of Horseshoe crabs.
- Only few countries in the world have Horseshoe crab population and Indian in one among them. This is the oldest living creature on earth.
- Palaeontological studies say the age of Horseshoe crabs is 450 million years.
- The creature has lived on earthy without undergoing any morphological change. Scientists are surprised to find strong immune system in animal that helped it survive millions of years.
- Like Olive Ridley Sea turtles, these crabs are basically deep sea animals.
- India has two species of Horseshoe crabs and major concentration of the animal is found in Odisha.
Threats
- There are two to three major issues causing threat to Horseshoe crabs. Because of unregulated fishing activities, their spawning activities are affected.
- They come to coasts of Balasore in Odisha and Digha and Sundarban in West Bengal for breeding purposes.
- They select a suitable site for laying their eggs. Unfortunately, those eggs are also damaged by local people.
(Source: The Hindu)
