|
by Wendy Toy
Stars flickered like candles in the night sky as Dad glanced out the
window.
"Time to go," he told Carly. "Let’s check you first.
Sneakers, not sandals."
Carly looked at her feet. "Check," she answered.
"Insect repellent," Dad said.
Carly sniffed her arm and wrinkled up her nose. "Check!"
Dad handed Carly a net with a long handle as they stepped outside.
Her eyes grew wide as she gazed into the darkness. "Can you just
go alone?"
Dad smiled. "I want you to come along," he said. "Just
the two of us."
He picked up a bucket and flicked on the flashlight. Crickets sang
and frogs croaked as they wound their way down the
path to the beach. The ocean’s roar grew louder as they tramped across
the sand.
Carly shuddered at the sound then grabbed Dad’s hand.
Dad pointed his flashlight to where the water meets the sand.
"Watch the light and tell me what you
see."
Carly’s eyes traced the beam of light to the shining circle on the
sand.
"Dad! What is it?" she screamed.
Dad laughed. "It’s okay, Carly. Some people call them ghost
crabs. They look white or sandy in color and come
out at night. Watch again."
Dad aimed the light at the edge of the water. Carly saw a crab run
out of the ocean. It skimmed across
the wet,
hardened sand and kept its legs moving until it reached the dry, soft
sand near the dunes.
"Look Dad!" Carly still held Dad’s hand. "The crab
disappeared."
"The crab found its home," Dad explained. "Crabs dig
holes and stay in these homes during the day,
while
you’re playing on the beach. Let’s catch one of those crabs, and put
it in the bucket."
"No, not me." Carly took two steps back. "I’m not
going to get pinched."
"We’ll be careful," Dad said. "That way you won’t
get hurt, and neither will the crab."
Dad turned the flashlight to shine at the water’s edge once again.
"Do you see that crab?"
"Yes." Carly untangled her fingers from Dad’s.
"Place your net gently over the crab. Then you’ll need to make
a scooping motion as you turn the net
over."
Carly put the net down over the crab and made a scooping motion.
Grains of sand fell from her net.
The crab escaped.
"Try it again," Dad said. "This time, try to slow your
movements as you scoop the crab.
Dad pointed the flashlight’s beam on the ocean’s edge. A crab
scurried from the ripples of water. Carly
put the
net down over the crab, then took her time and scooped it up.
"I got one! I got one!" Carly tried not to jump up and down
as she handed the net to Dad.
Dad turned the net over on the top of the bucket and the crab fell
inside. The light glimmered on the crab.
"He looks scary." Carly stared into the bucket.
"Check out his features. First look at his eyes," Dad said.
"What do you see?"
"Alien eyes," Carly giggled.
Dad laughed. "Their eyes look like they’re set on pegs. Right
now those pegs are pushed out, but he can pull
them back in. Look at his claws. This crab has one large claw and one
small one. That means this is a male crab."
"What does he use those claws for?" Carly asked.
"He uses his big claw to dig out his home, or to fight, if he
needs to. Usually he gets his food with the
little
one, but he can use both for food if he wants."
The crab tried to crawl out of the bucket. Every time he would get
part way up the side of the bucket,
he’d slide
right back to the bottom.
"Time to let him go," Dad said as he turned the bucket on
its side. They watched the crab crawl
out of the
bucket and scurry away until he disappeared into a hole.
"Good-bye, Mr. Crab," Carly called and waved.
"That was fun!" she said as they began their walk home.
Carly listened to the ocean’s roar and felt the salt breeze on her
face. Many stars glowed in the nighttime sky. She
squeezed Dad’s hand then ran ahead of him through the dry sand.
"I like this place in the dark," she
called over her shoulder. "Can we come tomorrow night? I want to
catch another crab!"
DID YOU KNOW?
1. Only the male crab has the one large pincher claw.
2. A crab’s bones are on the outside of his body.
3. Crabs help clean the sea and the shore.
4. Crabs can
re-grow a claw that it has lost.
Copyright © 2003 Wendy S. Toy
Contact for reprint rights.
|
Math
