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Shoreline
Invertebrates
Asad Ilyas
Introduction/Background
• The Bio Blitz is an intense period of biological surveying in an
attempt to record all the living species within a designated area.
• Groups of scientists, naturalists and volunteers conduct an
intensive field study over a continuous time period (e.g., usually 24
hours).
• This allowed scientists to collect and gain access to a large data
sample through which they can improve their research.
• This data may help researchers to identify new invasive species that
are invading the local population (e.g. green crabs, blue crabs).
Fun Facts
• When hermit crabs want another shell they attack other crabs to
steel there shells.
• Blood worms are used as bait for fishing.
• The eel’s backbone is made up of over 100 vertebrae which makes it
very flexible.
• When crabs are caught they release the leg they have been caught
by as a defense mechanism and run away.
LOCATION
PROCEDURE
• Nets, jars, hand shovels, and strainers were used to collect the
specimen.
• Some students also used waders to go a little further out of the
shoreline and capture specimen.
• These specimen were then identified, observed and recorded
into a data sheet and then reported on the “inaturalist app”
OBSERVATIONS FOR INATURALIST
BLUE MUSCLE
GREEN CRAB
BLOOD WORM
OBSERVATIONS FOR INATURALIST CONT.
BROWN RIDGED
MUSCLE
MUD CRAB
AMERICAN EEL
IDENTIFICATION OF SPECIES
• Informational guide manuals were used in the identification of
the species.
• The crabs were distinguished through the patterns, color and
most importantly the shape of the pincers and the body.
• Hermit crabs were unique and easy to identify because they were
encapsulated in shells.
• The Mud crabs were brown with stripes on the legs and body.
• The green crabs had ridges and dark spots on the pincers.
Data (SHORE-LINE PIER 4)
SPECIES
NUMBER RECORDED
HERMIT CRABS
37
GREEN CRABS
15
MUD CRABS
17
BLUE CRABS
2
AMERICAN EEL
1
BLOOD WORMS
2
BLUE AND BROWN RIDGED MUSCLES
11
Results
• As suggested by the data in the slide above the hermit crabs are the
most, whereas the blue crabs are the least, prevalent among the
species listed above.
• Only the common names are written in the data because the
scientific names were reported on the inaturalist app.
• Even though eels are not invertebrates we still recorded the one we
observed because there was on one specimen which imply that it
may have been invasive to that particular ecosystem (small scale).
DISCUSSION
• Natural ecosystems in modern society have been disturbed by the
human factor (introduction of invasive species)
• Studies have been conducted in the past about the dangers of
invasive species to the local population.
• The data that we collected and posted to the “i-naturalist” app
helps the scientific community to prove their point; ultimately,
appealing to the government to raise it’s focus on this issue.
CONCLUSION
• Invasive species (certain shore line invertebrates in this case)
endanger the local populations, thus actions should be taken to
insure the survival of these native ecosystem.
• Public awareness, regarding these issues, should be raised by the
introduction of government programs and seminars.
• Regular surveys should be conducted to after the removal of the
invasive species to prevent them from re emerging.