Courtney, UR- Horseshoe Crab Research Update!

First off, I apologize for the delay in answering a few questions, I can only do my HSC surveys every two weeks with either a new moon or a full moon so I wanted to be able to add some updated research progress in order to answer some questions!

As far as my research goes, I have recently been out to three different sites that I will be including in my IRP. The first site, Smyrna Dunes Park (SDP), I have been to three different times with no luck on finding any, not even a dead HSC. My second site, Riverside Dr. (RD) in New Smyrna Beach has given me some luck! This is where I was able to assist in the tagging of the first HSC to be tagged in Volusia County! Since then I have been back two other times where I found 6 pairs the second trip and 8 pairs and two unattached males (UM), meaning the males were found alone and without a female, the third trip. I was also privileged to be able to assist Dr. Jane Brockmann, Biologist and the renown HSC expert, in tagging all 14 female HSC (8 pairs and 6 pairs), pretty cool! My third site, Canaveral National Seashore, also proved to be successful! On my first trip with Annie Morgan we found 6 pairs, and a few UM as well as many dead ones that I will not be including in my IRP data. I defiantly plan to visit this site a few more times! So far I am not finding any relationship between environmental factors and the number of HSC present but that's not necessarily a bad thing, just more data that we are learning about these mysterious creatures!

Measuring the Inter Ocular space

Now to answer some questions!
Is spawning the horseshoe crabs process of laying eggs?
Yes, spawning is the term used for the process in which the female HSC lays her eggs and the male externally fertilizes them.
What is an optic refractometer? How does it work?
An optic refractometer is a device in which you test the salinity content of a water sample, I collect a water sample in the field and bring it back to lab to test the salinity, you do this by putting a drop of water on the plate and looking through the lense in the direction of natural light you can then read the scale in parts per thousand (ppt) to get your salinity reading.
How do the tags work? Are they like some that can be tracked live by gps systems?
The tags place on the HSC have a tag number so when you see this horseshoe crab again you can collect the tag number and record when and where the HSC was sited. This is used by FWC to keep track of population numbers and as well as what genetic population it belongs too. When I assisted in the tagging of the HSC a genetic sample was taken for data records so they can know more about certain populations. There is no way of live tracking HSC with this, it is basically just a numbered tag.

Tagged Female

I'd like to know more about what you used to tag it and how:
To tag the HSC a small hole is put in the shell of the prosoma (head) of the HSC using a sharp pick and a plastic tag is put in place. From what I can see the tag is pretty sturdy and holds well. As mentioned above the tag has numbers on it and is used as a form of identification.
Is it hard for the crabs who do survive the bleeding process to get back into their natural habitat? Do they depend heavily on other shoe crabs, and therefore struggle when removed from that sort of community?
Not much is know as to exactly how much of the population is lost when released after bleeding but we do know that their behavior is much more lethargic after the bleeding process. So to answer the question, yes, it is hard for them to get back into their natural state and it takes them a few day which makes them vulnerable to predators as well as other environmental conditions. Also, No, HSC do not depend on other HSC and survive just fine when taken away, the only time HSC do get together is during spawning but other than that they do not rely on other HSC.