Taking part in this type of activity is what is known as "Citizen Science," a chance for any one to help gather data that is used to help in research, learn more about local ecology, to help track trends in populations, among other things.
|The beach was crowded when we arrived with kite surfers and families who slowly departed as we began to take to counting and tagging.|
|This was a female, I am excited to know more about her and where she has been.|
|After we did our sampling, we tagged crabs. We used a standard cordless drill, except a cork on the bit allowed us to drill the proper depth into the shell, as to not cause injury or damage to the animal. This one was a male.|
|Once the hole is drilled a unique tag is popped in. All data is recorded, and the diameter of the carapace is measured using calipers, this information will be logged so the animal now has its own unique database!|
|The female is fashioned with a nifty tag!|
|Measurement is taken with the calipers. The individual is held still with a gentle (emphasis on gentile!) foot or hand to help it not move away while you are working.|
|Another female is fitted with a tag before the night is up!|