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Yikes! More fighting in the rock pools.
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A Shore Crab was mugged by local Common Blennies. A fight broke out, but in the end the crab lost out and had all it’s food stolen.
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The crab had already spent hours working hard for it’s living, by slowly but surely slicing out the hinges of a Common Mussel’s protective shells. Once the hinges were cut, the shell was able to be pulled open and the meat (the hapless mussel inside) could be got at and munched by the crab.
 

On this occasion, all it’s hard work was wasted, as, just when about to tuck-in, the local blennies turned up and set about mugging the crab and stealing all the food.

The blennies in this vid, demonstrate their cool fast spin, as one method of tearing off chunks of meat.

 

See the fight in our YouTube vid’.
Shore Crab mugged by Common Blennies – food stolen.

 

A quickie on the survival bit:
As well as a bit of drama in a salty sea shore puddle… there is an important point to note:

In nature the energy invested in “doing” things, must be less than the energy the living creature obtains from fuelling itself (feeding)….. otherwise it will begin to starve.

This video shows the blennies stealing the food (easy fuel), once the crab has done all the hard work of getting it open.
This crab, this time, would have spent more energy in opening and defending the food source then it got by feeding on it…. it didn’t get much of a chance to feed on it.

If too many of these situations occur, it will lead to the starvation of the crab

 

A quickie on the video:
The cameras were already set up to film how a crab goes about opening the mussel…. this was achieved (another video) and then this fight took place…. so here it is. Just another everyday hassle for the wildlife of our seashores.

Sea Shore Antics…. It’s what they do!
In this video:
Shore Crab – Latin name = Carcinus maenas
Common Blenny – Latin name = Lipophrys pholis
Common Mussel – Latin name = Mytilus edulis

  

End Note.
Perhaps the video may be helpful as stimulus for education or intrigue – To learn or start discussions on our seashore and it’s inhabitants.
(we’re all having a go at living on this planet… Earth)

The shore crabs, blennies and mussels, that are alive and kicking on this planet, in their environments….. are attempting to survive right now, today.
 
 
 

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