Fun facts:
*Horseshoe crabs are not actually crabs. They are in the same animal family as insects. Their closest relative are spiders.
*Birds eat horseshoe crab eggs.
*Horseshoe crabs have 7 pairs of legs under their hard shells (they have no antennae and mandibles (jaws)).
*Adult males have 2 special claws that look like small boxing gloves.
*Female horseshoe crabs lay their eggs. (up to 20,000 pale green eggs).
*Horseshoe crabs are colored to match the sandy bottom of the water (dark olive brown/light tan).
*Horseshoe crabs don't swim a lot. But when they do, they use their tail as a rudder. They sometimes swim upside down.
*Horseshoe crabs tail is called a telson. Their tail isn't poisonous and they don't sting people with them. Their tails are important as they use them when they are overturned. Their tails help them turn themselves back over to the correct side.
*Horseshoe crabs do not bite.
*Horseshoe crabs can live to be 30 years old.
*Horseshoe crabs have been on Earth for a least 100 million years. They were already here when the dinosaurs arrived.
*There were numerous species of horseshoe crabs, but only 4 species exist in the world today.
*Barnacles, slipper shells and flatworms are some of the most popular sea creatures that like to make a horseshoe crab a "hotel".
Finger painting the 3 major parts of the horseshoe crab: Shell (Prosoma), Abdomen, Tail (telson).