Voices, Thoughts and Poetry
A Sea Of Crimson
The heavy Autumn rains are like a signal for them. Time has come to move from the inland to the Ocean.
In a journey that takes 5 days, along 9km, the red crabs of Christmas Island in Australia make their migration all together. A sea of crimson starts to invade fields, roads, 40 millions of crustaceans, some as big as 11 cm, are on the move. Drivers are invited to stop for them, underground passages are excavated and protective fences built.
The crabs have a goal: the sands of the seashore. There they mate. But the females will wait for the last lunar quarter, no matter when the migration started, to release the eggs. This is when the tides are less pronounced, their eggs are safer. And they know it.
In a journey that takes 5 days, along 9km, the red crabs of Christmas Island in Australia make their migration all together. A sea of crimson starts to invade fields, roads, 40 millions of crustaceans, some as big as 11 cm, are on the move. Drivers are invited to stop for them, underground passages are excavated and protective fences built.
The crabs have a goal: the sands of the seashore. There they mate. But the females will wait for the last lunar quarter, no matter when the migration started, to release the eggs. This is when the tides are less pronounced, their eggs are safer. And they know it.