CRITTERCONFIDENTIAL
I have stayed very close to home for this ‘ On the Spot ’ piece – in which I look at the species you can see in a single photograph – by selecting the ‘ high density housing ’ of a shallow rocky reef on South Devon ’ s beautiful coast . I think of the reefs like that because they always remind me of bustling and crowded blocks of flats , with every nook and cranny occupied and plenty of potential interaction between neighbours !
EDIBLE CRAB ( Cancer pagurus ) – This is a common resident and there are two tucked into suitable crevices in the main photograph . They are heavily built with an emphasis on strength over speed , but I enjoy watching them clamber up rocks in surprisingly nimble fashion to reach a wellshaped fissure . Occasionally , I find another edible crab wedged in behind the one at the front of its lair and assume that this is a female being guarded by a male partner waiting for her to become receptive . The arrangement serves the same function as the ‘ pre-mating embrace ’ of swimming crabs , but the edible crab ’ s legs aren ’ t long enough to do the holding !
VELVET SWIMMING CRAB ( Necora puber ) – This species is even more abundant than the edible crab ; it sometimes seems as if a pair of the distinctive red eyes is gazing out of virtually every nook and cranny on the reef . It is lightly built and has to slowly chip away at shells to open them ; I have tracked a crab ’ s patient progress by revisiting the same individual over the course of a dive . Pre-mate pairs and females carrying eggs can be seen at most times of year .
TOPKNOT ( Zeugopterus punctatus ) – I find it fascinating to watch these predatory flatfish glide menacingly among the reef crevices , and see just how common they are once you ‘ get your eye in ’ spotting them . Spending just as much time lying in ambush on rocky ceilings as they do on the floor , they have a highly extendable mouth , where I think a lot of young blennies and gobies , and possibly very small wrasse , meet their doom .
Colourful reef with a just a few of its residents showing , a look with a torch would reveal many more !
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