Trivia question for Jun-12-2011

Olivia would have no problem handling one of these… her brother on the other hand would be a little more hesitant.  These guys are Seabed-dwelling scavengers that live in rock and coral crevices.

Many of these produce rasping sounds to repel predators. This is done by rubbing the “plectrum” at the base of their antennae against a “file”. The noise is produced by frictional vibrations – sticking and slipping, similar to rubber materials sliding against hard surfaces. While a number of insects use frictional vibration mechanisms to generate sound, this particular acoustic mechanism is unique in the animal kingdom. Significantly, the system does not rely on the hardness of the exoskeleton, as many other arthropod sounds do, meaning that they can continue to produce the deterrent noises even in the period following a moult when they are most vulnerable.

So here are Olivia’s questions: What type of crustacean is this and tell us how deep they can descend?  Also, tell us how many miles can migrating columns cover in a single day?

Good Luck 😉

Answer:

Congratulations to our Twitter fan Margaret Miles from Ireland for being the first with the correct answer.  The crustacean we featured is the Spiny Lobster.  Spiny lobsters, also known as langouste or rock lobsters are a family of about 45 species of achelate crustaceans. Spiny lobsters are also, especially in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, sometimes called crayfish, sea crayfish or crawfish, terms which elsewhere are reserved for freshwater crayfish.

These guys have been known to descend to depths of over 330-feet.  Migrating columns of up to 60 spiny lobsters have been known to cover 9-miles in a single day.  Here is more on these resilient bugs. Spiny Lobster

Thanks for playing along 😉