It's a Crab's life!
(Up Close)

This mangrove crab was pictured trying to hide from the camera whilst undertaking field work in the Currumbene Creek (Jervis Bay) mangroves. Mangrove swamps provide a nursery area for the juvenile stages of many commercial seafood species. Mangrove crabs are a vital part of the ecology of the mangroves influencing nutrient cycling and forest structure. Current research is being undertaken to determine to what extent increased nutrients in this ecosystem (i.e. urban and agricultural pollutants) is affecting recruitment of mangrove seedlings. This, in turn, will affect the local inhabitants of this ecosystem….like this little crabby.