Welcome Horseshoe Crab program

Last night, we had a nice group in attendance for our Welcome Horseshoe Crab program. We learned that the horseshoe crab species is older than the dinosaurs, that horseshoe crabs can see all the way around their body (360 degrees)and that they have blue blood with copper in it. (It is the copper that makes the blood blue.) Here is a link to Miss Linda's slides from the program. Afterwards, Let's Do Science Club members introduced some of our new friends to the horseshoe crabs. We also fed them their dinner.

During the program, we came up with two questions that the Let's Do Science Club will try to answer. 1. Do horseshoe crabs see in color? 2. How long does it take them to molt their shells when they grow? We'll be working on these research topics at our next meeting on October 20.

Robbie's Guest book comment

Robbie saw a red ball in the tank that looked like blood. It didn't seem likely that it came from the crab since club members noted that horseshoe crab blood is blue. At the Science Club, we looked at it under the microscope. Some people thought it looked like a piece of shrimp. Some people though that it looked like a dead crab egg. So, at the end of the meeting, we weren't sure.

However, on Monday, when Sam and Sadie were feeding the crabs, their mom noticed that one of the shrimp seemed to have a red ball in its middle. Do you think this might be the answer?

Apparently, that is the egg sac.

We will try to get a photograph of the red ball.

The first meeting of the Let's Do Science Club is on September 15 at 2 pm

Agenda

1. Introductions
2. Club Goals
3. Let's Do Science Club blog (Our website)
4. Upcoming programs
• Sept 27 at 6:30  Welcome Horseshoe Crabs--Everything you wanted to know.
5. What Science do you like?
6. Horseshoe Crab Tank Chemistry: What we measure and why
7. How to measure
8. Recording results
9. Let's Do it!

Next Club meeting: October 20 at 2 pm