GITAM School of Science records first confirmed predation by horn-eyed ghost crab on mottled lightfoot crab at Rushikonda

Key facts

• Researchers from GITAM School of Science, Visakhapatnam, documented the “first confirmed instance” of a horn-eyed ghost crab preying on a mottled lightfoot crab along the Rushikonda shoreline.
• The observation implies a behavioural extension of the horn-eyed ghost crab from sandy intertidal zones into rocky sections, “likely tied to nocturnal foraging.”
• Ghost crabs influence coastal ecosystems through feeding habits and burrow construction that “shape the physical texture of the shore.”
• Six species of ghost crabs have been reported along the Indian coastline, with at least three—O. brevicornis, O. macrocera and O. cordimanus—observed at Rushikonda Beach.
• The finding has been published in the November edition of the Journal of Threatened Taxa.