🪐 View in 3D Galaxy 📏 View on 3D Scale Stage

🧬 Biological Classification (Kingdom to Species)Limulus polyphemus

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Merostomata

Order

Xiphosurida

Family

Limulidae

Genus

Limulus

Species

Limulus polyphemus

Merostomata🌊 Marine predator / filter feeder

Atlantic horseshoe crab

Limulus polyphemus (Atlantic horseshoe crab · アメリカカブトガニ)

🛡️ Conservation Status (IUCN Red List)VU (Vulnerable)

DDData Deficient

LCLeast Concern

NTNear Threatened

VUVulnerable

ENEndangered

CRCritically End.

EWExtinct in Wild

EXExtinct

Geological Era

Extant

Diet

Marine predator / filter feeder

Length · Height

60cm · No data

Mass · Top Speed

1.8kg · No data

Habitat & Fossil Locality

Shallow coastal waters of the Atlantic from Nova Scotia to Yucatán, on sandy and muddy bottoms

💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed

💡 A maximum total length of 60 cm is similar to two 1.5-liter water bottles (about 30 cm tall) laid end to end, and a maximum weight of 1.8 kg is slightly heavier than one 1.5-liter water bottle (Comparison).
💡 Animal Diversity Web explains that studying how this horseshoe crab's central nervous system processes information laid the foundation for understanding information processing in other animals. It frequently appears in textbooks on vision and neuroscience.

Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.

📊 Mass & Speed Index (0–100)

⚖️ Mass Index (Blue Whale ~190 t = 100, log scale)39

Site-computed relative index from recorded values; not a formal scientific metric.

#대서양투구게#Limulus polyphemus

📖 1. Overview

The Atlantic horseshoe crab lives on sandy and muddy bottoms of shallow waters along the Atlantic coast; despite its name, it is closer to arachnids and is called a 'living fossil.' The IUCN Red List assessed it as Vulnerable (VU) in 2016.

🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology

On the underside of the abdomen are six pairs of flat appendages that function as gills, with the first pair covering the genital pores. Females are much larger than males, with males about 1/3 the size of females.

🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior

At night it feeds on marine worms, small clams, and algae, picking up food with its chelicerae, crushing it between the bristles at the bases of its legs, and passing it to the mouth. It usually walks along the bottom, but can also swim awkwardly upside down using its gill flaps like paddles.