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Help identify and count spider crabs and their predators on underwater timelapse images
Learn moreWe have got three workflows for you to explore:
- "Crabtastic" - help us determine what our claw-some friends are up to! Can you spot any spider crabs? Do any have devices on their backs? What kind of crabs are there?
- "What else is there?" - help us document other marine life. What species are around during this time of year, when spider crabs are around, and when they are not?
- "What about us?" - humans love to interact with this amazing species and human activity might vary when spider crabs are around compared to when they are not. Can you spot any humans or signs of activity?
**** start June 2024 update: we're almost there! Thanks to your help, the "What else is there" workflow is COMPLETE! That's great news. The one is remains, "What about us?" consists of quick and easy tasks (and you'll be just as likely to see spider crabs and other marine life as for the other workflows as the photos are the same; what differs are simply the questions). Thank you for your work!
**** mid August 2023 update: thanks to your hard work, the "Crabtastic workflow" is now COMPLETE. Thank you so much to those who participated! If you're keen to join in, please check out the "What about us?" workflow (focused on human activity) and the "What else is there?" workflow (focused on other marine life, like fishes and invertebrates). You'll be just as likely to see pictures with spider crabs in them, but you'll just get questions focused on other aspects in the environment 😃
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Message from the researcher
Spider crab aggregations remain very mysterious. We are not sure how many spider crabs gather during their winter get-together, how long they stay, what kind of predators are around and how many predators are attracted to the area where the spider crabs moult. Our cameras have given us more images than our team alone can analyse. Will you help us find out by analysing underwater timelapse images?
Spider Crab WatchAbout Spider Crab Watch
Calling all ocean lovers!
There is an amazing natural spectacle taking place each year in Port Phillip Bay and other places along the Great Southern Reef - the gathering of massive numbers of spider crabs.
Despite this phenomenon attracting and fascinating people from far and wide, we know so little about the lives of spider crabs and about those gatherings!
Spider crabs need to shed their hard shell in order to grow bigger (a process called moulting). After this, they are soft and very vulnerable to predators. This is why we think they gather in such high numbers - to seek safety in numbers!
Your help is invaluable to gather information on one of the most mysterious natural wonders, to understand how long spider crab gatherings are taking place and what role they play in the environment, including for animals at the top of the food chain!