Crab Impostors...

It is widely known that the study of crustacea and especially the study of crabs is the pinnacle of any scientists career. Many a young biology student dreams of being able to have some experience of crabs before they graduate.

Alas not everyone is so lucky, unfortunately some unscrupulous scientists wishing to improve their own discipline choose to use the name crab in order to gain some of the limelight and glory.

Such things can catch out the unwary crab-watcher. So here is a guide of some of the crab imposters out there.

This aquatic 'living fossil' is not really a crab, in fact it is not even a crustacean, but is a distant relative of the spider.

And speaking of spiders, this species does not use a web to catch its prey, but waits motionless in flowers to ambush insects. It may even tackle wasps or bees much larger than itself.

This small (about 2mm across), wingless insect is so called because of their crab-like claws, which they use to grasp hair on the body.

This wader of tidal mudflats around the Indian Ocean feeds almost exclusively on crabs!!!!!!!

However this picture should please Dom.

Another predator of the poor crab, this time a primate.

A rosaceaous tree with white, pink, or red flowers and small sour apple-like fruits (which may be made into jam).

Another plant, this time a coarse weedy grass which grows in warm regions and tends to displace other grasses in lawns.

This expanding remnant of the supernova was observed in 1054 AD. Lying in the constellation Taurus at an approximate distance of 5000 light years.

Not a crab, but still a great swimmer (2 time Olympic freestyle medalist with bronze in 1928 (1500m) and gold in '32 (400m)) as well as a movie star and King of Serials as Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers.