EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Pacific Sand Crab

Pacific Sand Crab (Emerita analoga), Family Hippidae
Pacific Ocean, Central Oregon Coast, USA

Explanation:  Just twice the size of my thumbnail was this lone crustacean washed up just beyond the surf line on a long empty sandy beach of central Oregon, along the massive Pacific Ocean.

This is a Pacific sand crab, a common coastal denizen, but seldom seen in this area only because it burrows into the sand in the intertidal zone.  

This one was likely a male, as it was about 15 mm (1-5/8 inches) long and was not carrying an egg mass.  

Note that its dorsum (the top side) is rather camouflaged and blends well into the wet sand.  Perhaps this helps it avoid predation by wily gulls, although gulls can be wily indeed.