News

Volunteer Opportunity: Help Study "Zombie" Crabs!

Education, Volunteers

Posted on February 16th, 2017

Students from ECU sort through samples looking for mud crabs.

Students from ECU sort through samples looking for mud crabs.
Students from ECU sort through samples looking for mud crabs.

Did you see Chris Moore’s article on Zombie Crabs, here? You can help Dr. Blakeslee, Associate Professor of Biology at ECU, and her students determine if crabs have a refuge from infection when occupying low- salinity waters that are less beneficial to the parasite.

Dr. Blakeslee and her students are looking for volunteers to help pick through their crab “condo” collecting units deployed in several locations along these two rivers, including Goose Creek State Park, Croatan National Forest, and the Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuge, among others.

No heavy-lifting or special equipment is needed, and training will occur on-site. Some sites require walking and shoes/clothes that can get wet or slightly muddy. Volunteers can decide to meet us on site, or can accompany us throughout the day’s work (space is limited). This event will run from 1-2 hours or up to 10 hours, depending on the volunteers’ level of interest. Multiple collecting trips will be scheduled throughout the summer.

If you are interested in learning more, please email volunteer@soundrivers.org.

Volunteering for Zombie Crabs
Crab “condos” are small plastic milk crates filled with oyster shells. Crabs are attracted to the stable habitat that the crate provides.

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