This Coastal Connection is sponsored by Baths by Spicer Bros.
DELAWARE — Horseshoe crabs have been crawling along Delaware’s coast for hundreds of millions of years, long before dinosaurs roamed the Earth.
Now, one unusually large horseshoe crab is drawing attention of her own.
Her name is Big Mama, and she measures about 26 1/4 inches long. She is on display at the Indian River Life-Saving Station Museum at Delaware Seashore State Park.
“This is Big Mama. And she comes in at about 26 and one quarter inch length,” said Mike Podgorski, a historical interpreter at the museum.
Podgorski said there are no verifiable records of an Atlantic horseshoe crab measuring more than 24 inches. Because Big Mama has been measured at 26 1/4 inches, the museum is claiming the distinction, at least for now.
He said the museum would welcome anyone who finds a larger horseshoe crab.
“If somebody wants to find one that's bigger, then great,” Podgorski said. “We welcome that kind of competition because all it's going to do is make horseshoe crabs the central focus, and that's what we want.”
Podgorski gave Big Mama her name.
“I just ... she's a big mama!” he said.
But Big Mama’s history is something of a mystery.
Podgorski said that when he began working at the museum about a year ago, the specimen was already sitting on a shelf in his office.
“All I know is that a year ago, when I walked into my office to start working here at the Indian River Life-Saving Station Museum, she was there on a shelf,” Podgorski said.
At first, he didn't think much of it. Then he began wondering just how large the specimen actually was.
“I'm like, this is a really remarkably large horseshoe crab. Like, well, let's measure it. Let's see how does it stack up?” he said.
Big Mama is no longer alive. Podgorski said the specimen has been preserved and wired together.
“She's a little bit of a Franken horseshoe crab,” he said.
Still, the species itself is remarkable.
Horseshoe crabs have existed for roughly 445 million years and survived major extinction events, Podgorski said.
“They've been around for 445 million years, and they've survived all major extinctions,” he said. “How did they manage to do that?”
While Big Mama spends most of her time at the museum, visitors may also get a chance to see her through DNREC’s Green Eggs and Sand program during the season.
