Show mother crab guards her eggs until they hatch A crab which reaches maturity Is a fortunate creature its mother probably laid five fire thousand eggs and of 0 these perhaps less than halt half a dozen survive to grow up notes a writer in tit bits magazine agazine Af eggs laid by the mother are carried about until they hatch batch and are about the size of the itie head of a small pin beneath the crabs body or that part commonly known as the tall are feath er like appendages the eggs are attached to these by fine threads and are held securely if attacked the mother will fight furiously to protect her treasures when newly laid the eggs are a bright orange color but soon become darker until they ar ap pear a dull brown this change oil of color Is brought about by the development of the creature inside for the actual shells are transparent the tha most important task of the baby crab Is to protect itself and so nature provides it with a pair of powerful eyes and it Is these which show through the shells shell so when the eggs burst open each tiny crab falls to the sea bottom they are just about the same size as the egg with a tiny tail attached their first movements are small jerky actions they rise an inch or so 0 o wriggle about for a moment then drop back again A day later they have grown and are clothed in a thin horny coat something like the outer skin of 0 a shrimp |