A horseshoe
crab belongs to a group of animals called arthropods. Arthropods do not
have backbones. They are invertebrates. They have jointed legs and hard
outer coverings called exoskeletons that protect their soft bodies. Horseshoe
crabs are not really true crabs. True crabs have only one pair of claws.
Horseshoe crabs have more. True crabs have antennae or feelers on their
heads and jaws. Horseshoe crabs don't. Horseshoe crabs' closest relatives
are: ticks, spiders, and scorpions. Below is how scientists classify the
horseshoe crabs in the Delaware Bay.
