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Sooty Oystercatcher feeding on a crab

YC Wee
on 20th December 2018

This video was documented in Victor Harbor on the southern coast of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia in October 2016.

Video Grab.

The Sooty Oystercatcher (Haematopus fuliginosus) feeds on a range of marine animals that include earthworms, bivalves, snails, sea urchins and crabs.

The video below shows the oystercatcher manipulating a dead crab to get at the soft flesh beneath the hard carapace.

Interestingly, the limbs were first detached from the body and swallowed. Using its sharp bill like a pneumatic drill, it pried open the ventral soft shell and succeeded in separating the body from the carapace or hard dorsal shell. The soft body was then broken into pieces and swallowed. Any fleshy pieces still attached to the carapace were extracted and eaten. There was no wastage.

With the swallowing of soft shell pieces, it would be expected that these would be compacted to be eventually ejected as a pellet PDF.

Teo Lee Wei & K
Singapore
17th December 2018

If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

Other posts by YC Wee

Bird Society of Singapore: A credible alternative to the Nature Society’s Bird Group

11th December 2023

Singapore-Nature: 17. Citizen Science

30th August 2023

Singapore-Nature: 16. Living close to nature

18th August 2023

Singapore’s secret “garden”

20th July 2023

Singapore-Nature: 15. Looking versus studying birds

12th July 2023

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Any views and opinions expressed in the articles are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

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