My animal is the Limulidae, also known as the Horseshoe Crab. The Limulidae is from the beaches of Florida located in the United States. It is listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature.The animal is hunted a lot because they are poached for their blood. Their blood is used for medicine so someone can sell it on the black market for someone to make drugs with it. Additionally,changes in nature such as water rising and pollution have made it hard for them to hide from their main predators. I wanted to make this animal because they are interesting creatures and people are afraid of them for no reason. I thought it would be interesting to make the shape of the Horseshoe crab because it has distinct features in it. During the project I liked working with the clay to make different shapes for the different parts of the body. One of the most challenging parts was when I had to connect the pinch pot to the shape of the animal.
It was really difficult because it kept falling off and tearing.I tried different amounts of clay and was able to make a good slip so that it stayed and did not fall off. I used different techniques to make the design on the animal and for the different parts of the animal. I really enjoyed the project because we got to work with clay and make our animal stand out and make an underrepresented animal be heard. Being able to protect the animal means it needs to be seen and known as not something that can hurt you but just wants to be left alone. National Geographic has helped with this and they have tried to make other animals be heard. One way to help them is donate money to Horseshoe Crab Conservation Fund. It will help them make sure that they will not go extinct and will thrive.
References: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/projects/photo-ark/animal/limulus-polyphemus/ https://myfwc.com/research/saltwater/crustaceans/horseshoe-crabs/facts/ https://www.horseshoecrab.org/misc/fund.html#:~:text=Contribute%20directly%20to%20our%20Horseshoe,you%20in%20our%20membership%20program.