The Taijiang National Park Headquarters executed land crab ecology surveys in Taijiang National Park in 2020 and 2021. It discovered that Qingcaolun in Chengxi Village is the most important hotspot in Taijiang National Park. This year (2022) the Taijiang National Park Headquarters entrusted the Taiwan Wetland Protection Alliance to organize the “Taijiang National Park Qingcaolun Land Crab Citizen Scientist Participation Plan.” Visitors who care about the land crab and its ecology are welcome to become crab protection volunteers after joining the training course.
Qingcaolun in Chengxi Village has the highest land crab species diversity in the supralittoral zone of Taijiang National Park. The brown land crab population here is the largest one in Taiwan. The average size of the population is so large that it is rare in the world. From June to November ever year after the crescent moon and full moon, brown land crabs will migrate to the sea together for larval release. The migration peak is in July and August. To guard the valuable land crab resources and reduce the risk of them being captured and killed on the road, the Taijiang National Park Headquarters hopes that, through recruitment and training of crab protection volunteers, people who care about the land crab and its ecology, especially residents of Chengxi Village and the peripheral area, can participate in land crab monitoring surveys, night time patrols or traffic controls. A Taiwanese idiom said that being pregnant means obtaining happiness. While land crabs migrate to the sea for larval release, it’s like celebrating something happy when protecting the crabs. Everyone celebrates something happy and protects land crabs together.
The recruitment of crab protection volunteers starts today and lasts until June 5, 2022. Visitors may sign up online ([link]). The training course will be on Sunday, June 12, 2022 from 13:20 to 17:30 at the square in front of the Chengxi Village Community Center. The practical course is held on Tuesday, June 14, 2022 from 18:30 to 21:30 at the flood prevention road along the dike in Qingcaolun in Chengxi Village. Visitors can go to the website of Taijiang National Park for more information, contact the Conservation Research Section for any question (06-2842600 ext. 1603, Mr. Kuo, a technical specialist), and contact the Taiwan Wetland Protection Alliance (06-2251880) to ask Ms. Yang about registration problems.