the wild things that thrive in our cities

In Sapzurro Bay on the Colombia-Panama border, the blue land crab can be found surrounding human infrastructure, burrowing into the nooks and crannies of the coastal town. The species, which can grow up to 15 cm in size and ranges in color from violet to bright cerulean blue, is considered critically endangered or vulnerable in this region, although it may be classified as invasive elsewhere. Historically, it lived in the region's rich mangrove forests, many of which are now urbanized - habitat loss that scientists blame for the crab's decline.

But when scientists studied the species' distribution around Sapzurro Bay, ...