HALF AN HOUR WITH CRUSTACEA. 235 



poorer classes as food, but it is said to be vapid and 

 coarse in flavour. These crabs make their appear- 

 ance very suddenly, and often in great swarms, 

 about the month of May. 



Fig. 126. 



Spiny Spider-crab (Maia squinado). 



Another common species, and one of the largest of 

 British crabs, is Eyas araneus (Fig. 127), a crus- 

 tacean well known from the seaweeds and zoophytes 



