Yat Tung is a treasure trove of cool places to explore
Head there when the tide is out and you'll be gifted with thousands of little fiddler crabs, named after their giant claw used to impress possible crabbie mates.
Make sure you wear grippy shoes that you don't mind getting a little muddy.
The easiest way to get there is to head towards Yat Tung. Go past the entrance to the town. Just after the lift, there is a little turning to the right. Head down that, then follow the pathway all the way around. You'll see a football pitch. Walk across that and there is a little gate that you can use to get to the sea front. This area is also good for kite flying.
This wetland is a protected area, so make sure you leave it as you found it. It's also one of the few places in Hong Kong you can find horseshoe crabs.
**Horseshoe crab facts klaxon**
They're fascinating creatures. They're not actually crabs, but more closely related to spiders. They've remained unchanged for 45 million years so are living dinosaurs.
Horseshoe crabs have unique, copper-based blue blood that contains a substance called 'Limulus Amebocyte Lysate', or 'LAL'. This compound clumps up in the presence of small amounts of bacterial toxins and is used to test for sterility of virtually all injectable drugs. So, when you get a vaccine you know a horseshoe crab is responsible for ensuring its cleanliness.
Thanks little dude.
TOP TIP: It is always a good idea to take a large bin bag to pick up any rubbish (trash for our American readers).
Comments