Floating on a carped of sargasso seaweeds, the crab was enjoying the gentle up and down of the waves, feeding on the wet salted seagrass and its bacteria as it decomposed. Suddenly, the waves start to swell, and wind and clouds approach. The crab snaps out of its idyllic eating, resting, and floating pattern and struggles with the storm in the middle of the ocean. The menacing waves rose around the crab, the rain started pouring, and the wind blew strongly. The crab held tight to the seaweed carpet, trying not to relinquish its life raft. Once the storm calmed down (was it days, was it weeks?). The land appeared on the horizon. The seaweed carpet had exhausted nutrients, and the crab was slowly starving. The crab saw at the horizon the pointy shape of an island.

Figure 1: the crab floating with the sargasso seaweeds, the island appears on the horizon

The carpet reached the vicinity of the beach. The crab was swept with the seaweeds onto the shore. The tides retreated, leaving the crab and the seaweeds to dry and rot on the sand. Giant white-flying animals came and picked the remaining nutrients from the seaweeds on the shore. They were also looking for crabs to complement their diet…

Figure 2: the dangers of life on the shore

The crab leaves the rotting seaweeds emptied of nutrients and notices that many more bunches of seaweeds and crabs are stranded on that beach while swimming ashore. The seaweeds dry up on the shore until only a line of dark brown seeds are left, adorning the beach like a garland. At the sight of the seeds, the crab saw the possibility of life opening up ahead… he started to push the seaweeds against the rocks towards the end of the beach and bring some of the seeds there, too. Insects all around started to visit the place, cautious and curious at first, but then understood the chances they were given and brought more seeds to the rotten piles of seaweed soil and pollinated it. More crabs imitated these actions, and soon, the line of beach near the road to the port blossomed and became full of plants and fruits. They resembled pinneaple but were not the same (Figures 4 and 5).

Figure 3: crabs on land-building Towers

Once settled on the land, the crabs started to build up their stone towers - they were marking the territory of their new home and helping the other species notice them. Humans see them now, observe them, and wonder—what is happening there? Can we live together? Can we share resources? Or are the crabs going to threaten us? Will we have to defend ourselves…Humans are always cautious…

The crabs are kin to flying insects. The drying and rotting seaweeds leave dry seeds, and the insects bring new seeds that grow stronger and are numerous enough to feed the crabs. The insects take care of pollinating and help ferment the composted seaweeds. Humans have noticed that they can grow potatoes in these composting seaweeds and contribute to the cultures. They bring some water to the seaweed to help nourish them. The crabs observe from a distance.

The insects bring seeds to the compost, some plants first, and then fruits grow. It is a soft pine fruit that looks like a pineapple. Juicy and full of nutrients, the kinship between crabs, flying insects, and humans is making new life grow.

Humans have started to notice more stone towers on the beach, near where the rocks and the sand meet, where the seaweed has formed new earth, and where strange fruits are growing. They are now curious but also respectful of the crab’s territory.

Figure 4: Crabs terraforming and the fruits near the wall

In return, the crabs, thankful for the water and care of their plants, collect and push some fruits on the curbs of the reads and leave them for the humans to pick up. They choose mature fruits to be picked but not ripe so they can last a few more days. The humans feel lucky to encounter these fruits on the road. They are to be studied further for their properties, but they are delicious to the taste.

Figure 5: The fruit the crabs and local insects generated over the seaweed waste.