Recovery of ghost crabs metapopulations on urban beaches during the Covid-19 anthropause

The majority of government authorities initially responded to COVID-19 pandemic by declaring lockdown to facilitate social distancing and minimize virus spreading. This period termed anthropause provided a unique opportunity to evaluate the recovery of wildlife in the absence of stressors on urban ecosystems. We assessed whether the anthropause associated with beach closures during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in repopulation of the Atlantic ghost crab Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius, 1787) on urban beaches. For this purpose, we compiled a historic dataset (2013-2019) of the ghost crab density and performed biweekly burrow measurements from June/2020 to May/2021. Recovery of ghost crab meta population during the lockdown occurred even in more human-modified beaches. Burrow abundance significantly increased in urban sectors, but not in control site along with the time of pandemic. The reduction in the mean burrow opening diameter during this period evidenced that young meta population have thrived on urban beaches when recreational activities ceased. Our results show that urban beaches should not be exclusively managed for recreational purposes. Initiatives with a focus on wildlife conservation including spatial-temporal controlled beach closures may increase the biodiversity resilience.

Automated summary

Research found that the anthropause during the COVID-19 pandemic led to the repopulation of Atlantic ghost crabs on urban beaches. The ghost crab abundance significantly increased even in beaches with more human modification, indicating that controlled beach closures can enhance biodiversity resilience in urban areas.