jumps high when you kick the damp sand
- Size
- Length: 1–2 cm
- Lifespan
- <1 year
- Diet
- Washed-up seaweed and detritus.
- Habitat
- Sandy beaches above the high tide line.
- Range
- Throughout New Zealand on sandy beaches.
- Endemism
- Native
- Main Threats
- Beach cleaning and vehicle traffic.
- Population
- Abundant on sandy shores throughout New Zealand.
- Conservation Status
- Not Threatened
- Human Risk
- harmless
- Handling Note
- tiny beach scavenger, no mechanism for harm to humans
- Conservation Note
- Native sand hopper abundant on sandy shores throughout New Zealand, not subject to formal NZTCS threat classification.
- Te Ao Māori
- Sand hoppers have no specific Māori name. They are part of the beach environment. Their jumping behaviour is well known. They are often called sand fleas. A misnomer. But accurate in spirit. They are the pulse of the beach. Alive. Active. Essential.
In 1826 it was described by Quoy and Gaimard. Since then it has jumped. Millions of times. The Sand Hopper is a flea of the sea. Not a true flea. A crustacean. It lives in the sand. Just above the water. It burrows during the day. It emerges at night. It jumps when disturbed. High. Far. It escapes. This is its defence. Speed. Agility. Surprise.
Habitat is the supralittoral zone of sandy beaches. It needs damp sand. Dry sand kills it. Wet sand drowns it. It finds the sweet spot. The damp layer. It burrows deep. It stays cool. It stays moist. It waits for darkness.
Diet consists of washed-up seaweed and detritus. It is a recycler. It cleans the beach. It eats the rot. It turns waste into life. Birds eat the hopper. Fish eat the hopper. It transfers energy from the dead to the living. A crucial link.
Threats include beach cleaning and vehicle traffic. Raking removes its food. Tyres crush its burrows. Pollution poisons the sand. The hopper is sensitive. It cannot move far. It is trapped. On the beach. At the mercy of the tide. And the humans.
Range is nationwide. Every sandy beach has them. Under every piece of driftwood. In every pile of kelp. They are everywhere. You just have to look. Lift a stone. Kick the sand. They jump. They vanish. They are gone.
Life span is less than a year. Short. Fast. Intense. Reproduction is continuous. Eggs hatch in the sand. Young emerge ready to jump. The cycle is rapid. The population is stable. For now.