Laboratory culture and maintenance of the horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus).

Often referred to as a living fossil, the American horseshoe crab, Limulus polyphemus, is one of the most-studied invertebrate animals in the world. It has served as a model in Nobel Prize-winning eye research, and researchers use a component of its blood to detect bacterial contamination in medical devices and drugs. The authors review the conditions necessary for housing these animals in the laboratory.