And because of the unusual nature of their blood they can be used to test the bacteriological safety of injectable drugs. I remember an exhibit about them at the Boston Children's Museum because it was a big deal in Boston because of the pharma industry concentration in the area. A test that didn't require collecting blood was developed circa 1985 but for quite a few reasons the industry has been slow to adopt it and the anticipated transition is still an anticipated transition.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horseshoe_crab
And because of the unusual nature of their blood they can be used to test the bacteriological safety of injectable drugs. I remember an exhibit about them at the Boston Children's Museum because it was a big deal in Boston because of the pharma industry concentration in the area. A test that didn't require collecting blood was developed circa 1985 but for quite a few reasons the industry has been slow to adopt it and the anticipated transition is still an anticipated transition.