It has a tough exoskeleton and can hold its appendages close to the body, allowing it to roll in the tidal currents and waves.

[9] The genus Emerita was erected by Giovanni Antonio Scopoli in his 1777 work Introductio ad Historiam Naturalem.

[2] Other genera with the same name have been rejected for nomenclatural purposes; these were published by Laurens Theodorus Gronovius (1764) and Friedrich Christian Meuschen (1778 and 1781).

[7] The main predators of Emerita are fish; in the eastern Pacific Ocean, the barred surfperch (Amphistichus argenteus) is particularly important.

[7] Due to the Emerita being the predominant diet of the barred surfperch, surf fishermen use sand crabs as bait.

Eating sand crabs presents a risk of paralytic shellfish poisoning and/or infection with Profilicollis parasites.

[7] The eggs are bright orange, and hatch into larvae, which may live as plankton for more than four months and can be carried long distances by ocean currents.

[2] Somatic growth and sexual differentiation in Emerita are restricted to discrete events (molts) and both processes compete for energy reserve.