As the sun sinks behind the waves,   these performers awaken and get  ready for their all-night show.

They take cues from the tides, the moon, and their  appetite, emerging from sandy underground burrows.

You might know them as sand fleas, but they don't   bite and they aren't fleas.

They're called beach hoppers.

These crustaceans are as small as  an ant or as large as a cricket.

Their eyes are made up of hundreds  of cells called ommatidia,   but they don’t see much detail --  just blurry shapes, light and dark.

They’re drawn towards shadowy blobs on the  horizon.

They hope it’s kelp, their favorite food.

When they find it, they eat and eat.

Sometimes they even eat one another.

This large beach hopper is piercing  the other right behind its eye,   holding it in place with its claws.

For protection, they dig burrows about a  foot deep where the sand is damp and cool.

And males will fight over control of  burrows, especially there are females inside.

Deep in the night, the beach hopper  acrobatics build into a dazzling show.

A powerful flick of their curled-up  tail launches them skyward.

They do not stick the landing.

A beach hopper can jump as high as your  knees, dozens of times the length of its body.

It’s a quick way to travel – towards food  or mates.

Or to get out of harm’s way.

Beach hoppers’ diets are mostly beach wrack  – anything natural that washes ashore.

Wrack is an essential source of  nutrients for sandy beach ecosystems.

These shredders break down  the wrack into smaller parts.

It’s the first step in sending  nutrients into the food chain.

When predators like shorebirds  or insects eat beach hoppers,   they can carry these nutrients further inland.

Without these hungry acrobats, beaches the  world over would be strewn with rotting seaweed.

After a night of fighting and feasting,  they leave only silhouettes behind.

As the sun rises, the beach  hoppers retreat to their burrows,   just beyond the tide’s reach.

The performers need their rest.

Another spectacle is just a night away.