Scorpion spider crab

Inachus dorsettensis, commonly known as the scorpion spider crab, is a species of crab generally found on loose substrates (stony bottoms to mud) from 6 metres (20 ft) depth down to about 100 m (330 ft).[1] It is found along the east coast of the Atlantic Ocean from Norway to South Africa, and also in the Mediterranean Sea.[1]

Scorpion spider crab
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Subphylum:
Crustacea
Class:
Malacostraca
Order:
Decapoda
Infraorder:
Brachyura
Family:
Inachidae
Genus:
Inachus
Species:
I. dorsettensis
Binomial name
Inachus dorsettensis
(Pennant, 1777)

Description

They are usually seen covered with sponge which they apply themselves. The carapace of a fully grown male is roughly 30 millimetres (1.2 in) long and slightly narrower than it is long.[1] I. dorsettensis resembles the closely related species Inachus phalangium, but has more prominent spines on the carapace.[1] They molt, with the intermolting period being shorter the warmer the water they reside in is.[2]

References
  1. P. J. Hayward; M. J. Isaac; P. Makings; J. Moyse; E. Naylor & G. Smaldon (1995). "Crustaceans". In P. J. Hayward & John Stanley Ryland (eds.). Handbook of the Marine Fauna of North-west Europe. Oxford University Press. pp. 289–461. ISBN 978-0-19-854055-7.
  2. R.G. Hartnoll; A.D. Bryant (2001). Growth to maturity of juveniles of the spider crabs Hyas coarctatus Leach and Inachus dorsettensis. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.