Eudaniela

Last updated

Eudaniela
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Suborder: Pleocyemata
Infraorder: Brachyura
Family: Pseudothelphusidae
Subfamily: Kingsleyinae
Genus: Eudaniela
Pretzmann, 1971

Eudaniela is a genus of crabs in the family Pseudothelphusidae, containing the following species: [1]

Contents

Taxonomy

Location

Eudaniela can be found are found along the Andean and Coastal Cordillera of Venezuela and in the highlands of Isla Margarita, Trinidad and Tobago. [3] The Eudaniela species live in freshwater streams and rivers at a high altitude above sea level. [4]

On Tobago, the Eudaniela Garmani crab constructs burrows or hides in naturally occurring crevices near fast-flowing streams. Owing to the nature of the terrain surrounding these streams, the Eudaniela Garmani crabs are less likely to be observed creating their own burrows. [5]

Biology

Eudaniela has been recorded to reach sexual maturity at a large size and also at a relatively old age. The female reaches its sexual maturity at about three years of age. [4] There is not enough data or information known to determine if the Eudaniela is in threat of being an endangered species. [4]

Eudaniela shell colour has been observed to change with increasing size, with smaller Eudaniela (<25 mm Carapace Width (CW)) being dark brown and larger Eudaniela (>50mm CW) being chestnut brown. [4]

Diet

Eudaniela have a distinctive stance when catching prey, adopting a sit and wait strategy. Using the tips of two of their legs supporting them in the water, they used the other two legs to gently sweep back and forth. When prey is detected a pouncing action was observed. [5]

Eudaniela has been reported as being one of the very few examples of invertebrates preying on vertebrates. Several sightings (albeit not active predation) of Eudaniela feeding on snakes have been recorded. Additionally, it was observed that the Eudaniela prefer to dexterously skin the snakes using their pincers prior to consumption [5]

It has been postulated that within the Tobago ecosystem the Eudaniela is the Apex predator, with no evident predation by other organisms noted. [5]

Species

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian land hermit crab</span> Species of crustacean

The Australian land hermit crab is a terrestrial hermit crab species, native to Australia. It is a nocturnal, omnivorous crustacean. They are gregarious and thrive in tropical areas near water.

<i>Maja squinado</i> Species of crab

Maja squinado is a species of migratory crab found in the north-east Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea. The appearance of the European spider crab is similar to the much larger Japanese spider crab, although the latter belongs to a different family of crabs, the Inachidae.

<i>Hemigrapsus crenulatus</i> Species of crab

Hemigrapsus crenulatus, the hairy-handed crab or papaka huruhuru, is a marine crab of the family Varunidae, endemic to the New Zealand coast, although a taxon in Chile may be conspecific. It is an intertidal species with semi-terrestrial tendencies. They are named by their characteristic setae, or patches of thick hair, on the chelipeds and legs. They can range from green to brown in coloration. Adult crabs are generally 2–4 cm (0.8–1.6 in) wide at the carapace, although the smallest mature crabs can be around just 1 cm (0.4 in) wide. and are able to survive and reproduce in environments of widely varying salinities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grapsoidea</span> Superfamily of crabs

The Grapsoidea are a superfamily of crabs; they are well known and contain many taxa which are terrestrial (land-living), semiterrestrial, or limnic. Another well-known member with a more conventional lifestyle is the Chinese mitten crab, Eriocheir sinensis.

<i>Austropotamobius</i> Genus of crayfishes

Austropotamobius is a genus of European crayfish in the family Astacidae. It contains four extant species, and one species known from fossils of Barremian age:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pseudothelphusidae</span> Family of crabs

Pseudothelphusidae is a family of freshwater crabs found chiefly in mountain streams in the Neotropics. They are believed to have originated in the Greater Antilles and then crossed to Central America via a Pliocene land bridge. Some species of this family are troglobitic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hippoidea</span> Superfamily of crustaceans

Hippoidea is a superfamily of decapod crustaceans known as sand crabs or mole crabs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coconut crab</span> Species of crustacean

The coconut crab is a terrestrial species of giant hermit crab, and is also known as the robber crab or palm thief. It is the largest terrestrial arthropod known, with a weight of up to 4.1 kg (9 lb). The distance from the tip of one leg to the tip of another can be as wide as 1 m. It is found on islands across the Indian and Pacific Oceans, as far east as the Gambier Islands, Pitcairn Islands and Caroline Island and as far south as Zanzibar. While its range broadly shadows the distribution of the coconut palm, the coconut crab has been extirpated from most areas with a significant human population such as mainland Australia and Madagascar.

<i>Minuca pugnax</i> Species of crab

Minuca pugnax, commonly known as the Atlantic marsh fiddler crab, is a species of fiddler crab that lives on north-western shores of the Atlantic Ocean.

<i>Potamon fluviatile</i> Species of crab

Potamon fluviatile is a freshwater crab found in or near wooded streams, rivers and lakes in Southern Europe. It is an omnivore with broad ecological tolerances, and adults typically reach 50 mm (2 in) in size during their 10–12 year lifespan. They inhabit burrows and are aggressive, apparently outcompeting native crayfish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cheiragonidae</span> Family of crabs

Cheiragonidae is a small family of crabs, sometimes called helmet crabs, placed in its own superfamily, Cheriagonoidea. It comprises three extant species, Erimacrus isenbeckii, Telmessus acutidens and Telmessus cheiragonus, there are no yet evidences of Cheiragonidae in the fossil record. Many of these crabs were formerly treated as members of the Atelecyclidae.

The Pylojacquesidae are a small family of hermit crabs, comprising only two species in two genera. The family was erected in 2001, after two specimens at Museum für Naturkunde at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin were recognised as being quite distinct from other described hermit crabs. The family members differ from other hermit crabs in that their mandibles are chitinous and toothed.

Neoepilobocera gertraudae is a species of cave-dwelling crab from Cuba.

Strengeriana is a genus of crabs in the family Pseudothelphusidae, containing the following species:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blepharipodidae</span> Family of crustaceans

Blepharipodidae is a family of sand crabs (Hippoidea), comprising the two genera Blepharipoda and Lophomastix. They are distinguished from the other families in the superfamily Hippoidea by the form of the gills, which are trichobranchiate (filamentous) in Blepharipodidae, but phyllobranchiate (lamellar) in Albuneidae and Hippidae. Fossils belonging to the genus Lophomastix have been found in rocks dating back to the Eocene.

<i>Pyromaia tuberculata</i> Species of crab

Pyromaia tuberculata is a species of crab in the family Inachoididae.

<i>Guinotia dentata</i> Species of crab

Guinotia dentata, commonly known as cyrique, is a West Indian species of freshwater crab in the family Pseudothelphusidae. They have few predators. They are easily caught and thus are used locally as a food source.

The Cretaceous crab revolution refers to a major diversification event of brachyuran crabs that took place during the Cretaceous Period, from 145 to 66 million years ago. Nearly 80% of modern groups of crabs originated during this event. The Cretaceous crab revolution is a smaller component of the greater Mesozoic marine revolution.

<i>Microthelphusa wymani</i> Species of crustacean

Microthelphusa wymani is a species from the genus Microthelphusa.

References

  1. P. Davie (2010). "Eudaniela Pretzmann, 1971". World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved December 4, 2010.
  2. "Eudaniela casanarensis". © International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
  3. Sternberg, R. von; Galindo, L. A.; González, E. M. (1999). "Cladistic analysis of the Eudaniela species complex (Crustacea: Decapoda: Pseudothelphusidae)". Hydrobiologia. 416: 139–147. doi:10.1023/A:1003863403912.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Rostant, Luke Victor; Alkins-Koo, Mary; Maitland, David P. (2008). "Growth and maturity in the manicou crab Eudaniela garmani (Brachyura: Pseudothelphusidae) from Trinidad, West Indies". Journal of Crustacean Biology. 28 (3): 485–493. doi: 10.1651/07-2913R.1 . Retrieved 1 January 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Maitland, David P. (February 2003). "PREDATION ON SNAKES BY THE FRESHWATER LAND CRAB EUDANIELA GARMANI". Journal of Crustacean Biology. 23 (1): 241–246. doi:10.1651/0278-0372(2003)023[0241:POSBTF]2.0.CO;2. ISSN   0278-0372.