Xanthidae is a family of crabs known as gorilla crabs, mud crabs, pebble crabs or rubble crabs. Xanthid crabs are often brightly coloured and are highly poisonous, containing toxins which are not destroyed by cooking and for which no antidote is known. The toxins are similar to the tetrodotoxin and saxitoxin produced by puffer fish, and may be produced by bacteria in the genus Vibrio living in symbiosis with the crabs, mostly V. alginolyticus and V. parahaemolyticus.
Mictyris is a genus of brightly coloured crabs, placed in its own taxonomical family, the Mictyridae. It inhabits the central Indo-West Pacific region. These crabs congregate on mud flats or beaches in groups of a few thousand, and filter sand or mud for microscopic organisms. They congregate during low tide, and bury themselves in the sand during high tide or whenever they are threatened. This is done in wet sand, and they dig in a corkscrew pattern, leaving many small round pellets of sand behind them.
Xanthoidea is a superfamily of crabs, comprising seven families. Formerly, a number of other families were included in Xanthoidea, but many of these have since been removed to other superfamilies. These include Carpilioidea, Eriphioidea, Hexapodoidea, Pilumnoidea and Trapezioidea. Even in this reduced state, Xanthoidea remains one of the most species-rich superfamilies of crabs.
Discoplax is a genus of terrestrial crabs. It is very closely related to the genera Cardisoma and Tuerkayana.
Etisus is a genus of crabs, containing the following extant species:
Epiactaea is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Novactaea is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Paractaea is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Liomera is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae. It contains the following species:
Neoliomera is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Forestia is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Pseudoliomera is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Rata is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Serenius is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Actiomera is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Demania is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Macromedaeus is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Paraxanthias is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing one exclusively fossil species and the following extant species:
Banareia is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
Lophozozymus is a genus of crabs in the family Xanthidae, containing the following species:
