Squat lobsters are dorsoventrally flattened crustaceans with long tails held curled beneath the cephalothorax. They are found in the two superfamilies Galatheoidea and Chirostyloidea, which form part of the decapod infraorder Anomura, alongside groups including the hermit crabs and mole crabs. They are distributed worldwide in the oceans, and occur from near the surface to deep sea hydrothermal vents, with one species occupying caves above sea level. More than 900 species have been described, in around 60 genera. Some species form dense aggregations, either on the sea floor or in the water column, and a small number are commercially fished.
The Galatheidae are a family of squat lobsters.
Galathea squamifera, the black squat lobster, or Montagu's plated lobster, is a species of squat lobster that lives in the north-east Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea.
Galathea is a genus of squat lobsters in the family Galatheidae. It is one of the largest genera of squat lobsters that in 2008 contained 73 species. Most species of Galathea live in shallow waters.
Munidopsis serricornis is a species of squat lobster. It is widely distributed in the world's oceans, being found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean, the western Atlantic Ocean, and the Indo-Pacific. It grows up to a carapace length of 20 millimetres (0.8 in).
Galathea strigosa is a species of squat lobster in the family Galatheidae. It is found in the northeast Atlantic Ocean, from the North Cape to the Canary Islands, and in the Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea. It is edible, but not fished commercially. It is the largest squat lobster in the northeast Atlantic, reaching a length of 90 millimetres (3.5 in), or a carapace length of 53 mm (2.1 in), and is easily identified by the transverse blue stripes across the body.
Eumunida picta is a species of squat lobster found in the deep sea. The species is strongly associated with reefs of Lophelia pertusa, a deep-water coral, and with methane seeps. It is abundant in the western Atlantic Ocean, where it is found from Massachusetts to Colombia.
The Aeglidae are a family of freshwater crustaceans currently restricted to South America. They are the only anomurans to be found in fresh water except for a single hermit crab species, Clibanarius fonticola, on Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu. They live between 20° S and 50° S, at altitudes between 320 and 3,500 m (1,050–11,480 ft).
Allogalathea elegans is a species of squat lobster that is sometimes kept in marine aquariums. Despite their common name, they are more closely related to hermit crabs than lobsters.
Coralliogalathea is a genus of squat lobsters in the family Galatheidae. Initially thought to be monotypic, solely represented by Coralliogalathea humilis, recent analysis has split the genus into six, morphologically similar but genetically different species.
Heteronida is a genus of squat lobsters in the family Munididae. They occur in the western Pacific Ocean.
Lauriea is a genus of squat lobsters in the family Galatheidae, containing the following species:
Plesionida is a genus of squat lobsters in the family Munididae. As of 2017, it contains the following species:
Shinkaia crosnieri is a species of squat lobster in a monotypic genus in the family Munidopsidae. S. crosnieri lives in deep-sea hydrothermal vent ecosystems, living off of the chemosynthetic activity of certain bacteria living on its setae.
Munida rugosa, commonly known as the rugose squat lobster or plated lobster, is a species of decapod crustacean found in the north east Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Geryon trispinosus is a species of crab that lives in deep water in the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean.
Lauriea siagiani, also known as the pink hairy squat lobster or the fairy crab, is a species of squat lobster in the family Galatheidae, genus Lauriea.
Raymunida insulata is a species of squat lobster in the family Munididae from the Pacific and Indian oceans. The species can be distinguished by its morphology and its mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I sequences.
Raymunida dextralis is a species of squat lobster in the family Munididae from the Pacific and Indian oceans. The species can be distinguished by its morphological characters and its mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I sequences.
Raymunida confundens is a species of squat lobster in the family Munididae from the Pacific and Indian oceans. The species can be distinguished by its morphological characters and its mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I sequences.
