Slipper lobsters are a family (Scyllaridae) of about 90 species of achelate crustaceans, in the Decapoda clade Reptantia, found in all warm oceans and seas. They are not true lobsters, but are more closely related to spiny lobsters and furry lobsters. Slipper lobsters are instantly recognisable by their enlarged antennae, which project forward from the head as wide plates. All the species of slipper lobsters are edible, and some, such as the Moreton Bay bug and the Balmain bug are of commercial importance.
The Cape lobster, Homarinus capensis, is a species of small lobster that lives off the coast of South Africa, from Dassen Island to Haga Haga. Only a few dozen specimens are known, mostly regurgitated by reef-dwelling fish. It lives in rocky reefs, and is thought to lay large eggs that have a short larval phase, or that hatch directly as a juvenile. The species grows to a total length of 10 cm (3.9 in), and resembles a small European or American lobster; it was previously included in the same genus, Homarus, although it is not very closely related to those species, and is now considered to form a separate, monotypic genus – Homarinus. Its closest relatives are the genera Thymops and Thymopides.
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Panulirus is a genus of spiny lobsters in the family Palinuridae, including those species which have long flagella on their first antennae.
Metanephrops is a genus of lobsters, commonly known as scampi. Important species for fishery include Metanephrops australiensis and Metanephrops challengeri. It differs from other lobsters such as Homarus and Nephrops norvegicus in that its two main claws are of equal size, rather than being differentiated into a crusher and a pincher. There are 18 extant species recognised in the genus:
Metanephrops boschmai, known as the Bight lobster, Bight scampi or Boschma's scampi, is a species of lobster endemic to Western Australia.
Jasus is a genus of spiny lobsters which live in the oceans of the Southern Hemisphere. They have two distinct "horns" projecting from the front of the carapace, but lack the stridulating organs present in almost all other genera of spiny lobsters. Like all spiny lobsters, they lack claws, and have long stout antennae which are quite flexible.
Justitia is a genus of spiny lobsters. Following the recognition of Nupalirus as a separate genus, Justitia comprises one extant species and two fossil species:
Scyllarides is a genus of slipper lobsters.
Scyllarides herklotsii is a species of slipper lobster from the Atlantic coast West Africa. It is edible, but is not commercially fished, and is taken only by accident.
Parribacus japonicus, the Japanese mitten lobster, is a species of slipper lobster. Though the common name for this lobster is the Japanese mitten lobster, it is locally called zōri-ebi (ゾウリエビ) – zōri denoting the Japanese sandal it resembles, and ebi meaning shrimp or lobster.
Eunephrops is a genus of lobsters, containing four species, all found in the Western Atlantic Ocean:
Scyllarus is a genus of slipper lobsters from the Atlantic Ocean, including the Mediterranean and Caribbean. Until 2002, the genus included far more species, but these are now placed in other genera. The following species remain in Scyllarus:
Ibacus is a genus of slipper lobsters, including commercially important species such as the Balmain bug, Ibacus peronii.
Galearctus avulsus is a species of slipper lobster that lives around New Caledonia. It was described in 2011, having previously been included in Galearctus kitanovirosus. It differs from the other species of the genus Galearctus most noticeably in the shape of a groove on the sternum.
Thymopides is a genus of deep-water lobsters, comprising the two species Thymopides grobovi and Thymopides laurentae.
Parribacus antarcticus is a species of slipper lobster. Its common names include "sculptured mitten lobster" and "sculptured slipper lobster" in English, and ula-pehu and ula-pápapa in Hawaiian.
Nephropides caribaeus is a species of lobster, the only species in the genus Nephropides. It is found in western parts of the Caribbean Sea, from Belize to Colombia. It grows to a total length of around 170 mm (6.7 in), and is covered in conspicuous tubercles.
Ibacus ciliatus is a species of slipper lobster from the north-west Pacific Ocean.
Ibacus alticrenatus is a species of slipper lobster that lives in the waters of Australia and New Zealand.
