| Platyxanthus crenulatus | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Suborder: | Pleocyemata |
| Infraorder: | Brachyura |
| Family: | Platyxanthidae |
| Genus: | Platyxanthus |
| Species: | P. crenulatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Platyxanthus crenulatus A. Milne-Edwards, 1879 | |
Platyxanthus crenulatus is a species of crab in the family Platyxanthidae. [1] The species is found along the sublittoral zone of the western Atlantic in the waters of Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, [2] associated mostly with hard bottoms. Adults are robust and conspicuous crabs, with a smooth carapace, dorsally purple and white ventrally. Their claws have marked heterochely and right-handedness (i.e. dimorphism between chelae and the tendency of bearing the major claw on the right-hand side of the body), traits associated with shell-breaking feeding habits. [3] Due to its abundance, large size and diet, P. crenulatus presumably has an important ecological role as a predator in benthic communities. [4]
