Related Research Articles
Hermit crabs are anomuran decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea that have adapted to occupy empty scavenged mollusc shells to protect their fragile exoskeletons. There are over 800 species of hermit crab, most of which possess an asymmetric abdomen concealed by a snug-fitting shell. Hermit crabs' non-calcified abdominal exoskeleton makes their exogenous shelter system obligatory. Hermit crabs must occupy shelter produced by other organisms, or risk being defenseless.
Carcinisation is an example of convergent evolution in which a crustacean evolves into a crab-like form from a non-crab-like form. The term was introduced into evolutionary biology by L. A. Borradaile, who described it as "one of the many attempts of Nature to evolve a crab". Most carcinised crustaceans belong to the order Anomura.
The Coenobitidae are the family of terrestrial hermit crabs, widely known for their land-living habits. They are found in coastal tropical regions around the world and require access to the ocean to breed. The 17 species are placed in two genera:
The Paguridae are a family of hermit crabs of the order Decapoda. This family contains 542 species in over 70 genera:
Pagurus novizealandiae, or the New Zealand hermit crab is a hermit crab of the family Paguridae, endemic to New Zealand. Its body is up to 16 millimetres (0.63 in) wide.
The Parapaguridae are a family of marine hermit crabs from deep waters. Instead of carrying empty gastropod shells like other hermit crabs, they carry colonies of dozen or more sea anemones or zoanthids. Some genera, such as Bivalvopagurus and Tylaspis, do not inhabit shells. The following genera are included:
The Pylochelidae are a family of hermit crabs. Its members are commonly called the 'symmetrical hermit crabs'. They live in all the world's oceans, except the Arctic and the Antarctic, at depths of 2,000 m (6,600 ft). Due to their cryptic nature and relative scarcity, only around 60 specimens had been collected before 1987, when a monograph was published detailing a further 400.
Diogenes is a genus of hermit crabs.
Dardanus megistos, the white-spotted hermit crab or spotted hermit crab, is a species of hermit crab belonging to the family Diogenidae.
Clibanarius fonticola is the only species of hermit crab in the world that lives in fresh water. It is found on the island of Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu. While a number of other hermit crabs are terrestrial or live in estuarine habitats, C. fonticola is the only species that spends its life in fresh water. It lives in a pool fed by springs near the village of Matevulu, close to an abandoned airstrip. The adult hermit crabs of this species all use shells of Clithon corona.
Pagurus sinuatus is a large species of hermit crab found in Australia and the Kermadec Islands. It is red or orange in colour with coloured bands on the legs and patches on the body.
Ciliopagurus liui is a species of hermit crab native to the Gulf of Tonkin and waters to the south of Japan.
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.
Pagurus samuelis, the blueband hermit crab, is a species of hermit crab from the west coast of North America, and the most common hermit crab in California. It is a small species, with distinctive blue bands on its legs. It prefers to live in the shell of the black turban snail, and is a nocturnal scavenger of algae and carrion.
Calcinus tubularis is a species of hermit crab. It is found in the Mediterranean Sea and around islands in the Atlantic Ocean, where it lives below the intertidal zone. Its carapace, eyestalks and claws are marked with numerous red spots. C. tubularis and its sister species, C. verrilli, are the only hermit crabs known to show sexual dimorphism in shell choice, with males using normal marine gastropod shells, while females use shells of gastropods in the family Vermetidae, which are attached to rocks or other hard substrates.
Porcellanopagurus is a genus of hermit crabs, containing the following species:
Dardanus venosus, the starry-eyed crab or stareye crab, is a species of hermit crab in the family Diogenidae. It occurs in shallow water on the eastern coasts of America from Florida southward to Brazil. It is sometimes kept in reef aquaria.
Aniculus maximus, the "hairy yellow hermit crab" or "large hairy hermit crab", is an aquatic hermit crab of the family Diogenidae.
Labidochirus splendescens, commonly known as the splendid hermit crab, is a species of hermit crab found in the northeastern Pacific Ocean off the coast of North America. It is more heavily calcified and inhabits smaller mollusc shells than most hermit crabs.
References
- 1 2 M. de Saint Laurent & P. A. McLaughlin (2000). "Superfamily Paguroidea, Family Paguridae". In Jacques Forest (ed.). The Marine fauna of New Zealand: Paguridea (Decapoda: Anomura) exclusive of the Lithodidae. NIWA Biodiversity Memoir. 114. National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research. pp. 104–209. ISBN 978-0-478-08489-4. pp. 110–114: P. edwardsi; pp. 114–117: P. filholi.
- ↑ Patsy McLaughlin (2010). P. McLaughlin (ed.). "Porcellanopagurus Filhol, 1985". World Paguroidea database. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved October 25, 2011.
- ↑ P. E. Roberts (1972). "Larvae of Porcellanopagurus edwardsi Filhol, 1885 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Paguridae) from Perseverance Harbour, Campbell Island". Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand . 2 (3): 383–391.
- ↑ Patsy A. McLaughlin & Rafael Lemaitre (1997). "Carcinization in the anomura – fact or fiction? I. Evidence from adult morphology". Contributions to Zoology . 67 (2): 79–123. Archived from the original on 2012-02-10. Retrieved 2011-10-25. PDF