Xantho pilipes

Xantho pilipes
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Malacostraca
Order:	Decapoda
Suborder:	Pleocyemata
Infraorder:	Brachyura
Family:	Xanthidae
Genus:	Xantho
Species:	X. pilipes
Binomial name
Xantho pilipes (A. Milne-Edwards, 1867)

Xantho pilipes, or Risso's crab, is a species of crab from the family Xanthidae, named for the naturalist Antoine Risso. ^[1]

Description

Risso's crab is small, adults measuring 15–30 mm (0.59–1.18 in) in length. ^{[2] [3]} It is marbly and varied in colour from red to yellow to brown. ^[2] It has dense hairs on the back of its legs, hence the specific name pilipes, 'hairy legs'. ^[4]

Ecology

Xantho pilipes lives in seawater up to depths of 100 m (330 ft). It hides under rocks and in coarse gravel. ^[5]

Distribution

Xantho pilipes is found in the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic. ^[6] It is common off the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland. ^{[7] [8]}

References

1. Jarvis, D. P. (2020). The Pelagic Dictionary of Natural History of the British Isles: Descriptions of All Species with a Common Name. United Kingdom: Pelagic Publishing.
2. "Risso's crab (Xantho pilipes) - MarLIN - The Marine Life Information Network". www.marlin.ac.uk.
3. "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Xantho pilipes A. Milne-Edwards, 1867". www.marinespecies.org.
4. "What crab species have I found?". December 12, 2016.
5. "Risso's crab - Xantho pilipes". www.seawater.no.
6. "Risso's Crab (Xantho pilipes)". iNaturalist.
7. "Risso's Crab (Xantho pilipes) - Detail - Biodiversity Maps". maps.biodiversityireland.ie.
8. "Xantho pilipes : Risso's Crab | NBN Atlas". species.nbnatlas.org.