Masked
burrowing crabs
Family Corystidae
updated
Oct 2016
Where
seen? These small funny-looking crabs are sometimes seen on our shores, among seagrasses and near reefs.
Features: Body about 3cm.
The body is oval and abdomen folded beneath. Antennae are very long
and feather-like, legs flattened and spade-shaped. They are usually
buried in the sand with only their antennae sticking out. The interlocking
hairs on the antennae probably form a breathing tube for the buried
crab.
Status and threats: The species Gomeza bicornis and Jonas formosae are listed as 'Vulnerable'
on the Red List of threatened animals of Singapore. |
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Gomeza bicornis
Labrador, Dec 04
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Carrying eggs on the abdomen.
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Interlocking hairs on the antennae may
form a breathing tube when the crab is underground.
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Masked
burrowing crabs on Singapore shores |
Other sightings on Singapore shores |
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Female carrying eggs.
Changi, Oct 12
Photo shared by Lok Kok Sheng on flickr. |
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Pulau Sekudu, Jul 09
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Photo shared by Marcus Ng on his
blog. |
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Cyrene Reef, Aug 11
Photo shared by Lok Kok Sheng on his
blog. |
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Pulau Semakau, Aug 13
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Photo shared by Heng Pei Yan on her
blog. |
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Sentosa, Jul 16
Photo shared by Marcus Ng on flickr. |
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Kusu Island, Aug 24
Photo shared by Kelvin Yong on facebook. |
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St. John's Island, Aug 09
Photo shared by Liana Tang on her
blog. |
References
- Marcus F. C. Ng
. 28 Oct 2016. Masked burrowing crab Gomeza bicornis at Sentosa. Singapore Biodiversity Records 2016: 153.
- Davison,
G.W. H. and P. K. L. Ng and Ho Hua Chew, 2008. The Singapore
Red Data Book: Threatened plants and animals of Singapore.
Nature Society (Singapore). 285 pp.
- Humann, Paul
and Ned Deloach. 2010. Reef
Creature Identification: Tropical Pacific New World Publications.
497pp.
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