Dorippe frascone
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| Dorippe frascone | |
|---|---|
_with_Red_Radiant_Sea_Urchin_(Astropyga_radiata).jpg) | |
| Dorippe frascone carrying a red radiant sea urchin (Astropyga radiata) | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Suborder: | Pleocyemata |
| Infraorder: | Brachyura |
| Family: | Dorippidae |
| Genus: | Dorippe |
| Species: | D. frascone |
| Binomial name | |
| Dorippe frascone | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Dorippe frascone, the urchin crab or carrier crab, is a small species of crab in the family Dorippidae that was first described scientifically by J.F.W. Herbst, in 1785. It is found in the Red Sea and parts of the western and eastern Indian Ocean. It often has a symbiotic relationship with a long-spined sea urchin and carries one around on its carapace.
The urchin crab is a brownish-pink colour and grows to a length of about 5 cm (2 in). It has long-stalked eyes, a rounded carapace and long, slender legs. It uses only the first two pairs of legs for locomotion because the third and fourth pairs are used to grip a sea urchin which it carries around on its back. It is similar in morphology to the jellyfish crab (Ethusa spp.) but is easily distinguished by the different invertebrate transported. It also resembles decorator crabs[2] but those actually stick living creatures such as sponges, hydroids and bryozoans, bits of algae and inert objects to their shells.[3]
Distribution
Dorippe frascone is found in the Red Sea and off the coast of East Africa, including Mozambique and Cargados Carajos, an atoll north east of Mauritius.[1] [4]