Moreiradromia antillensis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Moreiradromia antillensis | |
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| Moreiradromia antillensis from a tidepool on the island of Nevis | |
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| Ventral view of same crab | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Suborder: | Pleocyemata |
| Infraorder: | Brachyura |
| Family: | Dromiidae |
| Genus: | Moreiradromia |
| Species: | M. antillensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Moreiradromia antillensis (Stimpson, 1858) | |
Moreiradromia antillensis is a species of decapods in the family sponge crab. This species lives in the Western and central Atlantic Ocean.[1]
The carapace is brownish-gray and has short hairs along its body. The tips of its claws are bright red and whitish. The crab covers itself at the dorsal region with fragments of sea squirts, seaweed, tunicates, and sponges, earning them the popular name of "hairy sponge crabs" or "decorator crabs". The crab consciously camouflaging itself from predators, the sponge crab uses their claws to carve up the tunicate or sponge as its shelter and cover.[2]
Distribution
Ranging from the intertidal region to deeper waters (500m),[3] they can be found from the Western Atlantic from Bermuda and North Carolina to Brazil; central Atlantic from Ascension and St. Helena Islands.[4][5]