Achaeus sp
Orangutan Crab
©Anne: One of three individuals of Achaeus spon coral Plerogyra sinuosa in the channel at the north end of No Name Reef near Lizard Island.
©Anne: Three individuals of Achaeus sp on coral Plerogyra sinuosa in the channel at the north end of No Name Reef near Lizard Island.
©Anne: Plerogyra sinuosa colony about 12 cm diameter in the channel at the north end of No Name Reef near Lizard Island. Three Orangutan Crabs (Achaeus sp) are on the upper right side.
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Arthropoda
Class
Malacostraca
Order
Decapoda
Family
Inachidae
Genus
Achaeus
Species
Achaeus sp
Colours
Distinguishing features
Small carapace and extremely long legs covered densely with fine reddish "hairs". Bright red eyes. Lives on Plerogyra corals.
This may well be Achaeus japonicus which is well-known from Indonesia. However, the only Australian record of that species appears to be from the Solitary Islands, NSW, in Jan 2019 (iNaturalist and Atlas of Living Australia accessed 5 Jan 2020). This GBR record requires expert identification.
Size
- Size data has not been obtained.
Synonyms
Similar taxa
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Animalia:
species: Achaeus japonicus
is well-known to the north of Australia but its presence in Australia has not been reliably confirmed.
