General Description
Body granulate, mottled with variable patterns of red, brown, purple and yellow. The sides of the carapace are curved and without teeth. Up to 4 cm wide (carapace).
Biology
Purple-mottled Shore Crabs are very active and race for shelter when disturbed. Because they can survive for several hours out of water, they are able to live above the low-tide level on rocky shores. Shore crabs are scavengers, using their claws to tear apart dead fishes and rotting seaweed. Purple-mottled Shore Crabs can breed (hybridise) with a closely-related shore crab species.
Distribution
South-eastern Australia.
Habitat
Under rocks at mid to high intertidal levels.
More Information
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Animal Type
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Animal SubType
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Brief Id
Red, brown and yellow patterns, no notches on sides of carapace.
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Colours
Red, Brown, Yellow
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Habitats
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Diet
Carnivore
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Diet Categories
Animal matter
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Endemicity
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Commercial
No
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Conservation Statuses
CITES: Not listed, FFG Threatened List: Not listed, EPBC Act 1999: Not listed, IUCN Red List: Not listed
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Depths
Shore (0-1 m), Shallow (1-30 m)
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Water Column Locations
On or near seafloor
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Taxon Name
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Scientific Author
Milne Edwards, 1853
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Common Name
Purple-mottled Shore Crab
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Phylum
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Subphylum
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Superclass
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Class
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Subclass
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Superorder
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Order
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Suborder
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Infraorder
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Superfamily
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Family
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Subfamily
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Genus
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Species Name
granulosus