General Description

Body green-grey or brown with black spots. Carapace has one notch on the side behind the eye. Up to 3 cm wide (carapace).

Biology

Four-toothed Shore Crabs are active movers 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. They are scavengers, using their claws to tear apart dead fishes and rotting seaweed. This species looks very similar to two other species of shore crab in the same genus.

Distribution

Tasmania, western and central Victorian coast.

Habitat

Exposed shores, under rocks on sheltered coasts or in burrows on mudflats, to depth of 10 m.

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