Cryptochiridae
Family of crabs From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cryptochiridae is a family of crabs known commonly as gall crabs or coral gall crabs. They live inside dwellings in corals and cause the formation of galls in the coral structure.[1][2] The family is currently placed in its own superfamily, Cryptochiroidea.
| Cryptochiridae | |
|---|---|
| |
| Lithoscaptus semperi | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Suborder: | Pleocyemata |
| Infraorder: | Brachyura |
| Subsection: | Thoracotremata |
| Superfamily: | Cryptochiroidea Paul'son, 1875 |
| Family: | Cryptochiridae Paul'son, 1875 |
| Genera | |
|
21, See text | |
Gall crabs are sexually dimorphic, with males being much smaller than females. Contrary to females, most males are free-living and "visit" females for mating.[1][3]
These crabs are most common in shallow waters where they live in association with stony corals, but they have also been recorded from mesophotic zones and deep waters.[4][5] They likely feed on mucus secreted by their coral hosts, as well as various detritus. Some species are thought to be filter feeders.[1]
Because crab size is related to gall size, it is likely that the crabs form the galls, rather than living randomly in a dwelling within a coral. Related groups of gall crab taxa share a similar gall type, suggesting that the crabs influence the morphology of the galls.[6]
The family contains the following twenty-one genera:[7][8]
- Cecidocarcinus Kropp & Manning, 1987
- Cryptochirus Heller, 1861
- Dacryomaia Kropp, 1990
- Detocarcinus Kropp & Manning, 1987
- Fizesereneia Takeda & Tamura, 1980
- Fungicola Serene, 1966
- Hapalocarcinus Stimpson, 1859
- Hiroia Takeda & Tamura, 1981
- Kroppcarcinus Badaro, Neves, Castro & Johnsson, 2012
- Lithoscaptus A. Milne-Edwards, 1862
- Luciades Kropp & Manning, 1996
- Neotroglocarcinus Fize & Serene, 1957
- Opecarcinus Kropp & Manning, 1987
- Pelycomaia Kropp, 1990
- Pseudocryptochirus Hiro, 1938
- Pseudohapalocarcinus Fize & Serène, 1956
- Troglocarcinus Verrill, 1908
- Sphenomaia Kropp, 1990
- Utinomiella Kropp & Takeda, 1988
- Xynomaia Kropp, 1990
- Zibrovia Kropp & Manning, 1996
References
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