Crabs are Decapod Crustaceans related to Shrimps, Crayfish and
Lobsters. Most Crabs occupy marine environments; however Freshwater and Land
Crabs are widespread in the tropics, particularly in Southeast Asia, where they
are particularly diverse and where several new species are discovered every
year.
In a paper published in the Raffles Bulletin of Zoology on 11 July
2014, Rueangrit Promdam of the Department of Biology at Prince of SongklaUniversity, Jaruwat Nabhitabhata of the Excellence Centre for Biodiversity ofPeninsular Thailand at Prince of Songkla University and Peter Ng of the Lee KongChian Natural History Museum at the National University of Singapore describe a
new species of Freshwater Crab from Nakhon Si Thammarat Province in Peninsular
Thailand.
The new Crab is named Nakhonsimon ramromensis,
where ‘Nakhonsimon’ is a combination
of the name of the province where it was discovered and ‘-mon’, a common suffix for Freshwater Crab genera, and ‘ramromensis’ means ‘coming from Ram
Rome’ a reference to the location where it was discovered. Nakhonsimon ramromensis is a squarish Crab reaching slightly over 30
mm in width. Its dorsal (upper) surface is dirty brown or dark grey, the legs
and belly a lighter brown or orange, the claws reddish in colour.
Nakhonsimon ramromensis. Male specimen. Promdam et al. (2014).
The species was found at a single location, in and around a stream
on Khao Ram Rome in Nakhon Si Thammarat Province. Many of the Crabs were in
temporary pools on the ground or in plants, suggesting that it is comfortable
out of water. While it was only found at a single location, Promdam et al. suspect that it is likely to be
more widespread within the region.
See also…
Freshwater Crabs of the genus Geothelphusa,
are known from Taiwan, the Ryukyu Islands and the main islands of Japan. To
date 55 species have been described, 38 of which are found in Taiwan and its
adjacent islands, fifteen are found in the Ryukyus and three species in Japan...
Gall Crabs, Cryptochiridae, are colony-forming Crabs inhabiting Coral reefs. They dwell in tunnels within the Coral surface, often at very high population densities, the females causing the Corals to form galls (tumour-like growths) which they use for protection.
A new species of freshwater Crab from eastern Sarawak. Freshwater Crabs of the genus Thelphusula have been found across
northern Borneo, although they are likely to be more widely distributed
on the island, with the known distribution representing better sampling
in Sarawak and Sabah (only a single species has been recorded from
Kalimantan). The Crabs are nocturnal and favour swampy and well
Gall Crabs, Cryptochiridae, are colony-forming Crabs inhabiting Coral reefs. They dwell in tunnels within the Coral surface, often at very high population densities, the females causing the Corals to form galls (tumour-like growths) which they use for protection.
A new species of freshwater Crab from eastern Sarawak. Freshwater Crabs of the genus Thelphusula have been found across
northern Borneo, although they are likely to be more widely distributed
on the island, with the known distribution representing better sampling
in Sarawak and Sabah (only a single species has been recorded from
Kalimantan). The Crabs are nocturnal and favour swampy and well
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