Arenaeus cribrarius (speckled crab) (Sanibel Island, Florida, USA) 1

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Summary.mw-parser-output table.commons-file-information-table,.mw-parser-output.fileinfotpl-type-information{border:1px solid #a2a9b1;background-color:#f8f9fa;padding:5px;font-size:95%;border-spacing:2px;box-sizing:border-box;margin:0;width:100%}.mw-parser-output table.commons-file-information-table>tbody>tr,.mw-parser-output.fileinfotpl-type-information>tbody>tr{vertical-align:top}.mw-parser-output table.commons-file-information-table>tbody>tr>td,.mw-parser-output table.commons-file-information-table>tbody>tr>th,.mw-parser-output.fileinfotpl-type-information>tbody>tr>td,.mw-parser-output.fileinfotpl-type-information>tbody>tr>th{padding:4px}.mw-parser-output.fileinfo-paramfield{background:#ccf;text-align:right;padding-right:0.4em;width:15%;font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table+table.commons-file-information-table,.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table+div.commons-file-information-table>table{border-top:0;padding-top:0;margin-top:-8px}@media only screen and (max-width:719px){.mw-parser-output table.commons-file-information-table,.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table.fileinfotpl-type-information{border-spacing:0;padding:0;word-break:break-word;width:100%!important}.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table>tbody,.mw-parser-output.fileinfotpl-type-information>tbody{display:block}.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table>tbody>tr>td,.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table>tbody>tr>th,.mw-parser-output.fileinfotpl-type-information>tbody>tr>td,.mw-parser-output.fileinfotpl-type-information>tbody>tr>th{padding:0.2em 0.4em;text-align:left;text-align:start}.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table>tbody>tr,.mw-parser-output.fileinfotpl-type-information>tbody>tr{display:flex;flex-direction:column}.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table+table.commons-file-information-table,.mw-parser-output.commons-file-information-table+div.commons-file-information-table>table{margin-top:-1px}.mw-parser-output.fileinfo-paramfield{box-sizing:border-box;flex:1 0 100%;width:100%}} Description: English: Arenaeus cribrarius (Lamarck, 1818) - dorsal view of a speckled crab carapace in Florida, USA. (January 2016) Orientation: anterior at top; posterior below. The crustaceans are a large group of arthropods that inhabit marine, marginal marine, freshwater, and terrestrial habitats. The crustaceans include crabs, lobsters, shrimp, crayfish, barnacles, ostracods, and other organisms. The oldest fossil crustaceans are in the Cambrian. The group experienced a significant radiation in the oceans during the Mesozoic Marine Revolution. The above photo shows a carapace of a speckled crab, Arenaeus cribrarius. This species is a swimming crab with a carapace morphology similar to that of blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus - see: www.flickr.com/photos/jsjgeology/23886163513). Speckled crabs are frequently infaunal - they bury themselves in shallow-water and beachface sandy sediments. Arenaeus cribrarius preys on molluscs, decapods, and fish. (info. synthesized from Witherington & Witherington, 2007) Classification: Animalia, Arthropoda, Crustacea, Malacostraca, Decapoda, Brachyura, Portunidae Locality: marine beach near Sanibel Lighthouse, near the eastern tip of Sanibel Island, Gulf of Mexico Coast of southern Florida, USA More info. at: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crustacean and www.inaturalist.org/taxa/122198-Arenaeus-cribrarius Reference cited: Witherington & Witherington (2007) - Florida's Living Beaches, a Guide for the Curious Beachcomber. Sarasota, Florida. Pineapple Press, Inc. 326 pp. Date: 3 January 2016, 12:26:39. Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/47445767@N05/31127563755/. Author: James St. John.