Ocypode ceratophthalmus

Ocypode ceratophthalmus
Ocypode ceratophthalmus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Infraorder: Brachyura
Family: Ocypodidae
Genus: Ocypode
Species: O. ceratophthalmus
Binomial name
Ocypode ceratophthalmus
(Pallas, 1772) [1]
Synonyms
  • Cancer ceratophthalmus Pallas, 1772
  • Cancer caninus Herbst, 1782
  • Ocypode urvillei Guérin, 1829
  • Ocypoda MacLeayana Hess, 1865

Ocypode ceratophthalmus, the horned ghost crab[2] or horn-eyed ghost crab,[3] is a species of ghost crab. It lives in the Indo-Pacific region from East Africa to the Philippines and the Great Barrier Reef.[4] O. ceratophthalmus can be distinguished from other related crabs by the eyestalks extending beyond the eyes into long points,[5] which are longer in males, and shorter in females and juveniles.[3] The crabs have a box-shaped body, 6–8 centimetres (2.4–3.1 in) across the carapace, with a darker markings towards the rear in the shape of an H.[3] O. ceratophthalmus can run at speeds of up to 2.1 metres per second (6.9 ft/s).[6]

References

  1. ^ Sammy De Grave, N. Dean Pentcheff, Shane T. Ahyong et al. (2009). "A classification of living and fossil genera of decapod crustaceans" (PDF). Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Suppl. 21: 1–109. http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/rbz/biblio/s21/s21rbz1-109.pdf. 
  2. ^ "Ghost crabs". Marine Invertebrates of the National Park of American Samoa. University of Hawaii. November 10, 2009. http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/basch/uhnpscesu/htms/NPSAinvr/fish_pops/ocypod/crab01.htm. Retrieved January 2, 2010. 
  3. ^ a b c "Horn-eyed ghost crab Ocypode ceratophthalma". Wild Singapore. May 2009. http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/crustacea/crab/ocypodoidea/ceratophthalma.htm. 
  4. ^ "Ocypode ceratophthalma (Pallas, 1872) sic". Sealifebase. February 25, 2009. http://www.sealifebase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=21486. Retrieved January 2, 2010. 
  5. ^ David Gillikin & Anouk Verheyden (November 11, 2002). "Ocypode ceratophthalmus (Pallas)". A field guide to Kenyan mangroves. http://www.madeinnys.com/mangrove/o_ceratophthalmus.htm. Retrieved January 2, 2010. 
  6. ^ Malcolm Burrows & Graham Hoyle (1973). "The mechanism of rapid running in the ghost crab, Ocypode ceratophthalma". Journal of Experimental Biology 58 (2): 327–349. http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/reprint/58/2/327. 


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