Paralithodes camtschaticus

Taxobox
name = "Paralithodes camtschaticus"

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image_width = 240px
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Arthropoda
subphylum = Crustacea
classis = Malacostraca
ordo = Decapoda
infraordo = Anomura
familia = Lithodidae
genus = "Paralithodes"
species = "P camtschaticus"
binomial = "Paralithodes camtschaticus"
binomial_authority = (Tilesius, 1815) [cite web |author=L. L. Jørgensen |year=2006 |work=NOBANIS – Invasive Alien Species Fact Sheet |title="Paralithodes camtschaticus" |publisher=Online Database of the North European and Baltic Network on Invasive Alien Species |accessdate=2007-08-15 |url=http://www.nobanis.org/files/factsheets/Paralithodes_camtschaticus.pdf]

The red king crab or Stalin's Crab, "Paralithodes camtschaticus", is the most coveted of the commercially sold king crab species, and is the most expensive per unit weight. A red king crab can be very large, sometimes reaching a carapace width of 11 in (28 cm) and a leg span of 6 ft (1.8 m) [Cite book |author=Gregory Jensen | chapter=Order: Decapoda | year = 2004 | title = Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia | editor = Michael Hutchins | volume = 2 | pages = 208 | place = Farmington Hills, MI | publisher = Gale | id = ISBN 0-7876-5362-4] . It is most commonly caught in the Bering Sea and Norton Sound, Alaska, and is particularly difficult to catch, but is nonetheless one of the most preferred crabs for consumption and has been said to be tastier than lobster [cite web|url=http://www.seafoodfromnorway.com/page?id=120&key=11569 |title=A meal to get your claws into |date=2006-02-06 |publisher=Seafood from Norway] . Red king crab gets its name from the color it turns when it is cooked rather than that of its actual color while still alive, which tends to be more burgundy.

Recently, an overpopulation of red king crabs in the Barents Sea is causing concern about the local biosystems. It was introduced artificially in the Murmansk Fjord in Russia during the 1960s to provide new catch for the Soviet fishermen. Since its introduction it has spread west along the Norwegian coast and also towards the island group of Svalbard [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4775155.stm |author=Lars Bevanger |title=Norway fears giant crab invasion |publisher=BBC News |date=2006-08-09] [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3149782.stm |author=Alex Kirby |title=King crabs march towards the Pole |publisher=BBC News |date=2003-09-27] . Environmentalists and some local fishermen fear the crab because it eats everything it comes across and is spreading very rapidly (despite this threat, some fishing quotas on the crab are still in place). Other fishermen see the king crab as a blessing, as it is a high priced delicacy in some countries. The crab also features on the Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch. [cite news |url=http://www.mg.co.za/articledirect.aspx?articleid=272634 |title=Barents Sea teems with 'Stalin's crabs' |author=Pierre-Henry Deshayes |publisher=Mail & Guardian |date=2006-05-24] .

References

See also

* Crustacean