- Lithodes maja
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Lithodes maja 
Lithodes maja (on top of Hyas araneus) Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Subphylum: Crustacea Class: Malacostraca Order: Decapoda Family: Lithodidae Genus: Lithodes Species: L. maja Binomial name Lithodes maja
(Linnaeus, 1758) [1]Synonyms Lithodes maja is a species of king crab which occurs in the colder waters of Europe and North America. It is found along entire coast of Norway,[2] the northern half of the British Isles, and around the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Svalbard and off south-eastern Greenland.[1] In Canada, it is found from Newfoundland southwards.[3]
The carapace is almost circular and may reach a width of 13–14 centimetres (5.1–5.5 in).[2] The whole body is brown or orange and is covered with large spikes. It lives on both soft and hard bottoms, from a few metres below the surface to around 800 m depth.[1][2] Like most king crabs, females are asymmetrical, with the left side of the abdomen considerably larger than the right, although specimens with the reverse of this are occasionally found.[4]
The low rate of egg production by this species, in comparison to species fished in the North Pacific, limits its abundance, making it unsuitable for commercial exploitation.[5]
References
- ^ a b c d Cédric d'Udekem d'Acoz (2003). "Lithodes maja (Linnaeus, 1758)". Crustikon – crustacean photographic website. Tromsø Museum – University of Tromsø. Archived from the original on February 19, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080219132318/http://www.imv.uit.no/crustikon/Decapoda/Decapoda2/Species_index/Lithodes_maja.htm. Retrieved August 16, 2007.
- ^ a b c K. Telnes. "Deepsea king crab". seawater.no. http://www.seawater.no/fauna/Leddyr/maja.htm. Retrieved August 16, 2007.
- ^ "Stone crab, Lithodes maja". Canada's Species. McGill University. http://canadianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca/english/species/crustaceans/crustaceanpages/lit_maj.htm. Retrieved August 16, 2007.
- ^ S. D. Zaklan (2000). "A case of reversed asymmetry in Lithodes maja (Linnaeus, 1758) (Decapoda, Anomura, Lithodidae)". Crustaceana 73 (8): 1019–1022. doi:10.1163/156854000504949.
- ^ "Northern stone crab (Lithodes maja) exploratory fishing" (PDF). Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. 2000. http://www.fishaq.gov.nl.ca/fdp/projectreports/fdp_84.pdf.
External links
Media related to Lithodes maja at Wikimedia Commons
Categories:- King crabs
- Crustaceans of the Atlantic Ocean
- Animals described in 1758
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