Portunus sanguinolentus

Three-spot swimming crab
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Crustacea
Class:	Malacostraca
Order:	Decapoda
Infraorder:	Brachyura
Family:	Portunidae
Genus:	Portunus
Species:	P. sanguinolentus
Binomial name
Portunus sanguinolentus (Herbst, 1783)
Synonyms
Cancer raihoae Curtiss, 1938 Lupa sanguinolentus (Herbst, 1783)

The three-spot swimming crab (Portunus sanguinolentus), also known as the blood-spotted swimming crab or red-spotted swimming crab,^[1] is a large crab found throughout estuaries of the Indian and West Pacific Oceanic countries.

Distribution

A cosmopolitan species widely distributed all major water of the world, found through Red Sea, Persian Gulf, Mozambique, South Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius, Pakistan, India, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Andaman Islands, Myanmar, Malay Peninsula, Thailand, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Java, Australia, and Hawaii.^[2]

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognized:^[3]

• Portunus (Portunus) sanguinolentus hawaiiensis Stephenson, 1968
• Portunus (Portunus) sanguinolentus sanguinolentus (Herbst, 1783)

Description

A large crab with 15–20 cm of maximum length. Greyish green carapace is very broad and characterized by 3 red spots in posterior half. A strong spine can be seen on each side. Swimming legs are flattened and claws are long.^[4]

Ecology

Primarily a carnivore, found in marine waters and intertidal zone by juveniles. Inhabits sandy to muddy substrates. It is a harmless crab, but clinging to claws will give a pain. Commercially harvested as an edible crab species in many countries.^[5]

References

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