Horrid Elbow Crab

Appearance

Carapace to 11 cm (4 1/4 in.)
Is a large crab with pentagonal carapace in shades of brown, covered with large rounded and pointed tubercles. It has very long claw arms with palms swollen just before pincers. It is often encrusted with coralline algae.

Distribution

Indo-Pacific. Also Japan and Hawaii.

Status

Not Evaluated.

Habitat

Prefers sandy substrates.

Reproduction

Members of the order Decapoda are mostly gonochoric. Mating behavior: Precopulatory courtship ritual is common (through olfactory and tactile cues); usually indirect sperm transfer.

Food

Large chela is used to crush snails and molluscan shells of hermit crabs.

Defense

Reported to be mildly toxic to toxic. Toxicity of its flesh may be a result of accumulation of toxins from its diet.