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seagrass lagoon

Spider crab
Family Majidae

Spider crabs are common on Chek Jawa but hard to spot as they are slow-moving and blend perfectly with their surroundings. They have long, skinny legs that give them their common name.

The spider crabs on Chek Jawa are small with a body width of about 2cm. However, they are cousins of the biggest crab in the world! The Japanese spider crab (Macrocheira kaempferi), with a leg span of 4m, belongs to the same family.

See also ...
The Velcro crab is also in the same Family Majidae

Links
Giant Japanese Spider Crab (Macrocheira kaempferi) on the Animal Diversity website of the Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan: fact sheet with links.
Crabwise by the Snow Crab Section of the Aquatic Resources Division, on the Fisheries and Oceans Canada website: some interesting information about another large member of the family Majidae.

quick facts
About 0.5-2cm, common in the seagrass lagoon

Classification:
OrderDecapoda
Class Malacostraca
Subphylum Crustacea

Other references

Tan, Leo W. H. & Ng, Peter K. L., 1988. A Guide to Seashore Life. The Singapore Science Centre, Singapore. 160 pp. online version
Lim, S., P. Ng, L. Tan, & W. Y. Chin, 1994. Rhythm of the Sea: The Life and Times of Labrador Beach. Division of Biology, School of Science, Nanyang Technological University & Department of Zoology, the National University of Singapore. 160 pp.

a companion website to the chek jawa guidebook website©ria tan 2003 www.wildsingapore.com

a companion website to the chek jawa guidebook
website©ria tan 2003 www.wildsingapore.com