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Calappa hepatica

Pāpaka Pōpoti (AK)

Hepatic Box-Crab

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Image:	Adult male	31KB
Image:	Front and top views (b&w illustration)	71KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Hepatic Box-Crab

TRADITIONAL NAMES: Pāpaka Pōpoti (AK), Kalama ?ID (PK)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE e.Africa - Indonesia - Japan - Cooks - Tuamotu

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; Marine, near-shore

KEY FEATURES: Carapace 40x65mm. An transversely oval carapace with wing-like projections over the spindly walking-legs. The surface is granulated.

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
P					P

Northern Group: Present
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
	P		+++

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Calappa hepatica (Linnaeus, 1758)
SYNONYMS: Cancer hepaticus

TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; ARTHROPODA; CRUSTACEA; MALACOSTRACA; EUMALACOSTRACA; Eucarida; Decapoda; Reptantia; Brachyura; Oxystomata; CALAPPIDAE

More Information

GENERAL NOTE: This crab runs about on the muddy and sandy lagoon and moat floor in search of small turret-shaped shellfish. It then uses a specialised projection on its nipper to slice the shell open to reach the inhabitant. The inhabitant is often a small hermit-crab.

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Cooks: JU-044; Rarotonga: BPBM-Cat. 3286; Aitutaki: Gibbs75; Manihiki: Bullivant74; Pukapuka: BPBM-Cat.4576; fieldspecimen+photo, 2/2004, G.McCormack with ID as Calappa hepatica.

References:
Special Reference: Forest & Guinot 1961 [Fr.]; Sakai 19?? p.128, pl.38/1;

Data Update History (information):
zTXmx, zB02, zM02, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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