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Panulirus longipes bispinosus

Kōura (MG)

Bluespot Spiny-Lobster

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General Information

COMMON NAMES: Bluespot Spiny-Lobster, Bluespot Crayfish, Bluespot Rock-Lobster

TRADITIONAL NAMES: Kōura (MG), Koura (AT)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE [with striped legs] Queensland - Cooks - ?

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; Marine, near-shore, outer reef-slope

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Food

KEY FEATURES: Carapace to 8cm long. Carapace and abdomen red-brown with small white spots; carapace lower edge with two wide white stripes. Telson red-brown, black posteriorly with a white trim. Legs red-brown with conspicuous white stripes. Antennae 1.5x TL, with vivid purple on inner base. Antennular flagella with white bands (=femoristriga subspecies).

SIMILAR SPECIES: A second Pacific subspecies (.P.l. albiflagellum) has one antennular flagellum white and one dark (vs. white banded).

Enlarged Image of 'Panulirus longipes bispinosus'

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

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

Northern Group:
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW

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

Panulirus longipes bispinosus (Milne-Edwards, 1869)
TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; ARTHROPODA; CRUSTACEA; MALACOSTRACA; EUMALACOSTRACA; Eucarida; Decapoda; Reptantia; Palinura; PALINURIDAE

More Information

GENERAL NOTE: The Indian Ocean P. longipes longipes has spotted legs. Ecologically this species overlaps with the Pronghorn Spiny-Lobster, but is typically slightly deeper, and during the night it remains on the outer-slope to feed.

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Mangaia: 1 specimen, College, 9/2000, ID & photo GMcC. Atiu: field-specimen, College collection, 10/2000, ID GMcC.

References:
None recorded.

Data Update History (information):
zB02, 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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