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Varuna litterata

Pelagic Shore-Crab

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Image:	Adult male	24KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Pelagic Shore-Crab, Sargassum Crab, Pelagic Crab

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE e.Africa - Indonesia - Japan - w.Pacific - Cooks

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; Freshwater - brackishwater, oceanic on debris

KEY FEATURES: Carapace 46x53mm (LxW). Red-brown carapace with red legs. Carapace flat and squarish, with slightly rounded sides. The furrows separating the gastic and cardiac regions are deep forming a distinct figue-H in the middle of the carapace. The anterolateral border is sharp with three teeth - including the external orbital angle. Chelipeds equal with long thin fingers with numerous teeth. Walking legs are thin and flat - the two terminal segments have long hairs on the posterior borders.

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

Varuna litterata (Fabricius, 1798)
SYNONYMS: Grapsus litteratus

TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; ARTHROPODA; CRUSTACEA; MALACOSTRACA; EUMALACOSTRACA; Eucarida; Decapoda; Reptantia; Brachyura; Brachygnatha; Brachyrhyncha; GRAPSIDAE

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Rarotonga: specimen, Pue Valley at base of mountains, 1990, coll. and ID G.McCormack, confirmed Webber (TePapaMus).

References:
None recorded.

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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