Orangutan crab
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Orangutan crab ( Achaeus japonicus ) |
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| Achaeus japonicus | ||||||||||||
| ( De Haan , 1839) |
The orangutan crab ( Achaeus japonicus , syn .: Inachus japonicus ), also known as the orangutan crab , is a crab from the Inachidae family , which occurs in the tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific . The crab is curiously "hairy all over" with orange-brown-red streaks and thus in a certain way resembles an orangutan .
Occurrence and habitat
The orangutan crab is found throughout the Indo-Pacific , primarily in Indonesia ( Raja Ampat ), Japan , New Caledonia, and the Philippines .
It is a symbiotic crab, i. This means that it lives together with the bladder coral Plerogyra sinuosa or with Euphyllia species. She is nocturnal .
description
The orangutan crab has bright red eyes, relatively long arms and sharp claws. The carapace (back armor) has an extension of approx. 1.5 to 2 cm. The crab is covered with orange-brown-red "hairs" and thus resembles an algae carpet, but also likes to camouflage itself with small pieces of debris from the area.
nutrition
The crab feeds on plankton and particles floating in the sea.
