| Coenobita | |
|---|---|
| Caribbean hermit crab | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Infraorder: | Anomura |
| Superfamily: | Paguroidea |
| Family: | Coenobitidae |
| Genus: | Coenobita Latreille, 1829 |
| Type species | |
| Pagurus clypeatus Fabricius, 1787 [1] |
|
The genus Coenobita contains the sixteen species of terrestrial hermit crabs.[1] The majority of the species are found in the Indo-Pacific region, with only one species in West Africa, one species occurring along the western Atlantic Ocean, and one species occurring on the Pacific coast of the Americas.[2] Coenobita is closely related to the coconut crab, Birgus latro, with the two genera making up the whole of the family Coenobitidae. Coenobita species carry water in the gastropod shells they inhabit, allowing them to stay out of water for a long time.[3]
| Species | Authority | Year | Distribution [2] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coenobita brevimanus | Dana | 1852 | Indo-Pacific |
| Coenobita carnescens | Dana | 1851 | Pacific Ocean |
| Coenobita cavipes | Stimpson | 1858 | Indo-Pacific |
| Coenobita clypeatus | (Fabricius) | 1787 | Western Atlantic |
| Coenobita compressus | H. Milne Edwards | 1836 | Eastern Pacific |
| Coenobita longitarsis | De Man | 1902 | East Indies |
| Coenobita olivieri | Owen | 1839 | Red Sea? |
| Coenobita perlatus | H. Milne Edwards | 1837 | Indo-Pacific |
| Coenobita pseudorugosus | Nakasone | 1988 | Indo-Pacific |
| Coenobita purpureus | Stimpson | 1858 | Japan |
| Coenobita rubescens | Greeff | 1884 | West Africa |
| Coenobita rugosus | H. Milne Edwards | 1837 | Indo-Pacific |
| Coenobita scaevola | (Forskal) | 1775 | Indian Ocean |
| Coenobita spinosus | H. Milne Edwards | 1837 | Polynesia & Australia |
| Coenobita variabilis | McCulloch | 1909 | Australia |
| Coenobita violascens | Heller | 1862 | Pacific Ocean |