Grapsidae

Grapsidae
Grapsus grapsus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Infraorder: Brachyura
Superfamily: Grapsoidea
Family: Grapsidae
Macleay, 1838 [1]
Genera

See text

Grapsidae is a family of crabs known variously as marsh crabs, shore crabs or talon crabs.[1] It is not confirmed that the family forms a monophyletic group and some taxa may belong in other families.[2] They are found along the shore among rocks, in estuaries, marshes, and in some cases pelagic among drifting seaweeds and flotsam.

Genera

A number of taxa, formerly treated as subfamilies of the family Grapsidae are now considered families in their own right, including Varunidae and Plagusiidae.[3] Ten genera remain in the family, two of them known only from fossils:[3]

References

  1. ^ a b "Grapsidae". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=99033. Retrieved November 1, 2010. 
  2. ^ C. D. Schubart, S. Cannicci, M. Vannini & S. Fratini (2006). "Molecular phylogeny of grapsoid crabs (Decapoda, Brachyura) and allies based on two mitochondrial genes and a proposal for refraining from current superfamily classification" (PDF). Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research 44 (3): 193–199. doi:10.1111/j.1439-0469.2006.00354.x. http://www-evolution.uni-regensburg.de/Staff/ChristophSchubart/pdf/JZSER-2006online.pdf. 
  3. ^ a b Sammy De Grave, N. Dean Pentcheff, Shane T. Ahyong et al. (2009). "A classification of living and fossil genera of decapod crustaceans" (PDF). Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Suppl. 21: 1–109. http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/rbz/biblio/s21/s21rbz1-109.pdf. 

External links