| Thenus orientalis | |
|---|---|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Family: | Scyllaridae |
| Subfamily: | Theninae Holthuis, 1985 |
| Genus: | Thenus Leach, 1815 |
| Species: | T. orientalis |
| Binomial name | |
| Thenus orientalis (Lund, 1793) [2] |
|
Thenus orientalis is a species of slipper lobster from the Indian and Pacific oceans.
T. orientalis is known by a number of common names. The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization prefers the name flathead lobster, while the official Australian name is Bay lobster.[3][4] In Australia, it is more widely known as the Moreton Bay bug after Moreton Bay, a location in Queensland.[4] In Singapore, both the flathead lobster and true crayfish are confusingly called crayfish. They are popularly used in many Singaporean dishes.[5][6][7][8][9]
T. orientalis has a strongly depressed body, and grows to a maximum body length of 25 centimetres (9.8 in), or a carapace length of 8 cm (3.1 in).[3]
Thenus orientalis has an Indo-West Pacific distribution, ranging from the east coast of Africa (southern Red Sea to Natal) to China, southern Japan, the Philippines and along the northern coast of Australia from Western Australia to Queensland.[3] They are also caught on a small scale off the shores of Malaysia and Singapore.[3]