Catapagurus tuberculosus ( Asakura, 1999 )

Osawa, Masayuki & Fujita, Yoshihisa, 2019, Submarine cave hermit crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Paguroidea) from three islands of the Ryukyu Islands, southwestern Japan, Zootaxa 4560 (3), pp. 463-482 : 470-471

Catapagurus tuberculosus ( Asakura, 1999)

( Fig. 2A )

Icelopagurus tuberculosus Asakura, 1999: 382 , figs. 1–4 (type locality: Kume Island, Ryukyu Islands).

Catapagurus tuberculosus .— Asakura 2001: 830, figs. 1D, G, 51.— Osawa & Takeda 2004: 1112 .

Material examined. Ie Island, unnamed submarine cave: entrance, 25 June 2017, 1 male (sl 4.9 mm), RUMF- ZC-6031 ( IE 188 ).

Distribution. Ryukyu Islands (Ie Island, Kume Island, and Shimoji Island) in southwestern Japan; 10–35 m ( Osawa & Takeda 2004; Osawa & Fujita 2016; present study).

Habitat. Coral reefs; often found on fine sediments in submarine caves ( Osawa & Takeda 2004).

Remarks. This species was originally described as Icelopagurus tuberculosus by Asakura (1999). Asakura (2001) subsequently transferred the species to the genus Catapagurus A. Milne-Edwards, 1880 from Icelopagurus McLaughlin, 1997. Catapagurus tuberculosus has been often recorded from submarine caves in the Ryukyu Islands ( Osawa & Takeda 2004, Osawa & Fujita 2016; Table 2). As noted by Osawa & Takeda (2004), this species carries a gastropod shell, which protects only the abdomen and posterior carapace, being too small for the hermit crab to retract the thoracic appendages.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Entire animal, dorsal view. A, Catapagurus tuberculosus (Asakura, 1999), male (sl 4.9 mm), RUMF-ZC-6031 (IE188); B, Pagurixus longipes Osawa, Fujita & Okuno, 2006, male (sl 2.0 mm), RUMF-ZC-6033 (HD2017-133); C, Pagurixus nomurai Komai & Asakura, 1995, female (sl 5.0 mm), RUMF-ZC-6038 (HD2017-65); D, Pagurixus nomurai Komai & Asakura, 1995, ovigerous female (sl 4.4 mm), RUMF-ZC-6040 (SH102).