Metacarcinus gracilis (Dana, 1852)

Wicksten, Mary K., 2012, Decapod Crustacea of the Californian and Oregonian Zoogeographic Provinces 3371, Zootaxa 3371, pp. 1-307 : 231

publication ID	11755334
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5255302
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/C5657B52-FF7A-B3F5-44D1-FF5ECCA808AE
treatment provided by	Felipe (2021-08-24 08:22:12, last updated by Plazi 2023-11-04 15:45:02)
scientific name	Metacarcinus gracilis (Dana, 1852)
status

Treatment

Metacarcinus gracilis (Dana, 1852) View in CoL

( Fig. 54E, F; Pl. 13G)

Cancer gracilis Dana, 1852: 73 View in CoL . — Holmes 1900: 52. — Rathbun 1904: 177; 1930: 219, pl. 95, text fig. 34. — Weymouth 1910: 42, pl. 9, figs. 26–28. — Schmitt 1921: 232, pl. 35, fig. 2. — Johnson & Snook 1927: 381, fig. 336. — Phillips 1939: 23, fig. 17. — Nations 1975: 34, figs. 17C, D, 18C, D, 36-1, 36-2. — Word & Charwat 1975: 48.— Garth & Abbott 1980: 604, fig. 25.18. — Wicksten 1980c: 360. — Hart 1982: 214, fig. 88. — Ricketts et al. 1985: 543. — Jensen 1995: 28, fig. 34. — Kuris et al. 2007: 642.

Metacarcinus gracilis View in CoL . — Schweitzer & Feldmann 2000: 235.

Diagnosis. Carapace strongly convex, front not produced, with 3 median teeth. Anterolateral teeth of carapace low, not pointed, carapace granulated, widest at tooth 9; small anterolateral tooth 10. Merus of third maxillipeds elongated, rounded anteriorly. Carpus of cheliped with 2 teeth, one above at distal angle, second below it. Palm with rows of minute spinules, movable finger roughened dorsally but without large teeth. Pereopods 2–5 slender, dactyls elongated. Carapace length 27.3 mm.

Color in life. Carapace brownish to gray, lower surface, much of legs yellowish; purple marks on pereopods 2, 3. Apices of chelae white. The color notes are from crabs from Cabrillo Beach, Los Angeles County; and Princeton Harbor, San Mateo County; California.

Habitat and depth. Mud flats, sandy beaches and offshore areas, eel grass beds, intertidal zone to 174 m.

Range. Prince William Sound , Alaska to Playa Maria Bay, Baja California, Mexico. Type locality San Francisco, California .

Remarks. Megalops larvae and juveniles of this crab have been found on large medusae.

References

Garth, J. S. & Abbott, D. (1980) Brachyura: the true crabs. In: Morris, D., Abbott, D. & Haderlie, E. (Eds). Intertidal Invertebrates of California. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, pp. 594 - 630.

Hart, J. F. L. (1982) Crabs and their Relatives of British Columbia. British Columbia Provincial Museum Handbook 40, Victoria, 267 pp.

Holmes, S. J. (1900) Synopsis of California stalk-eyed Crustacea. Occasional Papers of the California Academy of Sciences, 7, 12 - 62.

Jensen, G. C. (1995) Pacific Coast Crabs and Shrimps. Sea Challengers, Monterey, California, 87 pp.

Johnson, M. E. & Snook, H. J. (1927) Seashore Animals of the Pacific Coast. Dover Publications, New York, reprint 1967, 659 pp.

Kuris, A. M., Sadeghian, P. & Carlton, J. T. (2007) Keys to Decapod Crustacea. In: Carlton, J. T. (Ed.) The Light and Smith Manual: Intertidal Invertebrates Central California to Oregon. University of California Press, Berkeley, 4 th ed., pp. 636 - 656.

Nations, J. D. (1975) The genus Cancer (Crustacea: Brachyura): systematics, biogeography and fossil record. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Bulletin, 23, 1 - 104.

Phillips, J. B. (1939) The market crab of California and its close relatives. California Fish and Game, 25, 18 - 29.

Rathbun, M. J. (1904) Decapod crustaceans of the northwest coast of North America. Harriman Alaska Expedition, 10, 1 - 219.

Rathbun, M. J. (1930) The cancroid crabs of America of the families Euryalidae, Portunidae, Atelecyclidae, Cancridae and Xanthidae. Bulletin of the United States National Museum, 152, 1 - 593.

Ricketts, E. F., Calvin, J., Hedgpeth, J. W. & Phillips, D. W. (1985) Between Pacific Tides. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, 5 th ed., 652 pp.

Schmitt, W. L. (1921) The marine decapod Crustacea of California. University of California Publications in Zoology, 23, 1 - 470.

Schweitzer, C. E. & R. M. Feldmann, R. M. (2000) Re-evaluation of the Cancridae Latreille 1802 (Decapoda: Brachyura) including three new genera and three new species. Contributions to Zoology, 69, 223 - 250.

Weymouth, F. W. (1910) Synopsis of the true crabs (Brachyura) of Monterey Bay, California. Leland Stanford Junior University Publications, University series 4, 1 - 64.

Wicksten, M. K. (1980 c) Mainland and insular assemblges of benthic decapod crustaceans of southern California. In: Power, D. M. (Ed). The California Islands: Proceedings of a Multidisciplinary Symposium. Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, Santa Barbara, California, pp. 357 - 367.

Word, J. & Charwat, D. (1975) Key to Cancer. In: Word, J. & Charwat, D. (Eds.) Invertebrates of Southern California Coastal Water s. I. Selected Groups of Annelids, Arthropods, Echinoderms and Molluscs. Southern California Coastal Water Project, El Segundo, California, pp. 35 - 54.