Gecarcinus ruricola ( Linnaeus, 1758 )

Parasram, Nadeshinie, Santana, William & Vallès, Henri, 2021, Updated checklist of semi-terrestrial and estuarine crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura) of Barbados, West Indies, Zootaxa 5052 (4), pp. 451-485 : 467-468

Gecarcinus ruricola ( Linnaeus, 1758)

Fig. 9 A, B, C, D

Ocypode tourlourou Latrielle, 1803: 36 [type-locality: Dominican Republic].

Gecarcinus agricola Reichenbach, 1828: 230 [adapted from Rathbun, 1918].

Ocypode rubra Fréminville, 1835: 22 [type-locality: Antilles].

Cancer ruricola Linnaeus, 1758: 626 [type-locality: America].

Gecarcinus ruricola — Rathbun 1918: 352, pls. 117, 118; 1920: 19. Chace & Hobbs 1969: 200, figs. 66 & 67 h–j. Keith 1985: 276, fig. 12 B. Ng et al. 2008: 215. García & Capote 2015: 16, figs. 7 m – 7 p. Guinot et al. 2018: 571, fig. 7 A–D. Poupin 2018: 223, fig. 254.

Material examined. Barbados, Crane Hotel , St. Philip, coastal cliffs, 13̊ 10’25.96” N–59̊ 44’65.73” W, 2 ♂, 1 ♀ CW: 100.2; 80.2; 80.2 mm ( BLSZ 059 ) . Idem , 1 ♀ CW: 80.2 mm ( BLSZ 059 ; MZUSP 40855 ) .

Distribution. Gercarcinus ruricola is found in the Western Atlantic: Bahamas, Southern Florida, Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Cayman Islands, St. Croix, St. Matin, St. Barthélemy, Saba, Montserrat, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Dominica, Barbados, Blanquilla, Bonaire, Curaçao, and Aruba (Chance & Hobbs 1969; Poupin 2018).

Distribution in Barbados. Crane and Bottom Bay [ Table 1 (Site #s: 9 & 10)].

Habitat in Barbados. Coastal cliff under dry leaves and in coral limestone rock crevices ( Fig. 2B : E, F).

Ecological notes. Gecarcinus ruricola was collected in a clifftop that is 70 m in elevation from the beach. Here, the crabs were found hiding under piles of dry leaves from the tree Tabebuia pallida (Lindl.) Mier. Molts of the carapace and pereopods were collected ~ 150 m inland from the sea among crevices of large coral limestone formations.

Remarks. Rathbun (1918) reported one specimen, collected by Theodore N. Gill, which is stored at the USNM under the accession number (2065). Because of its large size, Gecarcinus ruricola is also targeted by local commercial and subsistence fisheries in Barbados. However, they are sold and consumed less often than Cardisoma guanhumi or Callinectes spp. because they seem to be less abundant (N. Parasram, Pers. Obs.). We were unsuccessful in locating the work of Reichenbach (1828). Therefore, the location of the synonym Gecarcinus agricola in the publication by Reichenbach (1828) was adapted from Rathbun (1918).

Figures

FIGURE 2A. Semi-terrestrial and estuarine habitats of Barbados. A, B, Coastal Wetlands; C, D, Rocky Shores (Photos: N. Parasram).

FIGURE 9. Habitus of Gecarcinus ruricola (Linnaeus, 1758) (BLSZ 059, MZUSP 40855). A, B, dorsal view of female and male; C, D, ventral view of female and male. Scale bar 20: mm.