Coenobita purpureus

Hamasaki, Katsuyuki, Tsuru, Takuma, Sanda, Tetsuya, Fujikawa, Shunsuke, Dan, Shigeki & Kitada, Shuichi, 2017, Ontogenetic change of body color patterns in laboratory-raised juveniles of six terrestrial hermit crab species, Zootaxa 4226 (4), pp. 521-545 : 533

Coenobita purpureus

The juveniles exhibit a whitish/creamy color (Fig, 9A–F, 10A–C). The shield has a pale brownish patch on the anterior lower part of each side wall in some juveniles with an SL of> 1.6 mm after two months of age ( Fig. 10 B). The chelipeds and the second and third pereiopods are generally pale brown at the distal and proximal parts of each segment; they appear to have pale brownish rings at the boundaries between segments ( Fig. 9 A–F, 10A, B). The carpi of the pereiopods generally have a pale greyish stripe on the middle part in juveniles with an SL of> 1.6 mm after two months of age ( Fig. 9 E, F, 10A–C). The palm of the cheliped has a large pale brownish patch on the lower portion and the propodi and dactyli of the second and third pereiopods have pale brownish portions in some juveniles with an SL of> 1.7 mm after three months of age ( Fig. 10 A–E).

Figures

FIGURE 9. Coenobita purpureus. A (whole animal, dorsal view), B (whole animal, left lateral view), M 2 (sample no. in Table 2, 1.09 mm SL, 0 months old), C (whole animal, dorsal view), D (whole animal, left lateral view), M 6 (1.41 mm SL, 1 month old); E (animal showing shield, posterior carapace, and appendages, dorsal view), F (whole animal, left lateral view), M 7 (1.64 mm SL, 2 months old).

FIGURE 10. Coenobita purpureus. A (animal showing shield, posterior carapace, and appendages, dorsal view), B (animal showing shield, posterior carapace, and appendages, left lateral view), M 10 (sample no. in Table 2, 1.82 mm SL, 3 months old); C (animal showing shield, posterior carapace, and left appendages, dorsal view), M 20 (2.29 mm SL, 6 months old); D (animal showing palm of the left cheliped, dorsal view), E (animal showing propodus and dactylus of the left third pereiopod, dorsal view), M 37 (4.63 mm SL, 12 months old).