Data for selected species
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Since November 2012, this database is updated in CRUSTA database - http://crustiesfroverseas.free.fr/

Decapoda - Brachyura - Portunidae - Portunus

Portunus pelagicus (Linnaeus, 1758)



Selected Reference(s)
Neptunus pelagicus. - Heller, C., 1865: 27. - French Polynesia

Regional Data (French Polynesia, Pitcairn, Easter Island, Clipperton)
Distribution & Ecology: Society (Tahiti) - Marine; Shoreline to 10 m; ?Soft bottom.

Regional Records: Neptunus pelagicus - Heller, 1865: 27 (Tahiti). - Portunus pelagicus - Forest & Guinot, 1962: 58 (Biogeography "Tahiti-Tuamotu"). - Stephenson, 1972: 41 (Distribution only, Tahiti). - Portunus (Portunus) pelagicus - Guinot, 1985: 449 (List). - Poupin, 1996a: 32, 77 (Checklist). - Remark: this species has often been reported from Tahiti (Boone, 1934; Stephenson & Campbell, 1959; Crosnier, 1962; Stephenson & Rees, 1967; Stephenson, 1972; Sakai, 1976; Dai & Yang, 1991) but it seems that the specimens examined from that locality are only those of Heller (1865). In June 2007, this material has been verified and photographed in Wien collection by P. Dworschak: 2 specimens from Tahiti (NHMW 2860). Joelle Lai, National University of Singapore, considered that the species is " either absent - in Tahiti - (possible misrepresentation of labels) or extremely rare since Hawaii and Tahiti probably represent the easternmost limit of its distribution in the Pacific ocean" (personal communication in June 2007). Morphologically P. pelagicus is close to P. sanguinolentus. In P. sanguinolentus there are three red spots on postero-dorsal surface of the carapace; these spots are absent in P. pelagicus.


References : compilation of references cited in Poupin (1996, 1998, 2003) and Poupin et al. (2009) - PDF 412 Ko



Since November 2012, this database is updated in CRUSTA database - http://crustiesfroverseas.free.fr/