European shore crab
Carcinus maenas
(Linnaeus, 1758)
CRIMP, CSIRO Marine Research
Taxonomy
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Subclass: | Eumalacostraca |
| Superorder: | Eucarida |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Suborder: | Pleocyemata |
| Infraorder: | Brachyura |
| Superfamily: | Portunoidea |
| Family: | Portunidae |
| SubFamily: | Carcininae |
| Genus: | Carcinus |
Description
Diagram
Diagram: Caleb Gardener, Tasmanian Aquaculture and Fisheries Institute
Similar Species
MORE (Common Names, Synonyms, Identification Notes, Similar Species, Morphology)...
Reproduction and Growth
Habitat
Feeding Preferences
Trophic status: Omnivore
C. maenas feeds on many species of sessile and mobile epifauna and readily detect and capture shallow infauna. Food is generally found in the top few centimetres of sediment, although they have been observed digging pits up to 15 cm deep to extract large clams.
Predators
Impacts
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Vectors
| Fisheries | |
| - | Fisheries: accidental as bait |
| Shipping | |
| - | Ships: accidental with ballast water, sea water systems, live wells or other deck basins |
| - | Ships: accidental as attached or free-living fouling organisms |
Control Options
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Additional Information
Key References
Ahyong, S.T. (2005). Range extension of two invasive crab species in eastern Australia: Carcinus maenas (Linnaeus) and Pyromaia tuberculata (Lockington). Marine Pollution Bulletin 50:460-462.Baeta, A., Cabral, H.N., Neto, J.M., Marquesw, J.C., Pardal, M.A. (2005). Biology, population dynamics and secondary production of the green crab Carcinus maenas (L.) in a temperate estuary. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 65:43-52.
Bagley, M.J., Geller J.B. (2000). Microsatellite DNA analysis of native and invading populations of European green crabs.. IN: Marine Bioinvasions: Proceedings of the First National Conference, January 24-27, 1999, (Peterson, J. Eds) Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sea Grant, Boston241-243.
Berrill, M. (1982). The life cycle of the green crab Carcinus maenas at the northern end of its range. Journal of Crustacean Biology 2(1):31-39.
Carlton, J.T., Cohen, A.N. (2003). Episodic global dispersal in shallow water marine organisms: the case history of the European shore crabs Carcinus maenas and C. aestuarii. Journal of Biogeography 30:1809-1820.
Cohen, A.N., Carlton, J.T., Fountain, M.C. (1995). Introduction, dispersal and potential impacts of the green crab Carcinus maenas in San Francisco Bay, California. Marine Biology 122:225-237.
Crothers, J.H. (1967). The biology of the shore crab Carcinus maenas (L.): 1. The background-anatomy, growth and life history. Field Studies (AIDGAP) 2(4):579-614.
Dawirs, R.R. (1985). Temperature and larval development of Carcinus maenas (Decapoda) in the laboratory; predictions of larval dynamics in the sea. Marine Ecology Progress Series 24:297-302.
Geller J. B., Walton E. D., Grosholz E. D., Ruiz G. M. (1997). Cryptic invasions of the crab Carcinus detected by molecular phylogeography. Molecular ecology 6:901-906.
Grosholz, E.D., Ruiz, G.M. (1996). Predicting the impact of introduced marine species - lessons from the multiple invasions of the European green crab Carcinus maenas. Biological Conservation 78:59-66.
Jamieson, G. S., Grosholz, E. D., Armstrong, D. A. & Elner, R. W. (1998). Potential ecological implications from the introduction of the European green crab, Carcinus maenas (Linneaus), to British Columbia, Canada, and Washington, USA. Journal of Natural History 32:1587-1598.
Kuris, A.M., Lafferty, K.D. (1996). Invasion of Californian estuaries by the nonindigenous green crab Carcinus maenas: Assessment of impact and geographic spread. IN: Biennial report of completed projects 1992-94., California Sea Grant, La- Jolla, USA.
Roman, J., Palumbi, S.R. (2004). A global invader at home: population structure of the green crab, Carcinus maenus, in Europe. Molecular Ecology 13:2891-2898.
Ross, D.J., Johnson, C.R., Hewitt, C.L., Ruiz, G.M. (2004). Interaction and impacts of two introduced species on a soft-sediment marine assemblage in SE Tasmania. Marine Biology 144:747-756.
Thresher, R., Proctor, C., Ruiz, G., Gurney, R., MacKinnon, C., Walton, W., Rodriguez, L., Bax, N. (2003). Invasion dynamics of the European shore crab, Carcinus maenas, in Australia. Marine Biology 142:867-876.
Thresher, R.E. (1997). Proceedings of the first international workshop on the demography, impacts and management of introduced populations of the European crab, Carcinus maenas. CRIMP Technical Report Number 11, CSIRO Marine Research, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia11 .
Zeidler, W. (1988). The European shore crab, Carcinus maenas in the Coorong - a potential threat to local fisheries. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 112:181-182.