A new genus and species of land crab known as Lithoselatium pulchrum has been identified in southern Taiwan’s Kenting National Park, KNP headquarters announced April 15.
“The beautiful crimson color and white spots all over its body make Lithoselatium pulchrum distinctive from other land crabs,” said Liu Hung-chang, an assistant professor in the Department of Ecology at Taichung’s Providence University.
The female Lithoselatium pulchrum releases fewer but larger eggs than other land crabs, and the larvae have a shortened developmental phase, according to Liu.
The addition to the crab family was found near the coral reefs by Banana Bay and Fengchuisha, both famous water-sport sites in Kenting. It is one of the 39 types of land crab Liu and his research team have found in the park over the last two years.
“The Kenting shores are one of the world’s most diverse habitats of the vulnerable creature,” Liu said. “Extra attention is needed to protect these crustaceans from pollution and growing human traffic.”
The discovery was published in the scientific journal Zootaxa in 2010, Liu said. (HZW)
Write to Kwangyin Liu at kwangyin.liu@mail.gio.gov.tw