| Paralithodes Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Paralithodes californiensis | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Clade: | Pancrustacea |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Suborder: | Pleocyemata |
| Infraorder: | Anomura |
| Family: | Lithodidae |
| Subfamily: | Lithodinae |
| Genus: | Paralithodes Brandt, 1848 |
| Type species | |
| Paralithodes brevipes (H. Milne-Edwards & Lucas, 1841) | |
Paralithodes is a genus of king crabs native to cold waters in the North Pacific Ocean, Okhotsk Sea, Bering Sea and Sea of Japan,[1] but with one species also introduced to far northern Europe.[2] They are medium-large to very large king crabs, and some species are important to commercial fisheries.[1] A 2017 examination of the phylogeny of king crabs suggests that the internal placement of Paralithodes within this family is not fully resolved.[3]
Species
Paralithodes contains the following species:[4]
| Image | Scientific name | Common name | Distribution | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Paralithodes brevipes (H. Milne-Edwards & Lucas, 1841) | Brown king crab, hanasakigani, spiny king crab | Northwest Pacific, Sea of Okhotsk, Bering Sea | [5] |
| Paralithodes bishuensis Karasawa & Ando in Karasawa, Mizuno, Hachiya & Ando, 2017 † | Japan (Early Miocene) | [6] | ||
 | Paralithodes californiensis (Benedict, 1895) | California king crab | East Pacific off California | [7] |
 | Paralithodes camtschaticus (Tilesius, 1815) | Red king crab | North Pacific, Bering Sea, Okhotsk Sea, Sea of Japan; introduced to oceans off far northern Europe | [8] |
.jpg) | Paralithodes platypus (Brandt, 1851) | Blue king crab | North Pacific, Bering Sea, Sea of Okhotsk, Sea of Japan | [9] |
 | Paralithodes rathbuni (Benedict, 1895) | California king crab, spiny king crab | East Pacific off California and Baja California | [7][10] |
References
- Stevens 2014, pp. 3–9, 15–16, 23–24.
- Stevens 2014, p. 5.
- Noever & Glenner 2017, p. 307.
- Ahyong, Shane (12 December 2023). "Paralithodes J.F. Brandt, 1848". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- Stevens 2014, pp. 15–16, 82.
- Karasawa et al. 2017, pp. 50–52.
- Stevens 2014, pp. 23–24.
- Stevens 2014, pp. 3–5.
- Stevens 2014, pp. 9–10.
- Keller et al. 2008, p. 38.
Bibliography
- Keller, Aimee A.; et al. (July 2008). The 2005 U.S. West Coast Bottom Trawl Survey of Groundfish Resources off Washington, Oregon, and California: Estimates of Distribution, Abundance, and Length Composition (Report). National Marine Fisheries Service. p. 38. NMFS-NWFSC-93.
- Stevens, Bradley G., ed. (2014). "King Crabs of the World: Species and Distributions". King Crabs of the World (1st ed.). CRC Press. doi:10.1201/b16664. ISBN 978-0-429-06317-6.
- Karasawa, Hiroaki; Mizuno, Yoshiaki; Hachiya, Kiichiro; Ando, Yusuke (March 2017). "Reappraisal of anomuran and brachyuran decapods from the lower Miocene Morozaki Group, Japan, collected by the Tokai Fossil Society" (PDF). Bulletin of the Mizunami Fossil Museum (43): 47–69. ISSN 0385-0900. Retrieved 5 December 2024 – via the Mizunami Fossil Museum.
- Noever, Christoph; Glenner, Henrik (5 July 2017). "The origin of king crabs: hermit crab ancestry under the magnifying glass" (PDF). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 182 (2): 300–318. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlx033. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 July 2019 – via the University of Copenhagen.
External links
Media related to Paralithodes at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Paralithodes at Wikispecies
