Malacostraca |
Decapoda |
Portunidae
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Benthic; brackish; depth range 0 - 80 m (Ref. 125642). Tropical; 36°N - 31°S, 30°E - 135°W
Indo-Pacific. From East Africa to French Polynesia, north to Japan and south to Australia. Tropical to temperate.
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm 8.3, range 8 - ? cm Max length : 20.0 cm CW male/unsexed; (Ref. 343); 21.5 cm CW (female); max. reported age: 3.00 years (Ref. 128174)
Carapace finely granulose, regions just discernible; 9 teeth on each anterolateral margin, the last tooth 2 to 3 times larger than preceding teeth. Chelae elongated in males; larger chela with conical tooth at base of fingers; pollex ridged. Color: olive to dark green, with 3 prominent maroon to red spots on posterior 1/3 of carapace. Easily distinguished from other species by its very distinct color markings.
Maximum length (female) from Ref. 119750. Occurs from the intertidal zone (especially juveniles) to depths of 30 m (Ref. 343). Subtidal (Ref. 106854). Inhabits sandy to sandy-muddy substrates (Refs. 343, 106287, 125338), in bays and estuaries (Ref. 106287). Also in brackish water (Ref. 801). Subtropical and tropical climates (Ref. 343). Mainly a predator of sessile and slow-moving benthic macroinvertebrates (Ref. 102720); may be a scavenger (Ref. 100855). Omnivore (Ref. 116259).
Members of the order Decapoda are mostly gonochoric. Mating behavior: Precopulatory courtship ritual is common (through olfactory and tactile cues); usually indirect sperm transfer.
Ng, P.K.L. 1998 Crabs. p. 1045-1155. In K.E. Carpenter and V.H. Niem (eds) FAO species identification guide for fishery purposes. The living marine resources of the Western Central Pacific. Volume 2. Cephalopods, crustaceans, holothurians and sharks. Rome, FAO. 1998. pp. 687-1396. (Ref. 343)
IUCN Red List Status
(Ref. 130435: Version 2025-1)
CITES status (Ref. 108899)
Not Evaluated
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Human uses
Fisheries: commercial
| FishSource | Sea Around Us
Tools
More information
PhysiologyOxygen consumption
Human RelatedStamps, coins, misc.
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature
(Ref.
115969): 18.3 - 29, mean 27.5 (based on 1552 cells).
Resilience
High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (K=0.82-1.9; tm=0.65; tmax=3).
Fishing Vulnerability
Low vulnerability (15 of 100).
Nutrients : Calcium = 109 [35, 184] mg/100g; Iron = 1.59 [1.21, 1.97] mg/100g; Protein = 20.2 [19.2, 21.3] %; Omega3 = 0.285 [0.185, 0.386] g/100g; Selenium = 48.3 [-31.7, 128.3] μg/100g; VitaminA = 0 μg/100g; Zinc = 1.79 [1.17, 2.40] mg/100g (wet weight); based on
nutrient studies.
