Coenobita rugosus
Common name: rug, ruga, ruggie
Latin Origins: from ruga "wrinkle"
Distribution: From the mainland coast of East Africa through the Indo-Pacific to Tahiti and the Tuamoto Islands. Records from West Coast of America almost certainly C. compressus
Habitat: Occurs up to 300 m from shore; mostly in and around dunes, sandy areas, within dune vegetation
Ecology: Observed in the wild sheltering under leaf litter during the day and feeding nocturnally at night.
Characteristics Observed to eat algae and tortoise feces in the wild. Body Mass Species found in the wild weighed up to 67 g. In Okinawa Japan 100 rugosus' were collected and two of them were found to be intersexual.
References:
Buggren, Warren W. and Brain R. McMahon. Biology of the land crabs. Cambridge: 1988
Kinosita, H. & A. Okajima, 1968. Analysis of shell‑searching behaviour of the land hermit crab, Coenobita rugosus H. Milne Edwards. J. Fac. Sci. Univ. Tokyo 11(4): 293-358.
Rahayu, D. L., 1996. Notes on littoral hermit crabs (excluding Coenobitidae) (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura) mainly from Singapore and Peninsular Malaysia. Raffles Bull. Zool. 44(2): 335-355.
Holthius, 1953; Alexander, 1976; Yaldwyn and Wodzicki, 1979; Lewinsohn, 1982, Rathburn, 1900 as quoted by Burggren, W.W. and McMahon, B.R. (1988)
Shokita, S. & A. Yamashiro, 1986. Larval development of the land hermit crab, Coenobita rugosus H. Milne Edwards and C. cavipes Stimpson reared in the laboratory. Galaxea 5: 267-282.
Tudge, C. C., 1991. Spermatophore diversity within and among the hermit crab families, Coenobitidae, Diogenidae, and Paguridae (Paguroidea, Anomura, Decapoda). Biol. Bull. 181: 238-247.
Vannini, M. & G. Chelazzi, 1981. Orientation of Coenobita rugosus (Crustacea: Anomura): A field study on Aldabra. Mar. Biol. 64: 135-140.
Vannini, M., 1976. Researches on the
coast of Somalia. The shore and the dune of Sar Uanle. 7. Field
observations on the periodical transdunal migrations of the hermit crab
Coenobita rugosus. Monit. Zool. Ital. (N. S.) suppl. 7(3):
145‑185.
Yamaguchi, S., 1938. Spawning and development of Coenobita rugosus. Sci. Bull. Fac. Agr., Kyushu Univ. 8(2): 163-177.
Oleg Gusev & Yaroslav Zabotin, 2007. Observation of intersexuality in land hermit crabs (Anomura: Coenobitidae)
