All about the Coconut Crab (Birgus latro)
Birgus latro
Taxonomy
Kingdom ANIMALIA
Phylum ARTHROPODA
Class CRUSTACEA
Order DECAPODA
Family COENOBITIDAE
Common Name/s COCONUT CRAB (E)
Species Authority (Linnaeus, 1767)
Distribution
American Samoa | Australia | British Indian Ocean Territory |
Christmas Island |
Cook Islands |
Fiji |
French Polynesia |
Guam |
India |
Indonesia |
Japan |
Kiribati |
Malaysia |
Marshall Islands |
Mauritius [RE] |
Micronesia, Federated States of |
Nauru |
New Caledonia |
Niue |
Northern Mariana Islands |
Palau |
Papua New Guinea |
Philippines |
Samoa |
Seychelles |
Solomon Islands |
Taiwan, Province of China |
Tanzania, United Republic of |
Thailand |
Tokelau |
Tonga |
Tuvalu |
Vanuatu
[ Source: Citation: Eldredge, L.G. 1996. Birgus
latro.
In: IUCN 2003. 2003 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.redlist.org>.
URL: http://www.redlist.org/search/details.php?species=2811
]
Andrews, C. W., 1909. Exhibited an enlarged photograph of the robber crab (Birgus latro) on Christmas Island, and communicated the following account of its habits. Proc. Zool. Soc. London 1909: 887‑889.
Chauvet, C. & T. Kadiri Jan, 1999. Assessment of an unexploited population of coconut crabs, Birgus latro (Linne, 1767) on Taiaro atoll (Tuamotu archipelago, French Polynesia). Coral Reefs 18: 297-299.
Fletcher, W. J., I. W. Brown & D. R. Fielder, 1990. Growth of the coconut crab Birgus latro in Vanuatu. J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol. 141: 63‑78.
Fletcher, W. J., I. W. Brown & D. R. Fielder, 1990. Movement of coconut crabs, Birgus latro, in a rainforest habitat in Vanuatu. Pac. Sci. 44(4): 407‑416.
Fletcher, W. J., D. R. Fielder & I. W. Brown, 1989. Comparison of freeze‑ and heat‑ branding techniques to mark the coconut crab Birgus latro (Crustacea, Anomura). J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol. 127: 245‑251.
Harms, J. W., 1932. Die Realisation von Genen und die consecutive Adaption. II. Birgus latro L. als Lankcrebs und seine Beziehungen zu den Coenobiten. Zeit. Wiss. Zool. 140(2/3): 167‑290. (in German)
Held, E. E., 1963. Moulting behaviour of Birgus latro. Nature 200(4908): 799‑800.
Helfman, G. S., 1977. Copulatory behavior of the coconut or robber crab Birgus latro (L.) (Decapoda Anomura, Paguridea, Coenobitidae). Crustaceana 33(2): 198‑202.
Helfman, G. S., 1977. Agonistic behaviour of the coconut crab, Birgus latro (L.). Z. Tierpsychol. 43: 425‑438.
Helfman, G. S., 1979. Coconut crabs and cannibalism. Nat. Hist. 88(9): 77‑83.
Lavery, S. & D. R. Fielder, 1993. Low allozyme variation in the coconut crab Birgus latro. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 104B(2): 353‑ 359.
Lavery, S., C. Moritz & D. R. Fielder, 1995. Changing patterns of population structure and gene flow at different spatial scales in Birgus latro (the coconut crab). Heredity 74: 531‑541.
Lavery, S., C. Moritz & D. R. Fielder, 1996. Indo‑Pacific population structure and evolutionary history of the coconut crab Birgus latro. Mol. Ecol. 5(4): 557‑570.
Reese, E. S. & R. A. Kinzie III, 1968. The larval development of the coconut or robber crab Birgus latro (L.) in the laboratory (Anomura, Paguridea). Crustaceana suppl. 2: 117‑144.
Reese, E. S., 1965. The larval development of the coconut crab Birgus latro (L.), reared in the laboratory. Am. Zool. 5: 638.
Reyne, A., 1939. On the food habits of the coconut crab (Birgus latro L.), with notes on its distribution. Archs Néerl. Zool. 3: 283-320.
Reyne, A., 1939. On the distribution of Birgus latro L. in the Dutch East Indies. Archs Néerl. Zool. 3, Suppl.: 239-247.
Semper, C., 1878. Ueber die Lunge von Birgus latro. Zeit. Wiss. Zool. 30(2): 282-287. (in German)
Shokita, S. & H. Tauchi, 1996. Molting behavior of coconut crab, Birgus latro (Linnaeus) under laboratory conditions. Cancer 5: 7‑9. (in Japanese)
Tauchi, H., S. Shokita & K. Konishi, 1996. The diet and growth of coconut crab Birgus latro (Linnaeus) under laboratory conditions. Cancer 5: 3‑6. (in Japanese)
Taylor, H. H., P. Greenaway & S. Morris, 1993. Adaptations to a terrestrial existence by te robber crab Birgus latro VIII. Osmotic and ionic regulation on freshwater and saline drinking regimens. J. Exp. Biol. 179: 93‑113.
Photographer: James Jankowski
Photographer: James Jankowski
