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Crustaceans of Zihuatanejo

SUBPHYLUM CRUSTACEA

Arched Box Crab

Calappa convexa

The Box Crab, Lopholithodes foraminatus, is a type of King Crab that lives in shallow sandy flats along the Pacific coast from Alaska to California. They spend much of their time hiding in the sand with only their sensory and breathing structures at the surface. Folded up like origami, they don’t look like crabs at all and are difficult to see unless they move. When foraging for food, they walk freely over the ocean bottom on sharply pointed walking legs.

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