Austrothelphusa
Encyclopedia
Austrothelphusa is a genus
of freshwater crab
endemic to Australia
, comprising the following species:
Most of these species are restricted to Queensland
, but Austrothelphusa transversa is also found in New South Wales
, South Australia
, Northern Territory
and Western Australia
.
These crabs grow to a carapace
width of 50 millimetres (2 in) and are omnivore
s.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of freshwater crab
Freshwater crab
There are around 1,300 species of freshwater crabs, distributed throughout the tropics and subtropics, divided among eight families. They show direct development and maternal care of a small number of offspring, in contrast to marine crabs which release thousands of planktonic larvae. This limits...
endemic to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, comprising the following species:
- Austrothelphusa agassizi (Rathbun, 1905)
- Austrothelphusa angustifrons (A. Milne-Edwards, 1869)
- Austrothelphusa insularis (Colosi, 1919)
- Austrothelphusa raceki (Bishop, 1963)
- Austrothelphusa tigrina (Short, 1994)
- Austrothelphusa transversa (von Martens, 1868)
- Austrothelphusa valentula (Riek, 1951)
- Austrothelphusa wasselli (Bishop, 1963)
Most of these species are restricted to Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, but Austrothelphusa transversa is also found in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
and Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
These crabs grow to a carapace
Carapace
A carapace is a dorsal section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the underside is called the plastron.-Crustaceans:In crustaceans, the...
width of 50 millimetres (2 in) and are omnivore
Omnivore
Omnivores are species that eat both plants and animals as their primary food source...
s.