Pyrhila pisum is a small, round crab of East Asian tidal flats, about 3/4 inch (2 cm) across, that walks forward instead of sideways. It lives in Korea, Japan, and China and is not found in the US.
Appearance
- Appearance
- The shell is round, domed, and hard, about 3/4 inch (19–22 mm). Color varies widely, from dark gray to dark brown, sometimes with big white patches.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Tidal flats
- Estuaries
- Range
- East Asian seas, including Japan, the Korea Strait, the Yellow Sea, and the East China Sea. It does not occur in North America.
Behavior
- Diet
- In Japan it mainly eats small thin-shelled clams and young Manila clams, and it also scavenges dead clams.
- Activity
- It walks slowly forward rather than sideways.
Life cycle
- Breeding season
- In Japan, males are often seen in early summer holding females from behind, and females carry eggs from June to August.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
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