ZooKeys
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Eucrate liui was collected in 2026 in Guangdong (type locality), Guangxi, and Hainan in the South China Sea; the crabs lived among rubble in the intertidal zone among green algae and coral reefs.
The species is also known from Singapore
The crab exhibits considerable variation in body coloration, which can be roughly divided into two types:
- Carapace orange-red to nearly black or dark purple; claws white; walking legs white, with orange-red rings
- Carapace gray to brown, darker on the ventral side, with white marbling; claws white, with gray reticulation; walking legs white, with gray rings.
These color variations may be attributable to individual growth stages or environmental factors within the habitat.
Etymology.
This species is named after the late Prof. Liu Ruiyu (J.Y. Liu) of the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in recognition of his significant contributions to Chinese marine science.
Reference:
Ziming Y, Zhongli S, Jiao C, Wei J (2026) Eucrate liui sp. nov. (Crustacea, Brachyura, Euryplacidae), a new crab species from the South China Sea, with the first record of Eucrate tripunctata in the region. ZooKeys 1284: 185–204. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1284.193896
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original authEucrate liui was collected in 2026 in Guangdong (type locality), Guangxi, and Hainan in the South China Sea; the crabs lived among rubble in the intertidal zone with green algae and coral reefs.
The species is also known from Singapore
The crab exhibits considerable variation in body coloration, which can be roughly divided into two types:
- Carapace orange-red to nearly black or dark purple; chelicerae white; walking legs white, with orange-red rings
- carapace gray to brown, darker on the ventral side, with white marbling; chelicerae white, with gray reticulation; walking legs white, with gray rings.
These color variations may be attributable to individual growth stages or environmental factors within the habitat.
Etymology.
This species is named after the late Prof. Liu Ruiyu (J.Y. Liu) of the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in recognition of his significant contributions to Chinese marine science.
Reference:
Ziming Y, Zhongli S, Jiao C, Wei J (2026) Eucrate liui sp. nov. (Crustacea, Brachyura, Euryplacidae), a new crab species from the South China Sea, with the first record of Eucrate tripunctata in the region. ZooKeys 1284: 185-204. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1284.193896
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
The species is also known from Singapore
The crab exhibits considerable variation in body coloration, which can be roughly divided into two types:
- Carapace orange-red to nearly black or dark purple; claws white; walking legs white, with orange-red rings
- Carapace gray to brown, darker on the ventral side, with white marbling; claws white, with gray reticulation; walking legs white, with gray rings.
These color variations may be attributable to individual growth stages or environmental factors within the habitat.
Etymology.
This species is named after the late Prof. Liu Ruiyu (J.Y. Liu) of the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in recognition of his significant contributions to Chinese marine science.
Reference:
Ziming Y, Zhongli S, Jiao C, Wei J (2026) Eucrate liui sp. nov. (Crustacea, Brachyura, Euryplacidae), a new crab species from the South China Sea, with the first record of Eucrate tripunctata in the region. ZooKeys 1284: 185–204. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1284.193896
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original authEucrate liui was collected in 2026 in Guangdong (type locality), Guangxi, and Hainan in the South China Sea; the crabs lived among rubble in the intertidal zone with green algae and coral reefs.
The species is also known from Singapore
The crab exhibits considerable variation in body coloration, which can be roughly divided into two types:
- Carapace orange-red to nearly black or dark purple; chelicerae white; walking legs white, with orange-red rings
- carapace gray to brown, darker on the ventral side, with white marbling; chelicerae white, with gray reticulation; walking legs white, with gray rings.
These color variations may be attributable to individual growth stages or environmental factors within the habitat.
Etymology.
This species is named after the late Prof. Liu Ruiyu (J.Y. Liu) of the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in recognition of his significant contributions to Chinese marine science.
Reference:
Ziming Y, Zhongli S, Jiao C, Wei J (2026) Eucrate liui sp. nov. (Crustacea, Brachyura, Euryplacidae), a new crab species from the South China Sea, with the first record of Eucrate tripunctata in the region. ZooKeys 1284: 185-204. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1284.193896
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
