Scyllarid Lobster Biology and Ecology

Abstract

The family Scyllaridae is the most speciose and diverse of all families of marine lobsters. Slipper lobsters are found in both tropical and temperate habitats with hard or soft substrates and at different depths, and exhibit a wide array of morphological, anatomical, and physiological adaptations. Among the 20 genera and at least 89 species constituting 4 subfamilies, only some members of 4 genera, Thenus (Theninae), Scyllarides (Arctidinae), Ibacus and Parribacus (Ibacinae), form significant fisheries because of their large size. While scientific information on these lobsters has increased considerably in recent decades, it is still limited compared with commercially valuable spiny and clawed lobsters, and is confined to a few key species. The present chapter presents the current available knowledge on the biology of scyllarids and attempts to point out where questions remain to help focus further studies in this important group. Scyllarid Lobster Biology and Ecology DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88218 to deep water (offshore) species [5]. These same molecular tools suggest that two Atlantic species, Scyllarus depressus and S. subarctus, are a strongly supported clade with low genetic differentiation, indicative of a recent split into sister taxa [22]. Crustacea Life historyThe life history of scyllarids parallels that of palinurids and can be divided into a series of developmental phases. These lobsters typically begin their pelagic lives

A Socio-Ecological Model Approach to Data Deficiency in Fishery Management: Case Study of Amami-Oshima, Japan

“…Scyllarides squammosus of the family Scyllaridae belongs to a taxon of slipper lobsters with four subfamilies, 88 species, and two subspecies (Wardiatno et al 2016) , previously thought to be 89 species (Yang et al 2012) . Although knowledge of S. squammosus has increased in recent years, scientific information is still limited and focused on only a few species (Lavalli and Spanier 2007;Lavalli et al 2020) , compared to the highly commercialized spiny lobsters of the Nephropidae and Palinuridae families (Spanier and Lavalli 2013) . This species can be distinguished by its last antennal segment, which is completely reduced to a flat plate and is used as a steering device to escape from predators (Wardiatno et al 2016) .…”

Chela asymmetry and dimorphism in the red swamp crayfish <b><i>Procambarus clarkii</i></b> (Decapoda: Astacidea: Cambaridae)

“…The first pereiopods of some decapod crustaceans become enlarged chelipeds that are used to manipulate food organisms and as weapons in predator avoidance and contest competition (Lee, 1995;Davie et al, 2015;Lavalli & Spanier, 2015). Decapod chelipeds show sexual dimorphisms; that is, they are generally larger in males than in females (Lee, 1995;Mariappan et al, 2000;Emlen, 2008).…”

Ecology, life history, and fisheries potential of the flathead lobster (Thenus orientalis) in the Arabian Gulf

“…The distribution of species of Thenus and other slipper lobsters (Scyllaridae) depends on several environmental factors (Spanier and Lavalli, 1998;Wardiatno et al, 2016), as observed in palinurids (Herrnkind et al, 1997;Butler et al, 2006). The nature of sediments and the depth of water are the 2 major factors that influence the abundance of slipper lobsters (Jones, 2007;Lavalli et al, 2019). The flathead lobster prefers soft, sandy sediment areas with medium-to-coarse particle size.…”