Crustacea | Ocypodidae
Mictyris brevidactylus

Characteristics

The soldier crab is a cute, round crab. The crab is light blue on its cephalothorax and, in contrast, bright red on the root of its pereopods. Despite its cute appearance, it has a very masculine common name: the “solider crab”. Unlike other crab species, which move sideways, the solider crab moves straight forward. When faced with danger, the crabs burrow into the sand in a corkscrew motion and wait for a safe moment to come out.

Distribution

The soldier crab moves in groups on sandy mudflats at Gaomei Wetlands.

Source(s):

• (圖書) 李榮祥，台灣賞蟹情報，台北，2008。
• (圖書) 林惠真，高美濕地生物資源，台中，1998。
• (圖書) 林惠真、宋文汀、蘇珊慧，台中縣海岸溼地生態教室，台中，2003。
• (圖書) 林惠真、曾于芳，話說高美，台中，2014年。
• (圖書) 林惠真，走入海岸線，台北，2015。