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Marine Biology

2008

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Hermit crab

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Shell Utilization Pattern By The Hermit Crab Isocheles Sawayai Forest And Saint Laurent, 1968 (Anomura, Diogenidae) From Margarita Island, Caribbean Sea, Venezuela, Lee A. Galindo, Juan A. Bolanos, Fernando L. Mantelatto Jan 2008

Shell Utilization Pattern By The Hermit Crab Isocheles Sawayai Forest And Saint Laurent, 1968 (Anomura, Diogenidae) From Margarita Island, Caribbean Sea, Venezuela, Lee A. Galindo, Juan A. Bolanos, Fernando L. Mantelatto

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Isocheles sawayai is a hermit crab that is occasionally mentioned in the literature, and recently its distribution was extended to Venezuelan waters. Because no information on the biology and shell use patterns of this species inhabiting Caribbean waters is available, we provide the first information on shell occupation patterns of I. sawayai from Venezuela. Specimens were collected monthly from January to December 2000 along the sandy shore of Margarita Island, Venezuela. The 942 specimens collected showed different shell use patterns between the sexes and according to the reproductive condition of the females. The gastropods Leucozonia nassa (37.37%), Engoniophos unicinctus (25.37%), …