Coenobita cavipes(EN)

Coenobita cavipes has been confused with Coenobita violascens by some authors. For those articles mentioned Coenobita cavipes live near mangrove, it is possible that the species is Coenobita violascens instead of Coenobita cavipes which live near inland.

According to < First report of the hermit crabs Coenobita brevimanus and Coenobita rugosus (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura) from the Indian coast >, ”For many years Coenobita violascens has been considered as a synonym of Coenobita cavipes. However, a later report by Nakasone (1988) considered Coenobita cavipes (type locality, Japanese island of Okinawa) and Coenobita violascens (type locality, Red Sea) as distinct species, which demands further examination of Indian species of the genus Coenobita.”

In Japan, < A Report on the Distribution and Ecology of Land Hermit Crabs in Okinawa Prefecture > with clear and detail information have been already published by Nakasone (1987) to identity the different of Coenobita cavipes and Coenobita violascens and confirmed they are two different species.

In Taiwan, Foo (1989) has detail description of Coenobita cavipes in < Studies on the Hermit Crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura) of Taiwan >.

However, according to McLaughlin P. A (2007) < A Catalog of The Hermit Crabs (Paguroidea) of Taiwan >, Coenobita violascens replaced Coenobita cavipes. It seems that McLaughlin P. A incorrectly identified the specimens of Coenobita cavipes as Coenobita violascens as image of Coenobita violascens should be Coenobita cavipes.

Below pictures are the specimens of Coenobita cavipes and Coenobita violascens I found in Taiwan. Their characteristics and habitat are same as information of Nakasone (1987).