Porcelain crab

A small, flattened decapod crustacean in the family Porcellanidae. It resembles a true crab but is more closely related to squat lobsters.

Porcellanidae: A family of small marine decapod crustaceans known as porcelain crabs. This is the family that contains porcelain crabs.
Filter feeding: A feeding method that removes suspended particles from water using specialized structures. Many porcelain crabs capture plankton and organic particles from passing water.
Rocky intertidal zone: A coastal habitat where rocky shore is alternately submerged and exposed by tides. Many porcelain crab species occupy crevices and undersides of rocks in this habitat.
Petrolisthes cinctipes: A porcelain crab species common on rocky shores of the northeastern Pacific. It is a familiar intertidal example adapted to wave-washed rocky habitat.
Anomura: A decapod crustacean infraorder that includes hermit crabs, king crabs, and squat lobsters. Porcelain crabs belong to this group, not to the true-crab infraorder.
Seta: A bristle-like structure on an animal’s body, often used for sensing or collecting particles. Feathery setae on the maxillipeds help collect suspended food.
Tide pool: A pool of seawater left among rocks when the tide recedes. Tide pools can hold porcelain crabs between periods of tidal submergence.
Petrolisthes eriomerus: A porcelain crab species found on the northeastern Pacific coast. Its coastal distribution offers another species-level example within Porcellanidae.
Decapoda: An order of crustaceans characterized by five pairs of thoracic legs. Porcelain crabs share the ten-legged body plan of decapod crustaceans.
Autotomy: The voluntary shedding of a body part, often as an escape response to danger. A porcelain crab can shed a claw when seized by a predator.

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BrachyuraCompared with: Despite its name and shape, it belongs outside Brachyura.