Relevant Synonyms - Misidentification -

SHORT DESCRIPTION Carapace broader than long, pilose; ridges granulate. Front, excluding supraorbital tooth shorter than posterior border, cut into six lobes. Five anterolateral teeth. Chelipeds unequal, granulate; three granulate costae on outer surface of chela. Merus of natatory legs with a strong spine on posterior margin, dactylus and propodus foliaceous. color : unknown. common size : CL up to 6 mm. DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS Distinguished from the two other species of Thalamita reported from the Mediterranean Sea by the front divided in 6 lobes (excluding inner supraorbital lobe). BIOLOGY / ECOLOGY habitat : collected on sandy-substrates at depths of 35-76 m (Apel and Spiridonov, 1998). The Mediterranean specimens were collected at shallower depths (1-5 m).

1st MEDITERRANEAN RECORD Lebanon (Tripoli) [2002] and Syria (Lattakia) [2006], (Hasan and Noël, 2008). DISTRIBUTION Worldwide : known from the Gulf of Oman and the Gulf of Suez. Mediterranean : along the coast of Lebanon and Syria (Hasan and Noël, 2008). ESTABLISHMENT SUCCESS Only three specimens from two Levantine localities. speculated reasons for success : unknown. MODE OF INTRODUCTION Through the Suez Canal. IMPORTANCE TO HUMANS None.

KEY REFERENCES Apel M. and Spiridonov V., 1998. Taxonomy and zoogeography of the portunid crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura: Portunidae) of the Arabian Gulf and adjacent waters. Fauna of Arabia, 17: 159-331. Hasan H. and Noël P., 2008. First record of Thalamita indistincta Apel & Spiridonov, 1998 (Decapoda,Brachyura, Portunidae) in the Mediterranean. Crustaceana, 81(2): 247-252.   FEEDBACK / COMMENTS TO AUTHORS

Last update of the species sheet: October 2008 ©ciesm 2002