Florida and Bahamas to Brazil; Bermuda; 

 Azores to Cape of Good Hope; Cape San Lucas, 

 Lower California, to Chile ; Galapagos Islands. 



Remarks. — Two immature females found on the 

 Fort Macon, N.C., jetty in August 1963, by R. A. 

 Heard, are referred to this species on the basis of 

 characters given by Schmitt (1939) in his key to 

 species of the genus Percnon. It is impossible to 

 refer the descriptions of Rathbun (1918b) and 

 Verrill (1908) to this species or planissimum with 

 certainty, and the figures given by them also are 

 not adequate for this purpose ; but on the basis of 

 a Bermuda specimen collected in 1962, Verrill's 

 material was probably P. gibbesi. 



Failure to record this species from North Caro- 

 lina prior to this time is probably because there 

 are few suitable habitats along this coast. There 

 are few natural rocks on the North Carolina coast. 



Family Ocypodidae 



Palp of external maxillipeds coarse, articulat- 

 ing at or near anteroexternal angle of merus; 

 exognath generally slender and often somewhat 

 concealed. Front usually of moderate width, and 

 often a somewhat deflexed narrow lobe. Orbits 

 occupying entire anterior border of carapace out- 

 side front, and with their outer wall often defec- 

 tive. Buccal cavity usually large and somewhat 

 narrower in front than behind, external maxil- 

 lipeds often, but not always, completely closing it. 

 Abdomen of male narrow. Male openings sternal 

 (Rathbun, 1918b). 



Genus Ocypode Weber, 1795 



Rathbun, 1918b, p. 366 (described).— Monod, 1956. p. 390 

 (synonomy). 



Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius). Ghost crab; sand crab 



Figure 208 



Cancer quadratus Fabricius, 1787, p. 315. 



Ocypode albicans: Rathbun, 1918b, p. 367, pis. 127-128 

 (rev.). — Hay and Shore, 1918, p. 450, pi. 37, fig. 1. 

 Ocypode quadrata: Holthuis, 1959, p. 259. 



Recognition characters. — Carapace quadrilat- 

 eral, convex above from front to back, sides nearly 

 vertical ; dorsal region finely granulate on middle 

 and posterior portions, coarsely granulate toward 

 sides, center of carapace with a well-marked H- 

 shaped depression. Front and side margins raised, 

 beaded, or serrulate, lateral margin continued into 



%jL 



Figure 208.— Ocypode quadrata (Fabricius). A, female 

 in dorsal view, reduced (after Gmitter and Wotton, 

 1953) ; major chela of male, B, outer view, C, inner view, 

 reduced (after Crane, 1941). 



a prominent, acute angle at outer corner of orbit; 

 a similar but lower ridge extending upward and 

 forward from base of third walking leg. Orbits 

 large and open, extending all along anterior mar- 

 gin on either side of narrow front, both upper and 

 lower margins crested and dentate. Eyestalks 

 large, club-shaped, cornea covering over half of 

 distal article. Front deflexed ; antennules and an- 

 tennae much reduced, flagellum of antennules 

 hidden beneath front. 



Chelipeds in both sexes, and in young, unequal, 

 well developed, rough; merus serrulate above, 

 toothed on lower margins; carpus with sharp 

 spines at inner angle; hands coarsely scabro- 

 tuberculate, margins of palm and fingers dentate, 

 fingers pointed. Large hand with a vertical strid- 

 ulating ridge of tubercles on inner surface near 

 base of movable finger that plays against smooth, 

 distal, anteroventral ridge of ischium. Walking 

 legs almost smooth, fringed with long, stiff, yel- 

 low hair, third pair longest, fourth shortest; meri 

 of first three pairs broadened; propodi of these 

 legs with longitudinal brushes of hair on anterior 

 surface; dactyls of all legs fluted, depressions 

 hairy. 



MARINE DECAPOD CRUSTACEANS OF THE CAROLINAS 



225 



