FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 72, NO. 3 



genus. Summary of selected measurements is 

 given in Tables 1 and 2. 



Color. — Adult males with carapace dull olive to 

 dark brown, usually with a large, ill-defined, 

 roundish spot of orange or orange-red on each side 

 posteriorly; lateral spines and anterolateral teeth 

 maroon, light blue or whitish, white tipped. Eye- 

 stalks purple. Chelipeds proximally similar to 

 carapace, spotted with blue or soft purple and with 

 spines paler, joints red; inner surface of palm 

 white, but with a large bright red patch bordered 

 with purple; fingers mostly purple, tipped with 

 red. Walking legs bright blue above, with a band 

 of scarlet at each joint and a patch of paler blue or 

 green on posterior and lower side of each article; 

 dactyls red or violet. Swimming legs similar in 

 color, but with red articular bands wider, a patch 

 of orange or yellow on each article; dactyl with 

 proximal blue band separated from distal scarlet 

 band by an orange band. Abdomen light blue pos- 

 teriorly. Females similar to males except upper 

 surface of chela more violet; fingers with white or 

 fuschia colored teeth. 



Many individuals less brilliantly colored, 

 juveniles often dull or plain olive-yellow to 

 greenish above. Some males more melanistic, ex- 

 hibiting shades of dark brown and purple with 

 accents of yellow and brownish red. Albinistic (or 

 light hued) forms not uncommon (Verrill, 1908a 

 as condensed in Williams, 1966; Taissoun, 1969). 



Variation. — A close relative of C. danae andC. 

 similis (shape of carapace, metagastric area, and 

 reduced submesial frontal teeth), C. ornatus is 

 perhaps most often confused with C. danae 

 because of their broad sympatric geographic 

 ranges. Callinectes ornatus has the most obsoles- 

 cent submesial frontal teeth of the three species, 

 they being entirely absent in many individuals 

 but developed somewhat in others. Within a single 

 lot of equal-sized specimens both extremes may be 

 seen (USNM 48401, Cuba; 18227, Jamaica) and 

 keys to identification based on this character 

 alone are of limited usefulness. The lateral pair of 

 frontal teeth may have either rounded or quite 

 sharp tips in the same lot of specimens (USNM 

 48401). Both types of variation in frontal teeth 

 may be seen anywhere in the geographic range. 



The anterolateral teeth are more acuminate, 

 forward pointing, and longer than in C. similis. 

 Brazilian and some Guianian juveniles in samples 

 have erect anterolaterals, relatively longer for 



their width, and more cleanly separated than 

 teeth on those from Florida, whereas adult speci- 

 mens from Brazil (also North Carolina and some 

 from Bermuda and Jamaica) tend to have nar- 

 rower sharper anterolateral teeth than those from 

 Venezuela, Curagao, Cuba, and especially 

 Florida. A line of iridescent patches occurs along 

 the bases of anterolateral teeth in some individu- 

 als. One specimen from Trinidad (BMNH) has 

 coalesced third and fourth teeth on the right side. 



Major chelae may be broad, even on moderate 

 sized juveniles (Florida). 



The abdomen of males usually is recessed, but 

 may be flush with the sternum as in immature 

 male C. similis and C. danae, but is never as broad 

 as in C. similis. 



First gonopods of males usually extend forward 

 to the anterior one-fourth of thoracic sternite VII, 

 but may reach beyond the suture between 

 thoracic sternites VI and VII among individuals in 

 the same lot. Usually overlapping at the base, at 

 least one specimen was seen in which no gonopod 

 overlap occurred. The lanceolate tip is not always 

 well developed in juveniles, and the membranous 

 extreme tip tends to be longer in Brazilian (and 

 North Carolinian) material than through most of 

 the range. 



Distribution. — Bermuda; North and South 

 Carolina through southern Florida; northwestern 

 Yucatan to Estado de Sao Paulo, Brazil (Figure 



25). 



Habitat. — Essentially a tropical species found 

 mainly on sandy or muddy bottom from shore to 

 about 75 m, the young have also been collected on 

 shell and sponge bottoms. Occurrence in bays and 

 river mouths (Holthuis, 1959; Rouse, 1970; in ad- 

 dition to collection data presented here), as well as 

 entrapment in fresh water (Brues, 1927), indicate 

 tolerance of a broad range of salinity (recordings of 

 0-50 %o in temperatures ranging from 18° to 31°C); 

 nevertheless, most collections have come from 

 waters of relatively high salinity. Taissoun (1969) 

 reported occurrence in a temperature of 9°C, but 

 this is perhaps a reference to C. similis which 

 occurs in colder water. 



Spawning. — The spawning season probably ex- 

 tends year round. Museum collections studied in- 

 clude ovigerous females as follows: January, 

 Puerto Rico; April, Guyana, Estado de Rio de 

 Janeiro, Brazil; May, Estado de Sao Paulo, Brazil; 



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