66 REPORT OF COMMISSIONERS OF INLAND FISHERIES. 



(Genus) CALLINECTES Stimpson. 



Callinectes sapidus Rathbun. " Blue Crab." " Paddler." "Edible 



Crab." 



Plate II. Figure 9. 

 Callinectes leastatirs Ordway. Verrill and Smith, 1874. 



This is the common edible crab of the Atlantic coast, and is prob- 

 ably the best known of all our crabs. The carapace is decidedly 

 transverse, the anterolateral margin is cut into nine sharp teeth. 

 The abdomen of the male is jL-shaped. 



Habitat: muddy shores to deep water; brackish waters of estuaries. 



Distribution: Atlantic coast to Gulf of Mexico. 



Economic value: edible. 



Season in Rhode Island: 



When are the eggs laid, and how long after copulation? 



How long does female carry the eggs? 



Extent of hatching season: 



Much information regarding this species will be found in "The 

 Genus Callinectes," by M. J. Rathbun, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus. Vol. 

 XVIII, pp. 349-583; "Monograph of Genus Callinectes," by Albert 

 Ordway, Jour. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist., Vol. VII, pp. 567-583; "The 

 Life History of The Blue Crab (Callinecte sapidus)," by W. P. Hay, 

 Report of Bureau of Fisheries, 1904, pp. 397-413; "Callinectes 

 hastatus," by E. W. Barnes, Report of R. I. Commission of Inland 

 Fisheries, 1904, p. 69. Hay includes a brief description of the larval 

 forms. 



(Genus) PORTUNUS Fabricius. 



Portunus sayi Gibbes. "Gulf-weed Crab." 



Plate II. Figure 11. 



This is a southern crab found occasionally at the surface on gulf- 

 weed. One male was taken at Wickford the past summer. The 



