THE PORCUPINE-CRAB. 



599 



larval state. Some crabs in the British Museum are admirable examples of this 

 peculiarity, one specimen of Dromia lator being nearly hidden under the mass of sponges 

 under which it lies concealed, the sponge being nearly as large as a man's fist, while the 

 crab is about the size of half an ordinary walnut. 



BEARDED CRAB. -Homo/a barbate 



HAIRY CRAB.-Drom/a hlrsutlsslma. 



One species of this genus called, from the shape and mouldings of the carapace, the 

 DEATH'S-HEAD CRAB, is found, though very rarely, on the British coasts, but is taken in 

 fine condition among the Channel Islands. The scientific name of this crab is Dromia 

 vulgaris. Its color is deep brown changing to pink upon the claws, the carapace is 

 strongly knobbed above, and the edge is notched so as to form four broad teeth. 

 Some species of this genus are thought to be poisonous, but without any apparent 

 reason. The hairy covering is not so extensive in other species, for the carapace of the 

 common Death's-head Crab is quite smooth and polished, the hairs being restricted to 

 the limbs, where they afford an excellent basis for sponges, corallines, and zoophytes. 



THE BEARDED CRAB is an example of another family, in which the carapace is formed 

 into a kind of beak, and is almost always covered with sharp spines. The fifth pair of 

 legs are comparatively short, and are not employed in walking. In the Bearded Crab 

 the eyes are very large and round, and the carapace is covered with short but sharp spines. 

 The antennae are long and the claws powerful, and are well suited for detecting and 

 securing prey. The Bearded Crab is found in the Mediterranean. 



THE strange and weird-like creature which is called by the appropriate name of the 

 PORCUPINE-CRAB is a native of Japan. In this species the characteristics of the family 

 seem to be carried to the very utmost. The last pair of legs are extremely small ; so 

 diminutive, in fact, that they are folded under the body and not visible when the creature 

 is viewed from its upper surface. The carapace is triangular and thickly covered with 

 spines ; and even the limbs bristle with thorny points set as closely as the horny bayonets 



