NATURAL, HISTORY OF AMERICAN LOBSTER. 
159 
the coral seas of both hemispheres. The Alpheidse have no commercial value, but 
are of great biological interest, on account of their wide variation in form, coloring, 
and development, as well as for their remarkable instincts and habits. 
The large and handsome spiny or thorny lobsters (family Palinuridae) are repre- 
sented chiefly by the single genus Palinurus. The langouste of the French, which has 
been celebrated from antiquity, is noted for its great size, brilliant coloring, and formi- 
dable appearance, though claws are lacking, as well as for its small and numerous eggs 
and grotesque transparent larvae. Its flesh, which is mainly confined to the thorax 
and tail, is considered by many quite as delicate as that of the true lobsters. From 
13 to 16 species have been described from the temperate and tropical seas of the world. 
According to Spence Bate,® this genus is represented in the South Indian Ocean by 
Palinurus edwardsii, the range of which extends from the Cape of Good Hope to New 
Zealand, by Palinurus trigonus and allied forms in Japan, by Palinurus frontalis on the 
coast of South America, and by Palinurus longimanus and related species in the West 
Indies. The common spiny or rock lobster ( Palinurus vulgaris) of southern and western 
Europe is an important article of marine food, particularly in France and on the coasts 
of the Mediterranean Sea and its islands. It is commonly seen in the markets and 
restaurants of Eondon, where it commands a good price. 
According to Ritchie, * * 6 Palinurus vulgaris occurs on all the shores of the British 
Isles except a part of the east coast to the north of Flamborough Head. It is most 
abundant in the southwest, and scarcer northward, but is frequently debarred from 
entering traps on account of its stout, unyielding antennas. Palinurus in the adult 
state is unknown in the North Atlantic Ocean north of the Bermuda Islands, but its 
pelagic larvae are undoubtedly borne far to the northward by the Gulf stream. It 
is represented on the western coast of North America by Palinurus interruptus. 
The carapace of the langouste is not “buttoned” to the tail so effectively as in 
the common lobster; all the thoracic legs end in long dactvls with indurated tips, 
which are studded with dense bunches of stiff setae. The first two pairs of legs are 
greatly elongated, and the tactile setae of their dactyls, which resemble bottle brushes, 
exhibit an extraordinary development. 
The largest of the scaly or warty lobsters is represented by Scyllarus, which occurs 
both in the Mediterranean and the North Atlantic Ocean, and is said to attain a length 
of 18 inches and to excel all other lobsters in the quality of its flesh. Their quadran- 
gular, flattened shell and small, slender legs give them a singular appearance, but 
specially remarkable are the short, scale-like antennae, which are possibly used as 
shovels or scoops in burrowing. Their small and widely separated eyes are completely 
embedded in the carapace, which is studded all over with wart-like tubercles, thus 
giving it a granulated and leathery texture, while on the inside it has the appearance 
of a fine sieve of uniform pattern. Each hole gives passage to a bundle of tactile 
setae, which spread in the upper layers of the shell and issue through minute pores 
a Bate, Spence: Report on the Crustacea Macrura; Scientific results of the voyage H. M. S. Challenger; Zoology, vol. xxiv. 
London, 1888. - 
& Ritchie, James: Distribution of Palinurus in British waters. Proceedings of Royal Physical Society of Edinburgh, vol 
xxm, p. 68-71. Edinburgh, 1910. 
