📸 PhotoPhoto: self · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons Source
Gazami crab
Portunus trituberculatus (Gazami crab · ガザミ)
Not Evaluated (NE) on the IUCN Red List yet.
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 A maximum carapace width of 15.9 cm is similar to the length of a smartphone (about 15 cm) (Comparison).
- 💡 SeaLifeBase classifies the gazami crab as a commercial fishery species, meaning it is harvested from the sea and sold in markets as seafood.
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The gazami crab is a swimming crab (family Portunidae) living in shallow Indo-West Pacific waters from Honshu, Japan west to eastern India and Sri Lanka and south to New South Wales, Australia. It inhabits sandy or sandy-muddy bottoms.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
Its carapace is hard and granular with distinct regions. There are 3 sharp triangular teeth on the front and 9 teeth along each anterolateral margin, with the last tooth being the largest. The carapace color ranges from dull green to brown.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
It is a predator that swims near the sea floor to hunt, feeding mainly on bivalves, benthic crustaceans, fish, and cephalopods.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
It is listed as 'Kkot-ge' (Korean name) on the National List of Species of Korea.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List: not evaluated (NE) — cross-checked with the Wikidata conservation-status entry
- • marinespecies.org — aphia.php
- • 국가생물종목록(국립생물자원관) ktsn 120000236473 — https://species.nibr.go.kr/home/mainHome.do?cont_link=009&subMenu=009002&contCd=009002&ktsn=120000236473
- • wikidata.org — Q1186447
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Portunus trituberculatus.jpg
- • sealifebase.se — Portunus-trituberculatus.html
- • species.nibr.go.kr — mainHome.do
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Alexandra Hahn · CC0 1.0 (Related taxon silhouette — Carcinus maenas)
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.