Crustaceans / Hairy Stone Crab

 



Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Crustacea Species: Lomis hirta

Distantly related to the true crabs, the Hairy Stone Crab has only three pairs of legs, compared with the usual four pairs common to most crabs. These animals live beneath rocks where their body shape and colour disguises them from potential predators. The blue mouthparts are used for taking up tiny animals from between the sand grains.