On some crabs (Decapoda-Brachyura) from the Laccadive Archipelago

Abstract

EARLIER investigations on the brachyuran fauna of the Maldive and Laccadive Archipelagos were initiated by Alcock (1895, 1896, 1898, 1899, 1899b and 1900) ; who recorded 43 species of crabs belonging to 9 families. Subsequently, Borradaile (1903 and 1906) reported 191 species including 27 already described by Alcock ; which brought up the total record from this region to 207 species. The present account deals with 36 species of which 5 have hitherto not been described from these regions. Of the above 5 species (indicated by a single asterisk in the list given below) 4 are not known from the Indian peninsula. Another 11 species (denoted by double asterisks) have been previously reported from the Maldives but not from the Laccadives. Out of the 36 species reported in this paper, 29 species have been collected from Minicoy and the rest from Kavarathy, Amenidivi and Bitra Islands. Part of the material was kindly handed over to me by Dr. S. Jones, who collected them in 1958 during a cruise to the Laccadive Islands. Additional material was collected in the year 1961 by Messrs. P. T. Thomas, and Alimanickfan from Minicoy and by Mr. P. M. Sayeed from the Laccadive and Amenidive Islands.