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Showing posts with label TOAD CRAB SPIDER (Bassaniodes bufo). Show all posts
Showing posts with label TOAD CRAB SPIDER (Bassaniodes bufo). Show all posts

Thursday, 2 October 2025

2-10-2025 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - TOAD CRAB SPIDER (Bassaniodes bufo)

Male: Prosoma is dull black, very wide and rounded at the sides, with a thin yellowish or white line around it and another above the anterior eyes. The lateral eyes are located in small, fairly pronounced tubercles. The opisthosoma is also dull black with a white semicircle around its anterior edge, and four or five horizontal white lines from the middle onwards. The first two pairs have robust, fairly long legs; they have thinner tarsi and metatarsi, which are white at the base. Legs III and IV are shorter and have white striped patellae, tibiae and metatarsi. Body length: 4 - 5 mm.

Female: Prosoma is dark brown, narrower than the male's, with the same ocular tubercles and a lighter area with two dark spots on its posterior part. The opisthosoma is greyish brown with a pattern similar to that of the male, but in yellowish or whitish tones. Legs I and II are dark brown with light spots on the femora and the light ventral area, legs III and IV are covered with longitudinal stripes and light spots. Body length: 10 - 11.8 mm.

Habitat: Under rocks.

Thursday, 21 September 2023

21-9-2023 MONTE CORONA, VALENCIA - TOAD CRAB SPIDER (Bassaniodes bufo)

Bassaniodes bufo is a species of crab spider in the genus Bassaniodes , family Thomisidae . It was scientifically described by Dufour in 1820.

This species is found in the Mediterranean.


The toad crab, Hyas coarctatus, is a 'true crab' and therby has a heavily calcified, flattened carapace with a short abdomen folded up beneath it. The first appendages form large claws. It is a member of the spider crab family and has long, thin legs, and claws of the same length as the legs. Its stalked eyes are visible from above. Hyas coarctatus can reach up to 61 mm in carapace length and is reddish-brown above and white underneath. It has longer claws than the giant spider crab, Hyas araneus, and the two forward-projecting horns on its head are slightly longer and further apart than those of the giant spider crab.
Recorded distribution in Britain and Ireland
Found throught the British Isles but absent from the west coasts of Ireland.
Global distribution
 
The toad crab is a benthic species found on both hard and sandy bottoms from the intertidal region down to a depth of up to 50 m.

Spider crab is up to 61 mm in carapace length.
Cornea of the retracted eye is visible from above and not concealed under the orbit.
Post-orbital spine is flattened and expanded laterally.
Basal antenna segment is less than twice as long as it is wide.
Abdominal region is dilated laterally and, with the post-orbital region, forms a harp-shaped shelf.