King Crab

Fascinating facts about the King Crab

• King crabs are an example of carcinisation, where hermit-crab ancestors have reshaped into a true-crab form. They look like true crabs at first glance, yet anatomical studies show they are closest to pagurid hermit crabs, sharing several unique structures only with hermit crabs.
• Lithodine king crabs inhabit the deepest parts of the ocean, thriving in polar and subpolar waters. They have been recorded at extreme depths, Paralomis down to 4,152 m, Neolithodes to 3,207 m and Lithodes to 1,821 m, and members of Lithodinae are present in all five oceans, demonstrating a truly global deep-water distribution.
• Juvenile king crabs such as Neolithodes diomedeae often cling to the sea cucumber Scotoplanes, riding on its surface and hiding beneath it. This behaviour provides the young crabs with a safe haven, lowering their chances of being eaten by predators. The sea cucumber receives no benefit or harm, making the relationship a classic example of commensalism.
• A rhizocephalan barnacle of the genus Briarosaccus infects king crabs and irreversibly sterilises them, preventing any future reproduction. This parasitism is severe enough that more than half of individuals in some populations carry the infection, dramatically lowering the group's breeding potential. The barnacle develops inside the crab's body, exploiting its tissues without killing the host, so infected crabs continue to live but cannot produce offspring.
• King crabs were originally assigned to the true-crab group when George Samouelle created the family Lithodidae in 1819. Later, detailed anatomical studies led Patsy McLaughlin and colleagues in 2007 to move them into a separate superfamily Lithodoidea, reflecting their distinct lineage. In 2023, further phylogenetic analysis folded Lithodoidea back into the hermit-crab superfamily Paguroidea, restoring their close ties to pagurid hermit crabs.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the King Crab

In the dark, mysterious depths of the ocean, the king crab reigns supreme, its majestic legs sweeping slowly across the seafloor as it navigates the desolate landscape with deliberate, almost regal, precision. With its burnished shell glistening like polished bronze, this formidable crustacean moves through the water with a stately elegance, its very presence seeming to command the respect of its surroundings. As it glides effortlessly across the waves, the king crab embodies a quiet, unyielding power that is both captivating and humbling to behold.

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