Petrolisthes

Stimpson, 1858

porcelain crabs

Petrolisthes is a of marine porcelain crabs in the Porcellanidae, containing approximately 50 extant distributed across temperate and tropical coastal regions of the Pacific Rim and warm Western Atlantic. These small, flattened crabs occupy intertidal and subtidal zones, often forming dense under rocks and within crevices. Multiple species have been subject to intensive behavioral and ecological study, revealing complex patterns of , thermal , and settlement . Two species (P. cinctipes and P. manimaculis) have been sequenced, providing genomic resources for studying physiological responses to climate change.

Petrolisthes eriomerus by (c) John Brew, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by John Brew. Used under a CC-BY license.

Petrolisthes by (c) Toby, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Toby. Used under a CC-BY license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Petrolisthes: /pɛtrəˈlɪsθiːz/

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Habitat

Shallow coastal of temperate and tropical Pacific Rim and warm Western Atlantic; intertidal and subtidal zones. Cobblestone beaches and boulder fields provide preferred microhabitat, where crabs aggregate in high beneath rocks and within crevices. Cobble size is a strong predictor of and mean body size, indicating its importance as a quality indicator through its relationship to availability and size of shelter spaces.

Distribution

Eastern Pacific: approximately 50 distributed across four principal regions (north temperate, northern Gulf of California, tropics, south temperate). Specific documented locations include New Zealand, Tasmania, and northeastern Pacific (California, USA). West Atlantic species occur in Caribbean Sea and adjacent regions.

Diet

Filter feeding.

Life Cycle

Biphasic lifecycle with planktonic larval stage and benthic stage. respond to waterborne settlement cues released by adults, with settlement rates 4-fold higher in the presence of adults. Recently metamorphosed individuals may continue responding to conspecific cues, presumably facilitating with adults that provide protection from and desiccation.

Behavior

Forms dense in shelter-limited . Exhibits complex behavioral competition for shelter spaces, with outcomes influenced by body size, sex, reproductive status, and status. Smaller individuals generally spend more time in shelter and initiate fewer competitive interactions; larger individuals more successfully displace smaller ones from shelters. Males engage in more shoving interactions than females. Ovigerous females and autotomized males spend significantly more time under shelter and show distinct competitive behaviors. Agonistic interactions involve antennal taps and shoves, with limited forceful contact; these exchanges may serve exploratory and social bonding functions to maintain aggregations. Mobility is limited, with most individuals moving less than 100 cm over 25 hours; local and are primary drivers of limited mobility.

Human Relevance

assemblies of P. cinctipes and P. manimaculis provide model systems for studying physiological responses to climate change and fine- genome evolution in decapod .