Pseudocarcinus is an extinct genus of gigantic crabs hailing from New Zealand. They existed during the Miocene epoch. [1][2]
Description[]
They are considered quite essentially amongst the largest known crabs ever lived!
Their fossils are formally discovered at Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand. P. karlraubenheimeri officially named males have one normal-sized and one oversized claw, akin to modern fiddler crabs.[3][4][5]
Habitat and Ecology[]
In modern seas, crabs have larger absolute claw sizes in temperate regions than they do in tropical regions, although claws are smaller relative to body size in temperate seas. Infamous examples often come from Southern Australian areas.
The Miocene of New Zealand supported two species of giant crab with the largest crushing claws known: Tumidocarcinus giganteus and P. karlraubenheimeri.[6]
References[]
- ↑ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ancient-crustacean-has-largest-fossil-claw-of-any-crab-ever-recorded/
- ↑ https://www.sci.news/paleontology/pseudocarcinus-karlraubenheimeri-12737.html
- ↑ https://phys.org/news/2024-03-fossil-unearthed-zealand-largest-crab.amp
- ↑ https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/03/05/meet-the-giant-8-million-year-old-fossil-crab-named-karl/
- ↑ https://interestingengineering.com/science/largest-ever-crab-claw-dating-back-8-million-years-found
- ↑ https://www.thenews.com.pk/amp/1162515-worlds-largest-fossil-crab-claw-dating-back-to-8-million-years-discovered-in-new-zealand