Florent's Guide To The Florida, Bahamas &

Caribbean Reefs

Indo-Pacific Swimming Crab
Charybdis hellerii
Indo-Pacific Swimming Crab
Also known as: Spiny Hands
Category: Swimming Crabs
Scientific Name: Charybdis hellerii
Size: Up to 2 in. (5 cm)  
Distribution: Florida, Caribbean, Indo-Pacific, Gulf of America
Note: This is an invasive species in the Western Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico
Arthropoda (Phylum)
└Crustacea (Subphylum)
 └Malacostraca (Class)
  └Eumalacostraca (Subclass)
   └Decapoda (Order)
    └Pleocyemata (Suborder)
     └Brachyura (Infraorder)
      └Portunidae (Family)
       └Thalamitinae (Subfamily)
        └Charybdis (Genus)

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© 2025 Florent Charpin