''Panulirus echinatus'', the brown spiny lobster, is a species of

spiny lobster Spiny lobsters, also known as langustas, langouste, or rock lobsters, are a family (Palinuridae) of about 60 species of achelate crustaceans, in the Decapoda Reptantia. Spiny lobsters are also, especially in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, So ...

that lives on rocky reefs in the tropical western Atlantic Ocean and central Atlantic Islands.

Description

Like other spiny lobsters, ''Panulirus echinatus'' has no pincer-like

chelae A chela ()also called a claw, nipper, or pinceris a pincer (biology), pincer-like organ at the end of certain limbs of some arthropods. The name comes from Ancient Greek , through New Latin '. The plural form is chelae. Legs bearing a chela are ...

on its front walking legs. It differs from related species by having just two large spines on the antennular plate, just in front of the carapace, and the exopod of the third feeding appendage is reduced and bears no

flagellum A flagellum (; ) is a hairlike appendage that protrudes from certain plant and animal sperm cells, and from a wide range of microorganisms to provide motility. Many protists with flagella are termed as flagellates. A microorganism may have f ...

. The basic colour is brown with large white rounded spots. The antennules and limbs are brown and have longitudinal white or yellow markings. The average size varies over different parts of its range, with males growing to a carapace length of about and females . Males are in general more numerous, larger and heavier than females but this may be because of behavioural differences, with females feeding less during the breeding season.

Distribution and habitat

''Panulirus echinatus'' is found off the coasts of northern Brazil and on the Atlantic Islands of Cape Verde, Saint Helena, Ascension Island, Tristan da Cunha and the Canary Islands. Its depth range is about though it is seldom deeper than . It lives on rocks and among boulders, hiding in cracks and fissures during the day.

Biology

''Panulirus echinatus'' is a nocturnal generalist feeder and opportunistic browser. Examination of the stomach contents of animals caught on the

Saint Peter and Saint Paul Archipelago The Saint Peter and Saint Paul Archipelago ( pt, Arquipélago de São Pedro e São Paulo ) is a group of 15 small islets and rocks in the central equatorial Atlantic Ocean.

show that the largest dietary item is fish, although it is not clear whether this is caught by the animal as

prey Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill ...

or is the result of scavenging activity.

Crustacean Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group can ...

s formed part of the diet as did the green alga ''

Caulerpa racemosa ''Caulerpa racemosa'' is a species of edible green alga, a seaweed in the family Caulerpaceae. It is commonly known as sea grapes (along with the related ''Caulerpa lentillifera'') and is found in many areas of shallow sea around the world. There ...

'' which is common in the study area. Another item consumed was calcareous algae scraped off the rock surface and this is likely to be an important source of calcium for the formation of the hard shell. Rock fragments found in the stomach are likely to have been ingested accidentally. Females carry their egg mass around on their abdomens, under their tails, for several months until the eggs hatch. During this period the females are likely to hide away more in crevices and spend less time feeding. Males do not change their feeding behaviour during the breeding season. Little is known of the larval development of this species but the larvae are

plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in water (or air) that are unable to propel themselves against a current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankters. In the ocean, they provide a crucia ...

ic. A late-stage phyllosoma larva taken in mid-ocean has been shown by mitochondrial DNA analysis to belong to this species.

Status

''Panulirus echinatus'' has a wide distribution and seems to be very common within that range. It is harvested in most of the areas in which it is found and in Saint Helena and the Cape Verde Islands is fished commercially. The population trend is unclear but because of the fishing pressure throughout its range, the population is likely to have been reduced over the years. However, because of the high

fecundity Fecundity is defined in two ways; in human demography, it is the potential for reproduction of a recorded population as opposed to a sole organism, while in population biology, it is considered similar to fertility, the natural capability to pr ...

of the female, this spiny lobster is likely to be resilient and not suffer local extinctions. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of nat ...

has assessed its conservation status as being of "

least concern A least-concern species is a species that has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as evaluated as not being a focus of species conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wild. T ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q900726 Achelata Crustaceans of the Atlantic Ocean Edible crustaceans Crustaceans described in 1869 Taxa named by Sidney Irving Smith