Japanese Spider Crab: A Huge Arthropod

A huge arthropod called Japanese Spider Crab whose legs span is about 4m and can live up to a 100 years is considered to be a living fossil. Male claws, when opened, can widen to 3 metres. They are found in depths of 200 - 300 metres but in spring, they can often be found laying eggs in waters as shallow as 50 metres.

Scientific Name: Macrocheira kaempferi
Classification: Phylum: Arthropoda, Subphylum: Crustacea, Class: Malacostraca, Order: Decapoda, Infraorder: Brachyura, Superfamily: Majoidea, Family: Majidae, Genus: Macrocheira.