Marine Species Identification Portal : Eriocheir sinensis

Milne-Edwards, 1854-1855

Description
Carapace flat and more or less quadrangular. Only first limbs chelate and distinctivly covered with dense fur.

Size:
Carapace length up to 75 mm.

Habitat:
E. sinensis is a catadromus species - it lives in rivers and stagnant waterbodies but returns to the sea to breed. In some years they migrate in vast numbers. In many rivers such as the Rhine, it is regarded as a pest because its burrows cause erosion of the river banks and the damage they cause to fishery nets in periods of migration especially in autumn.

Distribution
This Asian species was introduced to Germany early this century and has spread to southern Scandinavia, The Netherlands, Belgium and France, and Britain (Humber and Thames).

Eriocheir sinensis