Vol. 64, 2025

Integrative Taxonomy Uncovers Four New Species and One New Record of Land Hermit Crabs Coenobita Latreille, 1829 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Coenobitidae) from Indonesia

Hsi-Te Shih^1,§,*, Dwi Listyo Rahayu²

, and Félix Adhi Pramono³

¹Department of Life Science and Global Change Biology Research Center, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 402, Taiwan. *Correspondence: E-mail: htshih@dragon.nchu.edu.tw (Shih)
²Research Center for Marine and Land Bioindustry, National Research and Innovation Agency, Dusun Teluk Kodek, Pemenang, Lombok Utara 83756, NTB, Indonesia. E-mail: dwilistyo@yahoo.com (Rahayu)
_³Jalan Kacang Polong I #29, Bojong Indah, Rawabuaya - Cengkareng, Jakarta Barat 11740, Indonesia. E-mail: felixjw@hotmail.com (Pramono)

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:D2750620-CE61-48C7-9333-D2C43EAB5067
^§HTS and DLR contributed equally to this paper.
(Received 26 July 2024 / Accepted 24 February 2025 / Published 13 May 2025)
Communicated by Benny K.K. Chan

In this study, four new species of land hermit crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Coenobitidae: Coenobita Latreille, 1829) are described from Indonesia. These descriptions are based on evidence from morphological differences as well as mitochondrial 16S rDNA and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I data. Among the new species, Coenobita moluccensis n. sp. (from Aru Island, Maluku), C. patsyae n. sp. (from Central Sulawesi and Southeast Sulawesi), and C. celebensis n. sp. (from Central Sulawesi) form a major clade on the phylogenetic tree, exhibiting similarities in morphology, particularly in the male sexual tubes—a character they share with their closely related counterpart, C. lila Rahayu, Shih & Ng, 2016. Although the four species are similar in overall morphology, they can be distinguished by differences in the left third pereopod, the second article of the antennal peduncles, granulation on the pereopods, as well as their live coloration. Coenobita granularis n. sp., found in Central Sulawesi, shares morphological similarities with the genetically closely related C. pseudorugosus Nakasone, 1988, particularly in the male sexual tubes. However, the two species can be distinguished by differences in the morphology of the male sexual tubes, the presence of tubercles on the left cheliped, the left third pereopod, as well as their live coloration. Additionally, a newly recorded species, C. variabilis McCulloch, 1909, has been confirmed in West Papua. This study brings the total number of Coenobita species known from Indonesia to 13.

Key words: Coenobita moluccensis, C. patsyae, C. celebensis, C. variabilis, New species, Newly recorded species, Morphology, 16S rDNA, Cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI), Phylogeny

Citation: Shih HT, Rahayu DL, Pramono FA. 2025. Integrative taxonomy uncovers four new species and one new record of land hermit crabs Coenobita Latreille, 1829 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Coenobitidae) from Indonesia. Zool Stud 64:11. doi:10.6620/ZS.2025.64-11.