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Glite Dictionary
🦀 A tropical crab 🦀 Relating to crabs
xanthid

xanthid

9.9
A crab from a family often found in warm seas, usually brightly coloured and sometimes toxic
  • noun
  • Specialized
: cangrejo xántido
  • Divers often encounter xanthid crabs hiding among the coral reefs.
  • xanthid crabs

Examples

  • Xanthid mud crabs (Fig. 50) are present over a wide salinity range.

    Academic text (1996)

  • PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): Figure 49. The rock crab, Cancer irroratus. PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE): Figure 50. Xanthid mud crabs. Photograph by the author.

    Academic text (1996)

  • The brightly colored xanthid crabs scurried along the sandy ocean floor.

  • At the tropical marine reserve, we observed many xanthid crabs with vibrant patterns.

Synonyms

crab
vsxanthid
117 1.0

A sea animal with a flat shell, five pairs of legs, and front claws

is a specific family found in tropical seas and often brightly colored
brachyuran
vsxanthid
  • Specialized
1 9.9

A crab with a short wide body and a small tail tucked under

is narrower, living in tropical waters and often showing bright colors

Surface Forms

xanthid singular
xanthids plural

Morphology

xanthid = Xanthidae (opaque) = xanth + id

The word is a specialized taxonomic derivative, but most learners will not infer its meaning from the family-name base alone.

Etymology

Xanthid comes from the Greek root xanth- which means 'yellow'. As a noun, a xanthid is a crab of the Xanthidae family, often yellow or brightly coloured, and the name helps you remember its usual colour.