About new records of the mole crab (Albunea carabus l. 1758, decapoda, Anomura, Hippoidea) in Tunisian waters (central Mediterranean sea)

Abstract

Four observations of the mole crab albunea carabus were registered from 2019 to 2021: one specimen was filmed digging the sand in 5 october 2019 by a scientific citizen in the sandy beach of Ghar el Melh (Northern Tunisia); a second specimen was observed in November 2019 on Rimel beach (Bizerta); the third one was caught by gillnet at 3 m depth in Ras Kapoudia (East of Tunisia) in 1 October 2020 and the fourth one was captured by a fishing rod in 18 April 2021 in Menzel Horr (East of Tunisia). The third specimen (from Ras Kapoudia) was a female measuring 42.1 mm total length (TL), 19.4 mm carapace length (CL), 21.6 mm carapace width (CW) and 22.7 mm abdominal somites and telson length (STL). No measurements were made for the other specimens. These occurrences confirm well the presence of the species in Tunisia, since two carapaces and one cheliped of A. carabus were observed in October 1972 in the bay of Tunis.