Tuerkayana hirtipes (Dana, 1851)

Fig. 2D

Cardisoma hirtipes, Estampador 1937: 541; 1959: 98.— Türkay 1974: 229.

Discoplax hirtipes, Ng & Guinot 2001: 335 .— Ng & Shih 2014: 112, fig. 1G, H, 5E, 10H, 15.

Material examined. 1 female, 57.0 by 53.0 mm, (MSU-IIT; NJL191802), Pocto I., Brgy. Manyayay, Lianga town, Surigao del Sur prov., coll. N.J. Lagare, 3 Mar. 2019.

Remarks. Recent systematic revisions of Discoplax hirtipes (Dana, 1851) (type locality: Viti) have limited the distributional range of this species to the western and central Pacific, with other populations in the Indian Ocean being recognized as two separate species, D. celeste and D. magna (Ng & Davie 2012; Ng & Shih 2014). Even more recently, Guinot et al. (2018), had established a new genus Tuerkayana (type species: Thelphusa rotunda Quoy & Gaimard, 1824), and included these three aforementioned species in that genus.

In the Philippines, Tuerkayana hirtipes has been recorded by Estampador (1937, 1959) (no specific locality), Türkay (1974) (Dinagat I.), and by Ng & Guinot (2001) and Ng & Shih (2014) (Bohol I.). Anecdotal evidence also indicates that this species is more widespread than presented in the literature, and is used as food in many rural areas in the Philippines (JCEM pers. obs.). The present specimen was found on a limestone hill/outcrop amidst a coastal mangrove.