Ocypode ceratophthalmus (Pallas, 1772)

Fig. 5H

Ocypoda ceratophthalma, Miers 1886: 238 .— Tesch 1918a: 36.

Ocypode ceratophthalma, Ortman 1894: 767 .— Estampador 1937: 542; 1959: 99.— Manuel et al. 1991:82.—Sakai & Türkay 2013: 685.

Ocypode ceratophthalmus, de Elera 1895: 544 .

Material examined. 5 males, 29.8 by 25.7 mm—33.5 by 29.7 mm, 1 female, 22.8 by 19.0 mm (ZRC), Bgy. Poblacion, Manukan, Zamboanga del Norte prov., coll. J.B. Neri, 17 Nov. 2017 .

Remarks. Ocypode ceratophthalmus (Pallas, 1772) is a widespread Indo-West Pacific species of ghost crab, ranging from the eastern coast of Africa to the Hawaiian Islands and French Polynesia (Sakai & Türkay 2013). It is one of several species of Ocypode wherein the eyes have a distal corneous extension (stylus), although it can be distinguished from such congeners by the pattern of stridulatory ridges & tubercles on the inner surface of the palm of the major chela (viz. 10–11 interspaced tubercles in dorsal third, 8 thick striae in middle third, and 20–30 closely spaced striae in ventral third), the pointed fingertips of the minor chela, and the unique morphology of the G1 (Sakai & Türkay 2013: 679 (key), figs. 1D–I, 10, 32). In the Philippines, this species has been reported from several localities (see Table 1). The present material (Fig. 5H) from Manukan agrees well with the published descriptions of this species.