Ocypodidae Rafinesque, 1815

Wicksten, Mary K., 2012, Decapod Crustacea of the Californian and Oregonian Zoogeographic Provinces 3371, Zootaxa 3371, pp. 1-307 : 260

Family Ocypodidae Rafinesque, 1815

The ghost crabs and fiddler crabs are common in sandy areas, marshes and mangroves swamps of tropical areas. Only one species lives in southern California. Schmitt (1921:278, fig, 163) reported Ocypode gaudichaudii (H. Milne Edwards & Lucas, 1843) from " Lower California ", perhaps not recognizing that this geographic area usually refers to Baja California, Mexico. Hendrickx (1995c: 142) reported O. occidentalis Stimpson, 1860 from Todos Santos Bay, west coast of Baja California. There are no other reports of this species from north of Magdalena Bay, Baja California. Schmitt (1921: 280, fig. 165) reported Uca musica Rathbun, 1914 from California, U.S.A. and Vancouver I., British Columbia. These reports probably are based on incorrect locality records. This species is not known from north of Magdalena Bay, Baja California ( Crane 1975: 317). Holmes (1900: 76, as Uca rectilata ) quoted Lockington (1877) in reporting Gelasimus rectilatus Lockington, 1877 , as from the " west coast of Lower California.” According to Crane (1975: 325), the type material of this species was destroyed and the drawings and description are inadequate to identify the species. Holmes (1900: 77) also mentioned that Uca stenodactyla (now U. stenodactylus (H. Milne-Edwards & Lucas, 1843) "is reported from San Diego by Ortmann.” This record may be due to an error in the collection locality or a misidentification. Crane (1975: 284) reported that U. stenodactylus ranges from El Salvador to northern Peru.

These active crabs possess elongated stalked eyes that fold into long transverse orbits. The third maxillipeds almost cover the rounded oral field. The carapace is more or less rectangular and without lateral teeth. Members of the family almost entirely inhabit the intertidal zone. Some may construct deep and elaborate burrows. Crane (1975) gave an exhaustive treatment of the species of Uca worldwide.