Paralithodes brevipes (ハナサキガニ, Hanasakigani)[2] is a species of king crab.[1] It has a limited distribution in cold, shallow waters as far south as the coast of Hokkaido,[3] where male-only fishing has damaged the reproductive success of the species,[4] up to as far north as the southwest Bering Sea.[5]
Male P. brevipes guard females prior to copulation, spending less time doing so when females are more numerous.[7] The reproductive success of the species is heavily sensitive to the ratio of male to female crabs.[7][4] Because sperm recovery in P. brevipes occurs at a slow rate, males allocate sperm dependent on the size of the female.[8]
^Ryazanova, T.V.; Eliseikina, M.G.; Kukhlevsky, A.D. (September 2021). "First detection of Hematodinium sp. In spiny king crab Paralithodes brevipes, and new geographic areas for the parasite in tanner crab Chionoecetes bairdi, and red king crab Paralithodes camtschaticus". Journal of Invertebrate Pathology. 184: 107651. doi:10.1016/j.jip.2021.107651.