Scyllarus arctus is found throughout the Mediterranean Sea, and in eastern parts of the Atlantic Ocean, from theAzores,[3]Madeira and theCanary Islands as far north as theEnglish Channel.[5] The species is rare north of theBay of Biscay; several specimens have been seen inBritish waters, but nonetheless,S. arctus is rarer in Britain than thegiant squid,Architeuthis dux.[6] Until 1960,S. arctus was thought to be the only species ofScyllarus in the Mediterranean Sea, but then it was realised that the lesser knownScyllarus pygmaeus is also present throughout much of the Mediterranean Sea.[7]
Scyllarus arctus may reach up to 16 centimetres (6.3 in) long, although sizes of 5–10 cm (2.0–3.9 in) are more typical. It is reddish-brown in colour, with a dark brown spot in the centre of each abdominal somite, although this is not sharply defined. Thepereiopods have a dark blue ring around each segment.[5] It can be told apart from its close relativeScyllarus pygmaeus, which livessympatrically withS. arctus, chiefly by its larger size, but also by other features such as the shape of a tubercle on the lastthoracicsternite; this is flattened inS. arctus, but conical inS. pygmaeus.[7]S. arctus has among the smallest measuredgenome sizes in the OrderDecapoda, at less than a third of that seen in the related genusScyllarides.[8]
Scyllarus arctus is susceptible towhite spot syndrome,[9] and ispredated upon by a wide range ofdemersal fish.[10] It lives at depths of 4–50 m on muddy or rocky substrates, and inPosidonia meadows. It is the subject of small scalefishery, but its scarcity and its small size make it an unattractive target.[5]
^abC. Lewinsohn (1974). "The occurrence ofScyllarus pygmaeus (Bate) in the eastern Mediterranean (Deacpoda, Scyllaridae)".Crustaceana.27 (1):43–46.doi:10.1163/156854074X00217.
^Alberto Serrano; Francisco Velasco; Ignacio Olaso & Francisco Saacutenchez (2003). "Macrobenthic crustaceans in the diet of demersal fish in the Bay of Biscay in relation to abundance in the environment".Sarsia.88 (1):36–48.doi:10.1080/00364820308469.hdl:10261/326960.S2CID84516128.
D. T. G. Quigley; K. Flannery; D. Herdson; R. Lord & J. M. C. Holmes (2010). "Slipper lobster (Scyllarus arctus (L.)) (Crustacea: Decapoda) from Irish, U.K. and Channel Island waters".Irish Naturalists' Journal.31:33–39.
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