| Reef lobsters | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Enoplometopus antillensis | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Suborder: | Pleocyemata |
| Infraorder: | Astacidea |
| Superfamily: | Enoplometopoidea De Saint Laurent, 1988 |
| Family: | Enoplometopidae De Saint Laurent, 1988 |
| Genus: | Enoplometopus A. Milne Edwards, 1862 |
| Type species | |
| Enoplometopus pictus A. Milne Edwards, 1862[1] | |
| Synonyms | |
HoplometopusHolthuis, 1983 | |
Reef lobsters,Enoplometopus, are agenus of smalllobsters that live on reefs in theIndo-Pacific,Caribbean and warmer parts of theAtlantic Ocean.[2]
Species ofEnoplometopus occur fromcoral reefs at depths of less than 1 metre (3 ft 3 in)[3] to rocky reefs at depths of 300 m (980 ft).[4] They are brightly coloured, with stripes, rings, or spots. They are typically mainly red, orange, purplish and white.[2] Reef lobsters are small (depending on species, up to 10–13 centimetres or 4–5 inches),nocturnal (spending the day in caves or crevices), and very timid.[2] The species can be distinguished by their colouration andmorphology.[2]
As a result of their bright colours, they are popular in theaquarium trade, and unregulated collection combined with destruction of coral reefs maythreaten some species. Due to uncertainty over the impact of these potential threats, the majority are considereddata deficient by theInternational Union for Conservation of Nature.[5]
Reef lobsters are distinguished from clawed lobsters (familyNephropidae) by having fullchelae (claws) only on the first pair ofpereiopods, the second and third pairs being only subchelate (where the last segment of theappendage can press against a short projection from the penultimate one). Clawed lobsters have full claws on the first three pereiopods. Males, unlike those of nephropoid lobsters, have an extra lobe on the secondpleopod, which is assumed to have some function inreproduction. Reef lobsters have a shallow cervical groove while clawed lobsters have a deep cervical groove.[6]
Although there is nofossil record of reef lobsters, there is some evidence that they may be related to theextinct genusEryma which lived from the Permo-Triassic to the lateCretaceous.[7] It was later found to be a sister taxon of the Jurassic LobsterUncinaposidoniae, with the clade Enoplometopoidea including both enoplometopid and enigmatic uncinid lobsters.[8]
The genus contains the following species:[9]
Subgroups of orderDecapoda | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Dendrobranchiata | 
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| Pleocyemata |
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