Here is a good example. It was brought to our attention at one time by Robert Toonen that we had not accurately identified two Sally Lightfoot images linked under our Crab Photo Resources section. Rob told us that the true Sally Lightfoot Crab is the Grapsus grapsus, a species that is found in the cooler waters of the Galapagos Islands, whereas Percnon gibbesi, also commonly referred to as a Sally Lightfoot, and a Nimble Spray Crab, inhabits warmer tropical waters of the Caribbean.
Because the picture we linked to from Steve Gahaghan's Galapagos Islands Travel site of his Sally Lightfoot Crab picture does not include the Latin name with it, we assumed that the Latin name shown with another site's photo we had linked to previously made them one and the same species. Wrong! When we compared these two species of crabs side by side, the differences in their appearance, coloration and markings were clearly defined, which you can see for yourself by viewing these pictures:
Galapagos Grapsus grapsus Species:
Caribbean Percnon gibbesi Species:
- Photo by Saleem Banatwala
- Photo & Profile from Saltwaterfish.com
- Photo by Rodney Hooker
- Photo 1 by Thomas W. Doeppner
- Photo 2 by Thomas W. Doeppner
Accurate species identification is of the utmost importance to the survival of marine fishes and invertebrates in our care. From this Sally Lightfoot example, you can see that the two crabs are similar, but definitely different. One crab requires a colder water habitat, and the other a warmer one, which can be bad news for either one if they are put into the wrong environment.
