Journal of Biology and Nature

The marine brachyuran crab fauna of the West Bengal coast remains insufficiently documented, despite the ecological significance of its coastal and estuarine ecosystems. The present study reports eight marine brachyuran crab species—Eucrate indica Castro & Ng, 2010, Pilumnus vespertilio (Fabricius, 1793), Actumnus setifer (De Haan, 1835), Leptodius exaratus (H. Milne Edwards, 1834), Xenophthalmus wolffi Takeda & Miyake, 1970, Cardisoma carnifex (Herbst, 1796), Plagusia squamosa (Herbst, 1790), and Parasesarma bengalense (Davie, 2003)—from West Bengal, India, for the first time. Specimens were collected from coastal and estuarine habitats in various parts of West Bengal and identified using standard taxonomic literature. Brief diagnostic descriptions and distributional accounts are provided for each species. The study also documents the first records of the families Euryplacidae and Xenophthalmidae in the state, thereby increasing the known marine brachyuran diversity of West Bengal. Notably, X. wolffi represents the first record from the Bay of Bengal, substantially extending its known distribution in India. These findings address important gaps in knowledge of the distribution of marine brachyuran crabs along the northern Bay of Bengal and highlight the need for continued systematic surveys of the region’s coastal and estuarine habitats.