Leach, 1814
Type Species: by monotypy: Cancer (Astacus) subterraneus Montagu, 1808. Gender feminine. Name placed on the Official List of Generic Names in Zoology by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature in their Opinion 434 (published in 1956).
Of the many (about 150) species of Callianassidae known at present, only 9 have, to my knowledge, been reported as being of interest to fisheries (either as bait or for human consumption). These 9 species are the only ones dealt with in this catalogue. Of each, a short morphological account of the most salient diagnostic features is given.
Eight of these nine species seem to be used exclusively as bait, while the ninth, Callianassa turnerana, is used as food for humans in W. Africa. However, since most publications on Callianassids do not provide information on utilization, it seems likely that many more species actually are used as bait. It seems obvious that any species occurring in dense populations in the littoral or sublittoral zones and can easily be taken by digging or by suction pumps, is hence a likely candidate for bait. The present catalogue therefore may be quite incomplete and any additional information will be welcome.
The species of Callianassa are burrowers in mud or in muddy sand. They are characterized by their elongate, soft body covered by a thin integument. The carapace is smooth and glabrous, on the abdominal pleura a tuft of hairs may be present, but otherwise the abdomen is also smooth and naked. The rostrum usually is small and does not reach beyond the eyes, it is triangular, or conical and sometimes reduced to a low central angle of the anterior margin of the carapace; in some species, however, it ends in 3 or 5 large teeth. The eyes are small, placed close to each other, sometimes with the inner margins touching. The pereiopods of the first pair are large and asymmetrical, and have well developed chelae. The legs of the second pair are small, also chelate. The following legs are simple. The abdomen is longer than the carapace.