Flower Crab
About the Flower Crab in Singapore
Last updated 31 May 2026
Like other swimming crabs, the Flower Crab (Portunus pelagicus), or Blue Swimming Crabs, have a pair of paddle-shaped legs modified for swimming and digging through sediment. They often bury themselves at low tide and are therefore not easy to spot.
Identifying features
Check out some identifying features of the Flower Crab below.
Flower Crabs have fan-shaped bodies with 9 sets of white-tipped spines along the front of their shells, with the last pair of spines being especially long. Their pincers are long, narrow, and spiny. Male Flower Crabs are typically feature more vibrant colouration than females.
Habitat and ecology
Flower crabs can be commonly found in shallow waters with muddy or sandy sediment on our Northern shores. They feed on shrimps and small molluscs.
Did you know?
Flower crabs are a commercially valuable species for many countries in the Indo-Pacific region.
Learn more about the Flower Crab!
Curious about the Flower Crab? Here are some interesting articles you can read to learn more about them.
