Asian shore crab (Hemigrapsus sanguineus) in Barry!

On the 2nd May (2014) an Asian shore crab was seen on the shore in front of the power station near Barry, Vale of Glamorgan. This is the first sighting of this species in the UK. These crabs will outcompete our local crabs and are very partial to eating mussels, clams and oysters.

If you see one please take a photo and report it to the 'Non-native Species Secretariat' by email to: nnss@fera.gsi.gov.uk.

These crabs are native to the Western Pacific Ocean from Russia, along the Korean and Chinese coasts, to Hong Kong, and the Japanese archipelago. They inhabit shallow, hard-bottom intertidal or sometimes subtidal habitat and tend to aggregate at high densities under rocks where they overlap habitats with native crab species. They can tolerate wide ranges of salinity and temperature as well as damp conditions in the upper intertidal regions.

Populations have been established on the north-western and north-eastern shores of the Atlantic Ocean and there have been reports of their presence in the Black Sea and the northern Adriatic Sea.

If you would like to know more about this species here is a link to an ID sheet.