![\"Platypodiella](\"https:\/\/reefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/143729162.j945jmDq.20120530dive2666020w4.jpg\")
<\/p>\nPlatypodiella spectabilis<\/em> Credit: Ellen Muller<\/p>\n<\/div>\n A sponge-associated specimen, reportedly feeding on a commensal zoantharian. Credit: Ellen Muller<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
With all due respect to Neoliomera<\/a><\/em>, perhaps the most coveted carcinological treasure to be found on coral reefs are the Clown Crabs of the genus Platypodiella<\/em>. Like a red and yellow Rorschach test, these diminutive invertebrates epitomize the visual splendour we associate with marine life. No two specimens ever share the exact same pattern, always showing some amount of variation in their spots and colors, like so many crustaceous snowflakes. The vibrant patterning isn\u2019t merely for ostentation either, as these crabs actually sequester palytoxin, one of the most lethal poisons<\/a> known in nature.<\/span><\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/reefs.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/157624597.yzfieRsu.dive3438094w4-e1452910479456.jpg\")
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<\/span>In total, five species are described, split along the geographic boundaries of the major ecoregions of the Atlantic and East Pacific. The crab most likely to find its way into aquarium exports is the Caribbean P. spectabilis<\/em>, known in field guides as the Gaudy Clown Crab. It can be found from Florida south to Brazil, the latter of which may represent an undescribed cryptic species. On the other side of the Atlantic, P. picta<\/em> is recorded from tropical reefs along the West African coastline, while the recently described P. georgei<\/em> hales from St. Helena. A pair of species are found in the East Pacific: P. rotundata<\/em> along the Mexican coastline and the possibly conspecific\u00a0P. gemmata<\/em> from Panama to the Galapagos Islands, neither of which are well-documented in photographs.<\/p>\n