Has the land hermit crab Coenobita purpureus settled in Taiwan

The land hermit crab, Coenobita purpureus Stimpson, 1858 (Anomura, Coenobitidae), is endemic to Japan. However, for the first time one light blue male land hermit crab, with a shield length of 1.51 cm, was collected on Dongji Island, South Penghu Marine National Park, in Taiwan. This paper describes the morphological characteristics of the collected individual and provides colour illustrations and photographs of the specimen. Because dispersal is one of the fundamental traits of all species, we herein also discuss hypotheses on the possible dispersal of C. purpureus to Dongji Island. Finally, this record is notably the southernmost report in the known global distribution of C. purpureus .