Hexamunida sphecia
- Usual depth335–500 m
- Water temperature24–28 °C
- Best monthsNovember
- How commonRare
About this species
Hexamunida sphecia is a species of squat lobster in the family Munididae. The species name is derived from the Greek sphex, meaning "wasp," which refers to the yellow and purple bands on its carapace. The males measure from 5.0 to 24.0 millimetres and the females from 6.0 to 17.1 millimetres. It is found off of New Caledonia, the Loyalty Islands, and the Chesterfield Islands, at depths between about 60 and 520 metres. It is also found off of both Fiji and Tonga, where it resides between depths of about 310 and 465 metres.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Hexamunida sphecia”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
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Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 4 records
- February: 0 records
- March: 1 records
- April: 0 records
- May: 0 records
- June: 0 records
- July: 0 records
- August: 0 records
- September: 3 records
- October: 1 records
- November: 9 records
- December: 0 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 335–500 m · Deepest record: 830 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 24–28 °C
Names and classification
Other scientific names: Agononida sphecia, Munida sphecia
Similar species
Channel Squat LobsterGrimothea gregaria
pelagic red crabGrimothea planipes
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 166 open-data records from 1985 to 1993.
- Species data updated November 3, 2026.
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