Luzon Island, Philippines
A large adult lobster's curiosity seems to override its instinct for self-preservation as it slowly approaches me from its hiding place under a coral overhang. After only a few seconds it will decide to back up, warily retreating to the safety of its lair. This pattern of advancing then retreating seems typical among these creatures, known as either "rock" or "spiny" lobsters (Panulirus versicolor). This colorful specimen has fuzzy growths of green algae on the tips of its legs.
Jeffrey N. Jeffords (photographer; copyright holder; identification)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
To cite this page: Myers, P., R. Espinosa, C. S. Parr, T. Jones, G. S. Hammond, and T. A. Dewey. 2013. The Animal Diversity Web (online). Accessed at http://animaldiversity.org.
Disclaimer: The Animal Diversity Web is an educational resource written largely by and for college students. ADW doesn't cover all species in the world, nor does it include all the latest scientific information about organisms we describe. Though we edit our accounts for accuracy, we cannot guarantee all information in those accounts. While ADW staff and contributors provide references to books and websites that we believe are reputable, we cannot necessarily endorse the contents of references beyond our control.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grants DUE-0633095 and DRL-0628151.
The ADW Team gratefully acknowledges their support.