What Animal Lives Where

Where has the purple land crab been recorded?

Gecarcinus ruricola occurrence evidence comes from 96 records in 21 countries and territories, from 1874 to 2026. Most records come from Cuba.

MalacostracaDecapodaGecarcinidaeGecarcinus

Observation evidence passport

Evidence found

96 records across 21 countries and territories, 1874–2026.

Gecarcinus ruricola · GBIF taxon key 5178608

Source coverage

CC0 GBIF Animalia occurrence facets, including country, month and year summaries.

Refreshed 2026-09-24. Inspect the taxon on GBIF.

What this means

The species has been recorded in the listed places in the stated source universe. Peak month: December.

10 months reach at least 10% of the peak facet count.

What this does not mean

repeated describes the record pattern, not a formal range, residency, abundance or conservation assessment.

A single record remains evidence of a recording, not proof that a population lives there.

Compare this animal’s observation pattern

When it is recorded

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak month: December. Records cluster in the months an animal is present and being looked for, so a summer peak can reflect observer effort as much as the animal.

Records over time

18742026

Recording effort has risen steeply almost everywhere since the 1990s, so a rising line usually shows more observers rather than more animals.

Where purple land crab has been recorded

The countries below show where occurrence evidence exists for purple land crab. They do not define a complete habitat range: survey effort differs by place, and historical or one-off records can appear alongside repeated presence.

PlaceRecordsShare
Cuba 26
Bahamas 11
Cayman Islands 9
Jamaica 8
Aruba 6
US Virgin Islands 6
Guadeloupe 4
Montserrat 4
Haiti 3
Puerto Rico 3
United States 3
Barbados 2
Curaçao 2
Panama 2
Colombia 1
Dominica 1
Dominican Republic 1
Honduras 1
Nicaragua 1
British Virgin Islands 1
ZZ 1

Related animals

Others in the family Gecarcinidae.

Chestnut crab
Chestnut crab
122 records
Christmas Island red crab
Christmas Island red crab
23 records
Christmas Island Blue Crab
Christmas Island Blue Crab
7 records
Record pattern: repeated
Repeated records across many years and months. This is inferred from how many years and months the animal appears in, not from a range map — treat it as evidence, not a formal assessment.