Horseshoe crab
Tachypleus tridentatus (Leach, 1819)
ENEndangeredother invertebrates
The horseshoe crab (Tachypleus tridentatus) is a species in the phylum Arthropoda, class Merostomata, order Xiphosurida and family Limulidae, placed in the animal group Other invertebrates. It belongs to the subfamily Tachypleinae and the genus Tachypleus, and its scientific name authority is (Leach, 1819).
Quick facts about the horseshoe crab
Other English names for it are King crab, Chinese horseshoe crab, Japanese horseshoe crab and Tri-spine horseshoe crab. The IUCN Red List global assessment lists it as Endangered (EN), an IUCN threatened category, and the Catalogue of Life records it as living, not extinct.
- Weight
- Not recorded
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- coastal, marinesrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- Not recorded
- Conservation status
- Endangered (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the horseshoe crab
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
Where does the horseshoe crab live?
Not recorded
What is the horseshoe crab?
Tachypleus tridentatus, commonly known as the Chinese horseshoe crab, Japanese horseshoe crab, or tri-spine horseshoe crab, is a species of horseshoe crab found in Southeast and East Asia, with records from China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam. It is found in coastal marine and brackish waters, and tolerates colder temperatures than the other Asian horseshoe crabs (Tachypleus gigas and Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda), although juveniles still need water warmer than 22 °C (72 °F) to moult.
From the Wikipedia article “Tachypleus tridentatus” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tachypleus_tridentatus&oldid=1381284746), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the horseshoe crab endangered?
The horseshoe crab is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List: it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Endangered species. What the categories mean.
How is the horseshoe crab classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumArthropoda
- classMerostomata
- orderXiphosurida
- familyLimulidae
- genusTachypleus
- SpeciesTachypleus tridentatus (Leach, 1819)
Synonyms Limulus longispina, Limulus tridentatus
Other names and names in other languages (28)
- Chinese horseshoe crabEnglish
- Japanese horseshoe crabEnglish
- King crabEnglish
- Tri-spine horseshoe crabEnglish
- Tri-spine horseshoe crabEnglish
- سرطان حدوة الحصان الصينيArabic
- سرطان حدوة الحصان اليابانيArabic
- سرطان حدوة الحصان ثلاثي الأشواكArabic
- ostrorep východoasijskýCzech
- Cangrejo cacerola chinoSpanish
- Limule d'Asie du Sud-EstFrench
- MimiIndonesian
- BelangkasIndonesian
- Belangkas Tiga-DuriIndonesian
- Belangkas TigaduriIndonesian
- Kepiting Tapal KudaIndonesian
- Ketam Tapak KudaIndonesian
- カブトガニJapanese
- Kabuto-ganiJapanese
- 세가시투구게Korean
- BalangkasMalay
- Raja KetamMalay
- แมงดาจีนThai
- Çin Atnalı KıskaçlısıTurkish
- Sam ba gai đuôiVietnamese
- 三棘鱟Chinese
- 三刺鱟Chinese
- 中華鱟Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistITISWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the horseshoe crab
Other species in the same genus Tachypleus.
Horseshoe crab
Tachypleus gigas
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the horseshoe crab?
It is a member of the phylum Arthropoda, class Merostomata, order Xiphosurida and family Limulidae, in the animal group Other invertebrates.
What is the scientific name of the horseshoe crab?
Its scientific name is Tachypleus tridentatus, in the genus Tachypleus.
Who named Tachypleus tridentatus and when?
The scientific name authority is (Leach, 1819).
Is the horseshoe crab endangered?
Yes. The IUCN Red List global assessment lists it as Endangered (EN), which is an IUCN threatened category.
Is the horseshoe crab extinct?
No. The Catalogue of Life records it as living, not extinct.
What other names does the horseshoe crab have?
It is also called King crab, Chinese horseshoe crab, Japanese horseshoe crab and Tri-spine horseshoe crab.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
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Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Horseshoe crab (Tachypleus tridentatus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/tachypleus-tridentatus
“Horseshoe crab (Tachypleus tridentatus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/tachypleus-tridentatus.
@misc{tachypleus_tridentatus_2026,
title = {Horseshoe crab (Tachypleus tridentatus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/tachypleus-tridentatus},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}