The stalk-eyed mud crab, ''Macrophthalmus hirtipes'', is a marine large-eyed crab of the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Macrophthalmidae, endemic to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

including Campbell Island. It grows to around shell width. It is either the only species in the

subgenus In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...

''Hemiplax'' and the most basal species in the genus ''

Macrophthalmus ''Macrophthalmus'' is a genus of crabs which are widespread across the Indo-Pacific. It contains the following species (arranged into subgenera In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the Inter ...

'', or the only species in the sister genus ''Hemiplax''.

References

Ocypodoidea Marine crustaceans of New Zealand Crustaceans described in 1846 Taxa named by Honoré Jacquinot {{crab-stub