Kingdom Animalia Infraorder Brachyura Phylum Arthropoda Rank Section | Subphylum Crustacea Scientific name Dromiacea Higher classification Crab Order Decapoda | |
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Lower classifications Dromiidae, Latreilliidae, Paromola cuvieri | ||
Dromiacea is a group of crabs, ranked as a section. It contains 240 extant and nearly 300 extinct species. Where they are considered to form a monophyletic group, Dromiacea and two other groups of crabs, namely the Raninoida and Cyclodorippoidea, may be collected together into the Podotremata, each at the rank of subsection; morphological and molecular evidence argue against such a grouping.
The larvae of Dromiacea resemble those of the Anomura more closely than those of other crabs. This may simply reflect their basal position in the crab phylogeny.
The fossil record of Dromiacea reaches back at least as far as the Jurassic, and, if Imocaris is indeed a member, into the Carboniferous.
The superfamily Eocarcinoidea, containing Eocarcinus and Platykotta, was previously considered to be a member of the Dromiacea, but has since been transferred to the Anomura.