Johngarthia planata (lat.) - a species of land crabs from the family of hecacins (Gecarcinidae). Distributed in the central-eastern part of the Pacific Ocean : from the Gulf of California to the coast of Columbia , on the islands of the state of Southern Baja California , on the group of Revilla-Hehedo islands (Mexico) and on the Clipperton atoll (France) [1] .
| Johngarthia planata |
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| Scientific classification |
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| No rank : | Bilateral symmetrical |
| Subsection : | Thoracotremata |
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| International scientific name |
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Johngarthia planata ( Stimpson , 1860 ) |
| Synonyms |
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- Geocarcinus planatus Stimpson, 1860
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According to historical documents, in the XVIII and first half of the XIX century, Clipperton was covered with grassy and partly woody vegetation. By the end of the XIX century, the local flora completely disappeared. This environmental disaster could have happened either due to the tsunami that arose as a result of the earthquake , or through the fault of man. Pigs brought in by guano miners began to eat the crabs of Gecarcinus planatus , which destroyed the emerging vegetation. People introduced many new plant species to the island. Coconut palm appeared in the 1890s .
After the extermination of all pigs in the middle of the 20th century, birds and crabs began to breed freely on the island. Millions of crabs again began to consistently destroy all the island's vegetation. In 1958, vegetation on the island was represented mainly by rare spiny plants, as well as palm trees. By 2001, only 674 coconut palms remained on the island. Vegetation was covered only 5 small islands in the lagoon, which were inaccessible to land crabs.
