Crab is favourite foodstuff. But not all kinds of crab can be food for people. Most sorts of crab living in coral area are of Xanthidae family. Its taste is not only bad but also a little bit bitter...
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| Atergastis Floridus. |
Crab is favourite foodstuff. But not all kinds of crab can be food for people. Most sorts of crab living in coral area are of Xanthidae family. Its taste is not only bad but also a little bit bitter. So fishermen usually throw them away when hooked into a fishing – net. Still, not anyone also has experience in distinguishing which kinds of crab have toxin. In fact, there have been some serious cases of poisoning.
In May 1998, At Binh Dinh island of Nhon Chau (Viet Nam), two teachers ate poisoning crabs and one of them was killed. The alive woman described the symptom as followed: lips and tongue got itched, ends of fingers and toes got hot. The other who is dead had more serious symptoms: limb convulsion, myoparalysis...
In the latest time, in March 2001, At Phu yen village of Hoa Hiep, a woman at the age of 46 ate crab, after eating about half an hour, she felt insensible at the tongue and lips. She died an hour later. The relatives described the crab as a big one (80 – 90mm in dimension), body and legs with dark fur.
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| Zosimus aeneus. |
Nha Trang Oceanography Institute’s research based on crab patterns collected from 1998 – 2002 in the sea of Khanh Hoa and the neighbourings shows there have at present been some kinds of poisoning crabs which can cause death among those who eat them. The most poisonous is a kind of devil – faced crab (Zosymous aeneus) with some special features: blue semicircular shaped body, the whole body with red notes. They often live in coral reefs, mainly distributed in islands along central coast. Its toxin centers on muscle, roe and inner organs. Another kind of crab called platypodia granulosa) is as poisonous as devil – faced crab. Its body is oval shaped with many notes, yellow –green, brown and purple coloured fur. Like Zosymus aeneus, platypodia granulosa also live in coral reefs. It is mainly distributed along the coast and islands of Khanh Hoa. Atergaslis floridus, a kind of crab living in the bottom of coral reefs is also a poisonous one with oval shaped body, polish back. The whole body is dark blue or dark brown with a big dot on its back.
For the above results, scientists of Nha Trang oceanography Institute warn people of not eating the 3 kinds of crab. (HOANG YEN)
