In their most common forms, their shell colours vary from a deep, mottled green to very dark brown.

It is found from South Africa, around the coast of the Indian Ocean, where it is especially abundant in Sri Lanka, to the Southeast Asian Archipelago, as well as from southern Japan to south-eastern Australia, northern New Zealand,[2] and as far east as Fiji and Samoa.

As these crabs are known for their robust size and dense meat content, they have been greatly sought after over the years.

[6] Adults (150 mm or 5.9 in and larger) were caught mainly below the low-tide mark, with small numbers captured in the intertidal zone at high tide.

The females can give birth to a million offspring, which can grow up to 3.5 kg (7.7 lb) in size and have a shell width up to 26 cm (10 in) wide.