Colossendeis colossea is a species of sea spider (classPycnogonida) in the family Colossendeidae.[2] The species was first described by Edmund B. Wilson in 1881.[1][2] It is the largest pycnogonid species known to science, reaching a leg span of 70 cm (28 in). Body length, including proboscis and abdomen, can reach 7 cm (2.8 in).[3]
Colossendeis colossea is a deep-water species inhabiting continental slopes at depths between 420 and 5,200 m (1,380 and 17,060 ft) m.[3] It has a semi-cosmopolitan distribution[2] in all main oceans apart from the Arctic Ocean.[3]
^ abcVinu, Jacob; Rajeesh Kumar, M. P.; Sumod, K. S.; Deepa, K. P.; Hashim, M.; Sanjeevan, V. N.; Sudhakar, M. (2016). "First record of deep-sea gigantic pycnogonid Colossendeis colossea Wilson, 1881 from the Western Indian Ocean". Marine Biodiversity. 46 (2): 495–498. doi:10.1007/s12526-015-0373-1.