Discrimination between the Mediterranean spiny lobsters Palinurus elephas and P. mauritanicus (Crustacea: Decapoda) by mitochondrial sequence analysis -- Discrimination between the Mediterranean spiny lobsters Palinurus elephas and P. mauritanicus (Crustacea: Decapoda) by mitochondrial sequence analysis -- Short Research Note -- Study of the nucleolar organizer regions in Palinurus elephas (Crustacea: Decapoda) -- The constructional properties of the exoskeleton of homarid, palinurid, and scyllarid lobsters -- Biological aspects of Medorippe lanata (Linnaeus, 1767) (Brachyura: Dorippidae) from the eastern Ligurian Sea (western Mediterranean) -- Review Paper -- Reproductive investment in Brachyura -- An ultrastructural and histochemical study of the germinal cells contained in hemispermatophores of males of the Aristaeomorpha foliacea (Risso, 1827) -- Reproduction strategy of the deep-sea hermit crabs Pagurus alatus and Pagurus excavatus of the Central-Western Mediterranean Sea -- Diel and seasonal changes in the structure of a Decapod (Crustacea: Decapoda) community of Cymodocea nodosa from Southeastern Spain (West Mediterranean Sea) -- The use of artificial benthic collectors for assessment of spatial patterns of settlement of megalopae of Carcinus maenas (L.) (Brachyura: Portunidae) in the lower Mira Estuary, Portugal -- Feeding habits of Percnon gibbesi (H. Milne Edwards, 1853) in the Sicily Strait -- The decapod crustacean community of the Guadalquivir Estuary (SW Spain): seasonal and inter-year changes in community structure -- Preliminary estimation of the factors influencing the distribution of the midlittoral crab Portumnus lysianassa (Herbst, 1796) -- Chromatic patterns of the hermit crab Calcinus tubularis related to the occupied shell -- Trawl selectivity trials on the deep-water rose shrimp (Parapenaeus longirostris) in Sicilian waters -- Catch composition and damage incurred to crabs discarded from the eastern Ligurian Sea "rapido" trawl fishery -- Fishery of the deep-water rose shrimp Parapenaeus longirostris (Lucas, 1846) (Crustacea: Decapoda) in the northern Tyrrhenian Sea (western Mediterranean) -- Selectivity parameters and size at first maturity in deep-water shrimps, Aristaeomorpha foliacea (Risso, 1827) and Aristeus antennatus (Risso, 1816), from the North-Western Ionian Sea (Mediterranean Sea) -- Catch composition on red shrimps' (Aristaeomorpha foliacea and Aristeus antennatus) grounds in the Eastern Ionian Sea. This volume presents the proceedings of the eighth Colloquium Crustacea Decapoda Mediterranea, which was held at the Ionian University on Corfu Island, Greece, from 2 to 6 September 2002, and reflects recent advancements in decapod crustacean research. The meeting is the oldest European carcinological event, organized regularly at 3-year intervals since 1972. Although focused on the Mediterranean Sea, worldwide contributions provided a forum for fruitful contact and scientific exchange. The book covers up-to-date issues in decapod crustacean research, including genetics, morphology, reproduction, ecology, behaviour and fisheries, and it is primarily aimed at scientists interested in decapod crustacean research, but other scientists and decision-makers working on marine ecology and fisheries will also find up-to-date information on relevant issues.