
The body of Paranthura japonica forms a narrow cylinder. Ballast water is a possible vector in commercial ports, but some of the invaded bays, such as Arcachon and the Mar Piccolo, do not receive commercial ships (Lavesque et al. Transplants of Pacific Oysters ( Crassostrea gigas), Japanese Littleneck clams ( Venerupis philippinarum), and hull fouling are likely vectors for the introduction of this species.

In 2019 they were found in the harbors of Le Havre and Cherbourg (Pezy et.al. 2013), and several harbors on the coast of Italy, including La Spezia, Olbia, Sardinia, Mar Piccolo, and the Venice Lagoon (Marchini et al. In 2010-2012, Paranthura japonica was found in Arcachon Bay, France, off the Bay of Biscay (Frutos et al. It occurs both in commercial ports, such as Los Angeles/Long Beach, and small boat harbors (Cohen et al. japonica to be widespread in southern California harbors from Channel Islands Harbor and Port Hueneme to San Diego Bay. In 2005 surveys, it was found to be widespread in the Bay, including Benicia, on Carquinez Strait, and the Petaluma River, off San Pablo Bay (Foss 2009). japonica was in South and Central San Francisco Bay in 1993 (Cohen and Carlton 1995). National Museum of Natural History 2015). Three museum records, identified as Paranthura japonica from Pacific Grove, California, collected in 1930-1943, may refer to the native P. North American Invasion History: Invasion History on the West Coast: japonica are hull fouling, ballast water, and oyster transplants. In 2010-2013, it was found in five harbors, in the four seas surrounding the west, south, and east coasts of Italy (Marchini et al. In 2010, it was found in Arcachon Bay, on the Atlantic coast of France (Frutos et al. Paranthura japonica was introduced to San Francisco Bay before 1993 (Cohen and Carlton 1995), and was found to be widespread in Southern California Harbors in 2000 (Cohen et al. 1976 Ong Che and Morton 1991 Moschenko and Zvyagintsev 2004 Lim et al. It is widely distributed in the Northwest Pacific, from Vladivostok and the southern Kuril Islands to Hong Kong (Golikov et al.

Paranthura japonica was first described from Hokkaido, Japan by Richardson (1909). First Non-native North American Tidal Record: 1993 First Non-native West Coast Tidal Record: 1993 First Non-native East/Gulf Coast Tidal Record:
