There are several species of langostino, but the one most commonly marketed is Pleuroncodes monodon, a small, lobster-like crustacean found in the cold, deep waters off the coast of Chile, where it is known as langostino colorado. A related  langostino, P. planipes, also called tuna crab, ranges from Baja, California to Peru. A fishery off the coast of El Salvador provides langostino lobster for the U.S. market. The langostino is actually a member of the crab family Galatheidae. Ranging from 4 to 5 inches in length, the crustacean looks like a short, crinkled crawfish but brandishes a pair of front pincers longer than its body. However, it is seldom seen whole in the marketplace, since it is most often sold in the United States as frozen, cooked tail meat, either in the shell or peeled and deveined. Langostinos are caught by trawlers and landed alive for processing. After a near-collapse of the fishery in the early 1980s, the Chilean government now strictly controls the harvest to ensure maximum sustainable yield.