Chaetognaths from Alvin dives in the Santa Catalina Basin (California), with description of two new Heterokrohnia species

Six species of deep-water chaetognaths have been caught near the bottom (at about 1300 m) during four dives of the submersible Alvin in the Santa Catalina Basin (California). Although few samples were taken, they are very interesting. New morphological data are presented on a supposed very well-known planktonic species (Sagitta macrocephala) and two new benthoplanktonic species of the genus Heterokrohnia are described. Details on the morphology and reproduction of the family Heterokrohniidae, and also on the bathymetric and zoogeographic distributions of Heterokrohnia species of the ‘longidentata’ group are given.     

A new species of Halectinosoma (Copepoda,Harpacticoida) from the Isle of Man

Summary

A new species of Halectinosoma Lang, 1948, H. pterinum sp. nov. is described from the Isle of Man. Examination of this and some other species of the genus under high magnifications suggests that the diagnosis of the genus may have to be modified.     

Three new species of the deep-sea genus Neotanais Beddard (Crustacea: Peracarida)

Three new species of the deep-water family Neotanaididae Lang are described. Neotanais minimus n. sp. and N. curvimanus n. sp. were collected from the Gulf of Mexico and are the first species to be described from this region. Neotanais minimus cannot be grouped with other Neotanais species, since it displays characters from all groupings. Neotanais curvimanus has strong affinities to the ‘americanus’ group but can be separated by the short pereonite 6 and by the presence of many setulose setae lateral on the pleonites. Male N. curvimanus can easily be separated from all other species of the genus by the cheliped fixed finger being only half as long as the dactylus and the dactylus being incurved from fixed finger at an angle of about 40°. Neotanais noelietaiti n. sp. was found off south-east Australia and is the first Neotanais species to be described from Australian waters. It also has strong affinities to the ‘americanus’ group but can be distinguished by the complete lack of a midventral keel and by the uropodal exopod being as long as the endopod article 1.     

A new genus and two new species of cirolanid isopod Crustacea from the northern Indian Ocean

A new genus of cirolanid isopod Atarbolana, and two new species, Atarbolana exoconta and Cirolana manorae, are described. Atarbolana is distinguished from related cirolanid genera by having a projecting clypeus, pleon with three free tergites, and cylindrical uropod exopod.

Cirolana manorae is most similar to Cirolana bovina Barnard, and new figures are given for that species.     

Review of the genus Chauliopleona Dojiri and Sieg, 1997 (Crustacea,Peracarida, Tanaidacea) and description of three new species

The tanaidacean genus Chauliopleona Dojiri and Sieg, is reviewed. A generic diagnosis is given and the type species Chauliopleona dentata Dojiri and Sieg, is redescribed. Three species, Leptognathia armataHansen, , L. amdrupii Hansen, and L. hastata Hansen, are placed into this genus. Three new species, one from the Angola Basin, one from the deep sea of the tropical East Pacific and one from Antarctica are described. A key for the genus is provided.     

On a new genus and new species of xanthid crab (Crustacea,Decapoda, Brachyura,Xanthinae) from the South China Sea,with notes on the genus Liagore De Haan, 1833

A new genus and new species of xanthid crab, Ovatis simplex, is described from the South China Sea. The genus is closest to Liagore but can be distinguished by a suite of carapace and male gonopod characters. The systematic position of Liagore is also considered, and both genera, Liagore and Ovatis, are here referred to the subfamily Xanthinae. Comparisons with the allied genera, Paratergatis and Pulcratis, are also provided.     

Two new species of eyeless amphipods from a coastal area in Japan (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hadziidae,Melitidae), with reinstatement of the genus Paraniphargus Tattersall, 1925

Two new species of eyeless amphipods are described from coastal Japan. Dulzura projecta sp. nov. (Hadziidae) was collected under large stones and in coarse sand from Osaka to Mie Prefectures. Dulzura projecta can be distinguished from the other Dulzura species by the distinct projection on article 1 of the male pleopod 3 inner ramus and the very long carpus of male gnathopod 1. Paraniphargus shiosai sp. nov. (Melitidae) was collected in coarse sand from Mie Prefecture, and can be differentiated from the other two species in the genus by the dorsal teeth on the pleonites, the smaller coxa 4 with shallow excavation and the shorter antenna 1 flagellum. Paraniphargus is reinstated as a distinct genus, following observation of the gnathopods, which revealed sexual monomorphism between males and females.     

An overview of Hexabathynella (Crustacea,Syncarida, Parabathynellidae) with the description of a new species

A new species of the cosmopolitan genus Hexabathynella is described from Spain. This new species has four setae on the expopod of the uropod, the rest of the species in the genus have between one and three. The endopod of the uropod has two smooth setae of similar length and one plumose seta, these characters only appear in the new species within the genus. The antennal organ in the males is shown to be a new unique character for the genus. It is the third species of this genus that has been found in Spain. To date the genus consists of 18 species in the world. A key for identification of the 18 species of Hexabathynella is provided. It is the only cosmopolitan genus of Bathynellacea and it is distributed in Europe (nine species), Africa (one species), South America (two species), North America (three species) and Australia and New Zealand (three species).     

A new genus of Australian Tetrastichinae (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae): an introduced pest of Chamelaucium uncinatum (Myrtaceae) in California

A new genus of tetrastichine eulophid, Oncastichus LaSalle, is described to contain a single new species, Oncastichus goughi Headrick and LaSalle. This species is native to Australia, and is a gall former on the Geraldton waxflower, Chamelaucium uncinatum. Oncastichus goughi was accidentally introduced into California where it causes economic damage to the Californian horticultural industry. This is the first example of a tetrastichine Eulophidae becoming an economically important introduced pest species.     

Red Sea Phyllidiidae (Mollusca,Nudibranchia), with descriptions of new species

All the known Red Sea nudibranchs of the family Phyllidiidae are described and their taxonomic positions discussed. The genus Fryeria Gray, 1853, is regarded as a junior subjective synonym of Phyllidia Cuvier, 1797, and Reyfria gen. nov. is introduced to describe those species differing from Phyllidia primarily in the position of the anus. Of 12 species described here from the Red Sea, four are new to science. Phyllidia arabica Ehrenberg, 1831, is distinguished from Phyllidia varicosa Lamarck, 1801, and Phyllidia sp. is described as the third species confused with this group. A subspecies of P. ocellata Cuvier, 1804, is described and illustrated, as are three new species: P. melanocera, P. monacha and P. multifaria.     

Muhaka icipe,an enigmatic new genus and species of Kleidotomini (Hymenoptera: Figitidae: Eucoilinae) from an East African coastal forest

A remarkable new eucoiline genus and species, Muhaka icipe, is described herein. The genus is clearly a Kleidotomini, but is distinguished from other genera in the tribe by a unique head and scutellar morphology. The genus belongs to the ‘wedge-head’-syndrome group of species that, to date, is unique to Afrotropical eucoilines. The new genus and species is reminiscent of Stentorceps Quinlan and Nanocthulhu Buffington, but is readily distinguished from these genera. Muhaka was collected from a threatened kaya (sacred forest) of coastal Kenya. The biological importance of this and other kaya forests, as well as their protection, is discussed.

http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:6918ED2C-69A4-48FC-A1E4-2B5DFF58E876     

Two new species of Metharpinia Schellenberg (Amphipoda: Phoxocephalidae) from the south-west Atlantic

Two new species, Metharpinia dentiurosoma and Metharpinia grandirama, belonging to the family Phoxocephalidae are described and illustrated from the Argentine Sea. Both taxa were collected dredging at different depths and the grain size of the sediment was determined for each sampling station. The new species share character states with Metharpinia Schellenberg, 1931 and Microphoxus Barnard, 1960, and their assignation to the first genus is discussed. Metharpinia dentiurosoma and Metharpinia grandirama are distinguished from the other known species of the genus by the dorsal hook on urosomite 3; in addition, the first species is characterized by its epimeron 3 and the second species by its uropod 2.     

The genus Lindaspio (Annelida: Polychaeta: Spionidae), and a new species from an oil field off Congo,western Africa

A new species of the genus Lindaspio (Polychaeta: Spionidae) is described from an oil field off Congo (tropical eastern Atlantic). Lindaspio sebastiena n. sp. is easily distinguished from the two other known species of Lindaspio, L. dibranchiata Blake and Maciolek (1992) and L. southwardorum Blake and Maciolek (1992), by the presence of a conical palp, the first noto-hooks beginning on setiger 55, the number of dorsal spines on setigers 2–4 and the absence of a caruncle. A new diagnosis of the genus is put forward, and the two spionid genera, Lindaspio and Scolecolepides, are discussed.     

Genus Baseodiscus (Nemertea: Heteronemertea): Molecular identification of a new species in a phylogenetic context

A new heteronemertean, Baseodiscus jonasii sp. nov., is described from Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. It resembles B. delineatus in inner morphology but can be distinguished from this species by its different colour pattern and differences in the nucleotide sequence of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene. The monophyletic status of the genus is investigated by reconstructing the phylogeny of six specimens from four species assigned to this genus, together with 22 specimens from nine other heteronemertean genera, using parsimony and Bayesian analysis. The results imply that Baseodiscus is a monophyletic group while several other heteronemertean genera are non‐monophyletic.     

A new large and colourful species of the genus Doto (Nudibranchia: Dotidae) from South Africa

A new species of the genus Doto is described from the Cape Peninsula of the Western Cape Province, South Africa. To date, the genus Doto is probably one of the more complex and poorly defined genera within nudibranchs. The very small body size and very similar external and internal features make this genus problematic and, therefore, poorly studied. Despite the large number of described species around the world, only three species are known to be present in South Africa: Doto coronata (Gmelin, 1791), Doto pinnatifida (Montagu, 1804) and Doto rosea Trinchese, 1881. Morphologically, Doto splendida sp. nov. is easily distinguished from all its South African congeneric species by its conspicuous colouration. In addition, mitochondrial and nuclear genes clearly separate the new species from other species from southern Africa. A molecular phylogeny based on two mitochondrial (COI and 16S) and one nuclear (H3) gene is herein presented. This phylogeny includes all available species of Doto (valid and unidentified) as well as several other traditionally closed related species retrieved from GenBank.

http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:3764C38DF6BB-415F-958C-E3132A1A9524     

Description of Ghatiana,a new genus of freshwater crab,with two new species and a new species of Gubernatoriana (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura: Gecarcinucidae) from the Western Ghat Mountains,India

A new genus of freshwater crab, Ghatiana, with two new species, Ghatiana aurantiaca and Ghatiana hyacintha, and a new species of Gubernatoriana Bott, 1970, are described from the Western Ghat Mountains in Maharashtra State, India. Ghatiana is most similar to Gubernatoriana by its wide, highly arched carapace and by the shape of the male abdomen. Nevertheless, the new genus can be distinguished from Gubernatoriana by the broadness of carapace, length of male abdomen, shape of sixth abdominal somite, length of telson and length of G1 terminal article. Ghatiana aurantiaca sp. nov. and G. hyacintha sp. nov. are distinguished by differences in body colour, carapace width, and G1 morphology, whereas Gubernatoriana triangulus sp. nov. is distinguished from two other known species [Gubernatoriana gubernatoris (Alcock, 1909) and Gubernatoriana pilosipes (Alcock, 1909)] by its triangular G1 subterminal segment and by its carapace morphology. Keys to the species of both the genera are provided.

http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:36BAA1EA-DC15-4B06-BA09-7BD26C63FF54