Iván Hernández-Ávila

Calyptraeotheres hernandezi (Crustacea: Brachyura: Pinnotheridae), a new crab symbiont of the West Indian cup-and-saucer Crucibulum auricula (Gmelin) (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Calyptraeidae) off Cubagua Island, Venezuela

ABSTRACT Calyptraeotheres hernandezi is described from off Cubagua Island, Caribbean Sea, Venezuela. The new species resembles C. granti (Glassell, 1933) from the eastern Pacific, with both taxa possessing a third maxilliped with an endopod palp of only two segments, i.e., with the dactylus missing, and the exopod with a thin and unsegmented flagellum. The new Atlantic species differs in the female having eyes that are visible from dorsal view, the propodi of the walking legs having subparallel margins, and the ventral margin of the pollex bearing a small fringe of setae. In contrast, the Pacific limpet crab C. granti has the eyes hidden from the dorsal perspective, the margin of the propodus of the walking legs tapered distally, and the ventral margin of the pollex with a well-developed fringe of setae. The austral species C. garthi (Fenucci, 1975) and C. politus (Smith, 1870) can be separated from the former two species by their third maxilliped having a rounded and minute dactylus that is inserted subdistally on the ventral margin of propodus. The new species inhabits the West Indian gastropod Crucibulum auricula (Gmelin). RESUMEN Calyptraeotheres hernandezi se describe de las vecindades de la isla Cubagua, Mar Caribe, Venezuela. La nueva especie se asemeja a C. granti (Glassell, 1933) del Pacifico oriental, ambas especies poseyendo el palpo del endópodo del tercer maxilipedio con 2 segmentos, i.e., el dáctilo esta ausente, y el exópodo con un flagelo delgado y no segmentado. La nueva especie atlántica difiere porque los ojos de la hembra son dorsalmente visibles, los márgenes de los própodos de las patas caminadoras son subparalelos y el margen ventral del dedo fijo posee un pequeño fleco de setas. En contraste, el cangrejo de la lapa del Pacifico, C. granti, tiene los ojos dorsalmente ocultos, el margen de los própodos de las patas caminadoras se estrecha distalmente y el margen ventral del dedo fijo posee un fleco de setas bien desarrollado. Las especies australes C. garthi (Fenucci, 1975) y C. politus (Smith, 1870) pueden separarse de las anteriores debido a que su tercer maxilípedo presenta un dáctilo pequeño y redondo que se inserta subdistalmente sobre el margen ventral del própodo. La nueva especie habita en la lapa Crucibulum auricula (Gmelin).

First record of Stenocionops spinosissimus (De Saussure, 1857) (Decapoda, Mithracidae) in Venezuelan waters

Majoids crabs are relatively well-know in shallow waters of Venezuela (Marcano & Bolaños, 2001), but under 60 m depth there are few records for the area. Stenocionops spinosissimus (De Saussure, 1857), has been reported from North Carolina, Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, Cuba, Haiti, Guadeloupe, Dominica, Colombia, Guyana, and Brazil (Rathbun, 1925; Powers, 1977; Takeda & Okutani, 1983; Melo, 1996; Cruz & Campos, 2003) in a depth range of 90-480 m. In an artisanal fishery on Margarita Island, three specimens of S. spinosissimus were collected at 190 m depth, representing the first record for Venezuela. Carapace length (CL) was measured from the rostral spines to the posterior end of the cephalotorax. The morphological characters agree adequately with the description of Rathbun (1925) and with the diagnosis of Melo (1996) for this species, and consequently no further description is presented. The material collected is deposited in the Museo Marino de Margarita and in the Laboratorio de Carcinología, Escuela de Ciencias Aplicadas del Mar, Universidad de Oriente, Margarita Island, Venezuela (GIC 0335).

Primer hallazgo de Nibilia antilocapra (Stimpson, 1871) (Crustacea: Decapoda: Epialtidae) para Venezuela

Seven specimens of Nibilia antilocapra were collected in Margarita Island, Venezuela. This is the first record of N. antilocapra for Venezuela, and for the south Caribbean area. Nibilia antilocapra can be separated from other species of the family Epialtidae by the following features: wide postorbital tooth forming a cup, supraocular eave and postocular cup well separated, with a small tooth between them. Carapace pyriform, longer than wide, with several spines of different size on the surface. Chelipeds stouter than the walking leg, the formers diminish gradually in size. Four species of the subfamily Pisinae have been recorded for Venezuela marine waters.