To date, only one species ofLeptocheliaDana, 1849 has been described from the Cuban archipelago,L. tenuiculaMakkaveeva, 1968, and two others have been recorded,L. forresti(Stebbing, 1896) andL. savignyi(Krøyer, 1842). From new collections in the area, herein two new species are described,L. ortizin. sp. andL. pinarensisn. sp. Males ofL. ortiziare distinguished by the possession of two small, unequal medial processes on the cutting edge of the cheliped fixed finger, and six spiniform setae on the inner margin of the dactylus. Females bear an inner row of fine setules on the lacinia mobilis of the left mandible. Likewise, females ofL. pinarensisare recognized by having two plumose setae on the inner margin of the fourth article of the maxilliped. The addition of these two species increases the number of species of the genus in Cuba to five.
Forty three species of leptocheliids are known worldwide. In the American region only eight species have been described from the Western Atlantic, while for the Eastern Pacific none have been described, suggesting that the diversity of this family has been severely underestimated in this region. Here we describe the first species of Leptochelia from the Eastern Pacific, Leptochelia mexicana n. sp., which is characterized by the males having a spiniform seta on the second segment of uropodal endopod, a novel feature for the genus. In addition, the first annotated checklist and a taxonomic key with illustrations for Leptochelia species are included. The list includes the type locality, type depository, distribution, habitat and, in some cases, remarks.
En el Pacífico oriental tropical (POT) 23 especies de cumáceos son conocidas, sin embargo, ninguna de estas especies ha sido registrada previamente en la costa sur del Pacífico mexicano. Se examinaron 378 ejemplares resultando en seis nuevas especies, pertenecientes a dos familias y cinco géneros, Coricuma zurai sp. nov., Cyclaspis boquillensis sp. nov., Cyclaspis hyalinus sp. nov., Cumella (Cumewingia) carmeinae sp. nov., Elassocumella krakeri sp. nov. y Nannastacus corallinus sp. nov. Para el género Coricuma Watling & Breedy, 1988, se incrementó el ámbito geográfico de Costa Rica a México, y se describe una segunda especie. Por primera vez se registran en el Pacífico oriental los géneros Elassocumella Watling, 1991 y Nannastacus Bate, 1865. Se incluye un listado comentado y una clave ilustrada para todas las especies de cumáceos registradas en el Pacífico oriental tropical.
Until now, four species of the genus Chondrochelia Guţu, 2016 have been recorded from America. Using morphological and molecular data, we were able to recognize and describe two new species, Chondrochelia caribensis sp. nov. from the Mexican Caribbean and Chondrochelia winfieldi sp. nov. from the Gulf of Mexico. We found significant genetic divergence values between species based on the nucleotide sequences of cytochrome oxidase subunit I to support the morphological data. Also, the range of distribution of two species: Chondrochelia mexicana (Jarquín-González, García-Madrigal & Carrera-Parra, 2015) and Chondrochelia ortizi (Jarquín-González, 2016), were expanded within their described geographic regions. In contrast, the supposed distribution of the Brazilian C. dubia in the Mexican Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico was rejected. Additionally, Chondrochelia algicola (Harger, 1878) was redescribed based upon type material. Minute details and ornamentation of some structures of three species were examined using SEM.
Until now, Hargeria was considered a monospecific leptocheliid genus, with the species Hargeria rapax considered a taxon with a wide distribution, from the Northwestern Atlantic to the Mexican Caribbean. Herein, after a detailed revision of type and topotype materials and specimens collected from the Mexican Caribbean, a new species H. chetumalensis sp. nov. is described, and the redescription of H. rapax is provided. Also, we found a significant genetic divergence between the two species based on the nucleotide sequences of cytochrome oxidase subunit I, which support the morphological data. The morphological features used to recognize both species are also adequate to link males, females, and juvenile stages, although these species have a high intraspecific polymorphism.
During the analysis of phytal meiobenthic samples collected from a rocky-sandy beach in the state of Nayarit, in the Mexican Pacific, several specimens of harpacticoid copepods were obtained and taxonomically examined. These specimens were found to represent an undescribed species of the peltidiid genus Peltidium Philippi, 1839. The new species, Peltidium nayarit
sp. n. is described herein. It resembles Peltidium nichollsi Geddes and Peltidium lerneri Geddes from Bahamas but also the widespread Peltidium speciosum Thompson & Scott and Peltidium purpureum Philippi. The new species from the Mexican Pacific differs from its known congeners by its possession of a unique combination of characters, including a modified pectinate seta on the antennary exopod, three terminal setae on the second endopodal segment of leg 1, third exopodal segment of leg 1 with three elements, inner terminal claw twice as long as outer claw, female fifth leg with 5 exopodal setae, exopodal setae I-III stout, spinulose and seta IV being as long as seta V. This is the second species of the family known to be distributed in the Eastern Tropical Pacific and in Mexico. Pending additional data, the distribution of this species appears to be restricted to this area of the Mexican Pacific.
Resumen. Los tanaidáceos son componentes esenciales de las cadenas tróficas del bentos marino, son fuente de alimento para especies de relevancia comercial y para otros organismos marinos. A pesar de su importancia, el conocimiento del grupo se ha rezagado debido a los problemas relacionados con su biología y taxonomía, y por la carencia de muestreos exhaustivos y sistemáticos; así, en las costas de Guerrero y Oaxaca sólo se había registrado 1 género. Por lo anterior, el objetivo fue conocer la composición específica y los patrones de distribución de los tanaidáceos litorales de Guerrero y Oaxaca. De 4 275 ejemplares, se identificaron 6 familias y 9 morfotipos: Hexapleomera robusta, Sinelobus stanfordi, Leptochelia cf. dubia, Paratanais cf. denticulatus, Paradoxapseudes cf. garthi, Apseudormorpha sp., Cyclopoapseudes cf. indecorus, Synapseudes sp. y Parapseudes pedispinis. Todos son registros nuevos para el litoral de Guerrero y Oaxaca. Se amplía el intervalo de distribución hacia el norte, para H. robusta de islas Galápagos a Guerrero. Para S. stanfordi y P. pedispinis se proporcionan localidades intermedias que rompen con la distribución disyunta previa en el Pacífico oriental. Hay 6 especies, posiblemente nuevas, con distribución restringida; 2 son de amplia distribución y 1 restringida al Pacífico oriental tropical.
Decapods include species of economic importance, such as Achelata (lobsters) and Brachyura (true crabs), since they have aesthetic, commercial, gastronomic, and biomedical value. These groups exhibit a great variety of shapes, larval stages, habits, and sizes, making them difficult to recognize. In the Southern Mexican Caribbean (SMC), no taxonomic list or analysis of the biological diversity for the Achelata and Brachyura has been performed. Herein, the biological diversity of these groups was analyzed by reviewing the literature and collecting specimens in the SMC to obtain morphological, ecological, and molecular data. These results showed a total of 29 families, 67 genera, and 98 species recorded, of which, one is considered as a potentially new species, six are new records for the SMC, 12 expanded their distribution range, and 14 species names were updated. In addition, the BOLD system assigned 21 BINs supported with morphological identification. This work contributes positively to the knowledge of the marine and coastal decapods from the SCM as it represents the first effort to recognize their current biological diversity. This information will be used to develop adequate strategies for the conservation and management of marine and coastal natural resources of the SMC.
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