Updated checklist of semi-terrestrial and estuarine crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura) of Barbados, West Indies
Author
Parasram, Nadeshinie
0000-0002-5040-5781
The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados, Department of Biological and Chemical Sciences nadeshinie. parasram @ mycavehill. uwi. edu; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0002 - 5040 - 5781
nadeshinie.parasram@mycavehill.uwi.edu
Author
Santana, William
Laboratory of Systematic Zoology (LSZ), Universiadade Regional do Cariri (URCA), Crato, CE, Brazil.
Author
Vallès, Henri
0000-0002-7947-2742
The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados, Department of Biological and Chemical Sciences nadeshinie. parasram @ mycavehill. uwi. edu; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0002 - 5040 - 5781 & henri. valles @ cavehill. uwi. edu; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0002 - 7947 - 2742
henri.valles@cavehill.uwi.edu
text
Zootaxa
2021
2021-10-18
5052
4
451
485
journal article
3984
10.11646/zootaxa.5052.4.1
fdb742b9-cb51-4c1d-ac70-947b32ce427d
1175-5326
5577182
AAD15F62-C928-4BE4-B717-3182E6FB986E
Armases roberti
(H.
Milne Edwards, 1853
)
Fig. 13 A, B, C, D
Sesarma roberti
H.
Milne Edwards, 1853: 182
.
Sesarma bromeliarum
Rathbun, 1896: 143
[type-locality:
Rio Cobre
(
St. Catherine
),
Jamaica
;
P.W. Jarvis
(coll.);
type
in
USNM 19406
].
Armases roberti
—
Abele 1992: 526–527
, figs. 23 c, 26 & 27.
Schubart & Diesel 1998: 743–750
.
Diesel & Schuh 1998: 423–436
.
Ng
et al.
2008: 220
.
Poupin 2018: 227
, fig. 260.
Material examined.
Barbados
,
Long Pond
,
St. Andrew
, coastal wetland, 13̊ 15’40.6” N–59̊ 33’22.94” W,
1 ♂
;
2 ♀
CW: 12.1; 28.4,
17.8 mm
(
BLSZ 001
)
.
Barbados
,
Joe’s River
,
St. Andrew
, freshwater, 13̊ 21’68.55” N–59̊ 52’75.17” W,
1 ♀
CW:
11.6 mm
(
BLSZ 076
)
.
Idem
,
2 ♂
CW: 24.7;
14.4 mm
(
BLSZ 075
)
.
Idem
,
3 ♂
CW: 20.7; 20.3;
17.3 mm
(
BLSZ 116
)
.
Idem
,
2 ♂
CW: 17.6;
15.5 mm
,
1 ♀
CW:
21.1 mm
(
BLSZ 130
)
.
Barbados
,
Lakes River
,
St. Andrew
, freshwater, 13̊ 14’14.13” N–59̊ 32’45.83” W,
2 ♂
,
2 ♀
CW: 3.0; 2.0; 14.6;
22.1 mm
(
BLSZ 053
;
MZUSP 40926
;
MZUSP 40890
)
.
Distribution.
Armases roberti
is found in the Western Atlantic:
Cuba
,
Jamaica
,
Dominican Republic
, St. Thomas, St. Croix, Guadeloupe,
Dominica
, Martinique,
St. Lucia
,
Barbados
,
Tobago
, and
Trinidad
(
Abele 1992
;
Poupin 2018
).
Distribution in
Barbados
.
Long Pond, Lakes River, Joe’s River, and Joe’s River Tributary [
Table 1
(Site #s: 3, 4, 6 & 7)].
Habitat in
Barbados
.
On the banks of estuarine streams and ponds on muddy bottoms at depths of ~
0.5–2 m
(
Fig. 2A
: A–B).
Ecological notes.
This species was collected approximately
150 m
from the sea on the branches of trees of
Terminalia catappa
L.
, near the banks of the Long Pond wetland. When approached, the crabs would either leap into the water from the branches or jump onto other branches that were out of reach. At the Lakes River site,
Armases roberti
were found among dried branches of trees of
Terminalia catappa
L.
, ~
80 m
away from the sea; the crabs appeared to be feeding on green moss. Juvenile and adult crabs were seen at the mouth of the river, where specimens of
Armases roberti
were collected along with the crayfish
Macrobrachium carcinus
(
Linnaeus, 1758
)
and another unidentified crayfish species. At the Joe’s River site, the crabs were collected ~
84 m
from the high-tide mark. Ovigerous females were collected in
August 2019
and observed in
November 2020
. The crabs were active during the daytime periods. All specimens were collected with hand nets (
Fig. 3D
).
Remarks.
Specimens of
Armases roberti
(
3 male
;
4 female
), were collected by the Smithsonian-Hartford Expedition (1937) in Joe’s River; they are stored at the USNM (catalogue # 73317). Although collected in 1937,
Armases roberti
was reported for
Barbados
for the first time in 1969 by Chace and Hobbs as
Sesarma (Holometopus) roberti
. This species is recognized by the absence of setae on the dorsal surface of the carapace and the presence of setae and spines on the dorsal and ventral surfaces of the propodus and dactylus of the walking legs; the fourth pereiopod is longer than the others (
Abele 1992
).