New records of crabs (Decapoda: Brachyura) from the New Zealand region, including a new species of Rochinia A. Milne-Edwards, 1875 (Majidae), and a revision of the genus Dromia Weber, 1795 (Dromiidae)
Author
Published, First
text
Zootaxa
2009
2009-05-18
2111
1
66
journal article
11755334
Pseudopalicus undulatus
Castro, 2000
(
Figs. 14a, b
)
Pseudopalicus undulatus
Castro, 2000: 483
, figs 12f, 14, 53.
Material Examined
.
East of
North Cape
:
1 ovigerous female, 11.0 mm x
9.1 mm
, 34°
06 34.22’S
, 174°
08 18.05’E
, 600–
562 m
,
Kaharoa
, stn KAH0204/09,
14 Apr. 2002
(
NIWA 48577
)
.
Remarks.
The genus
Pseudopalicus
contains 11 species found in the Indo-West Pacific region, from the coast of Africa to
French Polynesia
and as far north as
Japan
and as far south as
New Zealand
. The first reported palicid from
New Zealand
waters was
P. oahuensis
(
Rathbun, 1906
)
by
Takeda & Webber (2006)
collected in 1975, from a depth of
530–585 m
off Raoul I., northeast of
New Zealand
.
P. undulatus
Castro, 2000
is the second species recorded and comes from a similar depth East of North Cape, so is much closer to the
New Zealand
mainland. This record considerably extends the southernmost limit for this species from around
18°S
(
Fiji
) to
34°S
(
New Zealand
). It has also been recorded from the Coral Sea,
Indonesia
, South
China
Sea and
Japan
.
Castro (2000)
gave the reliably known depth as
206–410 m
, but the
New Zealand
specimen came from 600–
562 m
, thereby extending the lower depth limit. These species can be distinguished the number of anterolateral teeth, 3 for
P. undulatus
, 4 for
P. oahuensis
.
Three other species,
P. acanthodactylus
Castro, 2000
,
P. declivis
Castro, 2000
and
P. glaber
Castro, 2000
are known from the Norfolk Ridge. Thus 5 of the 11 species in the genus are known from the warmer waters of
New Zealand
and nearby areas to the north. Other palicid species occurring near
New Zealand
include
Crossotonotus spinipes
(
De Man, 1888
)
also from the Norfolk Ridge. The excellent revision by
Castro (2000)
provides keys to identify the genera and species of the Indo-West Pacific
Palicidae
.
The ovigerous female
P. undulatus
carried around 800 small eggs (diameter =
0.45 mm
) that are protected by a brood chamber formed by the swollen abdomen fitting tightly with the elevated sternal rim. In this respect palicids are similar to leucosiids. The small egg size indicates that this species has indirect development.
Distribution
includes the Coral Sea,
Indonesia
, South
China
Sea,
Japan
,
Fiji
and now
New Zealand
. Depth range is
206–
600 m
.