A re-assessment of Hexapleomera Dudich, 1931 (Crustacea: Tanaidacea: Tanaidae), with designation of three new species
Author
Bamber, Roger N.
text
Zootaxa
2012
3583
51
70
journal article
10.5281/zenodo.283096
0d7c5b2a-2450-456c-a0be-2d3654dfd406
1175-5326
283096
Hexapleomera crassa
(
Riggio, 1975
)
incertae sedis
Anatanais robustus
forma
crassus
Riggio, 1975
: 128
Anatanais robustus crassus
Riggio, 1976
: 503
, figs 6–8.
Hexapleomera crassa
.—
Riggio, 1996
: 648
–649, fig. 22.
Remarks
: This taxon was first described as a “form” of “
Anatanais
”
robusta
(
Riggio 1975
)
, then as a subspecies (
Riggio 1976
) and finally (
Riggio 1996
) as a separate species (see
Anderson 2012
), based on material collected from the Italian coasts of Naples and Sicily.
Hexapleomera crassa
was distinguished from his
H. robusta
by
Riggio (1996)
on the basis of its being “more oval”, having a different “length/width ratio”—being about twice that of the “typical” form (
Riggio, 1976: 503
) and being “significantly smaller, rarely exceeding one millimetre and a half”, on which basis he stated that “From these features it was considered a good species”. These cannot be adequate characters. It has not proved possible to find Riggio’s material.
As the published “description” is merely as above, coupled with three photographs (
Riggio 1976, figs 6–8
) and one figure (
Riggio 1996, fig. 22
), there is at present insufficient information from which to determine the validity, characteristics or even synonymy of this taxon. Riggio’s species may be synonymous with
H. robusta
sensu
stricto
. From its illustrated body proportions alone (female body 3.9 times as long as wide, male 2.9 times as long as wide, proximal article of male antennule 4.3 times as long as wide),
Hexapleomera crassa
is distinct from
H. satella
(4.5, 3.8 and 6.0 times as long as wide respectively) and only slightly closer to the proportions of
H. robusta sensu
Sieg
(3.5, 3.2 and 5.0 times as long as wide respectively).