Phronimella Claus, 1871

Zeidler, Wolfgang, 2004, A review of the families and genera of the hyperiidean amphipod superfamily Phronimoidea Bowman & Gruner, 1973 (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hyperiidea), Zootaxa 567, pp. 1-66 : 16

Genus Phronimella Claus, 1871

Phronimella Claus, 1871: 149 .

Anchylonyx Streets, 1877: 130 .

Type species

Phronima elongata Claus, 1862 . Type material could not be found at the ZMB or ZMH and is considered lost.

Diagnosis

Body and pereopods extremely slender. Pereonites 1 & 2 partly fused dorsally, not much deeper than following ones. Maxilliped with extremely reduced inner lobe, almost obsolete. Gnathopods 1 & 2 simple. Pereopod 5 with elongate carpus, only slightly widened distally, forming slender, imperfect subchela with propodus; anterior margin of basis to carpus dentate. Uropod 2 absent, or rudimentary in female; sometimes rudimentary in males, but usually with exopod and reduced endopod in mature specimens.

Monotypic.

Remarks

Phronimella makes ‘barrels’ from gelatinous plankton just like Phronima but the host species is not known ( Laval 1980).

Phronimella is relatively common in the tropical regions of the world’s oceans and in the Mediterranean Sea.