Anoplodactylus petiolatus (KrØyer, 1844)

Lucena, Rudá Amorim & Christoffersen, Martin Lindsey, 2018, Anoplodactylus (Pycnogonida: Phoxichilidiidae) from Brazil, new records and two new species, Turkish Journal of Zoology 42 (4), pp. 372-388 : 380

Anoplodactylus petiolatus (KrØyer, 1844)

For older synonyms and references, see Müller (1993: 239).

Anoplodactylus petiolatus : Melzer et al., 1996: 167-171, figures 1 and 2; Ros-Santaella, 2004: 7, figure 6; Bamber and Costa, 2009: 168, figure 2g; Lehmann et al., 2014: 167, figures 47 and 48.

Material examined: Espírito Santo: ( UFPB.PYC–126) 1 ♂, Ilha do Boi , intertidal, 01 Nov. 2005, coll. K. Paresque.

Diagnosis: Trunk elongate with all segments fused. Lateral processes with rounded tubercles. Scapus of cheliphore slender. Movable finger with one seta on inner and outer margin. Tube of cement gland thin, directed obliquely backwards, beginning in the middle region of femur. Propodus curved. Heel with 2 to 4 spines. Sole almost straight, with 3 or 4 distally curved spines along proximal half, and a cutting lamella on distal half. Main claw slightly curved, thin. Auxiliary claws strongly reduced.

Distribution: Brazil (off Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, off Paraná, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo), Argentina, Uruguay, French Guiana, Surinam, Guyana, Bonaire, Venezuela, Curaçao, Caribbean coast of Colombia, Mexico, Bahamas, USA (Florida, Alabama, Texas, Georgia), Sargasso Sea, Cape Verde, Morocco, Mediterranean, Spain, Black Sea, Ireland, United Kingdom, Belgium, Holland, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Russia, Terra del Fuego (Beagle Channel), Chile ( Stock, 1986, 1992; Müller, 1993; Bamber and Costa, 2009; Lehmann et al., 2014; Turpaeva and Raiskiy, 2014).

Depth: Up to 4825 m deep.

Remarks: A. petiolatus and A. maritimus are very similar species ( Müller and Krapp, 2009). They may be distinguished, superficially at least, by the more tenuous and slender habitus of the first species, with larger appendages than the second species ( Child, 1992).

The examined specimen is a little more robust than the specimens illustrated by Stock (1974), Child (1992), and Müller and Krapp (2009). It is very similar to the specimen described by Marcus (1940). It has a cutting lamella on the propodus, the fingers of the chelae and the tubercles of the lateral processes are similar to those described by Stock (1974) and Müller and Krapp (2009). Furthermore, it complies with the description by Stock (1974) in the following characters: the auxiliary claws small, but easily discernible, the rectangular palm of the chela, and the third oviger more than 5 times as long as broad.

As noted by Stock (1992) for Brazilian specimens, our specimen has 8 spines in the sole of the propodus, 4 of which are more robust, being located medially on anterior half of sole, and there are median-sized tubercles on the lateral processes that are as broad as long. We were unable to observe vestigial tubercles on coxa 1, as described by Stock (1992).