Halophiloscia cristagalli, Taiti & Argano, 2009

Taiti, Stefano & Argano, Roberto, 2009, New species of terrestrial isopods (Isopoda: Oniscidea) from Sardinia *, Zootaxa 2318, pp. 38-55 : 45-48

Halophiloscia cristagalli sp. nov.

( Figs 6–7)

Halophiloscia n. sp.; Argano and Manicastri 1996: 286, 287, 289.

Type material. Holotype ♂: OT, La Maddalena I., Cala Bassa Trinità, 14.X.1989, leg. C. Manicastri ( MZUF 9284 ).

Paratypes: 8 ♂, 15 ♀♀, OT, La Maddalena I., Cala Bassa Trinità , 14.X.1989, leg. C. Manicastri ( MZUF 9284 ) ; 1 ♂, OT, La Maddalena I., Spiaggia dello Strangolato, 24.IX.1985, leg.? ( MZUF 9285 ) ; 3 ♂, 5 ♀♀, SS, Asinara I., Cala Sgombro , 13.X.1989, leg. C. Manicastri ( MZUF 9286 ) ; 5 ♂, 12 ♀♀, SS, Asinara I., Cala Reale , 13.X.1989, leg. R . Argano ( MZUF 9287 ) ; 3 ♂, 2 ♀♀, same locality, 16. VI .1989, leg. C. Manicastri ( MZUF 9288 ) .

Previous records. La Maddalena I., Spargi I., Mortorio I. (OT); Asinara I. (SS); Maldiventre I. (OR) ( Argano & Manicastri 1996).

Diagnosis. A species of Halophiloscia readily distinguishable by the characteristic shape of the male pleopod 1 endopod with the apical part bearing a long pointed process bent upwards and three lobes increasing in size from proximal to distal, resembling a cockscomb.

Description. Maximum length: ♂, 5.0 mm; ♀, 7.5 mm. Body outline as in Fig. 6A. Colour brown, mottled with the usual pale muscle spots. Back smooth with numerous pointed scale-setae ( Fig. 6B); no visible gland pores along the lateral margin of pereonites; 5 or 6 lines of noduli laterales per side on the pereonites ( Fig. 6D). Cephalon with no frontal line and suprantennal line bent downwards in the middle ( Fig. 6C); eyes with 15 ommatidia. Pleon much narrower than pereon; pleonites with very small posterior points visible in dorsal view ( Fig. 6E). Distal part of telson with sinuous sides and broadly rounded apex ( Fig. 6E). Antennula ( Fig. 6F) with articles subequal in length; third article with two apical aesthetascs, one row of several aesthetascs in the middle and two aesthetascs in a more proximal position. Antenna ( Fig. 6G) reaching back rear margin of pereonite 5; flagellum as long as fifth article of peduncle; first flagellar article slightly longer than second and third; three aesthetascs on second flagellar article and two on third. Buccal pieces typical of the genus, i.e. mandible with molar penicil consisting of many setae and 2+1 free penicils on the left and 1+1 on the right mandible, outer branch of maxillule with 6 (5 cleft)+5 teeth and a slender stalk among the outer group of teeth, inner branch of maxillule with two long narrow penicils, maxilliped endite setose with a large penicil near the inner corner. Pereopods with a very long ungual seta apically enlarged and a small dactylar seta ( Fig. 6H). Uropod with exopod more than three times as long as endopod; protopod and exopod grooved on outer margin; insertion of endopod distinctly proximal to that of exopod ( Fig. 6E).

Male: Pereopod 1 ( Fig. 6H) and, to a lesser extent, 2 with carpus and merus distinctly flattened, enlarged and covered with numerous short scales. Pereopod 7 ( Fig. 7A) with no distinct sexual modifications, ischium with straight sternal margin. Genital papilla ( Fig. 7B) with an ovoid ventral shield and genital orifices opening up at the end of two long tubular lobes. Pleopod 1 ( Fig. 7B) exopod with a triangular posterior point and deeply sinuous outer margin with some seven short setae; endopod with apical part equipped with long pointed process bent upwards, three lobes on medial margin increasing in size from proximal to distal, and a row of short setae. Pleopod 2 ( Fig. 7C) exopod with a distal part bent outwards; endopod distinctly longer than exopod with apical part narrow and without any lobes. Pleopod 3–5 exopods as in Fig. 7D–F.

Etymology. From the Latin crista = crest + gallus = cock. The name refers to three apical lobes on the male pleopod 1 endopod, which resemble a cockscomb.

Remarks. At present the genus Halophiloscia includes seven halophilic species distributed along the Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts of Europe and Africa and one species from some lava tubes on La Palma Island in the Canary Archipelago ( Schmalfuss 2003; Taiti & López 2008). The new species is readily distinguished from all the known species by the characteristic three lobes, resembling a cockscomb, on the tip of the male pleopod 1 endopod.

This species was already recorded but not described by Argano and Manicastri (1996). The material from Spargi I., Mortorio I. and Maldiventre I. cited by these authors could not be re-examined and included in the type specimens because it is no longer available due to a fire. Halophiloscia cristagalli occurs on the coasts of the granitic small islands of the northern and western part of Sardinia, while no records are presently known from the coasts of Sardinia mainland .