Micheleidae Sakai, 1992

Poore And D, Gary C. B., 2015, Micheleidae (Crustacea: Decapoda: Axiidea): new family, generic and species synonymies, three new Australian species, and new records, Memoirs of Museum Victoria 73, pp. 95-105 : 96

Micheleidae Sakai, 1992

Micheleinae Sakai, 1992: 18.

Meticonaxiinae Sakai, 1992: 19.

Micheleidae .— Poore, 1994: 99.— Poore, 1997: 354–357.— Poore, 2004: 176.—Poore, 2008: 174.— Sakai, 2011: 311.— Dworschak et al., 2012: 190.—Sakai, 2014: 611 (key).

Meticonaxiidae .— Sakai, 2011: 297–301.— Sakai and Türkay, 2014: 161.—Sakai, 2014: 611 (key) Syn. nov.

Diagnosis. Cephalothorax, rostrum, pleon, telson and uropod unarmed. Rostrum obsolete or a flat triangular plate with sublateral carinae extending almost to cervical groove. Linea thalassinica absent. Posterior margin of carapace curved medially, with lateral lobes interacting with pleomere 1. Thoracic sternite 7 broad, flattened posteriorly, narrow anteriorly. Setal-rows present usually on anterolateral carapace, on lateral face of propodi of pereopods 2–4, and on pleomeres 1 and 6 and sometimes others. Eyestalks cylindrical, tapering; sometimes without pigmented eyes. Antenna with articulating scaphocerite. Maxilla scaphognathite with 1 or 2 long setae on posterior lobe extending into branchial chamber. Maxilliped 3 pediform. Pereopod 1 (cheliped) merus lower margin straight, sometimes with spine. Pereopod 2 chelate. Pereopod 3 propodus ovate or subrectangular; pereopods 3 and 4 propodi with or without distal spiniform seta on lower margin (facial spiniform setae in Michelea ). Male pleopod 1 with triangular second article, appendix interna represented by hooks. Pleopods 2–5 similar, with elongate rami, each with elongate appendix interna, with or without marginal plates. Uropod endopod ovate; exopod without dorsal plate.

Remarks. The family contains four genera of which Marcusiaxius Rodrigues and de Carvalho, 1972 has not been reported from Australia. The genus and its type species M. lemoscastroi were validly published by Rodrigues and Carvalho (1972) and redescribed by Carvalho and Rodrigues (1973) both in another journal later. Sakai (2011) erroneously maintained without explanation that the latter were first authors. The other genera are discussed below.