Arthrura Kudinova-Pasternak, 1966

Jóźwiak, Piotr & Błażewicz-Paszkowycz, Magdalena, 2011, New records of the family Agathotanaidae (Crustacea: Tanaidacea) in the Antarctic, with remarks on Arthrura monacantha (Vanhöffen, 1914), Zootaxa 2785, pp. 32-52 : 47

Genus: Arthrura Kudinova-Pasternak, 1966

Restricted synonymy and bibliography:

Arthrura Kudinova-Pasternak, 1966: 257 , 259, 260; Kudinova-Pasternak,1973: 162 –164; Sieg, 1973: 34, 46, 128; Sieg & Zibrowius, 1988: 193; Larsen & Wilson, 2002: 11, 14; Larsen & Heard, 2004: 549, 551.

Paranarthrura Vanhöffen (part.), 1914: 479, Fig.16; Kussakin, 1966: 327.

Libanius Lang, 1971: 361 , 365, 389; Sieg, 1976: 179, 184, 194; Sieg, 1986: 21, 33; Sieg & Zibrovius, 1988: 193; Larsen & Wilson, 2002: 12; Bird, 2007: 69.

Diagnosis (after Kudinova-Pasternak, 1966, modified). Body about 8 times as long as wide, slightly tapering distally. Carapace rounded; eyelobes absent. Lateral edges of pereonites not parallel. Pleonites in females little narrower than pereonites; in males as wide as pereonites. Antennule with four articles. Antenna with six articles. Labrum hirsute distally. Mandible molar well developed and wide distally. Labium lobes wide, gently rounded with sparsely hirsute distolaterally. Maxillule with seven spiniform setae distally (two robust setae serrated). Maxilliped endites with two large tubercles and two setae distally. Epignath with robust distal seta. Cheliped attached to coxa by sclerite. Females without pleopods; pleopod in males with simple setae. Uropod endopod bi-articled, subequal basal article; basal projection well developed.

Type species: Arthrura andriashevi designated by Kudinova-Pasternak, 1966

Species included: A. andriashevi Kudinova-Pasternak, 1966 ; A. monacantha ( Vanhöffen, 1914) ; A. pulcher ( Lang, 1971) .

Remarks: Lang (1971) erected the genus Libanius within the family Paratanaidae and designated Libanius pulcher Lang, 1971 as the type species. The genus was synonymized with Arthrura Kudinova-Pasternak, 1966 by Sieg and Zibrowius (1988: page 193) when comparing their new genus Bifida Sieg and Zibrowius,1988 with Arthrura : “ Libanius Lang, 1971 , is a junior synonym because re-examination of Arthrura andriashevi Kudinova- Pasternak, 1965 (sic!) also revealed two spines on mx.1”. Although this character is not enough to diagnose the genus Arthrura and is not a unique feature for tanaidomorphs ( Larsen & Heard 2002; Błażewicz-Paszkowycz & Larsen 2005) undoubtedly the decision was correct. At the moment the genus contains three species, as Arthrura longicephala Kudinova-Pasternak, 1978 and A. shiinoi Kudinova-Pasternak, 1973 with visibly biramous uropods certainly represent a different genus. Without examination of the type material it is risky to decide which taxon those two species may represent, but the original description of the latter species leans us towards the decision that it is related to the genus Paranarthrurella Lang, 1971 .