Alpheus platyunguiculatus ( Banner, 1953 )

Anker, Arthur, Pratama, Idham Sumarto, Firdaus, Muhammad & Rahayu, Dwi Listyo, 2015, On some interesting marine decapod crustaceans (Alpheidae, Laomediidae, Strahlaxiidae) from Lombok, Indonesia, Zootaxa 3911 (3), pp. 301-342 : 306

Alpheus platyunguiculatus ( Banner, 1953)

( Fig. 5 )

Crangon platyunguiculata Banner 1953: 130 , fig. 47.

Alpheus platyunguiculatus .— Banner 1959: 146, fig. 10a; Banner & Banner 1967: 281; Poupin 1998: 22.

Material examined. Indonesia. 1 male, 1 ov. female ( MZB Cru 4037), western Lombok, Sira, seagrass flat with some muddy areas, burrow, suction pump and digging/sieving, 0.2–0.5 m, leg. D.L. Rahayu et al., 13 May 2014 [LB-St4-40]; 1 ov. female ( OUMNH.ZC. 2014-10-02), same collection data [LB-St4-20].

Taxonomic account. See Banner (1953).

Habitat. Shallow sand flats, underneath coral heads and in burrows, which may penetrate into consolidated coral ( Banner 1953), also in partially living corals and seagrass flats with rubble-gravel component, sometimes associated with small gobiid fishes ( Banner & Banner 1983; present study). Depth range: lower intertidal and shallow subtidal (around 0–5 m).

Distribution. Indo-West Pacific: Hawaii, French Polynesia, Indonesia (first record) ( Banner & Banner 1967; present study).

Remarks. The present material agrees reasonably well with the original description of A. platyunguiculatus by Banner (1953), however, with some notable exceptions. For instance, in the Lombok specimens, the first carpal article of the second pereiopod is slightly longer; the second article of the antennular peduncle is somewhat shorter; and the minor chela is more slender and with fingers slightly longer than those illustrated by Banner (1953). The colour pattern of the Lombok specimens ( Fig. 5 ) matches well with the colour pattern of specimens from Moorea, French Polynesia (A. Anker, material deposited in FLMNH). A genetic comparison between the Indonesian, French Polynesian and Hawaiian materials is desirable.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Alpheus platyunguiculatus (Banner, 1953): A—male (cl 5.2 mm) from Sira, Lombok, Indonesia (MZB Cru 4037), dorsal view (minor cheliped and several pereiopods missing); B, C—ovigerous female (cl 5.5 mm) from the same locality (OUMNH. ZC. 2014 - 10 - 02), B—dorsal view; C—lateral view.