Vibilia viatrix Bovallius, 1887

Zeidler, Wolfgang, 2003, A review of the hyperiidean amphipod superfamily Vibilioidea Bowman and Gruner, 1973 (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hyperiidea), Zootaxa 280 (1), pp. 1-104 : 28-32

Vibilia viatrix Bovallius ( Figs 10 & 11 )

Vibilia viatrix Bovallius, 1887a: 9 . — Bovallius 1887c: 63–64, pl. 9, figs 1–13. Vosseler 1901: 124. Walker 1909: 50 (list), 53. Behning & Woltereck 1912: 5. Behning 1913a: 529, 533. Behning 1913b: 217. Stewart 1913: 247. Stephensen 1918: 41­43, fig. 13. Spandl 1924a: 22. Behning 1925: 482, fig. 12. Chevreux & Fage 1925: 385­386, fig. 390. Shoemaker 1925: 41. Behning 1927: 117–118. Chevreux 1927: 138. Pirlot 1929: 95. Barnard 1930: 403. Pirlot 1930: 10–11. Barnard 1931: 126. Barnard 1932: 262­263. Chevreux 1935: 175–176. Shoemaker 1945: 234, fig. 34. Reid 1955: 13–14. Hurley 1956: 11. Irie 1959: table 4. Hurley 1960b: 279. Evans 1961: 204, Siegfried 1963: 8. Pillai 1966: 207, fig. 2. Brusca 1967a: 389, 390 (Table). Brusca 1967b: 453–454. Hurley 1969: 33, pl. 18 (maps). Dick 1970: 34 (key), 53, fig. 4 (part). Yoo 1971: 49 (key), 49­50. Yoo 1972: 167­169, fig. 2. Brusca 1973: 9 (Table), 13. Semenova 1973: 173. Semenova 1976: 139. Thurston 1976: 405. Madin & Harbison 1977: 453 (Table). Shulenberger 1977: 378 (Table). Tranter 1977: 647, 648 (Table). Brusca 1981. 18 (key), 39, fig. 4n. Watson & Chaloupka 1982: 29, fig. 6–4, 54 (key). Vinogradov et al. 1982: 203–206, fig. 102. Young & Anderson 1987: 716 (Table). Barkhatov & Vinogradov 1998: 167, 168 (Table), 173, 177. Vinogradov 1990a: 55, 93 (Table). De Broyer & Jazdzewski 1993: 112. Vinogradov 1993: 43 (Table). Shih & Chen 1995: 40–42, fig. 19. Zeidler 1998: 41. Barkhatov et al. 1999: 808 (Table). Vinogradov 1999: 1180–1181, fig. 4.90. Gasca & Shih 2001: 496 (Table).

Vibilia viator Stebbing, 1888: 1286–1287 , pl. 148B, fig. E — Stebbing 1910: 654.

Vibilia hirondellei Chevreux, 1900: 126–129 , pl. 15, fig. 4.

Vibilia dentata Chevreux, 1900: 129–131 , pl. 16, fig. 1. — Behning 1913b: 218.

Vibilia californica Holmes, 1908: 490–492 , figs 1–2. — Shoemaker 1925: 41 (part).

Vibilia stebbingi [misidentification — in part]. — Zeidler 1998: 37 (SAMA C4434–38).

Type material

Type material of V. viatrix could not be located at the SMNH, ZMUC or in Uppsala and is considered lost. However in the SMNH are several lots, which may represent type material, in particular one lot (No. 123), labelled “23º­27ºN, 36º W Det. C. Bov.” The description and figures of Bovallius (1887c) readily distinguish this species. No precise type locality is given by Bovallius (1887a, c). He merely lists the distribution as “Atlantic” (1887a) and “the North and South Atlantic, the Pacific, the Indian Ocean” (1887c).

Type material of synonyms

The unique type of V. viator is in the BMNH (89.5.15.180). It is readily identified as a synonym of V. viatrix . Stebbing (1888) acknowledges that his species is in close agreement with V. viatrix , but for the fusion of urosomites 2 & 3. Bovallius believed, incorrectly, that the urosomites were separate.

Two syntypes of V. hirondellei are in the MNHN ( AM 1882), but the remainder (100+ specimens) could not be found in the MNHN or MOM and are considered lost. The description and figures of Chevreux (1900) are consistent with that of V. viatrix . Also five specimens from the Norman Collection (11,726­4), in the BMNH, labelled “Types, Azores”, are clearly V. viatrix .

One Syntype (the type?) of V. dentata is in the MNHN ( AM 1857), the other 12 syntypes are in the MOM. The description and figures of Chevreux (1900) are consistent with that of V. viatrix . The scalloped distal margin of the inner lobe of the maxilliped, illustrated by Chevreux, is probably an artefact of collection, or preservation, as similar ‘damage’ has been observed in specimens of other species.

The two syntypes (one labelled “type”) of V. californica are in the USNM (Cat. No. 38533). Both of these specimens are clearly V. viatrix . Holmes (1908) illustrated the first antennae with an even convex margin, but in the larger specimen, the one illustrated by Holmes, the antennae are actually truncate ventrally, as is characteristic of V. viatrix .

Material examined (> 200 specimens)

Types. The unique type of V. viator from Cape York, Challenger, September, 1874: 2 microscope slides of head, G1 & 2, P3–7 and urosome; remainder in spirit. Two syntypes of V. californica from the North Pacific off point Loa, USA (Albatross Stn. 4305), 67–116 fathoms: in spirit.

Other material examined. Coral Sea: 2 lots ( BMNH), 3 specimens. Tasman Sea: 9 lots ( SAMA), 28 specimens. Great Australian Bight: 3 lots ( SAMA), 19 specimens. North Atlantic : 4 lots ( BMNH) , 19 lots ( CMN), 18 lots ( USNM), 9 lots ( ZMB), 4 lots ( ZMH), 15 lots ( ZMUC), numerous specimens. South Atlantic : 6 lots ( BMNH) , 3 lots ( ZMUC), 16 specimens. North Pacific : 8 lots ( LACM) , 7 lots ( USNM), 3 lots ( ZMUC), 61 specimens. South Pacific : 8 lots ( BMNH) , 1 lot ( ZMUC), numerous specimens. North Indian: 1 lot ( ZMUC), 1 specimen. South Indian : 20 lots ( SAM) , 1 lot ( SAMA), 33 specimens. Mediterranean: 8 lots ( ZMUC), 9 specimens. Central Indo­Pacific : 5 lots ( USNM), 7 specimens .

Diagnosis

Body length up to 12 mm. Antennae 1 as long as head and first pereonite; flagellum more or less oval, distal margin rounded, slightly truncate ventrally. Gnathopod 2; carpal process about as long as propodus. Pereopods 3 & 4; dactylus almost as long as propodus. Pereopods 5 & 6; dactylus length about 0.4x propodus. Pereopod 7; basis rectangular, width about 0.7x length, about as long as ischium to carpus combined, with rounded posterodistal lobe overlapping ischium. Lateral corners of last urosomite not produced. Uropod 3; peduncle distinctly longer than rami; sexual dimorphism of endopod not evident. Telson triangular with rounded point, length about half (or slightly more) peduncle of U3.

Remarks

Distinctive features of this species are the long carpal process of gnathopod 2, the relatively long dactylus of pereopods 3–6, and the relatively thick articles of pereopods 3 and 4.

It most closely resembles V. antarctica , but the anterodistal corner of the basis of pereopod 7 is not extended anteriorly, and there is no sexual dimorphism of uropod 3. Other minor characters which help to distinguish this species are as follows: the posterodistal corner of the propodus of gnathopod 1 is slightly produced instead of tapering gradually towards the dactylus, a feature not found in any other congener except perhaps V. caeca ; pereopod 6 has a row of robust setae on the anterior margin of the carpus and the distal half of the merus, whereas related species such as V. antarctica and V. propinqua tend to have them restricted to the carpus; the anterodistal corner of the carpus of pereopod 7 is sharp and slightly projected anteriorly, whereas in allied species such as V. antarctica and V. stebbingi this anterodistal corner is rounded and not projected.

This species has been recorded as an associate of the salps Pegea socia , P. confoederata , Salpa maxima , S. cylindrica ( Madin & Harbison 1977) and P. confoederata var. bicaudata ( Laval 1980) .

Distribution

This is a relatively common species, widely distributed in tropical and temperate regions of the world’s oceans.

Figures

FIGURE 10. Vibilia viatrix, Great Australian Bight, SAMA C5903 (f), C5904 (m). A, female 9.7mm, lateral view of head; B, male, 9.0 mm, lateral view; appendages from male. Scale bars = 1.0 mm (A, B), 0.5 mm (Us), 0.2 mm (remainder).

FIGURE 11. Vibilia viatrix, Great Australian Bight, SAMA C5904. Male, 9.0 mm. A, medial view of P7 dactylus. Scale bar = 0.5 mm.