Dardanus dearmatus (Henderson, 1888)

Pagurus dearmatus Henderson, 1888: 58, Fig. 5, pl. 6 (Admiralty Islands, type locality); Yap-Chiongco, 1938: 196–197.

Pagurus dermatus – Estampador, 1937: 502; Estampador, 1959: 50 (misspelling of Pagurus dearmatus).

Dardanus dearmatus – Rahayu, 2000: 386; Asakura & Hirayama, 2002: 223–229, Figs. 7 –10.

Material examined. 1 male SL 5.2 mm (ZRC), stn PN1, Balicasag I., 9°31.2′N, 123°41.3′E, 50–500 m, v.2004 to vii.2004.

Habitat. Subtidal to approximately 500 m.

Remarks. This is typically a shallow subtidal species (to about 15 m, i.e., Rahayu, 2000) but there are reports of D. dearmatus from 29–46 m in the Admiralty Islands (Henderson, 1888) or much deeper waters, e.g., 605–915 m in Saya de Malha Bank (Laurie, 1926). The single specimen from Balicasag Island is also from relatively deep water (50–500 m), and was collected via tangle net.

Cassidy (2005), without further explanation, stated his opinion that Estampador’s (1937) report of D. dearmatus actually refers to D. gemmatus . Estampador’s (1937) specimens could not be located for verification (Asakura & Hirayama, 2002: 229). Regardless of the identity of Estampador’s material, this report confirms the presence of D. dearmatus in Philippine waters.