Lewindromia unidentata ( Rüppell, 1830 ), Balicasag

Mclay, Colin L. & Ng, Peter K. L., 2005, On a collection of Dromiidae and Dynomenidae from the Philippines, with description of a new species of Hirsutodynomene McLay, 1999 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura), Zootaxa 1029 (1), pp. 1-30 : 11-12

Lewindromia unidentata ( Rüppell, 1830)

Dromia unidentata Rüppell, 1830: 16 , pl. 4 fig. 2, 2a, pl. 5 fig. 9.

Dromidia unidentata .— Kossmann 1880: 67.— Ihle 1913: 31.— Ortmann 1894: 34.— Nobili 1903: 23.— Rathbun 1910b: 367.— Ihle 1913: 31.— Sakai 1976: 11, figs. 2a, b., pl. 2: fig. 2.

Dromidia unidentata hawaiiensis Edmondson 1922: 6 , pl. II D, fig. 1a–j.

Cryptodromia unilobata Campbell & Stephenson, 1970: 240 , fig. 2A–I.

Cryptodromiopsis unidentata .— McLay 1993: 192, figs. 7a–k, 18a.— McLay 1998: 347.— McLay 2001a: 843, fig. 8.

Material. 1 female, 18.3 x 18.5 mm, 200–300 m, Dec 2000, ZRC 2001.392 ; 1 male, 12.8 x 13.2 mm, 3 females, 9.5 x 9.7 mm, 14.2 x 13.1 mm, 16.5 x 16.7 mm, 200–300 m, 28 Nov 2001, ZRC 2001.968 ; 1 male, 9.4 x 9.4 mm, 1 female, 11.8 x 11.9 mm, 200–300 m, 28 Nov 2001, ZRC 2001.518 ; 4 males, 12.6 x 12.4 mm, 13.9 x 14.2 mm, 9.8 x 9.0 mm, 8.0 x 7.4 mm, 1 female, 15.3 x 17.5 mm, 200–300 m, Jun 2002, ZRC 2002.631 ; 4 males, 8.2 x 7.3 mm – 17.0 x 16.9 mm, 2 females, 12.9 x 12.6 mm, 16.1 x 16.6 mm, Balicasag 200–300 m, 25–30 Jul 2003, ZRC 2003.673 ; 3 males, 8.2 x 7.9 mm, 9.6 x 9.4 mm, 15.2 x 14.3 mm, 200–300 m, Nov 2003, ZRC /NMCR; 3 males, 11.6 x 12.1 mm, 14.1 x 14.0 mm, 19.2 x 19.3 mm, 1 ovigerous female, 15.5 x 15.6 mm, 200–300 m, 2 Mar 2004, ZRC ; 1 female, 10.4 x 10.5 mm, carrying a large piece of a soft coral on its back, 200–300 m, 29 May 2004, ZRC . All locations in Balicasag Island , Panglao, Bohol, Visayas, Philippines; purchased from local shell fishermen, obtained by tangle nets .

Remarks. McLay (1993) included six species in the genus Cryptodromiopsis Borradaile, 1903 : C. tridens Borradaile, 1903 (type species), C. antillensis ( Stimpson, 1858) , C. bullifera ( Alcock, 1900) , C. sarraburei ( Rathbun, 1910a) , C. plumosa ( Lewinsohn, 1984) and C. unidentata ( Rüppell, 1830) . Guinot & Tavares (2003) transferred C. unidentata from Cryptodromiopsis to Lewindromia Guinot & Tavares, 2003 on the basis of the following characters: male thoracic sternites 1–3 concealed (exposed in Cryptodromiopsis ), coxae of third maxillipeds placed close together (separated in Cryptodromiopsis ), male thoracic sternite 4 ending in an acute tip (not pointed in Cryptodromiopsis ), male telson much longer than wide (wider than long in Cryptodromiopsis ), and apertures of spermathecae at level of second pereopods in mature females (at the level of the chelipeds in Cryptodromiopsis ).

Lauridromia unidentata carries a wide range of organisms as camouflage with sponges and ascidians being most common as well as soft corals (see above). Females carry relatively small numbers (mean = 331) of large (0.9 mm diameter) eggs ( McLay 1993). This species is relatively easy to identify because it has only one small anterolateral tooth and a fringe of setae running across the frontal margin making it look like a furry ball.

The two females (12.9 x 12.6 mm, 16.1 x 16.6 mm) reported above both had their spermathecal apertures plugged by a hardened brown substance, indicating that they had recently mated.

Distribution. McLay (1993) reported a specimen of L. unidentata from the Visayas, Philippines, north of Panglao. The previously the known depth range for C. unidentata was 0–100 m, but many of the present specimens were collected from deeper water, although the exact depths are unknown. Thus the depth range of this species may well extend to greater depths. Lauridromia unidentata is a very widespread dromiid crab known from the Indian Ocean, Singapore, Japan, Philippines, Queensland, New Caledonia, Kermadec Islands, Tonga, Hawaii and as far east as Easter Island.