Homolochunia valdiviae Doflein, 1904

Muñoz, Isabel, García-Isarch, Eva & Cuesta, Jose A., 2021, Annotated and updated checklist of marine crabs (Decapoda: Brachyura) of Mozambique supported by morphological and molecular data from shelf and slope species of the “ MOZAMBIQUE ” surveys, Zootaxa 5056 (1), pp. 1-67 : 12-13

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5056.1.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:D20A249C-1CA4-45F8-8677-D2011A8380A4
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5590690
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03D487F8-212F-FFED-FF71-DA92B921FD40
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Homolochunia valdiviae Doflein, 1904
status

Treatment

Homolochunia valdiviae Doflein, 1904 View in CoL

( Figure 2C View FIGURE2 )

Material examined. M07, Stn. 18, 530m, ♀ ov 33.6× 38.5mm (IEO-CD-MZ07/1914); M07, Stn. 38, 620m, ♀ 38× 41.8mm; ♂ 65.4× 80.7mm (IEO-CD-MZ07/1922); M08, Stn. 9, 541m, ♂ 32.2× 37.7mm (IEO-CD-MZ09/1822); M08, Stn. 81, 606m, ♀ 21.6× 27.2mm (IEO-CD-MZ08/1825); M09, Stn. 9, 540m, ♂ 31.8× 38mm (IEO-CD-MZ08/1796), 16S ( MZ 424908 View Materials ) , COI ( MZ 434757 View Materials ) , M09, Stn. 54, 619m, ♀ ov 32× 36.7mm (IEO-CD-MZ09/1805- 1), 16S ( MZ 424909 View Materials ) , COI ( MZ 434758 View Materials ) ; ♀ ov 31.2× 35.7mm (IEO-CD-MZ09/1805-2), 16S ( MZ 424910 View Materials ) , COI ( MZ 434759 View Materials ) ; M09, Stn. 63, 617m, ♂ 25.7× 30.2mm (IEO-CD-MZ09/1804-1), 16S ( MZ 424911 View Materials ) , COI ( MZ 434760 View Materials ) ; ♂ 31.5× 37.9mm (IEO-CD-MZ09/1804-2), 16S ( MZ 424912 View Materials ) , COI ( MZ 434761 View Materials ) .

Habitat and distribution. The genus Homolochunia comprises four species which are found exclusively in the IWP, with H. valdiviae being the species with the widest distribution range. It is a benthic and tropical species (Palomares & Pauly 2020), inhabiting waters between 600 and 650m depth according to Kensley (1981), and between 395 and 1000m according to Poupin (2018). General distribution: IWP: Japan and Indonesia ( Miyake 1983), India (Padate et al. 2020), Mozambique, Madagascar, New Caledonia, and Mayotte Island ( Poupin 2010, 2018), off Natal ( Kensley 1981) and Tanzania ( Guinot 1967a).

Results and remarks. Our specimens agree well with the description and figures given by Guinot & Richer de Forges (1995). Ten specimens have been recorded, collected between March and April of M07, M08 and M09, at depths between 530 and 620m. These specimens did not carry anything in the P5, but they do have the entire carapace covered by soft fouling. In addition, some specimens had small sponges on the dorsal side of the P2-P4 merus.

Colouration observed. Variable. The specimens from 2007 were pinkish, not very striking, with the cephalothorax darker, possibly as a consequence of the fouling attached to their dense tomentum, while specimens from 2009 were of a quite homogeneous bright orange colour. The pseudorostral spines and the P1 and P5 legs ended in a whitish colour.

DNA barcodes. Sequences of 16S (the same haplotype) were obtained for five specimens (IEO-CD-MZ08/1796, 1804(2) and 1805(2)), being the firsts made available for this species. Five sequences of COI (628 to 636 bp) were obtained for the same five specimens and represent five haplotypes differentiated in one to three positions. The sequence of the male IEO-CD-MZ08/1796 fit 100% with a COI sequence of H. valdiviae (Bold MDECA043-10) collected in the MB-exp and deposited at the MNHN ( MNHN _ IU200810122 View Materials ).