Anoplodactylus aff. nanus Krapp, Kocak & Katagan, 2008

George, Zarish, Siddiqui, Ghazala, George, Nazish & Lucena, Rudá Amorim, 2020, A new species of Achelia (Pycnogonida: Ammotheidae) and first records of intertidal sea spiders found on Zoanthus (Cnidaria: Zoantharia) from Karachi Pakistan, Zootaxa 4821 (2), pp. 371-393 : 384-387

Anoplodactylus aff. nanus Krapp, Kocak & Katagan, 2008

( Figure 10 )

Material examined: ( CEMB, PYC– 027) 1♂, Buleji, 25.v.2014, on Zoanthus sansibaricus .

Description: Trunk 0.9 mm in length, robust, incomplete segmentation lines between the third and fourth article. Proboscis cylindrical, with two tiny protruding cylindrical extremities on the ventral side of the tip. Ocular tubercle low, rounded. Abdomen short, hardly reaching the middle of the first coxa of the fourth leg. Chelifore slender, longer than the proboscis, chela sharp and ventrally-bent with toothless fingers. Oviger with six articles, third article longest, sixth article shortest, cone-shaped, fifth article has two tiny spinules. Legs long and robust, coxa 2 longer than coxa 1 and coxa 3; femur and tibia 1 subequal, tibia 2 shorter than either, femur, tibiae 1 and 2 with sub-terminal seta, femur with six, tiny cement gland pores on the dorsal surface, tarsus short, with nine to ten ventral setae, propodal heel not prominent but with two robust spines of unequal length, sole straight with nine to ten robust spines, main claw one-third length of the propodus, auxiliaries claws very small.

Measurements (mm): Length of trunk (measured from the anterior margin of the cephalic segment to distal margin of the lateral process 4), 0.9; trunk width (across segment 2), 0.27; length of abdomen, 0.2; length of proboscis, 0.26; length of chelifore, 0.32; third leg – coxa 1, 0.2; coxa, 2, 0.3; coxa 3, 0.15; femur, 0.48; tibia 1, 0.5; tibia 2, 0.32; tarsus, 0.1; propodus, 0.37; main claw, 0.25.

Remarks: This specimen has a clear affinity with A. nanus , and is part of the A. angulatus -group ( Krapp et al. 2008). This group is characterized by the angular proboscis in a ventral view, short auxiliary claws, compact trunk, short ocular tubercle, and cement gland opening as pores in the dorsal region of the trunk. The body structure, the number of pores of the cement gland bring the present specimen closer to A. nanus which is also part of this group. However, the absence of three short teeth in the movable finger of the chela (which could be a population variation), the presence of only one heel spine (three in A. nanus ), the size differences of the specimen (0.9 mm, compared 0.4 mm in the original description of A. nanus ), does not allow us to assign this species with confidence. Additional material is required to confirm or reject the identification.

Distribution: Eastern and Western Mediterranean Sea ( Krapp et al. 2008; Soler-Membrives & Munilla 2015).

Figures

FIGURE 10. Anoplodactylus aff. nanus Krapp, Kocak & Katagan, 2008, male: (A) dorsal view; (B) lateral view; (C) oviger; (D) 3rd leg; (E) claw of propodus. Scale bar: (A, B and D) 0.5 mm; (C) 0.2 mm; (E) 0.1 mm.