Eupasiphae serrata (Rathbun, 1902)

Wicksten, Mary K., 2012, Decapod Crustacea of the Californian and Oregonian Zoogeographic Provinces 3371, Zootaxa 3371, pp. 1-307 : 35

Eupasiphae serrata (Rathbun, 1902)

( Fig. 8 C)

Parapasiphae serrata Rathbun, 1902a: 904 ; 1904: 25, fig. 7. — Schmitt 1921: 31, fig. 18.

Eupasiphae serrata . — Crosnier 1988: 788, fig. 2b. — Hendrickx & Estrada-Navarrete 1989: 112. — Wicksten 2002: 133.

Diagnosis. Rostrum short, not exceeding eyestalk. Dorsal margin of carapace carinate to posterior 0.2 of its length, 16 small spinules, posterior dorsal groove, lateral carina running posteriorly from branchiostegal region, nearly joining another carina running horizontally along branchial region. Stylocerite much longer than eye. Scaphocerite with lateral tooth longer than blade. Third maxillipeds stout, shorter than first pereopod. Pereopods 1, 2 stout, chelate, with spinules on propodus and merus. Pereopod 3 thread-like, pereopods 4, 5 short, with flat dactyls. Abdominal somites 1–3 not carinate, somite 4 with carina, notch above strong posterodorsal tooth. Somite 5 not carinate, somite 6 not carinate but with longitudinal groove. Telson shorter than uropods, apex truncate. Total length 65 mm.

Color in life. Not reported.

Habitat and depth. Pelagic, 970–1800 m.

Range. Off Cortez Bank, California; southeast Atlantic. Type locality off Cortez Bank , California .

Remarks. Burukovsky (1987) and Guzmán & Wicksten (1998) noted that juveniles of a related species, E. gilessi , show strong morphological changes as they age. The shape of the carapace, number of rostral teeth, shape of the rostrum and size of the mandibular palp change as the shrimp grows. Very small individuals may not have a mandibular palp, which will cause them to be identified as species of Pasiphaea in the key to the genera of the Pasiphaeidae by Holthuis (1993). One should use caution in identifying juveniles of E. serrata or other pasiphaeids.