Litogynodiastylis Gerken, 2001

Gerken, Sarah, 2015, New Zealand Diastylidae and Gynodiastylidae (Crustacea: Cumacea), Zootaxa 4031 (1), pp. 1-77 : 75-76

Litogynodiastylis Gerken, 2001

Type species. Gynodiastylis laevis Calman, 1911

Diagnosis. Females and subadult males. Pereopod 1 simple, short. Females with fully developed exopods on pereopods 1–2, no exopods on pereopods 3–4.

Adult male. Antenna peduncle of 3–4 articles, flagellum of 10–12 articles. Fully developed exopods present on maxilliped 3–pereopod 2, 3 or 4. Uropod endopod may have one article less than in conspecific female.

Remarks. There is only one species of Litogynodiastylis known from New Zealand, L. laevis . All other gynodiastylids currently known from New Zealand waters are Axiogynodiastylis or Gynodiastylis , which both have a brush of long setae on the propodus of pereopod 1. Thus, L. laevis should be readily identifiable by the simple pereopod 1. The only genus that might be confused with Litogynodiastylis is Colurostylis , in that the first pereopod is simple. However, in Colurostylis the females have an exopod on maxilliped 3 and the males have 2 pairs of pleopods, while in Litogynodiastylis the females have no exopod on maxilliped 3 and the males have no pleopods.