Bathycuma Hansen 1895

Type species. Bathycuma elongatum Hansen 1895

Diagnosis. Female. Carapace shorter than abdomen, eye lobe without pigment or lenses. Maxilliped 3– pereopod 3 with fully developed exopods in female, maxilliped 3–pereopod 4 with fully developed exopods in male. Male. Antennal flagellum extending to mid pleon or past uropod peduncles; with 5 pairs of pleopods.

Remarks. This genus is quite different from the other two vaunthompsoniin genera present in New Zealand waters. Pomacuma is similar in overall carapace shape, with pseudorostral lobes meeting just in front of the eyelobe, but Pomacuma has a brush of long setae on the propodus and dactylus of pereopod 1, while Bathycuma has no such brush on pereopod 1. Apocuma has dorsally directed pseudorostral lobes that extend well in front of the eyelobe, while Bathycuma does not. The presence of a long antennal flagellum in the male expands the generic definition, as the previous definition included the antennal flagellum only reaching to the mid pleon (Haye 2007).

New Zealand species. Bathycuma dayae n. sp.