Munidopsis nitida ( A. Milne-Edwards, 1880 )

Kilgour, Morgan J. & Shirley, Thomas C., 2014, Reproductive biology of galatheoid and chirostyloid (Crustacea: Decapoda) squat lobsters from the Gulf of Mexico, Zootaxa 3754 (4), pp. 381-419 : 407

Munidopsis nitida ( A. Milne-Edwards, 1880)

Munidopsis nitida has also been reported as Orophorhynchus nitidus , Orophorhynchus spinosus and Munidopsis ciliata (see Baba et al. 2008). It has been reported from most of the world’s oceans in depths of 592 to 2620 m ( Tavares & Campinho 1998; Baba 2005; Baba et al. 2008). Specimens used in this analysis were from the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico in depths of 1097 to 3968 m. These specimens were collected in April, May, July, August, and November; ovigerous females were only collected in August ( Fig. 13 C). Thirty-two males were measured with CW of 2.0 to 17.4 mm. Non-ovigerous females had CW of 2.5 to 11.3 mm; 22 were measured. Males and females were not significantly different in size (t-test, df = 55, t = -0.251, p = 0.803). Three ovigerous females of M. nitida were present in the collections, and eggs were measured for one (CW = 11.1 mm, 16 eggs, 1.61 mm average egg diameter). The other two ovigerous females had CW between 17.1 mm and 2.5 mm.

Figures

FIGURE 13. Number of specimens of each species collected for each month. Gray bars are males, white bars are females, and black bars are ovigerous females.