Parakonarus juliae (Morales-Núñez, Heard & Alfaro, 2013)

Abarca-Ávila, Mónica Mariel, Herrera-Dorantes, María Teresa, Winfield, Ignacio & Ardisson, Pedro-Luis, 2019, Updated checklist and identification key of benthic tanaidaceans (Crustacea Peracarida) of the sublittoral zone of the northern Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, Zootaxa 4711 (1), pp. 51-76 : 62

♦ Parakonarus juliae ( Morales-Núñez, Heard & Alfaro 2013)

( Fig. 4 A–B)

Examined material. TA: 118 individuals. CNCR 34808 . Tr-Loc: M44- El Palmar, Yucatan, Mexico 21°7’31.09’’N 90°9’6.3’’W, one ♀, 7 May 2005, 26 November 2005, 11 March 2006, coll. AV, SP ; Tr-Loc: M49-Telchac, Yucatan, Mexico 21°20’41.1’’N 89°15’53.236’’W, one ♂, one man., 8 May 2005, 27 November 2005, 12 March 2006, coll. AV, SP ; Tr-Loc: M50-Chabihau, Yucatan, Mexico 21°22’4.329’’N 89°4’13.659’’W, 15 ♀, one ♀ m, one ♂, six juv, ten man., 20 May 2005, 27 November 2005, 12 March 2006, coll. AV, SP ; Tr-Loc: M51-Santa Clara, Yucatan, Mexico 21°23’41.709’’N 88°53’21.159’’W, five ♀, one ♀ m, two ♂, three juv, five man., 20 May 2005, 27 Novem- ber 2005, 12 March 2006, coll. AV, SP ; Tr-Loc: M52-Dzilam, Yucatan, Mexico 21°25’57.859’’N 88°44’7.216’’W, two ♀, two man., 15 May 2005, 13 November 2005, 13 March 2006, coll. AV, SP ; Tr-Loc: M54-Dzilam, Yucatan, Mexico 21°32’35.659’’N 88°29’57.616’’W, 32 ♀, five ♀ m, one ♂, one juv, five man., 15 May 2005, 13 November 2005, 13 March 2006, coll. AV, SP ; Tr-Loc: M55-Dzilam, Yucatan, Mexico 21°34’3.9’’N 88°22’39.608’’W, 14 ♀, one ♂, one juv, two man., 15 May 2005, 13 November 2005, 13 March 2006, coll. AV, SP ; collected at depths of 0.5–3 m, in coarse sand, medium sand, fine sand, and very fine sand, with Caulerpa , H. wrightii , Syringodium , and T. testudinum

.

Local distribution. ( Table 1 , Fig. 2 ).

Geographical distribution. Atlantic Ocean: east coast of Florida; GoM: south and west coast of Florida; Caribbean Sea: north of San Cristobal, southwest of La Parguera, Puerto Rico, Quintana Roo coast, Mexico, Caiman Islands.

Recognition characters. Female: antennule short with the first article wider than long; carapace with a transverse dorsal suture and other perpendicularly in the distal part indicating the second thoracomere divided into two plates; margin of maxilliped with four or five pairs of long simple setae; uropodal endopod with four articles. Male: eyes bigger than females; antennule with three articles in peduncle and 10–13 articles in flagellum, with aesthetasc bundles throughout the entire flagellum (except the terminal article); chela carpo-chelate (hook form), with a prominent carpal process, fixed finger reduced, about a quarter the length of the dactylus, with a small tooth on the inner proximal margin; uropodal endopod with four articles.

Remarks. This species has its geographical range extended to the southeastern GoM ( Mexico). It is frequently associated with mangrove roots, coral rocks, sponges, algae. It lives on soft bottoms, at depths 0 to 12.2 m.

References. Heard et al. (2004); Suárez-Morales et al. (2004); García-Madrigal et al. (2005); Bamber (2013); Morales- Núñez et al. (2013).

Figures

FIGURE 2. Diversity, abundance, and distribution of tanaidaceans of the sublittoral zone of the northern Yucatan Peninsula.

FIGURE 4. Tanaidaceans species of the sublittoral zone of the northern Yucatan Peninsula, suborder Tanaidomorpha. (A) Parakonarus juliae ♀; (B) P. juliae ♂; (C) Alloleptochelia longimana ♀; (D) A. longimana ♂; (E) Cacoheterotanais rogerbamberi ♀; (F) Hargeria rapax ♀; (G) H. rapax ♂; (H) Leptochelia forresti ♀; (I) L. forresti ♂; (J) Leptochelia sp. aff. savignyi ♀; (K) L. sp. aff. savignyi ♂; (L) Zeuxo cf. kurilensis ♀; (M) Z. cf. kurilensis ♂.