Leucothoe laurensi Thomas & Ortiz, 1995

Dugger, Abigail R. & White, Kristine N., 2025, Caribbean Amphipoda (Crustacea) of Panama. Part V: parvorder Amphilochidira, ZooKeys 1259, pp. 57-102 : 57-102

Leucothoe laurensi Thomas & Ortiz, 1995

Figs 17 , 24 B

Leucothoe laurensi Thomas & Ortiz, 1995: 613–616, figs 1, 2; Serejo 1998: 117–119, fig. 8; LeCroy 2011: 632, fig. 507; White 2011: 30, fig. 7.

Material examined.

Panama • 2.4–3.2 mm • 2 ♂, 5 ♀; Bocas del Toro, Hospital Point ; 9.3336°N, 82.2188°W; depth 15 m; among coral rubble and Halimeda ; 6 Aug 2005; S. DeGrave, M. Salazar leg.; GCRL 6690 • 8 ♀; Bocas del Toro, Crawl Caye ; 9.2459°N, 82.1369°W; depth 1–4 m; among coral rubble; 25 June 2023; K. N. White leg.; USNM 1762960 • 1 ♂, 6 ♀; Bocas del Toro, Crawl Caye ; 9.2476°N, 82.1290°W; depth 5–8 m; among coral rubble; 26 June 2023; K. N. White leg.; USNM 1762961 .

Diagnosis.

Head anterior margin oblique with rounded cusp; ventral keel rounded. Gnathopod 1 basis distally expanded, margins bare; carpus expanded, proximal margin with long distal seta; propodus inflated; dactylus reaching greater than 0.2 × propodus length. Gnathopod 2 carpus elongate, distally truncate; propodus distal margin with blade-like process, mediofacial row above midline, reaching almost entire length of propodus, palm subrectangular; dactylus short, thick. Coxa 4 anteroventral margin serrate, posterior margin excavate. Epimeron 3 posteroventral corner rounded with two setae.

Distribution.

USA: North Carolina to the Florida Keys ( Thomas and Ortiz 1995), South Carolina ( LeCroy 2011), Cuba: Isla de la Juventud ( Thomas and Ortiz 1995); Brazil: Pernambuco, Alagoas ( Serejo 1998); Turks and Caicos Islands ( LeCroy 2011); Panama: Bocas del Toro ( White 2011; present study).

Ecology and remarks.

This species occurs among coral rubble and fine sand from 1–50 m ( Thomas and Ortiz 1995). Panamanian specimens agree with previous descriptions of this species with the exception of lacking a secondary mediofacial setal row on gnathopod 2 (vs a secondary row with one seta). Living specimens are translucent white with magenta stripes.

Figures

Figure 17. Leucothoe laurensi, female, 2.3 mm, gnathopod 1 medial, head, epimeron 3, coxa 4, gnathopod 2 medial. Scale bars: 0.5 mm.

Figure 24. Photographs of living specimens unless noted. A. Leucothoe kensleyi; B. Leucothoe laurensi; C. Leucothoe machidai (ethanol-preserved specimen); D. Leucothoe tunica (ethanol-preserved specimen); E. Leucothoe ubouhu; F. Leucothoe wuriti. Scale bars: 1.0 mm.