Spirontocaris lamellicornis (Dana, 1852)

Wicksten, Mary K., 2012, Decapod Crustacea of the Californian and Oregonian Zoogeographic Provinces 3371, Zootaxa 3371, pp. 1-307 : 92-93

Spirontocaris lamellicornis (Dana, 1852)

( Fig. 23B)

Hippolyte lamellicornis Dana, 1852: 24 ; 1852b: 576, pl. 1, fig. 6.

Spirontocaris lamellicornis . — Holmes 1900: 208. — Rathbun 1904: 62. — Schmitt 1921: 53, fig. 29. — Holthuis 1947: 8. — Zarenkov 1960: 346. — Kozloff 1974: 166. — Standing 1981: 780. — Wicksten 1980: 134; 1990b: 590. — Word 1983: 58. — Jensen 1995: 51, fig. 91.— Chace 1997: 56.

Diagnosis. Rostrum deep, extending beyond antennular peduncle, with midrib extending as strong tooth, 9–23 dorsal, 1–3 ventral teeth including 4 or 5 large teeth on dorsal surface of carapace. Each segment of antennular peduncle with distal spine, stylocerite exceeding length of peduncle. Carapace with 2 supraorbital teeth. Pereopods 1–3 with epipods. Pereopods 3–5 with simple, curved dactyls. Merus of pereopod 3, with 5–7 spines; pereopod 4, with 4 spines; pereopod 5, with 1–2 spines. Pleura of abdominal somites 1–5 usually with sharp points, but becoming rounded in animals larger than 10 mm in carapace length. Telson with 4 pairs dorsolateral spines, acute apex. Male total length to 42 mm, female to 63 mm.

Color in life. Dark brown, pereopods dark red to colorless, tail fan banded; milkish overlaid with fine red mottling interspersed with yellow, brown to black spots; milkish with sixth abdominal somite red to purplish ( Butler 1980).

Habitat and depth. Sand or mud bottoms, 3–192 m. Most specimens from California were taken by trawling at 50–70 m.

Range. Commander Is. and Bering Sea to Santa Monica Bay , California . Rarely collected in southern California.