Sudanonautes eyimba, Mvogo Ndongo & Clark & Rintelen & Cumberlidge, 2024

Mvogo Ndongo, Pierre A., Clark, Paul F., Rintelen, Thomas Von & Cumberlidge, Neil, 2024, Validation of four species of Sudanonautes (Decapoda: Potamonautidae), from Cameroon, Central Africa, Zootaxa 5492 (1), pp. 140-144 : 141-142

Sudanonautes eyimba sp. nov.

Sudanonautes eyimba Mvogo Ndongo, Clark, von Rintelen & Cumberlidge, 2024: 8 , Figs. 1B, 2B, 3b, 4b, 5F—J, 6D—F.

[Unavailable]

Type Material. Holotype: Cameroon, close to Eyimba , Mount Nlonako, Wildlife Reserve, adult ♂ ( CW 37.5 , CL 25.2, CH 18.0, FW 10.4 mm), coll. P.A. Mvogo Ndongo, 13 March 2018 ( ZMB Crust. 33108) . Paratypes: Cameroon, adult ♀ ( CW 35.0, CL 25.5, CH 16.3, FW 10.8 mm) ( ZMB Crust. 33109), adult ♂ ( CW 33.7 , CL 23.9, CH 16.9, FW 9.5 mm), subadult ♀ ( CW 25.1 , CL 20.0, CH 12.2, FW 8.3 mm) (CARC-08), same details as holotype .

Description. Carapace ovoid, high, arched ( CH /FW 1.62, N = 4), wide (CW/FW 3.36, N = 4), smooth. Front deflexed, anterior margin highly concave medially. Carapace surface smooth, cervical, urogastric, cardiac, branchial grooves deep; exorbital tooth blunt, low, intermediate, epibranchial teeth each large, triangular. Postfrontal crest distinct yellow colour, rest of carapace darker; completely traversing carapace, lateral ends curving downwards to meet carapace lateral margins at epibranchial teeth; carapace lateral margins smooth behind epibranchial teeth; mid-groove on postfrontal crest short, forked. Carapace branchiostegite divided into 3 parts by longitudinal, vertical, sutures; longitudinal suture dividing smooth suborbital, subhepatic regions from pterygostomial region, beginning at respiratory opening, curving backward; vertical suture short, granular, dividing suborbital from subhepatic regions beginning at base of intermediate tooth, then curving down to meet longitudinal suture; pterygostomial region with field of large granules medially, otherwise smooth. S2/3, completely traversing sternum; S3/4 incomplete, reduced to 2 short side notches; side margins of S4 thickened, raised.

Mandible, proximal superior margin of palp TA with small accessory lobe about ¼ length of TA. Third maxillipeds filling entire buccal cavern except for transversely oval efferent respiratory openings visible at superior lateral corners; exopod with well-developed slender flagellum; ischium with distinct vertical sulcus.

Inferior cheliped merus margins lined by small sharp teeth, inner margin with large distal meral tooth. Cheliped carpus distal, proximal teeth both pointed, distal larger than proximal. Chelipeds of adult male unequal, major cheliped longer than minor cheliped. Major chela movable finger (dactylus) with three teeth, two large (one proximal, one at midpoint) separated by one smaller tooth. Minor cheliped with occluding margins of propodus and dactylus lined by small teeth; Walking legs (pereiopods P2–5) moderately slender, posterior margins of propodi serrated with small blunt teeth, dactyli tapering, each bearing rows of downward-pointing large sharp spines.

Male pleon plus telson broadly triangular with straight inward-tapering margins.

Male gonopods, in ventral view G1TA distal half straight, tip slightly upcurved, slim, not widened in mid-section, G1TA medium length, 0.6 × G1SA length, margins lined by sparse short setae, distal G1SA near G1TA-G1SA junction widened. G2 shorter than G1, reaching only to G1TA-G1SA junction. G2TA extremely short, only one-fifteenth as long as G2SA, G2SA widest at base, then tapering sharply inward, forming long, thin, pointed, upright process supporting short G2TA, rounded collar at G2TA-G2SA junction.

Etymology. The species is named for the small village of Eyimba on the eastern side of Mount Nlonako which is near to the collection locality. The name “eyimba ” is used as a Latin noun in nominative singular.

Remarks. For detailed figures, photographs, coloration, distribution and more distinguishing characters of S. eyimba see Mvogo Ndongo et al. (2024).