Metapenaeus moyebi (Kishinouye, 1896)

(Figs. 6, 8f)

Penaeus moyebi Kishinouye 1896: 373 (type locality: Japan).

Metapenaeus mastersii — Lee & Yu 1977: 96, figs. 66-67. (non Haswell, 1879)

Metapenaeus moyebi — Miquel 1982: 114, figs. 50-51.— Yu & Chan 1986: 137.— Lee et al. 1999: 445.

not Metapenaeus moyebi — Yu & Chan 1986: 1 unnumbered fig. [= Parapenaeus sp.]

Material examined. Yunlin County, Mailiao, 18 May 2010, 1 females cl 17.9 mm (NTOU M02349) ; 29 Jul 2011, 1 male cl 12.3 mm (NTOU M02350) . Tainan City, Taijiang National Park, Liukong Pier, Aug-Sep 2017, 14 males cl 10.9-14.0 mm, 6 female cl 9.8-16.5 mm (NTOU M02351) . Kaohsiung City, Kaohsiung port, Station 4, 1 Mar 1994, 1 female cl 21.4 mm (NTOU M02352) . Pingtung County, Donggang fishing port, 7 Jan 1984, 1 female cl 22.3 mm (NTOU M02353) ; 9 May 2019, 1 female cl 16.8 mm (NTOU M02354) .

Diagnosis. Rostrum with 7–9 (excluding epigastric tooth) teeth along entire dorsal border, generally straight and more or less extending to middle of distal segment of antennular peduncle. Pereiopod I with ischial spine minute to absence. In males, basial spine of pereiopod III not particular elongate, merus of pereiopod V with basal notch accompanied with carinated and twisted tubercle. Telson with minute movable lateral spines. Male petasma with distomedian projections enlarged and laminose or flap-like, diverging and far overreaching distolateral projections. Female thelycum with anterior plate having anterior margin convex and bearing 3 subequal tubercles, lateral margin distinctly concave; coxal projections of pereiopod IV round plate like and often concealing anterior plate, but not extended posteriorly to lateral plates; lateral plates flattened with lateral margins convex to subquadrate, bearing distinct median longitudinal furrow at least along anterior half.

Coloration. Body greenish grey and densely covered with dark dots. Antennal flagella reddish. Uropods yellowish green and with distal parts reddish.

Distribution. Indo-West Pacific from India to Japan, Indonesia and Thursday Island of northern Australia, intertidal to 45 m deep (Miquel 1982; Pérez Farfante & Kensley 1997; Chan 1998).

Remarks. This species was firstly reported from Taiwan by Lee & Yu & (1977) under the name M. mastersii . Chan & Yu (1986) followed Miquel (1982) in using M. moyebi for this species but their photograph provided (Chan & Yu 1986: 137 -unnumbered photo) was a species of Parapenaeus Smith, 1885 . Metapenaeus moyebi is uncommon in Taiwan and found only in the southwestern coasts, though quite a few young specimens were recently collected in a national park. Amongst the local species of Metapenaeus, M. moyebi is most similar to M. elegans and their distinguishing characters can be referred to the “Remarks” of the latter species.