Vejdovskybathynella pascalis, Camacho, 2007

Camacho, A. I., 2007, The first record of the genus Vejdovskybathynella Serban and Leclerc, 1984 (Syncarida, Bathynellacea, Bathynellidae) in the Iberian Peninsula: three new species, Journal of Natural History 41 (45 - 48), pp. 2817-2841 : 2835-2838

Vejdovskybathynella pascalis n. sp.

( Figures 7 , 8 )

Material examined

Type locality. Cubilla Cave , Ogarrio (Cantabria, Spain) (coordinates X: 456238, Y: 4793438, Z: 132) (15 March 2003, one male and one female collected). The holotype is the male and the paratype is the female ( MNCN 20.04 /7793) .

Description

Body. Total length of the holotype 0.51 mm and of the paratype 0.50 mm. All drawings are of the holotype (male) and the female Th. VIII and Md. are of the paratype .

A. I ( Figure 7A ). Seven segments; length of the first three segments similar to that of four remaining segments; setation as in Figure 7A ; two and three aesthetascs on segments 6 and 7, respectively. A. I longer than A. II.

A. II ( Figure 7B ). Shorter than A. I; seven segments; setal formula: 1/2+exp/2+0/2+0/0+0/ 2+2/4; exopod longer than segment 3, without a ventromedial seta and with two apical setae, one of these a bifurcated sensory seta.

Labrum ( Figure 7C ). Smooth.

Paragnath ( Figure 7D ). Lengthened and with a projection similar to a tooth in the distal part and with setation.

Md. ( Figure 7G, M ). Palp with three segments, terminal segment with two claws of similar length and with setation in proximal part, and segment 2 thick, almost square; in the females the segments are normal, the second longer, and claws of segment 3 are unequal and with few setae on the distal end ( Figure 7E ). The masticatory part of the Md. of the male broke during the dissection and for this reason there is no drawing. Pars molaris with two main teeth in the female ( Figure 7F, M ), the first with a small tooth (secondary formation) near to processus incisivus accessorius, the second tooth with a small tooth (secondary formation) in the outer side; incisor process (pars incisiva) with two teeth.

Mx. I ( Figure 7I ). Proximal endite with four setae; distal endite with six teeth, four with spines (denticles), and with three plumose setae on outer margin.

Mx. II ( Figure 7I ). Four segments; setal formula 6, 4, 6, 5.

Th. I–VII ( Figure 8A–G ). Th. I smaller than others; Th. II–V similar in size and Th. VI– VII longer than others. Th. I ( Figure 8A ) without epipod; coxa with a long plumose seta; basipod with two plumose setae. Basipod of Th. II ( Figure 8B ) with two smooth setae and with only one smooth seta on the rest of the thoracopods. Exopod with one segment on all thoracopods, of equal length to the endopod in Th. I–V, and shorter in Th. VI ( Figure 8F ) and VII ( Figure 8G ); with five barbed setae. Endopod with four segments in all the thoracopods, setal formulae: Th. I: 2+0/2+1/2+0/4; Th. II: 2+0/2+1/2+0/4; Th. III: 1+0/ 2+1/2+0/4; Th. IV: 1+0/1+1/1+0/4; Th. V: 0+0/1+1/1+0/4; Th. VI: 0+0/0+1/0+0/2; Th. VII: 0+0/0+1/0+0/2.

Male Th. VIII ( Figure 7J, K ). Outer lobe (O. lb.) not very large, the distal edge does not reach the edge of the frontal projection; long frontal projection (Fr. prj.) with transverse circular section; vertical basipod (Bsp.) long and almost rectangular; frontal crest (Fr. crt.) of basipod prominent and with a spur (S. fr. crt.) not very evident; exopod very curved, with a medial lateral seta and on the distal end four more setae; very long endopod, almost half the length of the exopod, with two smooth terminal setae.

Female Th. VIII ( Figure 7L ). Coxa broke in the dissection; epipod long, longer than basipod; endopod small, a single segment with two smooth apical setae; exopod twice as long as endopod, and with two smooth apical setae of different lengths, one of these very long.

Uropods ( Figure 8H ). Sympod slightly longer than endopod, a little longer than wide and with four spines, the basal shorter than the others; endopod 1.5 times longer than exopod, with two strong claws, distal twice as long as the other, terminally with two setae (one of these very long) and with two located dorsolaterally; exopod with two terminal and two medial setae.

Furcal rami ( Figure 8I ). Almost square, bearing five spines; second spine twice as long as the other three spines, which are shorter than the dorsal spine.

Etymology

The species name is derived from the PASCALIS European Project, thanks to which these populations of Syncarida could be studied.

Remarks

Vejdovskybathynella pascalis n. sp. is the smallest species of the genus with a unique combination of characters ( Tables V, VI); it has two and three aesthetascs on segments 6 and 7 of the antennule, respectively. To have two aesthetascs on segment 6 is common in the genus (except V. caroloi n. sp. which has three) but to have three in segment 7 is unusual, and only V. caroloi n. sp. shares this character; it is the only species of the genus that has one seta on segment 1 and two setae on segment 4 of the antenna. This is the only Spanish species of this genus that has an exopod of Th. I–V longer than the endopod, and the relation of sizes is not known in the French species. The setal formula of the endopod of the thoracopods is unique and the number of setae on the basipod of the thoracopods is also unique; it has a unique male thoracopod VIII, with a small spur of the frontal crest of the basipod (absent or present, but large in this case, in the other five species of the genus) and with the endopod the largest of all species in spite of its small size. The basal spine of the sympod of the uropod is smaller than the other three; the dorsal spine is longer than the first spine, as only occurs in V. edelweiss n. sp., in the other species the two spines are a similar size.v

Figures

Figure 7. Vejdovskybathynella pascalis n. sp., male holotype unless otherwise stated. (A) Antennule (dorsal view); (B) antenna (ventral view); (C) labro; (D) paragnaths; (E) mandibular palp of the female (dorsal view); (F, M) masticatory part of the mandible of the female; (G) mandible, mandibular palp (dorsal view); (H) maxillule (dorsal view); (I) maxilla (dorsal view); (J) thoracopod VIII (frontal view); (K) thoracopod VIII (latero-internal view); (L) thoracopod VIII female (frontal view). Scale bars in mm.

Figure 8. Vejdovskybathynella pascalis n. sp., male holotype. (A) Thoracopod I; (B) thoracopod II; (C) thoracopod III; (D) thoracopod IV; (E) thoracopod V; (F) thoracopod VI; (G) thoracopod VII; (H) uropod (latero-external view); (I) furcal rami. Scale bar in mm.