Medorippe lanata (Linnaeus, 1767)

Garassino, Alessandro, Pasini, Giovanni, Angeli, Antonio De & Hyžný, MatÚš, 2014, The decapod fauna (Axiidea, Anomura, Brachyura) from the Late Pleistocene of Trumbacà, Reggio Calabria (Calabria, southern Italy), Natural History Sciences 1 (2), pp. 119-130 : 124

Medorippe lanata (Linnaeus, 1767)

Fig. 2C

Material and measurements: One carapace, including pleon (MSNM i27884 – lcxp: 21 mm; wcxp: 27 mm).

Description: Flat subexagonal carapace, wider than long, with deep groves and distinct tubercles; lateral margins converging anteriorly, larger posteriorly; short front; long anterolateral margins with a strong branchial spine; two tubercles present behind the triangular frontal teeth; anterolateral and outer orbital pointed teeth; regions well marked dorsally; smooth hepatic, branchial, and supraorbital regions separated by deep groves; sinuous posterior margin, with s1-s3 exposed dorsally.

Discussion. The main characters of the carapace and pleon allow to ascribe the studied specimen to a male individual of Medorippe lanata . Gemmellaro (1914) reported some specimens from the Sicilian (Late Pleistocene) of Sicily (southern Italy), housed in Marquis of Monterosato’s private collection (repository and catalogue number unknown), probably today lost ( De Angeli & Garassino, 2006a). This is the second fossil record for the species in the Mediterranean area. Extant M. lanata is widespread in the Eastern Atlantic, Mediterranean Sea and South-West Africa coasts ( Holthuis & Manning, 1990). Medorippe lanata specially inhabits muddy and muddy-sandy bottoms, ranging from a few metres to 75 meters deep in the Mediterranean area ( Falciai & Minervini, 1992).