Macrophthalmus (Tasmanoplax) Barnes, 1967

Barnes, R. S. K., 2010, A Review Of The Sentinel And Allied Crabs (Crustacea: Brachyura: Macrophthalmidae), With Particular Reference To The Genus Macrophthalmus, Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 58 (1), pp. 31-49 : 42

Macrophthalmus (Tasmanoplax) Barnes, 1967

( Fig. 5A )

Medium-sized, up to 30+ mm carapace breadth; ocular peduncles elongate but not projecting beyond lateral carapace margins, longer than breadth of front; front moderately narrow, not constricted between bases of ocular peduncles, where its breadth is ca. 20% distance between external orbital angles; ischium of external maxilliped ca.1.2 times length of merus; carapace with breadth 1.5–1.6 times length, with lateral margins subparallel, with large, broad-based, subrectangular anterolateral teeth, branchial regions with transverse and longitudinal rows of granules; central region of posterior border of epistome with large convexity; males without stridulatory apparatus; fingers of male chelae elongate with index downflexed and with clearly differentiated tooth on dactylus only. Intertidal in soft sediments.

This is a monotypic subgenus for M. latifrons Haswell, 1882 , restricted to south-eastern Australia, the only macrophthalmid in that region. It appears to differ behaviourly from other Macrophthalmus in that allocleaning (foraging on the carapace or walking legs of other conspecific individuals) is not displayed (Kitaura & Wada, 2004).

Figures

Fig. 5. Form of the carapace and adult male chela of subgroups of the genus Macrophthalmus V: (a) subgenus Tasmanoplax and (b) subgenus Venitus. Scale bars = 5mm.