Noculacia

Guerra-García, José M., 2003, The Caprellidea (Crustacea: Amphipoda) from Mauritius Island, Western Indian Ocean, Zootaxa 232, pp. 1-24 : 15

Noculacia sp. ( Fig. 9 )

Material examined. BT: 1 female, 2 juveniles, on Turbinaria ornata , 3 m, 9 July 2002.

Remarks. The material examined was in very poor condition. The specimens have been assigned to the genus Noculacia on the basis of the combination of the following characteristics: mandibular molar absent, palp three­articulate, setal formula 1­x­ 1, gills on pereonites 3 and 4, pereopods 3 and 4 two­articulate. Recently, Guerra­García (2002b) revised the genus Noculacia , presently composed by three species, Noculacia africana Guerra­García, 2002 , N. australiensis Guerra­García, 2002 and N. bullata Mayer, 1903 .The female from Mauritius seems to be close to N. africana but there are slight differences in the body spination and the structure of the pereopods 3 and 4. The lack of sufficient material has prevented assigning the Mauritian specimens to Noculacia africana or to a new species of Noculacia .

Figures

FIGURE 9. Noculacia sp. Female lateral view. Scale bar: 1 mm.