Gordanitocrella, Karanovic & Hancock, 2009

Karanovic, Tomislav & Hancock, Peter, 2009, On the diagnostic characters of the genus Stygonitocrella (Copepoda, Harpacticoida), with descriptions of seven new species from Australian subterranean waters 2324, Zootaxa 2324 (1), pp. 1-85 : 21

Genus Gordanitocrella gen. nov.

Diagnosis. Medium sized, slender Ameiridae , with cylindrical habitus and no distinct demarcation between prosome and urosome. Integument weakly chitinized and without cuticular windows; hyaline fringe of all prosomites smooth, those of urosomites finely serrated. First pedigerous somite incorporated into cephalothorax. Prosome ornamented with very large sensilla, urosome additionally ornamented with rows of small spinules. Genital double-somite without visible suture or lateral constriction; genital field with single small copulatory pore, narrow and short copulatory duct and two large semicircular seminal receptacles; single small genital aperture covered by fused reduced sixth legs. Anal operculum wide and convex, not reaching to posterior end of anal somite, ornamented with nearly 30 spinules near posterior margin. Caudal rami slender, about twice as long as greatest width, nearly cylindical, with space between them more than 1.5 times as wide as one ramus, with small diagonal chitinous ridge dorsally and ventral posterior margin produced somewhat inwards; dorsal seta inserted close to inner margin, 1.7 times as long as caudal ramus; proximal and distal lateral setae smooth and of about same length, 0.6 times as long as dorsal seta; principal apical setae with breaking plane. Antennula long and slender, eight-segmented in female and ten-segmented and strongly geniculate in male, with unipinnate seta on first segment. Antenna composed of coxa, basis, twosegmented endopod and one-segmented exopod; exopod armed with two setae. Labrum with convex cutting edge. Mandibula with narrow cutting edge and two-segmented palp; basis unarmed, endopod with four apical setae. Maxillular endopod armed with one apical seta. Maxilla with single endite on syncoxa; endopod minute, armed with two setae. Maxilliped three-segmented, armed with one seta on syncoxa and one on endopod. All swimming legs with three-segmented exopod. Endopod of first leg three-segmented; endopod of other legs one-segmented. All exopodal segments of about same length; first exopodal segment of all legs without inner seta, second with inner seta; third exopodal segment of first leg with three outer spines and no inner setae, that of other legs with two outer spines and one inner seta. First endopodal segment of first leg large, reaching to 3/4 of second exopodal segment, armed with short spiniform inner seta; endopod of second leg with two setae, third leg with three and fourth leg with one apical plumose seta. Inner distal corner of basis produced into short chitinous process at base of inner spine in both sexes; inner spine transformed, smooth and inflated distally, in male; no other sexual dimorphism in swimming legs. Fifth leg biramous but baseoendopod fused medially together and to somite; endopodal lobe not recognizable, forming straight smooth hyaline fringe and without armature or ornamentation; exopod distinctly one-segmented in female but fused basally together and to somite in male, small, armed with three slender smooth setae in female and with additional inner spine on male right leg. Sixth legs in male fused basally together and to somite, each armed with two smooth setae posterolaterally.

Type and only species. Gordanitocrella trajani sp. nov.

Etymology. The genus name is dedicated to Prof Gordan S. Karaman (University of Montenegro), one of the mentors of the senior author, as a celebration of his 70 th birthday and 50 years of his scientific work. His first name is prefixed to the existing genus name Nitocrella . Gender feminine.