Philyra Leach, 1817

Galil, Bella S., 2009, An examination of the genus Philyra Leach, 1817 (Crustacea, Decapoda, Leucosiidae) with descriptions of seven new genera and six new species, Zoosystema 31 (2), pp. 279-320 : 281-282

Genus Philyra Leach, 1817 s.s.

TYPE SPECIES. — Cancer globus Fabricius, 1775: 401 . Placed on Official List of Generic Names ( ICZN 1964).

ETYMOLOGY. — In Greek mythology Philyra was the mother of the wise centaur Chiron, who brought up Achilles. Gender feminine.

Philyra adamsii Bell, 1855

Philyra alcocki Kemp, 1915

Philyra angularis Rathbun, 1924

Philyra bicornis Rahayu & Ng, 2003

Philyra concinnus Ghani & Tirmizi, 1955

Philyra corallicola Alcock, 1896

Philyra fuliginosa Targioni-Tozzetti, 1877

Philyra granigera Nobili, 1905

Philyra granulosa Ihle, 1918

Philyra iriomotensis Sakai, 1983

Philyra kanekoi Sakai, 1934

Philyra macrophthalma Bell, 1855

Philyra malefactrix (Kemp, 1915)

Philyra marginata A. Milne Edwards, 1873

Philyra misoagana Sakai, 1937

Philyra nishihirai Takeda & Nakasone, 1991

Philyra olivacea Rathbun, 1909

Philyra orbicularis (Bell, 1855)

Philyra rectangularis Miers, 1884

Philyra rudis Miers, 1884

Philyra sagittifera ( Alcock, 1896)

Philyra scabra (Dai, Yang, Song & Chen, 1984)

Philyra sexangula Alcock, 1896

Philyra syndactyla Ortmann, 1892

Philyra taekoae Takeda, 1972

Philyra unidentata Stimpson, 1858

Philyra zhoushanensis Chen & Sun, 2002

DIAGNOSIS. — Carapace pear-shaped, globose; regions of carapace indistinct, save for slight indentation at branchio-cardiac grooves. Dorsal surface of carapace glabrous, punctate. Frontal region slightly produced, upcurved, laterally concave; frontal margin unidentate, deflexed. Basal antennular segment inserted in transverse antennular fossa. Antennae short, inserted between antennular fossa and orbit. Orbits small, upper orbital margin entire. Eyes retractable. Anterior margin of efferent branchial channel forms part of lower orbital margin, extending beyond frontal margin, epistome concave. External maxilliped exopod expanded, not quite reaching anterior margin; endopod subtriangular, bearing in female setose fringe lengthwise mesially; endopodal merus narrowing apically, longer than ischium along inner margin, apex invisible in dorsal view. Margins of carapace beaded, hepatic margin produced, posterior margin rounded. Epimeral margin closely beaded, not visible in dorsal view. Chelipeds subequal, elongate, longer in adult male than in female specimens. Cheliped merus subcylindrical, granulate. Fingers as long as propodus. Pereiopods slender, short. Pereiopodal meri subcylindrical, longer than carpi and propodi; upper and lower propodal margins carinate; dactyli nearly as long as carpi and propodi, lanceolate, terminating in cornute tips. Male abdominal sulcus deep, nearly reaching buccal cavity. Male abdomen elongate, first 2 segments transversely narrow; third to sixth segments fused, medially concave proximally, lacking subterminal denticle, last suture line distinct; telson elongate, laciniate. Female abdomen with first and second segments narrow, transverse, thickened laterally; segments 3-6 fused, sutures invisible, greatly enlarged, shield-like; telson subtriangular. First male pleopod elongate, shaft dorsoventrally flattened; apical process subterminally bifurcate, cornute. Second male pleopod short, filiform, apex scoop-like.

REMARKS

The name and identity of the type species of Philyra “has passed through a remarkable metamorphosis of several stages” ( Holthuis 1962: 238). Fabricius (1775) named identically-diagnosed specimens collected “ad littora malabarica Dr. Koenig” first as Cancer globus ( Fabricius 1775: 401) , then as C. globosus ( Fabricius 1787: 315; 1793: 441), and finally as Leucosia globosa ( Fabricius 1798: 349) . Bosc (1802: 238), while translating Fabricius’ diagnosis, introduced yet another permutation, calling the species “ Leucosia globulosa ”. Holthuis (1962: 238) proposed that “ Cancer globus Fabricius, 1775 , Cancer globosus Fabricius, 1787 , and Leucosia globulosa Bosc, 1801 -1802, are subjective synonyms of each other and the name Cancer globus has priority”. Subsequently, Cancer globus Fabricius, 1775 , was placed on the Official List of Generic Names as the “type species, by designation by Milne Edwards, 1837 (in Cuvier’s Règne Anim. (ed. 3, Disciples ed.) 18: pl. 24, fig. 4)”. The type material of Cancer globus consists of two specimens, a male and a female ( Zimsen 1964), and as “Fabricius did not indicate any as the holotype (a term that he most likely, even did not know), both specimens are syntypes and a later author may define the identity of the species by selecting one of these as the “ lectotype ” (L. B. Holthuis, in letter, 6 April 2006). De Man (1888) was the first to describe Fabricius’ syntypes. He noted differences in their size, form of chelipeds, and pattern of granulation, but considered them “attributable to the large size of the individual, for in its other characters the male perfectly agrees with the female.” (de Man 1888: 203). As his own material was similar to the female syntype, de Man assigned it to Philyra globosa . Although he did not selected a lectotype, his identification clearly shows he considered the female syntype the type. A few years later, Alcock (1896: 245), who examined large numbers of Indian Philyra specimens, realized “that Fabricius’ male is a species quite distinct from his female” and considered it “to be the species named by Milne Edwards […] P. globulosa .”[the male specimen is in fact Lyphira perplexa n. sp.]. Alcock suggested applying “Milne Edwards name, P. globulosa , to Fabricius’ male type, and to leave the name P. globosa in possession of Fabricius’ female type”. Alcock did not know that H. Milne Edwards’ (1836-1844: pl. 24, fig. 4) P. globulosa is altogether another species, L. heterograna ( Ortmann 1892) n. comb., differing from Fabricius’ male syntype in the regular granulation of its carapacial margins, the form of the third maxilliped, and in lacking the prominent inner angle at the anterior margin of the efferent canals. Though Alcock seemed to favour a solution on that “delicate question of synonymy” that would not offend “the memory of the founder of modern carcinology”, he was aware of its shortcomings. He then offered that “The only other alternative […] to make use of Dr. Henderson’s name P.polita for Fabricius’ female, and to let P. globosa stand for Fabricius’ type.” However, Alcock also did not select a lectotype. Fortunately, Holthuis (1962: 238) undid the knot when he did “definitely select from among Fabricius’s two type specimens of Cancer globus the smaller (the female) specimen as the lectotype of that species; that specimen at the same time is the lectotype of Cancer globosus Fabricius, 1787 , and of Leucosia globulosa Bosc, 1801 -1802”. Therefore, the identity of Milne Edwards’ P. globulosa does not impact “the status of the name globulosa , it remains an objective synonym of Cancer globus Fabr., 1775 .” (L. B. Holthuis, in letter, 6 April 2006).

The genus Philyra s.s. differs from the newly established genera by its subterminally expanded apical process of the first male pleopod, and the following combination of characters: the external maxilliped exopod subquadrate; the two proximalmost abdominal segments transversely narrow, third to sixth segments fused and lacking abdominal denticle.