Cariborchestia Smith, 1998

Lowry, J. K. & Myers, A. A., 2022, Platorchestiinae subfam. nov. (Amphipoda, Senticaudata, Talitridae) with the description of three new genera and four new species, Zootaxa 5100 (1), pp. 1-53 : 3-4

Cariborchestia Smith, 1998

Cariborchestia Smith, 1998: 179 .

Type species. Cariborchestia xerophila Smith, 1998 , monotypy .

Included species. Cariborchestia contains 1 species: C. xerophila Smith, 1998 .

Category. Mascupod.

Ecological type. Field-hopper.

Habitat. Living 1.3 km inland of beach, just above sea-level. Inhabiting dry, inland shallow sandy playas.

Diagnostic description (male). Based on Smith (1998).

Head. Antenna 2 peduncular articles slender. Mandible left lacinia mobilis 5-cuspidate (fifth a tiny cusp). Labium without inner lobes. Maxilliped palp article 2 with distomedial lobe; article 4 reduced, button-shaped.

Pereon. Gnathopod 1 sexually dimorphic; subchelate; posterior margin of carpus and propodus each with lobe covered in palmate setae; propodus anterior margin with 3 groups of robust setae, ‘subtriangular’ with well-developed posterodistal lobe, palm transverse; dactylus simplidactylate (). Gnathopod 2 subchelate; propodus palm transverse, evenly rounded; without palmar sinuses; without proximal spine or thumb defining palm; dactylus not modified distally, blunt. Pereopods 3–7 dactyli bicuspidactylate. Pereopod 4 significantly shorter than pereopod 3 (); carpus significantly shorter than that of pereopod 3; dactylus amplidactylate, thickened proximally with notch midway along posterior margin. Pereopod 6 not incrassate; basis moderately expanded; male merus expanded, carpus not expanded. Pereopod 7 slightly incrassate; basis expanded; posterior margin smooth with sparse seta, posterodistal lobe present, shallow, broadly rounded; merus expanded distally, subtriangular, anterior margin slightly convex; carpus slightly expanded, posterior margin straight, anterior margin slightly rounded; carpus shorter than propodus; propodus broad; length 6.6 × width; propodus with large distal tuft of setae (). Oostegites (female) setae with simple smooth tips.

Pleon. Pleopods all reduced. Uropod 1 peduncle distolateral robust seta absent; exopod without marginal robust setae; endopod with marginal robust setae in 1 row. Uropod 2 exopod with marginal robust setae in 1 row; endopod with marginal robust setae in 2 rows. Uropod 3 ramus shorter than peduncle. Telson apically incised, with 7–9 robust setae per lobe.

Remarks. Cariborchestia lives in the same geographic areas as Mexorchestia and Tethorchestia and displays similarities with both genera. Cariborchestia retains an unmodified gnathopod 2 dactylus not found in Mexorchestia or Tethorchestia . Cariborchestia differs from both of those genera in having an unmodified, distally blunt dactylus on gnathopod 2.

Distribution. Caribbean Sea. Punta Arenas, 0.13 km inland of beach, Playa de Sardinia, Isla Mona (18°04’56”N 67°56’17”W) ( Smith 1998).