Scypholanceola agassizi Woltereck

Zeidler, Wolfgang, 2009, A review of the hyperiidean amphipod superfamily Lanceoloidea Bowman & Gruner, 1973 (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hyperiidea), Zootaxa 2000, pp. 1-117 : 65

Scypholanceola agassizi Woltereck

Scypholanceola agassizi Woltereck, 1909: 161 , 167, pl. 7, figs 21, 22; pl. 8, figs 29, 31. Woltereck 1927: 65–68, fig. 7. Vinogradov 1957: 197; 1960a: 208–209, fig. 5b; 1964: 117; 1970: 384 (table). Vinogradov et al. 1982: 81, figs 22b, 24b.

Type material. Type material of this species could not be found in any major European museum, or the USNM, and is considered lost. Woltereck (1909) introduces this species as part of a discussion on the eye structure of Scypholanceola without any specific description. He mentions that the largest specimen is 17 mm long and, in his key to species, refers to a male from the Pacific, Albatross Stn. 4673, which is presumably that figured. Albatross Stn. 4673 is south-west of Peru [12º30’30”S 77º49’30”W] ; 21 Nov. 1904.

Diagnosis. Like S. aestiva except for the following. Body length up to 36 mm; sexually mature specimens not described. Head without rostrum. Eyes of freshly caught specimens have bottom of cups with dull metallic sheen. Antennae 1 with terminal article elongate-conical, narrowing distally.

Remarks. I have been unable to distinguish this species from amongst the material that I have examined but accept its validity based on the observations of Vinogradov et al. (1982), although they state that “only the large, undamaged specimens could be considered reliably identified”.

Distribution. According to Vinogradov et al (1982). In the Pacific Ocean it is found from the Kuril- Kamchatka region south to 23º30’S. In the Indian Ocean it is known from the tropical regions south to 20ºS. It has not been recorded from the Atlantic Ocean. It seems to inhabit deeper waters than S. aestiva not having been collected above 1000 m with the deepest record from the 5000–6000 m layer.