LANCEOLIDAE Bovallius, 1887

Zeidler, Wolfgang, 2009, A review of the hyperiidean amphipod superfamily Lanceoloidea Bowman & Gruner, 1973 (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hyperiidea), Zootaxa 2000, pp. 1-117 : 9-10

Family LANCEOLIDAE Bovallius, 1887

Diagnosis. Body length 8–60 mm; pereon usually slightly inflated but sexual dimorphism is slight. Head rarely as long as first pereonite, with or without rostrum. Eyes small or inconspicuous, reniform or composed of paired crystalline cones or highly modified into paired cup-shaped reflector organs. Pereonites all separate. Coxae separate from pereonites. Antennae 1 with stout callynophore; usually shorter than head and first two pereonites combined; peduncle 3-articulate. Antennae 2 usually longer than A1, rarely subequal in length, sometimes as long as head and first four pereonites combined. Mandibles with strong palp, usually much longer than body of mandible; third article of palp shorter than second; left with lacinia mobilis reduced to small protuberance. Maxillae 1 with broad palp, armed with few setae distally; outer lobe broad, with five strong setae distally; inner lobe usually with broad distal margin, armed with numerous fine setae. Maxillae 2 with relatively slender lobes, the inner slightly shorter than outer one; both armed with three or more strong setae distally. Maxilliped with oval or semi-circular outer lobes; inner lobes short, not exceeding half-length outer lobes, fused proximally, separate distally, projected laterally from outer lobes. Gnathopod 1 simple; carpus broadened distally; dactylus inserted apically or subapically. Gnathopod 2 simple, slightly longer and more slender than G1. Pereopods 3–7 usually simple, rarely P3, 4 or 5 subchelate. Pereopods 5–7 usually with fully retractile and hooded dactyls, rarely only partly retractile and hooded; P5 rarely without retractile dactylus. Urosomite 2–3 with partial suture ventrally. Uropoda slender, with articulated exopoda and endopoda. Telson length varies from about half to slightly longer than peduncle of U3, triangular with rounded or pointed apex. Gills on pereonites 2–6. Oostegites on pereonites 2–5.

Two genera: Lanceola and Scypholanceola .

Remarks. The family Lanceolidae was proposed by Bovallius (1887a) for Lanceola Say, 1818 , a genus that he had earlier resurrected ( Bovallius 1885) to accommodate his description of six new species. The other genera formerly included in the family constitute a very diverse group with some having questionable phylogenetic affinities. Scypholanceola is obviously closely related to Lanceola and is often confused with L. loveni Bovallius, 1885 ( Thurston 1973) but is readily distinguished by the unusual eyes. Prolanceola is a very distinctive genus, differing in many characters from all the other genera, particularly in the structure of the mouthparts, the eyes and the first gnathopoda and warrants removal from the family. Thus, a new family, Prolanceolidae fam. nov., is proposed to accommodate it. Similarly, Metalanceola is a distinctive genus that possesses unusual characters not found in any other family of Hyperiidea , such as the morphology of the antennae, the first maxillae and pereopods 5–7 and that gills are only found on pereonites 4–6. Thus, a new family, Metalanceolidae fam. nov. is proposed to accommodate it. Megalanceola resembles Lanceola in having pereopods 5–7 with retractile dactyls but differs significantly in the structure of the mouthparts. Thus, a new family, Megalanceolidae fam. nov. is proposed to accommodate it. In addition M. remipes is removed from Megalanceola and placed in a new genus, Megalanceoloides gen. nov. because it possesses a number of distinctive characters that set it apart from the only other species currently in Megalanceola , M. stephenseni .

In consideration of the above, the family Lanceolidae is here restricted to two genera, Lanceola and Scypholanceola .