Munidopsis tasmaniae Ahyong & Poore, 2004

Ahyong, Shane T., Schnabel, Kareen E. & Baba, Keiji, 2015, Southern High Latitude Squat Lobsters: Galatheoidea and Chirostyloidea from Macquarie Ridge with Description of a New Species of Uroptychus, Records of the Australian Museum 67 (4), pp. 109-128 : 125

Munidopsis tasmaniae Ahyong & Poore, 2004

Munidopsis tasmaniae Ahyong & Poore, 2004b: 59 , fig. 14 (type locality: off St. Patricks Head, Tasmania, 41°35'S, 148°14'E, 1100 m). — Poore, 2004: 237, fig. 65i (compilation). — Baba, 2005: 297 (key, synonymies). — Baba et al., 2008: 165 (synonymies). — Taylor et al., 2010: 12, fig. 4, 16 (key).

Material examined. Kermadec Ridge: NIWA 85198 , 1 female (cl 12.2, pcl 9.2 mm), Lillie seamount, Kermadec Ridge, 35°51.44–51.41'S, 178°26.87–26.55'E, 1237–1460 m, 19 March 2011, stn. TAN1104/124 .

Louisville Ridge: NIWA 94435 , 1 ov. female (cl 10.9, pcl 8.0 mm), 1 female (cl 9.5, pcl 6.8 mm), Ghost seamount, Louisville Ridge, 40°43.03–42.84'S, 165°20.56–20.73'W, 814–912 m, 23 February 2014, stn. TAN1402/111 .

Chatham Rise: NIWA 53302 , 2 ov. females (cl 14.9, pcl 11.4; cl 15.8, pcl 11.8 mm), Mummy Seamount, Graveyard seamount complex, 42°38.66–38.67'S, 179°52.88–53.05'W, 1052–1080 m, 18 June 2009, stn. TAN0905/48 ; NIWA 29555 , 1 male (cl 12.9, pcl 9.4 mm), Diabolical Hill, Graveyard seamount complex, 42°47.48–47.33'S, 179°59.28–59.22'W, 882–1000 m, 04 June 2006, stn. TAN0604/97 ; NIWA 69817 , 1 male (cl 14.5, pcl 11.5 mm), 1 female (cl 14.1, pcl 10.6 mm), RIP Seamount, Graveyard seamount complex, 42°46.72–46.93'S, 179°54.21–54.46'W, 917–1021 m, 17 June 2009, stn. TAN0905/39 .

Macquarie Ridge: NIWA 21148 , 1 female (pcl 8.0 mm), Clementsville seamount, 50°00.70'S, 163°41.20'E, 946–1060 m, 23 November 2001, stn. Z15059 .

Diagnosis. Carapace covered with sparsely setose squamae and tubercles; cervical groove distinct; regions well defined; with pair of broad, blunt, flattened epigastric processes; frontal margin with large, blunt antennal process; lateral margins with 4 large, blunt anterolaterally directed teeth; posterior margin unarmed. Rostrum trianguloid, slightly shorter than to slightly longer than one-third pcl; broad basally, margins convex and serrate; apex blunt; dorsally carinate and sparsely tuberculate. Abdominal tergites unarmed; tergite 6 with posterior margin not strongly produced. Telson composed of 8 plates. Eyestalk movable, with short, papillate, tubercular process mediodorsally. P1–3 (cheliped and first two walking legs) with epipod. P1 elongate, twice carapace length; setose and rugose; palm length about twice width. P2–4 coarsely tuberculate; carpi extensor margin spinose; dactyli with 11–16 small movable spines on flexor margin. (Modified after Ahyong & Poore, 2004).

Remarks. The present specimens constitute the first record of the species from outside of Tasmanian waters and agree well with the type description (Ahyong & Poore, 2004). We include specimens of M. tasmaniae collected from seamounts on the southern Kermadec Ridge, the northern Chatham Rise and from the Louisville Ridge to document the occurrences at these localities. The known bathymetric range is extended to 119–1460 m although most specimens were collected from 700–1100 m.

Distribution. Australia (Tasmania) and now from New Zealand (southern Kermadec Ridge, northern Chatham Rise, Kaikoura Canyon, Macquarie Ridge), 119–1460 m.