Arenopontia nesaie Cottarelli, 1975

Sak, Serdar, Karaytuğ, Süphan & Huys, Rony, 2024, A revision of the genus Arenopontia Kunz, 1937 (Copepoda, Harpacticoida, Arenopontiidae), including the description of five new species, Zootaxa 5433 (1), pp. 1-50 : 9-10

Arenopontia nesaie Cottarelli, 1975

Arenopontia (Arenopontia) nesaie Cottarelli, 1975 : Bodin (1979: 124)

Arenopontia nesiae Cottarelli, 1975 : Martínez Arbizu & Moura (1994: 57), Wells (2007: 55, 192) [lapsus calami]

Arenopontia nessiae Cottarelli, 1975 : Martínez Arbizu & Moura (1994: 63) [lapsus calami]

Arenopontia ciplaki : nomen nudum in Sak (2004: 117)

Original description. Cottarelli (1975): 65–70; Figs 1–11 , 13–16 , 18–19 , 21–23.

Additional description. Sak et al. (2008: 414–420; Figs 1–5 ).

Type locality. Italy, Sardinia, near Cagliari, Bay of Quartu S. Elena, Poetto beach .

Remarks. Wells (2007) pointed out that many of the arguments used by Cottarelli (1975) to distinguish A. nesiae from A. subterranea were based on a comparison with very inadequately described aspects of A. subterranea . Both sexes of this species were recently redescribed in detail by Sak et al. (2008), based on material from Dutlimanı beach (Sea of Marmara, Türkiye). They noted minute differences with Cottarelli’s (1975) type material from Sardinia, Italy, and considered Mitwally & Montagna’s (2001) Egyptian population, identified as A. nesaie , a taxon of doubtful identity (see below). The species is widespread in the Mediterranean from the Spanish east coast to at least Crete and the Turkish west coast ( Cottarelli 1975; Martínez Arbizu & Moura 1994; Bruno et al. 1998; Sak 2004; Lampadariou et al. 2005; Sevastou 2005; Sak et al. 2008; Sevastou et al. 2011; Alper et al. 2015; Metin et al. 2022).

Arenopontia nesaie is most closely related to A. gunduzi sp. nov. (known only from the Pas-de-Calais region, France) with which it shares the dorsal spur on the caudal ramus and the armature formula of P2–P6. It differs from this species in the longer P1 endopod, the shorter P4 enp-1 (being distinctly shorter than P4 exp-1 instead of equally long), the innermost element on the fifth legs of both sexes being longer and more slender, and the relatively longer posterior spinous process on the caudal ramus. Arenopontia subterranea lacks the dorsal spur on the caudal ramus and has a distinctly shorter P1 endopod (enp-1:exp = 1.5 vs 2.0 in A. nesaie and 1.7 in A. gunduzi sp. nov.). It is conceivable that Bonne’s (2003) record of A. nesaie from the Kwinte Bank off the Belgian coast refers to A. gunduzi sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Arenopontia problematica Masry, 1970 (♀): (A) P1, anterior [coxa omitted]; (B) P2, anterior [protopod omitted]; (C) P3, anterior [protopod omitted]; (D) P4, anterior [protopod largely omitted]; (E) antennule, dorsal; (F) right caudal ramus, lateral; (G) antenna [coxa omitted].

FIGURE 2. Arenopontia anatolica sp. nov. (♀): (A) habitus, lateral; (B) habitus, dorsal.

FIGURE 3. Arenopontia anatolica sp. nov. (♀): (A) antennule, dorsal [two setae on segment 2 incomplete); (B) antenna; (C) free endopod of antenna; (D) mandible [inset: gnathobase viewed from different angle]; (E) maxillule; (F) maxilla; (G) maxilliped.

FIGURE 4. Arenopontia anatolica sp. nov. (♀): (A) P1, anterior; (B) P2, anterior; (C) P3, anterior; (D) P4, anterior.

FIGURE 5. Arenopontia anatolica sp. nov.: (A) anal somite and left caudal ramus ♀, dorsal; (B) posterior part of anal somite and left caudal ramus ♀, lateral; (C) P5 and genital field ♀, ventral; (D) antennule ♂, anterior; (E) left caudal ramus ♀, lateral.

FIGURE 6. Arenopontia anatolica sp. nov.: (A) urosome ♂, ventral; (B) habitus ♂, dorsal; (C) urosome ♀, ventral.

FIGURE 7. Arenopontia basibuyuki sp. nov.: (A) habitus ♀, lateral; (B) habitus ♀, dorsal; (C) habitus ♂, dorsal.

FIGURE 8. Arenopontia basibuyuki sp. nov.: (A) urosome ♀, ventral; (B) urosome ♂, ventral; (C) anal somite and right caudal ramus ♀, lateral; (D) anal somite and caudal rami ♀, dorsal.

FIGURE 9. Arenopontia basibuyuki sp. nov.: (A) antennule ♂, anterior [armature of segments 3–6 partly omitted; see (B)]; (B) antennulary segments 3–6 ♂, anterior; (C) antennule ♀, anterior; (D) antenna ♀, lateral.

FIGURE 10. Arenopontia basibuyuki sp. nov. (♀): (A) P1, anterior; (B) P2, anterior; (C) P3, anterior; (D) P4, anterior.

FIGURE 11. Arenopontia adriatica sp. nov. (♀): (A) urosome, ventral [genital field not figured]; (B) anal somite and caudal rami, dorsal; (C) antennule, dorsal; (D) antenna, lateral; (E) free antennary endopod, medial; (F) rostrum and first antennulary segment, dorsal.

FIGURE 13. Arenopontia gunduzi sp. nov. (♀): (A) habitus, dorsal; (B) habitus, lateral; (C) anal somite and left caudal ramus, lateral; (D) anal somite and caudal rami, dorsal.

FIGURE 14. Arenopontia gunduzi sp. nov.: (A) urosome ♀, ventral; (B) urosome ♂, ventral; (C) antennule ♀, ventral.

FIGURE 15. Arenopontia gunduzi sp. nov. (♀): (A) P1, anterior; (B) P2, anterior; (C) P3, anterior; (D) P4, anterior.

FIGURE 16. Arenopontia gunduzi sp. nov.: (A) habitus ♂, dorsal; (B) antenna ♀, lateral; (C) antenna ♀, medial; (D) antennule ♂, ventral [armature of segments 3–6 partly omitted; see (E)]; (E) antennulary segments 3–6, anterior ♂ [modified elements on segments 7–8 omitted].

FIGURE 18. Arenopontia syltensis sp. nov.: (A) urosome ♀, ventral; (B) urosome ♂, ventral; (C) habitus ♂, dorsal.

FIGURE 19. Arenopontia syltensis sp. nov.: (A) anal somite and caudal rami ♀, dorsal; (B) rostrum and left antennule ♀, dorsal; (C) antennule ♂, dorsal; (D) antenna ♀; (E) distal part of antennary endopod ♀, viewed from different angle.