Urocaridella pulchella Yokes & Galil, 2006

Al-Kandari, Manal, Anker, Arthur, Hussain, Sumaiah, Al-Yassen, Sharifa, Sattari, Zainab & Grave, Sammy De, 2020, New records of decapod crustaceans from Kuwait (Malacostraca: Decapoda), Zootaxa 4803 (2), pp. 251-280 : 264

Urocaridella pulchella Yokes & Galil, 2006

( Fig. 9 )

Urocaridella pulchella Yokes & Galil 2006: 749 , figs. 2A, B, 3; Ďuriš 2017: 1157.

Urocaridella cyrtorhyncha . — Ďuriš 2017: 1157, fig. 2b [not U. cyrtorhyncha ( Fujino & Miyake, 1969) ].

Material examined. Kuwait: 1 ov. female, OUMNH. ZC. 2020.01.032, Kubbar Island , 29°04’06.30”N 48°29’21.88”E, depth 7 m, under coral rocks, leg. S. De Grave, 26.ix.2019 [fcn KUW-012]; 1 male, 2 ov. females, OUMNH. ZC. 2020.01.033, same collection details [fcn KUW-013] .

General distribution. Western Indian Ocean, known with certainty from the Mediterranean Sea (Lessepsian migrant), Red Sea ( Saudi Arabia) and the Arabian Gulf ( Kuwait) ( Yokes & Galil 2006; Ďuriš 2017; present study); probably more widespread in the Indian Ocean ( Yokes & Galil 2006).

Ecology. Largely nocturnal in depths below 7 m, facultative fish cleaner ( Ďuriš 2017; Horká et al. 2018; present study).

Remarks. The present specimens are assigned to U. pulchella rather than to the widespread U. cyrtorhyncha Fujino & Miyake, 1969 , primarily on account of the chela being less than 1.3 times the length of the carpus. However, a thorough reassessment of the morphological differences between U. pulchella and U. cyrtorhyncha is necessary.

Figures

FIGURE 9. Urocaridella pulchella Yokes & Galil, 2006: ovigerous female from Kubbar Island, Kuwait (OUMNH.ZC. 2020.01.032), dorsolateral view. Photograph by A. Anker