Clorida japonica Manning, 1978

Nakajima, Hiroki, Ueda, Tetsuya, Itani, Gyo & Osawa, Masayuki, 2024, The mantis shrimp genus Clorida Eydoux & Souleyet, 1842 (Crustacea: Stomatopoda: Squillidae) in Japan, with the first Japanese record of Cloridina ichneumon (Fabricius, 1798), Zootaxa 5463 (4), pp. 501-523 : 504-507

Clorida japonica Manning, 1978

[Japanese name: Sanuki-meboso-shako]

( Fig. 2 )

Restricted synonymy.

Squilla latreillei .— Komai 1927: 308, 309.

Clorida japonica Manning, 1978: 25 , 26, fig. 12 [type locality: Sanuki (= Kagawa Prefecture), Shikoku, Japan].— Ahyong & Naiyanetr 2000: 320–322, fig. 3.— Ahyong et al. 2008: 85, 86, fig. 65.— Ariyama et al. 2014: 31–34, figs. 4A, B, 5.

Not Clorida japonica .— Ariyama 2012: 176, unnumbered fig.— Ariyama et al. 2014: fig. 4B1, B2.— Okada et al. 2016: fig. 2. [= Cloridina ichneumon ( Fabricius, 1798) ].

Material examined. OMNH-Ar-12752, 1 female (TL about 50 mm, CL 10.3 mm), Nishime, Kami-amakusa City , Kumamoto Prefecture, subtidal, coll. T. Watanabe, shovel digging, 3 Jun. 2012 . UMUTZ-Crs-Sto-49, 1 male (TL 62.9 mm, CL 11.9 mm), Nagasaki Prefecture, coll. I. Kaneko, in 1918, date and detailed locality unknown. RUMF-ZC-7277, 1 male (TL 45.1 mm, CL 8.7 mm), Hakata Island , Ehime Prefecture, coll. H. Ishikawa, shovel digging, 24 Jul. 2021 . RUMF-ZC-7653, 1 female (TL 24.7 mm, CL 4.7 mm), locality same as RUMF-ZC-7277, shovel digging, coll. R. Goto, 19 May 2023 . OMNH-Ar-12751, 1 male (TL about 35 mm, CL 6.6 mm), North of Shodo Island, Kagawa Prefecture, 34°33'27.0"N, 134°11'29.4"E, 20 m, coll. Kagawa Prefectural Fisheries Experiment Station , 6 Dec. 2015 . RUMF-ZC-7436, 1 male (TL 66.1 mm, CL 12.9 mm), Yura fishing port, Awaji Island , Hyogo Prefecture, 4 m, airlift suction sampler, coll. T. Tamego & K. Hanano, 13 Oct. 2018 . OMNH-Ar-9575, 1 female (TL 63.9 mm, CL 12.3 mm), Osaka Bay, 1.5 km off Okada , Osaka Prefecture, 12 m, coll. Osaka Prefectural Fisheries, Ishigeta dredge, 17 Jun. 1976 . OMNH-Ar-9576, 1 male (TL 51.7 mm, CL 10.0 mm), Osaka Bay, east of Kansai International Airport , Osaka Prefecture, about 15 m, Ishigeta dredge, coll. Marine Fisheries Research Center of Osaka Prefecture, 13 Dec. 2012 .

Diagnosis. Eye peduncle relatively slender ( Fig. 2D ). Carapace with anterolateral spines ( Fig. 2A–C ).A1 somite dorsal processes with short, triangular apices ( Fig. 2D ). Distal margin of second segment of A2 peduncle extending anteriorly beyond eyes. Mandibular palp present. Raptorial claw dactylus with 5 teeth; extensor margin without basal notch ( Fig. 2E ). TS5 lateral process with acute triangular lobe in posterior view ( Fig. 2F ). TS6–8 lacking SM carinae. AS 1–3 without SM carinae. Telson with or without postanal carina ( Fig. 2H ). Eye stalk without black band dorsally ( Fig. 2A–D ). A2 scale without black pigments ( Fig. 2A–C ).

Colour in life. Body entirely brown or whitish beige ( Fig. 2A, B ). Anterior cephalothorax dark brown, entire margin of carapace with narrow black line. A2 scale white. Raptorial claw merus anterolaterally dark brown, meral spot white. TS6–8 and AS 1–6 posterior margins each with narrow black line. AS 1–5 with marginal white patches. Uropodal exopod generally whitish; proximal segment with black patch on postero-mesial margin, distal segment with dark brown line on proximo-mesial margin. Mature female with reddish pink ovaries visible externally ( Fig. 2A ).

Remarks. The holotype of C. japonica was collected from Sanuki in 1897, where is now Kagawa Prefecture, western Japan ( Manning 1978). In this study, we examined specimens collected from Kagawa Prefecture (OMNH-Ar-12751) and its adjacent localities in the Seto Inland Sea, and also western Kyushu Island. These specimens agreed well with the redescription of C. japonica by Ahyong & Naiyanetr (2000) and are undoubtfully identified to that species.

Manning (1978) originally described this species as having a long postanal carina on the telson, but Ahyong & Naiyanetr (2000) re-examined the holotype (ZMH K7353, male, TL 44 mm; deposited in Zoologishes Institut und Zoologisches Museum, Hamburg) and showed the postanal carina is actually short ( Ahyong & Naiyanetr 2000: fig. 3J). Examination of the present material revealed that the development of the postanal carina varies; a male (RUMF-ZC-7277, TL 45.1 mm, Fig. 2B ) of similar size to the holotype lacks the postanal carina, whereas a larger male specimen (RUMF-ZC-7436, TL 66.1 mm, Fig. 2C–H ) has a distinct postanal carina ( Fig. 2H ), which is longer than that of the holotype.

Prior to the present study, C. japonica was the only species of the genus occurring in Japanese waters ( Hamano 1989; Ariyama et al. 2014). Nevertheless, it is worth mentioning that the history of records for the species had been somewhat complicated. Komai (1927) reported two specimens referred to Squilla latreillei ( Eydoux & Souleyet, 1842) from Nagasaki Prefecture, western Kyushu Island. We recently found the specimens (UMUTZ-Crs-Sto-42 and UMUTZ-Crs-Sto-49) that Komai (1927) most probably reported and the re-examination of the specimens showed that they are refereable to C. japonica instead. Because the label of UMUTZ-Crs-Sto- 42 specimen is unfortunately now lost, we do not list the specimen in Material examined; whereas another specimen (UMUTZ-Crs-Sto-49) still has an old label which agrees with the specimen data of Komai (1927). Detailed locality of the specimen is unknown, but the species undoubtfully inhabited Nagasaki Prefecture about a century ago.

After the original description of C. japonica by Manning (1978), Hamano (1989) reported nine specimens of the species from the following Japanese localities: Seto Inland Sea; Fukui Prefecture; Yamaguchi Prefecture; Hakata Bay; Imari Bay; Ariake Sea; and Omura Bay, Nagasaki Prefecture. However, he mentioned that the specimens have or lack the mandibular palp ( Hamano 1989: 61, table 2), but this feature is useful in distinguishing species of Clorida well as other stomatopod genera in general (cf. Ahyong 2001). Furthermore, Hamano’s (1989) specimens have other variations in the development of the AS 1–3 submedian carinae and postanal carina of the telson, although the latter character similarly varies in the specimens examined of C. japonica in the present study as mentioned above. These may suggest that Hamano’s (1989) specimens contain more than one species which does not belong to the true C. japonica . Therefore, all the localities of the specimens of C. japonica reported by Hamano (1989) and re-compiled Hamano (2005) are excluded from the distribution map of Japanese species of Clorida ( Fig. 11 ) until these records can be checked.

Ariyama (2012) reported C. japonica from Kumamoto Prefecture with two photographs of a specimen ( Ariyama 2012: 176, unnumbered figure), but the whereabouts of the specimen is unknown (H. Ariyama and T. Watanabe, personal communication with the first author). Judging from Ariyama’s (2012) photographs, the specimen can belong to Cloridina ichneumon ( Fabricius, 1798) (see Remarks of Cn. ichneumon mentioned below). Ariyama et al. (2014) subsequently reported C. japonica from Osaka Bay based on two specimens (OMNH-Ar-9575 and 9576). We re-examined these specimens and confirmed that they are undoubtfully identified to C. japonica . However, the two photographs of a specimen ( Ariyama et al. 2014: fig. 4B1, B2) were found to be actually based on the lost Cn. ichneumon specimen used in Ariyama (2012) due to an error (H. Ariyama, personal communication with the first author).

Although Okada et al. (2016) reported C. japonica from Kochi Prefecture based on 12 specimens, as mentioned above in Remarks of C. albolitura , nine specimens which we could reexamined did not belong to C. japonica and included three different squillid species, C. albolitura , Cn. ichneumon , and Lenisquilla lata . Remaining three specimens which we could not examined were probably Cn. ichneumon because of the collection locality.

Distribution. Taiwan and Japan ( Ahyong et al. 2008; This study). Distribution in Japan ( Fig. 11 ): definitely known from Kumamoto Prefecture (this study), Nagasaki Prefecture ( Komai 1927 as Squilla latreillei ; this study), Ehime Prefecture (this study), Kagawa Prefecture ( Manning 1978; this study), Hyogo Prefecture (this study), and Osaka Prefecture ( Ariyama et al. 2014; this study).

Ecological note. Sand and mud substrates from the intertidal zone to about 20 m depth ( Ahyong et al. 2008; this study). An unidentified copepod specimen, possibly belonging to the genus Hemicyclops Claus, 1893 , was observed on the gills of RUMF-ZC-7653 specimen.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Clorida japonica Manning, 1978. A, OMNH-Ar-12752, female, TL about 50 mm, photographed while alive; B, RUMF-ZC-7277, male, TL 45.1 mm, photographed after freezing; C–H, RUMF-ZC-7436, male, TL 66.1 mm, photographed after about 4 years preservation in ethanol. A–C, entire body, dorsal view; D, anterior cephalothorax, right lateral view, anterior tip of A1 somite dorsal process (arrow); E, right raptorial claw, lateral view; F, TS5, right posterolateral view, lateral lobe (arrow); G, AS6, uropod and telson, dorsal view; H, same, ventral view. Scale bars: 5 mm. Photograph credits: T. Watanabe (A), H. Nakajima (B–H).

FIGURE 11. Map showing the occurrences of five Clorida species and Cloridina ichneumon in Japan. Record of C. japonica at Nagasaki Prefecture, Kyushu Island (based on Komai 1927) is approximately plotted because of limited locality data.