Mimonecteola diomedeae Woltereck

Zeidler, Wolfgang, 2009, A review of the hyperiidean amphipod superfamily Lanceoloidea Bowman & Gruner, 1973 (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hyperiidea), Zootaxa 2000, pp. 1-117 : 98-100

Mimonecteola diomedeae Woltereck

( Fig. 37)

Mimonecteola diomedeae Woltereck, 1909: 153 , pl. 40, fig. 10. Vinogradov 1964: 120–121, fig 7. Vinogradov et al. 1982: 102–103, fig. 38. Vinogradov 1990: 51. Vinogradov & Semenova 1996: 617.

Mimonecteola beebei (misidentification) – Vinogradov 1960a: 212–213, fig. 8.

Type material. Type material could not be found in any major European museum or in the USNM and is considered lost. The type locality is the eastern tropical Pacific, off Peru [05º57’30”S 85º50’W]; Albatross Stn. 4655, and about 700 km. S.W. of Galapogos Is. [05º11’S 98º56’W]; Albatross Stn. 4717 .

Diagnosis. According to Woltereck’s (1909) description and figure of specimen measuring about 9 mm. Antennae 1 as long as head and first two pereonites combined (medially). Antennae 2 length about 1.3x A1. Gnathopod 1; basis slightly shorter than remaining articles combined; dactylus very short. Gnathopod 2; length about 1.2x G1; basis length about 0.7x remaining articles combined (excluding dactylus); dactylus very short. Pereopods 3 & 4 similar in structure with P4 marginally longer; basis length about twice merus; carpus slightly shorter than merus, considerably broadened medially with convex margins; propodus as long as basis, relatively narrow; dactylus very short. Pereopod 5; length 0.8x P4; basis length 3.6x merus; carpus about twice length merus; propodus similar in length to merus, relatively narrow; dactylus very short. Pereopod 6 marginally shorter than P4; basis length 2.4x merus; carpus length about 1.5x merus; propodus length 1.2x carpus, relatively narrow; dactylus very short but marginally longer than for P3–5. Pereopod 7; length 0.6x P6; basis length 3x merus; carpus length 1.7x merus; propodus subequal in length to carpus; dactylus as in P6. Telson length less than half peduncle of U3.

Colour, according to Vinogradov & Semenova (1996); “the body is a translucent olive color; the pereopoda are rose-red”.

Remarks. As discussed above, Woltereck’s description and figure of this species are inadequate to characterise the taxon with certainty. Thus, the literature records pertaining to this species (other than Woltereck) are suspect and may refer to another species or the new one described here.

Distribution. Woltereck (1909) recorded it from the tropical south-eastern Pacific, off Peru. Additional literature records are from the South Pacific off Chile, south to 41°21’S and the Indian Ocean, north of Madagascar and in the central part [10°S 86°30’E]. It has been recorded from catches from depths greater than 1000 m to the surface.