Maxillipius Commensalis, a Second Species in the Family Maxillipiidae From Papua New Guinea (Amphipoda, Gammaridea)

Ledoyer (1973) described a new family of gammaridean amphipods, the Maxillipiidae. The only species, Maxillipius rectitelson , was found living in less than 1 m of water among a sea grass Enhalus at Nosy-Be, Madagascar. Ledoyer had 7 females, all with oostegites, but none of his specimens was comple...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Crustaceana 1984, Vol.46 (2), p.195-201
Main Author: Lowry, J.K
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Crustacea
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Gammaridea
Invertebrates
Marine
Systematics. Geographical distribution
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Summary:Ledoyer (1973) described a new family of gammaridean amphipods, the Maxillipiidae. The only species, Maxillipius rectitelson , was found living in less than 1 m of water among a sea grass Enhalus at Nosy-Be, Madagascar. Ledoyer had 7 females, all with oostegites, but none of his specimens was complete. During a recent collecting trip to Bootless Bay, Papua New Guinea, the author found a second species, M. commensalis , living in 5 m of water among the branches of a gorgonacean, Melithaea sp. Individuals are identical in colour to the gorgonacean and appear to be obligate commensals for they are found in no other habitat.
ISSN:0011-216X
1568-5403
DOI:10.1163/156854084X00694