Mighty claws: a new genus and species of lobster from the Philippine deep sea (Crustacea, Decapoda, Nephropidae)

Abstract

A new genus and species of deepwater lobster of the family Nephropidae, Dinochelus ausubeli n. gen., n. sp., is described from the Philippine Sea off the island of Luzon. The new genus and species is most closely related to species of Thaumastocheles and Thaumastochelopsis, sharing the distinctive, strongly dimorphic chelipeds, and shares features of both genera. Most notably, D. ausubeli n. gen., n. sp. shares movable well-developed eyestalks with species of Thaumastochelopsis (versus highly reduced and fixed eyestalks in species of Thaumastocheles), and similar branchial formula and uropod structure with Thaumastocheles. Dinochelus n. gen. differs from species of Thaumastocheles and Thaumastochelopsis (as well as all other clawed lobsters) in having an inverted, T-shaped epistome. Phylogenetic analysis of 12S rRNA sequences indicated that Dinochelus n. gen. is sister to a Thaumastocheles Thaumastochelopsis clade. The new species is named after Jesse Ausubel at the occasion of the 10-year synthesis of the Census of Marine Life.