The Chirostyloidea of the Northeastern Pacific: Host Associations, Range Extensions and a New Species (Decapoda: Anomura).

Four species of chirostyloid squat lobsters, including a new species and a range extension are reported herein from California. Uroptychus nicoleae sp.nov. was collected on a black coral, Lillipathes sp. off San Clemente Island. It is characterized by a rostrum bearing 1 or 2 lateral teeth, the carapace having 5 lateral spines and a belt of 15 spinules on the anterior dorsal surface, and the dactyls of pereopods 2-5 are curved and bearing a continuous row of 6-8 teeth. The new species is morphologically similar to U. bellus of the southwestern Pacific. The color in life is red and pink. Uroptychus occidentalis is reported for the first time off California. The chirostyloids Sternostylus iaspis and S. perarmatus, which also occur off California, are shown in video still images from a remotely operated vehicle. They inhabit antipatharians and soft corals (Primnoidae) and are easily distinguished from species of Uroptychus by their elongate chelipeds and spinose carapaces. We provide northern range extensions for Uroptychus bellus, Sternostylus defensus and Heteroptychus galapagos collected off Costa Rica.

Arthropoda; Crustacea; Decapoda of deep-sea volcanic habitats of the Galapagos Marine Reserve, Tropical Eastern Pacific.

BACKGROUND: The deep-sea biome (> 200 m depth) is the world's last great wilderness, covering more than 65% of the earth's surface. Due to rapid technological advances, deep-sea environments are becoming more accessible to scientific research and ocean exploration around the world and, in recent years, this is also true for the Galapagos Islands. Deep-sea habitats cover the largest proportion of Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR), yet to date, no comprehensive baseline exists on the biodiversity of the benthic fauna associated with volcanic seafloor formations within this region. Closing this knowledge gap is essential to provide information for decision-making for the management of marine resources within the GMR and assessing any potential changes in biodiversity resulting from climate-driven alterations that deep-sea environments are expected to experience. In 2015, the Charles Darwin Foundation's Seamounts of the GMR Research Project, together with the Galapagos National Park Directorate (GNPD) and Ocean Exploration Trust (OET), conducted a joint expedition on board the EV Nautilus. Using Remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), the aim of the expedition was to characterise the geological formations and biological communities present on seamounts, lava flows and other deep-sea habitats (> 200 m) within the GMR. NEW INFORMATION: We provide the first comprehensive image inventory for the phylum Arthropoda from 260 to 3400 m of depth within the GMR. Past studies on deep-sea macroinvertebrates in the GMR have been limited to voucher samples collected from dredging (restricted to soft bottom environments) or by submersibles (only allowing limited biological sampling). The image inventory, presented here, is based on high-definition video transects conducted by the Hercules ROV on board the EV Nautilus. Images of macroinvertebrate morphospecies were captured, catalogued and identified, thus providing the first known image inventory of in-situ macroinvertebrate species from the deep-sea region of the GMR.We present 32 distinct morphospecies occurrences within the class Malacostraca and order Decapoda. We also report 17 different families, three species that are new records to the GMR, in-situ images of two new species to science recently described and one possible new squat lobster, as well as interesting behavioural observations.

Characterization of deep-sea benthic invertebrate megafauna of the Galapagos Islands.

The deep sea represents the largest and least explored biome on the planet. Despite the iconic status of the Galapagos Islands and being considered one of the most pristine locations on earth, the deep-sea benthic ecosystems of the archipelago are virtually unexplored in comparison to their shallow-water counterparts. In 2015, we embarked on a multi-disciplinary scientific expedition to conduct the first systematic characterization of deep-sea benthic invertebrate communities of the Galapagos, across a range of habitats. We explored seven sites to depths of over 3,300 m using a two-part Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) system aboard the E/V Nautilus, and collected 90 biological specimens that were preserved and sent to experts around the world for analysis. Of those, 30 taxa were determined to be undescribed and new to science, including members of five new genera (2 sponges and 3 cnidarians). We also systematically analysed image frame grabs from over 85 h of ROV footage to investigate patterns of species diversity and document the presence of a range of underwater communities between depths of 290 and 3,373 m, including cold-water coral communities, extensive glass sponge and octocoral gardens, and soft-sediment faunal communities. This characterization of Galapagos deep-sea benthic invertebrate megafauna across a range of ecosystems represents a first step to study future changes that may result from anthropogenic impacts to the planet's climate and oceans, and informed the creation of fully protected deep-water areas in the Galapagos Marine Reserve that may help preserve these unique communities in our changing planet.

Chirostyloidean squat lobsters (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura) from the Galapagos Islands.

Seven species of chirostyloidean squat lobsters are reported from the Galapagos Rift zone and Galapagos platform: Eumunida subsolanus n. sp. (Eumunididae), Heteroptychus galapagos n. sp., H. nautilus n. sp. (Chirostylidae), Uroptychus bellus Faxon, 1893, U. compressus n. sp., U. occidentalis Faxon, 1893 (Chirostylidae), and Sternostylus defensus (Benedict, 1902) (Sternostylidae). All new species are described and illustrated, and the two species previously known from the Galapagos Islands, Uroptychus bellus and U. occidentalis, are re-illustrated from respective lectotypes, herein designated, since both original descriptions were only brief. Both the species of Heteroptychus and Eumunida subsolanus are the first representatives of their respective genera in the eastern Pacific and the latter is also the first record for the family Eumunididae in the region.

A sea anemone of many names: a review of the taxonomy and distribution of the invasive actiniarian Diadumene lineata (Diadumenidae), with records of its reappearance on the Texas coast.

Diadumene lineata (Actiniaria: Diadumenidae) is a prolific invader of coastal environments around the world. First described from Asia, this sea anemone has only been reported once from the western Gulf of Mexico at Port Aransas, Texas. No subsequent sampling has located this species at this locality. The first record of the reappearance of D. lineata on the Texas coast from three locations in the Galveston Bay area is provided, and its geographic distribution and taxonomic history reviewed.

Megafauna of the UKSRL exploration contract area and eastern Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean: Annelida, Arthropoda, Bryozoa, Chordata, Ctenophora, Mollusca.

BACKGROUND: There is growing interest in mining polymetallic nodules from the abyssal Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ) in the tropical Pacific Ocean. Despite having been the focus of environmental studies for decades, the benthic megafauna of the CCZ remain poorly known. To predict and manage the environmental impacts of mining in the CCZ, baseline knowledge of the megafauna is essential. The ABYSSLINE Project has conducted benthic biological baseline surveys in the UK Seabed Resources Ltd polymetallic-nodule exploration contract area (UK-1). Prior to ABYSSLINE research cruises in 2013 and 2015, no biological studies had been done in this area of the eastern CCZ. NEW INFORMATION: Using a Remotely Operated Vehicle and Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (as well as several other pieces of equipment), the megafauna within the UK Seabed Resources Ltd exploration contract area (UK-1) and at a site ~250 km east of the UK-1 area were surveyed, allowing us to make the first estimates of megafaunal morphospecies richness from the imagery collected. Here, we present an atlas of the abyssal annelid, arthropod, bryozoan, chordate, ctenophore and molluscan megafauna observed and collected during the ABYSSLINE cruises to the UK-1 polymetallic-nodule exploration contract area in the CCZ. There appear to be at least 55 distinct morphospecies (8 Annelida, 12 Arthropoda, 4 Bryozoa, 22 Chordata, 5 Ctenophora, and 4 Mollusca) identified mostly by morphology but also using molecular barcoding for a limited number of animals that were collected. This atlas will aid the synthesis of megafaunal presence/absence data collected by contractors, scientists and other stakeholders undertaking work in the CCZ, ultimately helping to decipher the biogeography of the megafauna in this threatened habitat.

Uroptychus atlanticus, a new species of squat lobster (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Chirostylidae) from the western Atlantic Ocean.

A new species of squat lobster, Uroptychus atlanticus, is described on the basis of a female specimen taken at a depth of 713-841 m in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico. The new species is readily distinguished from all known species of the genus from the western Atlantic by the very spinose carapace and pereopods, and a transverse row of spines on each of the abdominal tergites 1 and 2.

Uroptychus nitidus (A. Milne-Edwards, 1880) and related species (Crustacea: Decapoda: Anomura: Chirostylidae) from the western Atlantic.

Eight species of squat lobsters of the genus Uroptychus are reported from the western Atlantic based on the collections of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard, the Smithsonian Institution and Texas A&M University. Uroptychus nitidus (A. Milne-Edwards, 1880) is reviewed and redescribed, with a syntype taken at Blake Station 200 off Martinique designated as the lectotype. Uroptychus alphonsei n. sp. is named for U. nitidus variety C Chace, 1942, U. fenneri n. sp. for U. nitidus variety A Chace, 1942, and U. janiceae n. sp. for U. nitidus variety B Chace, 1942; U. lindae n. sp. is described on the basis of specimens collected by the Alaminos in the Caribbean Sea off northern Columbia; U. rafai n. sp. is described based on a sole specimen taken from the Straits of Florida; U. reedae n. sp. is described from among the syntypes of U. nitidus; and U. uncifer (A. Milne-Edwards, 1880) is redescribed to elaborate on its specific status, with the designation of lectotype from Blake Station 299 off the coast of Barbados. The number of species of Uroptychus from the western Atlantic now stands at 21. A key to these species is provided.

Crustaceans from antipatharians on banks of the northwestern Gulf of Mexico.

The stalked barnacle Oxynaspisgracilis, the chirostylid squat lobster Uroptychus sp., and the caridean shrimps Periclimenescf.antipathophilus and Pseudopontonidesprincipis have been collected at 68-124 m by a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) on banks in the northern Gulf of Mexico. These species inhabited six species of antipatharian hosts. Pseudopontonidesprincipis, Oxynaspisgracilis, and Uroptychus sp. were not confined to a single host species. Except for Oxynaspisgracilis, collected by ROV in 2004-2005, these species have not been reported previously in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico.

Mimulus Stimpson, 1860, a junior synonym of Pugettia Dana, 1851 (Decapoda: Brachyura: Majoidea: Epialtidae).

William Stimpson (1860) established Mimulus (Brachyura: Majoidea: Epialtidae), with a single species, Mfoliatus. Rathbun (1894) placed the genus in synonymy with Pugettia Dana, 18951, but subsequent authors have considered Mimulus to be a valid genus. Genetic evidence and re-examination of the morphology indicate that M. foliatus belongs to a clade of majoid crabs consisting of species of Pugettia. We therefore consider Mimulus to be a junior synonym of Pugettia. We provide a list of all species of Pugettia.

Anthropogenic "Litter" and macrophyte detritus in the deep Northern Gulf of Mexico.

A deep-sea trawl survey of the Northern Gulf of Mexico has documented the abundance and diversity of human-generated litter and natural detrital plant material, from the outer margin of the continental shelf out to the Sigsbee abyssal plain. Plastics were the most frequently encountered type of material. Litter and debris were encountered more frequently in the eastern than in the western GoM. Land-derived plant material was located primarily within the head of the Mississippi Canyon, whereas ocean-derived plant material was spread evenly throughout the NE GoM. Human discards were principally from ships offshore. Some of the material was contained in metal cans that sank to the sea floor, probably in order to conform to international agreements that prohibit disposal of toxic material and plastics. The Mississippi Canyon was a focal point for litter, perhaps due to topography, currents or proximity to shipping lanes.

Global patterns and predictions of seafloor biomass using random forests.

A comprehensive seafloor biomass and abundance database has been constructed from 24 oceanographic institutions worldwide within the Census of Marine Life (CoML) field projects. The machine-learning algorithm, Random Forests, was employed to model and predict seafloor standing stocks from surface primary production, water-column integrated and export particulate organic matter (POM), seafloor relief, and bottom water properties. The predictive models explain 63% to 88% of stock variance among the major size groups. Individual and composite maps of predicted global seafloor biomass and abundance are generated for bacteria, meiofauna, macrofauna, and megafauna (invertebrates and fishes). Patterns of benthic standing stocks were positive functions of surface primary production and delivery of the particulate organic carbon (POC) flux to the seafloor. At a regional scale, the census maps illustrate that integrated biomass is highest at the poles, on continental margins associated with coastal upwelling and with broad zones associated with equatorial divergence. Lowest values are consistently encountered on the central abyssal plains of major ocean basins The shift of biomass dominance groups with depth is shown to be affected by the decrease in average body size rather than abundance, presumably due to decrease in quantity and quality of food supply. This biomass census and associated maps are vital components of mechanistic deep-sea food web models and global carbon cycling, and as such provide fundamental information that can be incorporated into evidence-based management.

Nuevos registros de Camarones Carideos en el Perú / Camarones Carideos's new records in Peru

Six species of Caridean sbrimps are reported or the time from Peru: ALPHEOPSIS, CHILENSIS, BETAEUS TRUNCATUS, AUTOMATE DOLICHOGNATHA, PATOUS AFFINIS, LATREUTES ANTIBOREALIS and LYSATA INTERMEDIA. The specimens were collected on the continental shelf and slope, from interlidal zone to depth o 744 m, accoding to the species.

Se registra por primera vez para el mar peruano 6 especies de camarones carideos: ALPHEOPSIS, CHILENSIS, BETAEUS TRUNCATUS, AUTOMATE DOLICHOGNATHA, PATOUS AFFINIS, LATREUTES ANTIBOREALIS y LYSATA INTERMEDIA. Estos camarones han sido colectados en al plataforma continental y en el talud, desde zonas intertidales hasta profundidades de 744 metros, según las especies.