Gonodactylolus paulus Manning, 1970b

Gonodactylolus paulus Manning, 1970b

( Fig. 7 View FIGURE 7 )

Gonodactylolus paulus Manning, 1970b: 206–209 , fig. 1 [ type locality Tanikely, Madagascar].— Cappola & Manning, 1995: 274.— Ahyong, 2005: 159.

Material examined. KZN: SAMC-A015638 , 1 ♀ (TL 12 mm), Sodwana Bay, 27°31’00.1”S 32°40’59.9”E, 23 Jul 1976, 13.5 m, RW 76–13, coll GoogleMaps . R. Winterbottom, det. S, Ahyong ; SAMC-A015639 , 3 ♀ (TL 13–14 mm), Sodwana Bay, 27°31’00.1”S 32°40’59.9”E, 27 Jul 1976, 13.5 m, RW 14, same as above GoogleMaps ; SAMC-A015640 , 1 ♂ (TL 10 mm), 2.5 km south of Boteler Point , 27°01’59.9”S 32°51’00.0”E, 30 Jul 1976, shallow intertidal, RW 76-23, same as above GoogleMaps .

Diagnosis. Ocular scales low, poorly formed, apparently fused medially; eyestalk inflated, broader than cornea; cornea subglobular, tapering distally. Rostral plate with basal portion with anterior margins concave; anterolateral angles acute but rounded; lateral margins transverse; apical spine much longer than base. Carapace with anterior margins of lateral plates truncated. Antennal scale broad. Mandibular palp absent. Raptorial claw dactylus with prominent notch on outer proximal margin.TS5–8 and AS 1–6 unarmed; AS 6 with six low bosses, unarmed posteriorly. Telson wider than long, with three pairs of marginal teeth; SM well-developed; IM distinct but stout, usually shorter than two IM denticles; LT teeth demarcated by small notch, apex blunt, not projecting well off margin of telson. Telson MD and anterior SM carina inflated; SM and IM carina short; MG carina present. Uropodal exopod proximal segment lacking fixed ventral spine on outer margin, inner margin smooth; distal segment of exopod setose and with subterminal articulation with proximal segment. Uropodal endopod ovate, broad with margin completely setose. Uropodal basal prolongation with rectangular projection on mesial margin, proximal to articulation of endopod.

Measurements. ♂ (n = 1) TL 10 mm, ♀ (n = 4) TL 12–14 mm. CI 435–625.AWCLI 620–740. Several specimens examined herein are recorded at TL 14 mm and are the largest known specimens.

Colour in alcohol. Almost completely faded, but with traces of a lateral black spot on each abdominal somite. Black spot positioned on dorsal niche of carpus of raptorial claw and two spots on carapace lateral margin. Colour in life unknown.

Distribution and habitat. Western Indian Ocean from Somalia, Réunion, Madagascar and South Africa; 0– 13.5 m ( Ahyong 2005); supposedly associated with coral reef substrata, as well as rocky intertidal.

Remarks. Gonodactylolus paulus has several characteristic features, such as the unusual shape of the eye, the unusually large ventral projection of the rostral plate and the broad antennal scale. After the description of this small monotypic genus from Madagascar ( Manning 1970b), four female specimens were identified from the Western Indian Ocean. The first and only species account from South Africa was by Ahyong (2005) from Sodwana. Those specimens were re-examined and illustrated herein, including the first illustration of a male specimen. The present specimens of G. paulus agree well with the description of the holotype housed in the Muséum National d’Histoire naturelle, Paris. Specimens from Réunion were noted to be host to the parasitic gastropod Caledoniella montrouzieri Souverbie, 1869 ( Cappola & Manning 1995).