Colossendeis colossea Wilson, 1881

Colossendeis colossea Wilson, 1881 View in CoL

Hedgpeth, 1948, 271–272; fig. 50b (literature). Bamber & Thurston, 1995, 144 (key),145; fig. 9 F. Turpaeva, 2006, 139 (literature). Staples, 2007, 87–88, figs; 2A–J, 7A, table 1 (literature). Bamber, 2010, 48–49; fig.87.

Material. Solomon Islands: 1 specimen (MNHN-IU-2007-4744), station CP2218, 07°50.3’S 157°34.6’E, XI 2004, depth 582–864 m, New Georgia. Bouchet, Warén & Samedi-IRD coll. Vanuatu: 1 specimen (MNHN-IU-2007- 4745), station CP2310, 14°45’87”S 167°06’56”E, 15 XI 2004, depth 864–927 m, Vanuatu, NE Santo, BOA0 Alis. 1 specimen (MNHN-IU-2007-4746), station CP2452, 15°59’60”S 166°41’30”E, 11 IX 2005, depth not recorded, Vanuatu, Gouyot Bougainville, BOA1 Alis. Both coll. S Samedi et al.

Remarks. This very large panoceanic species (adult body length about 25 mm) has been recorded before in the Melanesian region from New Caledonia and Vanuatu ( Stock, 1991; 1997) at depths from 844 to 2110 m (globally 420 to 5200 m). However, recently Staples (2007) described Colossendeis tasmanica from the east coast of Australia, a species showing many similarities to C. colossea , with which it may have been confused in the past, and recorded in the present material off the Solomon Islands (see below). It is therefore possible that some of Stock’s ( loc. cit.) earlier records from this region may in fact be C. tasmanica .

Characteristically, amongst other differences tabulated by Staples ( loc. cit.), the terminal oviger claw is fused in C. colossea (as in all the material listed above), but articulated in C. tasmanica .