The first abyssal record of Axiidea (Crustacea: Decapoda) with a description of a new species of the genus Ambiaxius Sakai amp; de Saint Laurent, 1989 from the Banda Sea.

Abstract

A new species of the axiid genus Ambiaxius Sakai de Saint Laurent, 1989 (Decapoda: Axiidae: Axiidea), Ambiaxius abyssalis sp. nov., is described from the Banda Sea, Southwestern Pacific, at a depth of 30003374 m, which represents the first abyssal record of the family Axiidae and even the infraorder Axiidea. The new species shows a combination of morphological features, that places it in an intermediate position between two species groups of the genus, differing in the shape/armature of the rostrum, the length of the article 4 of the antennal peduncle and the morphology of the pleopod I. The genera Ambiaxius Sakai de Saint Laurent, 1989 (the deepest record30003374 m), Calocarides Wollebaek, 1908 (20002036 m) and Anophthalmaxius de Man, 1905 (1788 m) are of the deepest dwelling representatives of the family Axiidae.