Abstract
The taxonomy of the deep-water homolid crabs Moloha grandperrini Guinot & Richer de Forges, 1995 and M. alisae Guinot & Richer de Forges, 1995 is re-examined, and the types redescribed and figured. Moloha alisae is reported from South Africa for the first time. A new species with an inflated carapace, M. tumida sp. nov., is also described from southern India and compared with its closest congeners.
Highlights
The Indo-Pacific homolid genus Moloha Barnard, 1946 currently contains six species: M. acutispina (Sakai, 1961), M. alcocki (Stebbing, 1920), M. alisae Guinot & Richer de Forges, 1995, M. faxoni (Schmitt, 1921), M. grandperrini Guinot & Richer de Forges, 1995 and M. majora (Kubo, 1936)
Specimens examined are deposited in the Department of Aquatic Biology & Fisheries, University of Kerala (DABFUK), India; The Natural History Museum (NHM), London; Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (MNHN), Paris; and the Zoological Reference Collection (ZRC) of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, National University of Singapore
Serène & Lohavanijaya (1973) described Paromola alcocki faughni from the South China Sea, but this species was recently synonymised with Paromola macrochira Sakai, 1961
Summary
The Indo-Pacific homolid genus Moloha Barnard, 1946 currently contains six species: M. acutispina (Sakai, 1961), M. alcocki (Stebbing, 1920), M. alisae Guinot & Richer de Forges, 1995, M. faxoni (Schmitt, 1921), M. grandperrini Guinot & Richer de Forges, 1995 and M. majora (Kubo, 1936) (see Guinot & Richer de Forges 1995; Richer de Forges & Ng 2007, 2008). Guinot & Richer de Forges (1995) were unsure about the identity of Paromola alcocki faughni Serène & Lohavanijaya, 1973, and whether it belonged to Moloha; the subspecies was described from a small male from the South China Sea. Ng (2015) recently showed that it was a species of Paromola Wood-Mason in Wood-Mason & Alcock, 1891 s. In their revision of the Homolidae, Guinot & Richer de Forges (1995) recognised three species of Moloha from the western Indian Ocean: M. alcocki (Stebbing, 1920), M. alisae Guinot & Richer de Forges, 1995 and M. grandperrini Guinot & Richer de Forges, 1995. Moloha alisae and M. grandperrini, while distinct from M. alcocki s. Moloha alisae and M. grandperrini, while distinct from M. alcocki s. str. (notably with subcylindrical legs), were both only described from single specimens
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