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Issue: Vol. 501 No. 1: 30 Apr. 2004
Type: Article
Published: 2004-04-30
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.501.1.1
Page range: 1–10
Abstract views: 84
PDF downloaded: 7

Mesosignum weddellensis sp. nov. (Crustacea: Asellota: Mesosignidae), a new isopod species from the abyssal Weddell Sea, Antarctica

Zoological Institute and Museum, University of Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King-Platz 3, 20146 Hamburg, Germany
Zoological Institute and Museum, University of Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King-Platz 3, 20146 Hamburg, Germany
Crustacea Isopoda Mesosignum deep sea Antarctica Southern Ocean taxonomy new species

Abstract

Mesosignum weddellensis sp. nov. is described from the abyssal Weddell Sea, Antarctica. This is the second record of Mesosignum from the Southern Ocean, the other known species being M. antarcticum Schultz, 1979. Mesosignum brevispinis Birstein, 1963 from the Pacific Ocean is the most similar species. The most significant difference is the length of the seventh pereonite, which is only half as long as the other pereonites in M. brevispinis, while in M. weddellensis it is as long as the other pereonites.

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