Report on the zoological collections made in the Indo-Pacific Ocean ...

240 COLLECTIONS FROM MELANESIA.small pits ; this coating, whicli is apparently the natural coveringof the species, is entirely absent from the transverse depressions,but covers in great part the ventral surface of the body and the legs.The front is rather less than one third the greatest width of thecarapace and is notched in the middle ; the very short antero -lateralmargins are armed with three rather obscure teeth, whereof thefirst is situated at some distance from the orbit and the last at theangle formed by the junction of the antero-lateral with the posterolateralmargins, which is also the point at which the carapaceis deflexed. The male postabdomen is as broad at base as thesternum and is 7-jointed ; the first two joints shorter than the rest,the last subtriangulate with a rounded apex. The antennules arenearly transversely plicated ; the basal antennal joint reaches nearlyto the subfrontal process ; the following joints are slender, theflagellum somewhat elongated. The maxillipedes (whose form isdescribed above) have the fifth joints articulated with the merus atits antero-internal angle. The chelipedes, for so small a species, arerather robust ; merus trigonous and more or less granulated ; carpus(or wrist) and palm granulated on their upper and outer surfaces, thegranulations disposed in reticulating lines, the intervening spaces orpits between which are smooth ; the fingers are shorter than thepalm, acute at the apices, and dentated and meeting along their innermargins. The ambulatory legs are of moderate length ; the merusjointsare rather slender, trigonous, with the margins thin-edged orcarinated, as are also the upper margins of the two followingjoints ; the dactyli are slender and styliform. The male vergesarise directly from the bases of the fifth ambulatory legs, and arenot contained in sternal channels ; they are rather broad at baseand strongly recurved at the distal extremities. Colour (in spirit)whitish. The length of the largest example I have seen is barely2| lines (.5 millim.), and width less than 3 lines (6 millim.).Two male specimens were collected in Prince of Wales Channel,at 7-y fms. (No. 169).85. Pseudorhombila vestita {De Haan), var. sexdentata, Haswell.(Plate XXIV. fig. B.)PPEucrate sexdeutatus, HasiceU, Cat. Austr. Crust, p. 8G(1882).The carapace and legs are scantily pubescent ; the carapace islittle broader than long and is anteriorly defiexed ; the front isabout one third the greatest width of the carapace, with its anteriormargin straight and entire, the antero-lateral margins shorter thanthe postero-lateral and armed with three teeth (including the toothor lobe at the outer orbital angle) ; the posterior tooth is longest,spiniform, and projects laterally ; the upper margins of the orbits aresinuated, the lower obscurcl}' granulated, and there is a very widehiatus on the inner side of the orbit. All of the postabdominalsegments are distinct ; the second and third segments, althoughlaterally produced, do not reach quite to the bases of the fifth