Atlantophila cristata

Philyra cristata Miers, 1881

Philyra cristata.—Monod, 1956:144, figs. 177–183 [Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone; references].—Longhurst, 1958:87 [Sierra Leone].—Rossignol, 1962:115 [Congo].—Forest and Guinot, 1966:56 [Guinea; São Tomé].

DISTRIBUTION.—West Africa, from Senegal to the Congo, in depths between 4 and 25 m.

*Philyra laevidorsalis Miers, 1881

Philyra laevidorsalis.—Capart, 1951:47, fig. 13.—Monod, 1956:141, figs. 169–176.—Rossignol, 1957:77.—Longhurst, 1958:87.—Buchanan, 1958:20—Gauld, 1960: 69.—Rossignol, 1962:115.—Forest and Guinot, 1966:56.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.—Pillsbury Material: Ivory Coast: Sta 47, 37 m, bottom with Jullienella, 1 (W).

Other Material: Liberia: Off St. Paul River, Monrovia, 22–29 m, trawl, 4 Nov 1953, G. C. Miller, 1 (W).

Ivory Coast: Off Sassandra, 11 m, 3 Apr 1964, Guinean Trawling Survey, Tr 22, Sta 1, 4, 6 (L).

DESCRIPTION.—Capart, 1951:47.

Figures. Monod, 1956, figs. 169–176.

Male Pleopod: Monod, 1956, figs. 173–176 (Senegal).

Color: Rossignol (1957) noted that this species is a uniform gray beige, with the ventral surface lighter. Capart (1951:47) reported that this species has “couleur uniforme gris brunâtre, plus claire sur la face inférieure; telson blanc ivoire.”

MEASUREMENTS.—Our specimens have carapace lengths of 6 to 11 mm.

BIOLOGY.—Philyra laevidorsalis is a coastal species, generally found in shallow water, in depths between 4 and 18–30 m. Longhurst (1958) found it in 9–86 m off Sierra Leone, but all other depth records in the literature are from 20–25 m or less. Sourie (1954b) found it on coarse shelly sand, bottom with Arca and Pyura, in the Baie de Dakar, and Buchanan (1958) characterized it as a member of the active epifauna, inshore fine sand community, in 3–8 fm (5–15 m) off Ghana. Off Sierra Leone, Longhurst (1958) found it on shelly sand. Forest and Guinot (1966) reported it from mud in 18–30 m, shells in 20–25 m, calcareous algae in 10–12 m, and calcareous algae, sand and mud or shells in 6 to 11 m.

Ovigerous females have been collected in April and May (Monod, 1956; Forest and Guinot, 1966).

DISTRIBUTION.—West coast of Africa, from Cap Blanc, Mauritania, southward to Angola, including the Cape Verde Islands and Principe, in shallow water, from a depth of 4 m to about 30 m. Monod (1956), who summarized the earlier literature, reported material from Senegal and Ghana. Since 1956 it has been recorded from the following localities.

Guinea: 09°36′N, 13°57′W, 18–30 m (Forest and Guinot, 1966).

Sierra Leone: No specific locality, 9–86 m (Longhurst, 1958).

Ivory Coast: 05°03′N, 05°25′W, 20–25 m (Forest and Guinot, 1966).

Ghana: Accra, 3–8 fm (5–15 m) (Buchanan, 1958). OfT Accra and Takoradi, 15–20 m (Gauld, 1960).

Principe: Between Ponta da Mina and Ilhéu Santana, 10–12 m; in front of (Cais de) Santana, 11 m; and between Ponta da Mina and Ponta Novo Destino, 6 m (all Forest and Guinot, 1966).

Congo: Pointe-Noire, beach (Rossignol, 1957). Baie de Pointe-Noire, 7–15 m (Rossignol, 1962).

Pseudomyra Capart, 1951:48 [type-species: Pseudomyra mbizi Capart, 1951, by original designation and monotypy; gender: feminine],

*Pseudomyra mbizi Capart, 1951

Pseudomyra mbizi Capart, 1951:49, fig. 14, pl. 2: fig. 24.—Monod, 1956:140, figs. 167, 168.—Rossignol, 1962:115.—Guinot and Ribeiro, 1962:30.—Crosnier, 1964:35.—Forest and Guinot, 1966:56.—Voss, 1966:35.—Le Loeuff and Intès, 1968:40.—Maurin, 1968b:491, 492.—Crosnier, 1970:1215, 1216. Pseudomyra.—Voss, 1966:33, 36.

Pseudomyra m'bizi.—Le Loeuff and Intès, 1968, table 1 [erroneous spelling]; 1969:66.

MATERIAL EXAMINED.—Pillsbury Material: Liberia: Sta 68, 70 m, broken shell, 19, 32 (23 ov), 7 juv (W). Sta 69, 29 m, coral or rock, 1 (W).

Ivory Coast: Sta 42, 62–75 m, mud with brown, branched Foraminifera, 174, , juv (L,W). Sta 45, 73–97 m, 9, 3 (W). Sta 49, 73–77 m, 11, 3, 7 juv (L). Sta 50, 128–192 m, 1, 2 (W). Sta 59, 55–64 m, mud with dense, branched Foraminifera, 5, 4 (W). Sta 60, 79–82 m, coral or rock, 3 (L). Sta 62, 46 m, brown, branching and foliate Foraminifera, 45, 26 (L). Sta 63, 64 m, sandy mud with shells, 11, 6 (1 ov), 2 juv (L).

Ghana: Sta 28, 49–53 m, 1, 1 (W). Sta 29, 58–60 m, 1 (L). Sta 32, 110 m, 2, 1 (L). Nigeria: Sta 232, 100–132 m, green mud, 2 (W). Sta 236, 101–128 m, coral ground, rough, 3 (L). Sta 237, 101 m, 13, 7 (4 ov), 7 juv (W). Sta 239, 73 m; 20, 7 (5 ov), 4 juv (L,W). Sta 241, 59–63 m, mud and shell: 9, 6 (5 ov) (L). Sta 245, 64–119 m, mud, 4, 2 (1 ov) (W). Sta 246, 37 m, 3 (L). Sta 254, 148–174 m, 3, 3 (2 ov), 2 juv (L).

Cameroon: Sta 259, 59 m, mud and broken shell, 4 (L).

Geronimo Material: Gabon: Sta 185, 200 m, 3, 5 (W). Sta 187, 300 m, 8, 6 (W).

Undaunted Material: Angola: Sta 103, 90 m, 1 (L).

Other Material: Ivory Coast: Off Grand-Lahou, 20 m, dredge, 31 Mar 1964, Guinean Trawling Survey, Tr 24, Sta 1, 1 ov (L).

DESCRIPTION.—Capart, 1951:50.

Figures: Monod, 1956, figs. 167, 168.

Male Pleopod: Capart, 1951, pl. 2: fig 24 (Congo); Monod, 1956, fig. 167 (Senegal).

Color: Capart (1951:51) noted that the color was “rose orangé avec extrémités des pinces et pattes plus claires.”

MEASUREMENTS.—Our specimens have carapace lengths of 4 to 19 mm; carapace lengths of ovigerous females range from 10 to 17 mm.

BIOLOGY.—This species inhabits moderate depths, between 12–15 and 300 m, occurring most frequently between 50 and 100 m; 57% of the material reported by Capart (1951) and 54% of our material occurred in depths between 50 and 100 m. Crosnier (1964) noted that the species was eurythermic, occurring over most of the continental shelf off Cameroon. It apparently prefers mud or muddy sand. Maurin (1968b) found it on mud or very muddy fine sand in 40–50 m, and Forest and Guinot (1966) took it on sand, mud and shell in 64 m and on rocks and mud in 90–105 m. Our specimens were taken on a variety of bottoms, including mud with Foraminifera, sandy mud with shells, broken shell, coral or rock, or on plain mud or green mud.

Le Loeuff and Intès (1968:40) noted: “Rarement pêchê au-dessus de 50 mètres, P. mbizi fréquente les fonds de toute la partie profonde du plateau continental [of the Ivory Coast], c'est-àdire des eaux froides et salées—température inférieure à 20°C, salinité supérieure à 35,4 o/oo—et des sédiments sablo-vaseux.”

Ovigerous females have been recorded in March, April, May, June, July, August, October, and December (Capart, 1951; Guinot and Ribeiro, 1962).

DISTRIBUTION.—Off West Africa, from scattered localities between northern Senegal and Angola, in depths between 12–15 and 300 m, usually between 50 and 100 m. Judging from records in the literature, it is most abundant in the central part of its range, from the Ivory Coast to the Congo. Monod (1956) recorded material from Senegal. Since 1956 it has been recorded from the following localities.

Senegal: Off Saint-Louis, 75–85 m, and off Mboro, 40–50 m (Maurin, 1968b).

Liberia: 04°34.5′N, 08°31′W, 64 m (Forest and Guinot, 1966).

Ivory Coast: No specific locality (Le Loeuff and Intès, 1969). Off Grand-Lahou, off Grand-Bassam, 50–200 m (Le Loeuff and Intès, 1968).

Nigeria: Off the mouths of the Niger River, 04°05′N, 05°28′E, 90–105 m (Forest and Guinot, 1966). 05°56′N, 04°27′E to 05°54′N, 04°27′E, 101–132 m; 04°56′N, 05°00′E to 04°54′N, 05°05′E, 73 m; 04°32′N, 05°07′E to 04°31′N, 05°13′E, 64–119 m (Voss, 1966).

Cameroon: No specific locality (Crosnier, 1964).

Gabon: W of Mayumba, 20 m (Rossignol, 1962).

Congo: W of Pointe-Noire, 100 m (Rossignol, 1962).

Angola: 2 miles [3.2 km] S of Luanda lighthouse, Luanda, 50 m; Luanda, 80 m; and Baía Farta, Benguela (Guinot and Ribeiro, 1962). 17°06′S, 11°35′E, 90 m (Crosnier, 1970).

CYCLINEA Dana, 1851b:122, 131.

BELLIDEA Dana, 1852a:119 [corrected to Belliidae by Guinot, 1976:15.]

ACANTHOCYCLIDAE Dana, 1852b:145.