Color. — Purplish red with cross bands of buff 

 on chelipeds and walking legs; palms pinkish 

 brown (various authors). 



Habitat. — The species is found predominantly 

 on sand or sandy mud bottoms (Rathbun, 1925) ; 

 10 to 134 fathoms. 



Type localities. — Off Conch Reef, French Reef, 

 and American Shoal [southern Florida]. 



Known range. — Off Marthas Vineyard, Mass.; 

 latitude of New Jersey through West Indies to 

 Grenada. 



Remarks 

 North Carolina in December 



Ovigerous females are known from 



Parthenope (Platylambrus) fraterculus (Stimpson) 



Figures 249, 252D 



Lamorus fraterculus Stimpson, 1871a, p. 130. 

 Parthenope fraterculus: Rathbun, 1925, p. 525, pis. 186-187 ; 

 pi. 190, fig. 2 (rev.). 



Recognition characters. — Carapace subtriangu- 

 lar, approximately four sided, posterolateral mar- 

 gins continuous with sides of posterior margin, 

 and long anterolateral margins in line with 

 rostral borders. Depressions separating branchial 

 from cardiac and hepatic regions deep; cardiac 



Figure 249. — Parthenope (Platylambrus) fraterculus 

 (Stimpson). Male in dorsal view, position of legs 

 reconstructed, legs of left side not shown, 5 mm. 

 indicated. 



and gastric regions connected by a narrow ridge, 

 hepatic and branchial regions by a wider ridge 

 bounded below by a deep hollow visible in side 

 view; hepatic region with a large submarginal 

 tubercle visible in dorsal view. Margin of 

 branchial region cut, into 11 to 13 small teeth; 

 posterior margin with 3 equal teeth. Prominences 

 of carapace ornamented with a few large tubercles 

 and spines as follows: three gastric in a triangle, 

 one genital, two cardiac, and three on branchial 

 ridge. Front inclined about 45 degrees, ending in 

 a narrow, blunt tooth, a blunt tooth on each side 

 above antennules, and outside, below these, a 

 small slender spine. A tubercle on preorbital lobe ; 

 orbit with a small blunt tooth on inner lower 

 angle and a large tubercle between this and angle 

 of buccal cavity. Endognath with row of five 

 tubercles near outer margin. 



Chelipeds of male approximately 2.5 times as 

 long as carapace ; inner, outer, and upper margins 

 of merus with a few unequal stout spines; inner 

 and outer margin of hand armed with triangular, 

 denticulate, unequal teeth, six or seven larger ones 

 on inner, three or four on outer margin; largest 

 tubercle on upper surface at proximal third coni- 

 cal. Walking legs with meri denticulate; dactyls 

 furred except at tip; carpus and propodus of 

 last pair with two or three lobes above and five 

 denticles below. 



Sternum and abdomen tuberculate, second to 

 sixth abdominal segment with a large transverse 

 tubercle. 



Measurements. — Carapace: male, length, 16 

 mm., width, 17 mm.; female, length, 16 mm., 

 width, 18 mm. 



Variations. — There is great individual varia- 

 tion in the nature of tubercles and spines. In 

 some individuals the prominences are low and 

 blunt, in others high and sharp. The front may 

 vary in degree of inclination, and margins of the 

 frontal lobes and orbits may be denticulate, entire 

 or subentire. 



Color. — Uniform red, eggs bright red (various 

 authors). 



Habitat. — The species has been taken predomi- 

 nantly on rocky or shelly bottoms (Rathbun, 

 1925; Holthuis, 1959) ; 4 to 110 fathoms. 



Type localities. — Off Sand Key, Carysfort and 

 Conch Reefs, West of Tortugas, 26 to 68 fathoms 

 [southern Florida]. 



MARINE DECAPOD CRUSTACEANS OF THE CAROLINAS 



269 



