Boone, Crustacea, Cruise of "Alva," 1931 189 



The chelipeds are unequal in both sexes; but more conspicuously 

 so in the large old males. They are smooth, except for denticles and 

 wrinkles along the margins of some of the joints ; especially the ischial 

 and meral joints ; the ischial joint projects very little beyond the cara- 

 pace ; the merus is about three-fifths as wide as the carapace, trigonal 

 and has an enlarged nodule at the inferior distal angle ; the carpus is 

 slightly convex, with a triangular tooth at the inner angle ; the palm 

 (of the larger male claw) is nearly one and one-half times higher than 

 the length of its upper margin ; its outer surface smooth, with two ir- 

 regular depressions ; one at the base of the lower finger and the other 

 behind the base of the upper finger. The fingers are short, gape widely, 

 meeting only at the tip ; the lower finger with one submedian low tooth 

 and several denticles; the upper finger with only very rudimentary 

 denticles. In the smaller cheliped, the gape is much narrower, like 

 a large buttonhole. 



The ambulatories decrease in length in the order 1, 2, 3, 4, the first 

 and second pairs being subequal ; the third pair being shorter than the 

 second by almost the length of the dactyl ; the fourth pair are shorter 

 than the third by the length of the dactyl and half the length of the 

 propodus ; all have the merus long, subcarinate, on its upper lateral 

 margin ; the carpus and propodus also carinate dorsally, subequal ; the 

 propodus with a longitudinal sulcus on its outer lateral face ; the dac- 

 tyl is slightly longer than the related propodus, curved, with the dorso- 

 lateral edge bicarinate and armed on each carina with a series of spine- 

 like denticles. There are numerous small tufts of coarse spines, rather 

 sparsely scattered on the distal end of the merus and the lateral mar- 

 gins of the carpus and propodus. 



Remarks: Col. Alcoek notes that Ortmann considers C. carnifex 

 to be a variety of the West Indian species, C. gaunhumi, and concurs 

 in this view so far as he can judge from a single specimen. The pres- 

 ent writer has had many hundreds of C. guanhumi for study, but only 

 one dead specimen of C. carnifex, which seems anatomically identical. 



References: Cancer carnifex and hydromus Herbst, Naturg. Krab- 

 ben und Krebse, vol. II, p. 163, pi. 41, figs. 1, 2, 1794. 



Cardisoma carnifex Latreille, Encyclop. Meth. T. X, p. 685, 1825. — 

 A. Milne Edwards, T. II, p. 23, 1837. — Guierin, Icon. Regne Anim. 

 Crust., t. 11, pi. 5, fig. 2, 1829-44.— Dana, U. S. Explor. Exped., 

 vol. XIII, Crust., pt. I, p. 377, 1852. — A. Milne Edwards, Ann. 

 Sci. Nat. Zool., ser. 3, t. XX, p. 204, 1853.— Heller, Reise Oster- 

 reich. Fregatte "Novara" Zool., Bd. II, Abth. Ill, p. 35, 1868.— A. 



