DECAPOD CRUSTACEANS OF THE WEST INDIES 67 



serrate. Ventral margins of abdominal pleura unarmed. Eyes not 

 reduced. Basal segment of antennular peduncle without dorsal spines 

 proximal to series bordering distal margin. Pereiopods without exopods. 

 Fingers of chelae of first and second pereiopods bearing terminal tufts 

 of long hair. Carpus of second pereiopod much longer than broad. 

 Last three pereiopods without prominent horny scales or tubercles. 

 Merus of thii-d pereiopod not noticeably broader than that of fourth 

 pereiopod. Appendix mascuUna on second pleopod of male forming long, 

 slender, sharp-pointed spike. A small species, maximum postorbital 

 carapace length about 5 mm. 



Color in life. — Male (fig. 11a): Translucent with pale pink suffu- 

 sion; white chromatophores wddely scattered but more concentrated 

 in dorsal and dorsolateral areas (corresponding to locations of stripes 

 and bands in females). Groups of white chromatophores at base of 

 each pleopod and red ones scattered along courses of ventral blood 

 vessels and nerve cord; carapace \vith widely scattered, red chromato- 

 phores but these rarer than white ones, and blue ones absent. Anten- 

 nular peduncle orange red to yellow; tips of fingers of first and second 

 pereiopods orange red and setae extending from them gray to buff; 

 uropods and telson fringed \nth orange-tan setae. 



Female: There are two somewhat distinct color patterns represented 

 among the females of this species that vary in color from almost 

 black, dark blue, or reddish pm-ple to orange red, gold, or translucent. 



1. One pattern (fig. 116) is found among the darker individuals, 

 dark blue or reddish purple; the blue form is described here. Carapace 

 and abdomen dark blue with yellow or whitish translucent median 

 longitudinal stripe from tip of rostrum through basal fifth of telson; 

 blue becoming slightly diluted ventrally over branchiostegites and 

 abdominal pleura. Ventral half of rostrum blue. Third abdominal ter- 

 gum with median stripe expanded laterally as it approaches posterior 

 margin of somite, maximum expansion at posterior margin of somite, 

 there reaching ventrally more than half distance between mid-dorsal 

 line and articular knob at junction of tergum and pleuron. Median 

 stripe also expanded basally on telson and covering distal half of 

 protopodite of uropod and small proximal portion of inner ramus 

 and almost one-thu-d of proximolateral area of outer ramus of uropod. 

 Matching or yellowish transverse band extending across tip of telson, 

 distal fourth of inner ramus of uropod, and distal sixth of outer ramus. 



Antennular peduncle dark blue with flagella tan, inner lighter at 

 base than outer. Antennal peduncle and antennal scale with expanded 

 blue chromatophores, giving both a spotted appearance; flagellum 

 dark tan, darker than flagella of antenmde; sometimes antennal scale 

 pale laterally with dark blue lamellar portion. Podomeres of first and 

 second legs mostly translucent with dark bands or spots, tips of fingers 



