CAPRELLIDAE OF WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC 97 



P. marina is widely distributed in the warmer parts of the Atlantic. 

 It has been collected in plankton tows (fig. 56) at the surface and 

 Stephensen (1927a) reports this species from a depth of 660 m. The 

 habitat does not seem specific because it has been reported on green 

 and brown algae, sea grass, sponges, hydroids, and bryozoans. Boeck 

 (1873-76, p. 671) reports this species on the sea tiu'tle Chelonia; 

 however, he cites van Beneden, 1861, as the authority. Van Beneden's 

 record was for Caprella andreae and not Phtisica. It has also been 

 found among the hydroids and algae which were attached to the 

 carapace of the spider crab Maja. Meinert (1880) cites this species 

 as occurring on the starfish Asterias. There are several records of this 

 species from the guts of fishes such as the blenny, Blennms, cod 

 Gadus dragon net, Callionymus, and the skate. Raja. 



Costa (1960b) reports that P. marina is predatory on Caprella 

 acanthijera. Costa states the P. marina grasps the prey with gnathopod 

 2 and the prey seems almost incapable of violent movement. It seems, 

 therefore, that some venom may be introduced by the poison tooth. 



Proaeginina Stephensen, 1940 



FlageUum of antenna 2 biarticulate, swimming setae absent; 

 mandibular palp 3-segmented, setal formula for terminal article 

 1-x-l, molar present; outer lobe of maxUliped larger than inner 

 lobe; gills on pereonites 3 and 4; pereopods 3 and 4 absent, pereopod 

 5, 6-segmented ; abdomen of male and female with 2 pau's of appendages. 



Type-species: Parvipalpus norvegicus Stephensen, 1931 (by 

 monotypy). 



Remarks.— Stephensen (1931, 1940, 1942) stated that the flagel- 

 lum of antenna 2 is uniarticulate; however, both of the Iceland speci- 

 mens and the Cape Cod specimen which were available to me bear a 

 small article at the tip of the flagellum which is clearly defined by 

 a suture. In Stephensen's (1944a, p. 46) list of the important characters 

 of new genera described since Mayer's (1903) last monograph, he 

 stated that the number of setae on the terminal article of the mandib- 

 ular palp of Proaeginina is greater than 2. Although true, I have altered 

 the generic description to include the 1-x-l setal formula and ha\o 

 also included the biarticulate flagellum on antenna 2. 



Proaeginina norvegica (Stephensen, 1931) 



Figures 48, 54 



Parvipalpus norvegicus Stephensen, 1931, pp. 1-7, figs. 1-3. 



Proaeyinina norvegica. — Stephensen, 1940, pp. 70-72, fig. 8; 1942, pp. 433, 502, 

 503, figs. 68-69; 1944a, pp. 49-50; 1944b, p. 159.— McCain, 1966, p. 92.' 



Diagnosis.— Since this genus is monotypic, the characters of the 

 genus are diagnostic for the species. 



