25 



articulating marginal spines at the distal end of the telson. They were taken 

 near Port Blair in the Andamans. 



5075 

 --■ Andamans. J. Wood-Mason. 



7. Metapeneus coniger, Wood-Mason. Plate IV., fig. 12, 12a-h. 



Metapenseus coniyer, Wood-Mason, Ann. Mag:. Nat. Hist. (6) VIIT. 1891, p. 272. Illastrationa of the Zool. 

 Investigator, Crust, pi. L. Rg. 2, 2a, b : Aloock, Cat. Indian Deep Sea Crust., 1901, p. 16. 



Body tomentose. 



Kostrum faintly curved, nearly horizontal, not quite reaching end of 

 antennular peduncle in the male but slightly surpassing it in the female, with 

 6 or 7 (rarely 8) teeth dorsally, in addition to a small isolated epigastric tooth, 

 the teeth not forming much of a crest: no appreciable post-rostral carina 

 behind the gastric region. A small post-ocular angulation, but no spine. 

 Post-antennular (antennal) spine moderate, not continued backwards as a 

 distinct ridge, so that the post-antennular sulcus is faint. Antero-lateral 

 (antero-inferior) angles of carapace broadly rounded-off but bearing a small 

 (branchiostegal) spine. Hepatic spine small. Branchial region very obscurely 

 defined, (1) by a faint groove (anterior portion of cervical groove) running 

 from near the antero-lateral angle of the carapace to the base of the hepatic 

 spine, (2) by a faint sinuous groove running from the hepatic spine nearly to 

 the posterior border of the carapace. 



The 2nd abdominal tergum bears traces of a median carina anteriorly, the 

 8rd— 6th terga are sharply carinated, and the 4)th — 6th are also distinctly sub- 

 carinate on either side of the middle line. The 6th abdominal somite is about 

 twice as long as the 5th, and about as long as the telson. The telson is about 

 as long as the inner caudal swimmeret : it ends very acutely and has on each 

 side, near the tip, 4 marginal spines of which the last alone is fixed. 



Eyes very large. The inner antennular flagellum, which is much longer 

 than the outer, is as long as or longer than the peduncle : in the male its inner 

 border is concave, at the proximal end, up to a small conical denticle. 



The external maxillipeds reach to or nearly to the tip of the antennal 

 scale : the dactylus, in both sexes, is a slender joint, about three-fourths the 

 length of the propodite, with which it articulates end-on: the basis bears a 

 strong antrorse spine. 



A similar spine exists on the basis (and on the ischium also) of the 1st 

 pair of chelipeds only. In the female only there is a pair of minute sternal 

 spines between the 2nd chelipeds. The 5th pair of thoracic legs reach the 

 middle of the antennal scale and are not in any way modified in the male. All 

 the thoracic legs have exopodites. 

 4i 



