I9I7-] 



vS. Kemp : Notes on Crustacea Decapoda. 



250 



When viewed from below the median rostral lobe is seen to 

 be longitudinally carinate 

 and behind the eye there 

 is a small post-ocular tooth 

 which is altogether invis- 

 ible from above (text-fig.. 

 7). The antennules when 

 folded are completely con- 

 cealed beneath the front; 

 they are separated at their 

 base by a strong septum. 

 The epistome is rather 

 short. The external maxilli- „, , , , , ■ 



J • -1 i. ^1- c Fig. 7. — R/ivnc/iop/ax deiiieloi, sp. nov. 



pedes are similar to those of / . /- . , , 



p 7 t- Anterior part of carapace, seen from below. 



The chelipedes in both sexes are stouter than the walking legs 



and the chelae are much larger in the male than in the female. 



The merus and carpus are without teeth. 

 The chela of the adult male (text-fig. 8) 

 is about twice as long as high and is not 

 carinate on its upper or lower margins. 

 Except for a gap close to- the base the 

 fingers meet throughout their length; 

 they are armed on their inner margins 

 with 5 or 6 broad interlocking teeth 

 that diminish in size from behind for- 

 wards. The dactylus is nearly twice the 



length of the upper border of the palm. The chela of the female 



is similar, but more slender. In both sexes the chelipedes are 



covered with fine hairs ; on the outer surface 



of the palm of the male they are very long 



and dense, each retaining a quantity of mud. 

 The second walking legs are slightly the 



longest and are a little more than two and a 



half times the length of the carapace. All 



the segments are exceptionally broad and the 



anterior border of the merus in each pair 



ends in a blunt tooth. The dactyli are quite 



flat, very broad, and only slightly curved; 



that of the last pair is only about four times 



as long as wide. The posterior margin is 



without any of the usual recurved teeth, in 



this respect differing from all other Indian 



species of the genus. The walking legs like 



all other parts of the body are covered with r>, , ^, 



fine hairs which form a short but dense fringe demeloi, sp. nov. 



on the posterior borders of the last four seg- Abdomen of male. 



ments. 



The abdomen of the male is similar to that of R. alcocki and 



R. wood-masoni, but is narrower. The ultimate segment is bluntly 



Fig. 8. — Rhvnclioplax 

 demeloi, sp. nov. 



Chela of male (denuded). 



