178 Carcinological Fauna of India. 



whole dorsum of the carapace is occupied by a " pyramid" (as on the 

 billiard table) of 8 or 9 similar coarse spines or acute tubercles — the 

 apex of the pyramid being on the intestinal region — and there is, 

 further, a coarse denticle on either hepatic region : the surface of all 

 these is densely vesiculous. 



The front is broadly bidentate, and the whole of the front edge 

 of the buccal cavern and of the tips of the external maxillipeds can be 

 seen beyond it in a dorsal view. There is a tubercle near the base of the 

 distal piece of the exognath. 



The chelipeds are stout, and are rather more than half again as 

 long as the carapace : the hand is subglobular : the fingers are some- 

 what longer than the hand, are elegantly grooved, meet in all their 

 extent, open nearly vertically, and are hollowed and curved inwards ; 

 the dactylus is less massive than the immobile finger : at the base of 

 the dactylus, on the upper surface of the hand is a small tubercle. 



The abdomen of the female consists of 4 pieces — the 3rd to 5th 

 terga being fused. 



Colours in spirit light orange yellow. 



An ovigerous female has the carapace 5 millim. loug and 6 millim. 

 broad. 



Loc. Off Ceylon, 34 fms. 



Nursia, Leach. 



Nursia, Leach, Zool. Miscell. III. p. 18. 

 Nursia, Milne-Edwards, Hist. Nat. Crust. II. 137. 



Nirsia, Bell, Trans. Linn. Soc. Vol. XXI. 1855, p. 307, and Cat. Leucos. Brit. 

 Mus. p. 19. 



Carapace with a broad, usually depressed, symmetrically-wrinkled 

 surface, and with expanded, foliaceons, sinnous, scallopped, or jagged 

 lateral and posterior margins, — the lateral margins somewhat con- 

 cealing the true legs in flexion. Front projecting beyond the epistome 

 and usually well beyond the eyes. 



Orbits with two sutures iu the roof, and a gap at the inner can- 

 thus, and with the upper-outer wall so emarginate as to leave the 

 fully-retracted eye exposed to dorsal view. 



Antennules folding obliquely. Antennas, minute, situated in the 

 inner canthus of the orbit. 



Buccal cavern about as long as it is broad at base, and somewhat 

 narrowed anteriorly ; the exognath not dilated, its outer edge a little 

 curved : the triangular merus is a little over half the length of the 

 ischium, measured along the inner edge. 



The chelipeds relatively to the legs are very massive : in the male 

 they vary from H times to over twice the length of the carapace : 

 183 



