468 



BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES. 



Talorchestia longicornis (Say). 



Eyes large; lirst antennse but little exceeding the penultimate joint of peduncle of the second, 

 flagellum about as long a s preceding basal joint, and composed of about six segments; second antenna' 

 long, in males sometimes as long as the body, last joint of peduncle armed with short spinules and 

 longer than all preceding joints; flagellum lunger than peduncle; epimera not so high as their seg- 

 ments, the lower margins short-setose; first gnathopods in male with the fifth joint produced at the 

 infero-distal angle into a long, rounded lobe; sixth joint gently widening distally, the infero-distal 

 angle produced and rounded; palm transverse; claw projecting much beyond the palm; second gnath- 

 opods in male with hand oblong, large, and thick; anterior margin evenly rounded, the posterior 

 nearly straight; palm oblique, the posterior angle produced; middle part of palm with a broad, convex 

 lobe; linger short, strongly curved at tip, closing on the inner side of a prominence at outer end of 

 palm; in the female the first gnathopods resemble those of the male, but there is no prominent lobe 

 on the fifth joint, and the sixth joint is not distally widened nor produced into a lobe at the infero- 

 distal angle; second gnathopods weak, second joint much widened and strongly convex in front; 

 hand oblong, the lower end rounded; dactyl minute and located on the margin some distance above 



Talorchestia longicornis. Woods Hole, Mass. 



The gnathopods ef the male are drawn to a smaller scale than those of (he 

 female. 



-, 



end of hand; third pereopods very short, the second joint as wide as long; first uropods extending 

 slightly beyond second, rami subequal and about equal to peduncle; in the second pair the rami are 

 longer than the peduncle and the inner rami are considerably longer than the outer; ramus of last 

 uropods about as long as peduncle, but much narrower; telson triangular, fleshy, emarginate at tip, 

 and furnished with a median dorsal groove. 



General color whitish, with often a row of brown spots along the middle of the back. Antenna- 

 reddish or pink at the base, flagella blue; propodi of the posterior peraeopods bluish. 



Length, 2 cm. 



Cape ( lod to New Jersey. 



This species is commonly very abundant on sandy beaches. In the daytime these sand fleas lie 

 quiet in their burrows, which are generally some distance above high tide mark. Their presence is 

 indicated by small holes in the sand. The burrows are only a few inches deep, the depth depending 

 largely upon how far the animal has to dig in order to reach moist sand. When dug out in the day- 

 time Talorchestia is rather sluggish and apparently dazed. It often curls up and lies quiet as if feigning 

 death and may even be picked up and handled in some cases without betraying signs of animation. 

 When aroused it commonly makes a few leaps, when, especially if it alights upon loose sand, it lies 

 quiet for a short time and than begins to burrow. At night it comes out of its burrows and may be 

 seen in large numbers running over the seaweed recently washed ashore, which affords its principal 

 food. Then it is very alert and is able to detect one's approach at a distance of several yards. It is 

 strongly attracted to light and gathers around a lantern in swarms. In fact, the easiest way to procure 

 large numbers of this species is to take a lantern into their midst at night, placing it in the middle of 

 a large blanket or sheet. The Talorchestia that congregate about the lantern may then be gathered in 

 quantity and preserved. 



