Coxicerberus simplex (Coineau & Botosaneanu, 1973)

 Main Page | Isopoda > Microcerberidea > Microcerberidae > Coxicerberus > Coxicerberus simplex

Suggested Common Name: Reflexed Beach-Cerberus
Etymology: simplex = single or simple [Latin], likely refering to the relatively simple ♂ pleopod 2 endopod morphology compared to C. nunezi and C. mirabilis. Common name refers to the strongly reflexed apical lobe on the ♂ pleopod 2 endopod.
Taxonomic History: Microcerberus simplex Coineau & Botosaneanu, 1973; Coxicerberus simplex Wägele, Voelz & Vaun McArthur, 1995
Size Range: to 0.931mm
Description: (modified from Coineau & Botosaneanu, 1973) Antenna 1 5-segmented, segment 4 with apical pinnate seta. Antenna 2 segment 1 slightly elongated, segment 4 slightly elongated. Pereopods 1-7 basis with dorsal tooth. Pereopod 1 basis with 1 pinnate seta proximal to tooth. Pereonites 2-4 medial lobes with distomedal seta; lateral lobe tooth notch acute. Pereopods 2-4 merus with proximomedial projection tipped with an apical seta. Pereopods 3-7 ischium with 2 setae on either side of the tooth. Pereopods 5-7 merus with proximomedial projection tip produced-acute, lacking seta. ♂ pleopod 2 protopod slightly longer than wide; exopod very short with apical seta; endopod elongate, narrowing towards tip, lateral lobe simple, not constricted, broad-rounded, lateral lamella present, simple, apical lobe contorted, reflected medially from base to point anteriorly, with ciliated bands, margins strongly chitinized, tip simple, lacking proximoapical and distoapical lobes, medial lobe jutting straight posteriorly, margins sinuous, chitinized, narrowing then widening to a somewhat broad shallowly concave tip with acute corners. Uropod with 5 distoapical plumose setae.
Geographic Range: Only known from Playa Juraguá, Santiago de Cuba Province (E of Santiago de Cuba).
Notes: The somewhat simplistic description given in Coineau & Botosaneanu, 1973 mostly compares this species to C. nunezi, with all other features simply being remarked as similar to the latter species. Despite this, C. simplex is highly distinctive by the very elongate and highly reflexed apical lobe on the ♂ pleopod 2 endopod, which is not shared with any other species in the mirabilis group.

Sources

Coineau, N. & Botosaneanu, L. (1973). Isopodes interstitiels de Cuba. In Resultats des Expeditions Biospeologiques Cubano-Roumaines a Cuba. Bucarest: Academy of the Socialist Republic of Roumania, 191-222.

Wägele, J. W., Voelz, N. J., & Vaun McArthur, J. (1995). Older than the Atlantic Ocean: discovery of a fresh-water Microcerberus (Isopoda) in North America and erection of Coxicerberus, new genus. Journal of Crustacean Biology, 15(4):733-745.

Published: Feb 15, 2023