Family ANTARCTURIDAE Poore, 2001

Chaetarcturus crosnieri

© Copyright from Poore 1998.

Museums

Regional Maps

• Antarcturidae Poore, G.C.B. 2001. Isopoda Valvifera: diagnoses and relationships of the families. Journal of Crustacean Biology 21: 205-230 [234].

Introduction

Antarcturids lack the elongate pereonite 4 that characterises Arcturidae (Poore, 2001). The anterior body is held erect to allow filter feeding using long setae on pereopods 2–4 (Wägele, 1987). The mouthparts are visible in lateral view. The family is diverse, especially in deep water of the Southern Ocean. The major revision of Brandt (1990) established many of the current genera.

Diagnosis

Body more or less cylindrical, without coxal dorsal plates or pleonal epimera, flexed between pereonites 4 and 5, anterior segments held slightly erect. Pereopod 1 gnathopod-like; pereopods 2–4 elongated, with even rows of long filter-setae, differentiated from ambulatory pereopods 5–7; with prominent dactyli, unguis short. Uropodal exopod (smaller ramus) tapering (with terminal seta or setae only). Pleopod 1 peduncle more elongate than rami, longer than on other pleopods; exopod of male thickened and with groove on posterior face, ending distolaterally or laterally on simple margin.

General References

Brandt, A. 1990. Antarctic valviferans (Crustacea, Isopoda, Valvifera) new genera, new species and redescriptions. Leiden : E.J. Brill 176 pp.

Poore, G.C.B. 2001. Isopoda Valvifera: diagnoses and relationships of the families. Journal of Crustacean Biology 21: 205-230

Wägele, J.W. 1987. The feeding mechanism of Antarcturus and a redescription of A. spinacoronatus Schultz, 1978 (Crustacea: Isopoda: Valvifera). Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological Sciences 316: 429-458

History of changes