Vol. 51 No. 2, 2012

Two New Species of Amphipods of the Superfamily Aoroidea (Crustacea: Corophiidea) from the Strait of Malacca, Malaysia, with a Description of a New Genus

Bin Abdul Rahim Azman* and Bin Haji Ross Othman

Marine Ecosystem Research Centre, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 UKM Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia

Bin Abdul Rahim Azman and Bin Haji Ross Othman (2012) A taxonomic study on the amphipods collected from muddy bottom habitats of the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia (Strait of Malacca) revealed 2 new species from the superfamily Aoroidea. Klebang barnardi gen. nov., sp. nov., and Grandidierella melakaensis, sp. nov., are described below. Klebang barnardi sp. nov. differs from the rest of its congeners in the combination of (1) a unique carpal configuration of gnathopod 2, (2) a largely expanded posterior margin of the carpus of gnathopod 1, and (3) a densely setose mandibular palp. Grandidierella melakaensis sp. nov., on the other hand, can be easily distinguished from other Grandidierella species in having (1) a distinctly projecting rostrum, (2) pereopod 5 with a merus and ischium of equal length, and (3) epimerons 1 and 2 with long plumose setae posteroventrally.

Key words: Amphipoda, Klebang barnardi, Grandidierella melakaensis, New genus, Strait of Malacca.

*Correspondence: Tel: 60-3-89213038. Fax: 60-3-89253357. E-mail:abarahim@gmail.com