Three Species of Grandidierella (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Aoridae) from Coastal Areas of the Tohoku and Kanto-Tokai Districts, East Japan, with the Description of Two New Species

Abstract

Three species of Grandidierella (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Aoridae) were collected from coastal areas of the Tohoku and Kanto-Tokai Districts, East Japan. The first species is G. sanrikuensis sp. nov. from Miyagi Prefecture, which is characterized by the male gnathopod 1 with carpus bearing 3 teeth (only middle tooth large). The second species is G. rubroantennata sp. nov. from Chiba Prefecture. This new species is identical with G. insulae sensu Ariyama (1996), but is different from the true G. insulae Myers, 1981 in the more flagellar articles of the antennae. The last species is G. osakaensis Ariyama, 1996, from river mouths in Kanagawa and Shizuoka Prefectures and an anchialine pool in Izu Oshima Island, Tokyo Prefecture. This species can inhabit various sandy mud bottoms in a brackish environment. Including G. japonica Stephensen, 1938, four Grandidierella species occur in the districts.