A New Species of Brevitalitrus (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Talitridae) from Malaysia

Abstract

A new species of the talitrid amphipod, Brevitalitrus pangkorensis, from a backshore forest of Pangkor Island, Malaysia, is named and described. This is the first record of Brevitalitrus Bousfield, 1971 from Malaysia. Brevitalitrus pangkorensis is morphologically similar to B. hortulanus (Calman, 1912), B. strinatii Stock, 1997, and B. wolffi Bousfield, 1971 in the characteristics of the uropods 1 and 2, and telson. However, the former is distinguished from the latter three species in having peduncle of pleopod 2 without distal plumose setae, relatively longer rami of pleopods 1 and 2, rami of pleopod 3 not distinctly articulated, inner and outer rami of uropod 1 with four and three marginal robust setae, respectively, outer margin of inner ramus of uropod 2 with one robust seta, and long robust seta on peduncle of uropod 3. Additionally, a partial DNA sequence of nuclear histone H3 from the holotype was determined. A key to the species of Brevitalitrus is also provided.