ZooKeys
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Munidopsis expansa was originally described based on specimens collected off the coast of Florida.
This species belongs to a group of species characterized by a tripartite and elevated rostrum, an unarmored carapace and abdomen, 8–10 telson plates, a robust P1 (less than twice as long as PCL), robust P2–4, and epipods on P1 and 2.
Specimens were collected on the West Florida Slope that had previously been observed walking on dead coral remains of Desmophyllum pertusum.
In general, the habitat of the species was characterized by large, mostly dead colonies of Desmophyllum pertusum, which are usually found at the edge of outcrops.
Smaller living colonies of Desmophyllum pertusum, Plummerella sp., and other octocoral species and hexactinellid sponges were found scattered on dead, consolidated coral remains.
The carapace, pereiopods 1-4, and chelipeds are completely light to reddish-orange in color, while the distal parts of the rostrum, limbs, and spines are whitish.
Etymology.
Named after the recently deceased Charles “Chuck” Messing, in honor of his dedication and passion for ocean exploration and his larger-than-life, entertaining, and friendly personality.
This is in recognition of his significant contributions to the biology, natural history, and taxonomy of echinoderms, crustaceans, and other invertebrates.
Information about Dr. Chales Messing can be found here: https://www.marinespecies.org/news.php?p=show&id=9258
Literature reference:
Rodríguez-Flores PC, Bracken-Grissom HD, Lemaitre R, Felder DL, Nizinski MS (2025)
A new squat lobster (Crustacea, Decapoda, Munidopsidae) from the western Atlantic with redescription of Munidopsis expansa Benedict, 1902 and several range extensions.
ZooKeys 1248: 321-340. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1248.156346
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
This species belongs to a group of species characterized by a tripartite and elevated rostrum, an unarmored carapace and abdomen, 8–10 telson plates, a robust P1 (less than twice as long as PCL), robust P2–4, and epipods on P1 and 2.
Specimens were collected on the West Florida Slope that had previously been observed walking on dead coral remains of Desmophyllum pertusum.
In general, the habitat of the species was characterized by large, mostly dead colonies of Desmophyllum pertusum, which are usually found at the edge of outcrops.
Smaller living colonies of Desmophyllum pertusum, Plummerella sp., and other octocoral species and hexactinellid sponges were found scattered on dead, consolidated coral remains.
The carapace, pereiopods 1-4, and chelipeds are completely light to reddish-orange in color, while the distal parts of the rostrum, limbs, and spines are whitish.
Etymology.
Named after the recently deceased Charles “Chuck” Messing, in honor of his dedication and passion for ocean exploration and his larger-than-life, entertaining, and friendly personality.
This is in recognition of his significant contributions to the biology, natural history, and taxonomy of echinoderms, crustaceans, and other invertebrates.
Information about Dr. Chales Messing can be found here: https://www.marinespecies.org/news.php?p=show&id=9258
Literature reference:
Rodríguez-Flores PC, Bracken-Grissom HD, Lemaitre R, Felder DL, Nizinski MS (2025)
A new squat lobster (Crustacea, Decapoda, Munidopsidae) from the western Atlantic with redescription of Munidopsis expansa Benedict, 1902 and several range extensions.
ZooKeys 1248: 321-340. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1248.156346
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
