Miramaera, Lowry & Springthorpe, 2005

Lowry, JK & Springthorpe, RT, 2005, New and Little-known Melitid Amphipods from Australian Waters (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Melitidae), Records of the Australian Museum 57, pp. 237-302 : 272-274

Miramaera n.gen.

Type species. Miramaera thetis n.sp.

Diagnosis. Head without anteroventral notch; eye ovate to reniform. Antenna 1 accessory flagellum long, nearly half to more than half length of primary flagellum. Mandible palp article 1 strongly produced distally; article 2 longer than article 3; article 3 long, rectolinear. Maxilla 1 inner plate with mainly apical setae. Gnathopod 1 coxa anteroventral corner produced, acute or subacute. Gnathopod 2 significantly enlarged in male and female; left and right gnathopods symmetrical in male; palm acute in male and female, both male propodi with well defined corner (greater than 90°), both female propodi with well defined corner (greater than 90°); dactylus with 1 or 2 setae on anterior margin. Pereopods 5–7 dactyli simple. Epimeron 3 posterior margin smooth. Urosomite 1 dorsal and posterior margins smooth. Uropod 3 rami distally truncated, about 1.5× to 3 or more times peduncle, apical robust setae long or short; outer ramus 1-articulate. Telson deeply cleft, lobes truncated with apical cusps, with or without robust setae on outer margins, with short apical robust setae.

Species composition. Miramaera tepuni (J.L. Barnard, 1972b) ; Miramaera thetis n.sp.

Etymology. A combination of the Latin word mirus, meaning wonderful, with the Latin stem Maera .

Remarks. Miramaera is excluded from the Linguimaera group because of its symmetrical second gnathopods. It is excluded from Quadrimaera because of the strong apical notch on the anteroventral margin of the head, the acute palms on the propodi of male gnathopod 2, the simple dactyli on pereopods 5–7 and the telsonic lobes that are truncated with apical cusps. It may be most similar to genera in the Maera group (sensu stricto), but it differs from that group in the setation of the dactyli of the second gnathopods. The significant differences between Miramaera and Lupimaera are that in Miramaera the posterior margin of epimeron 3 is smooth, the rami of uropod 3 are longer than the peduncle and the telsonic lobes have apical cusps and short robust setae. Miramaera differs from Maeropsis in having acute palms and a well defined corner of more than 90° on both male and female propodi of gnathopod 2.

Distribution. Australia; New Zealand.