Atopobathynella jessicae Perina & Camacho, 2025

Perina, Giulia, Camacho, Ana I., Morgan, Liesel, Lawrie, Angus, Floeckner, Stephanie & Guzik, Michelle T., 2025, New species of Atopobathynella, Kimberleybathynella and Hexabathynella (Parabathynellidae, Bathynellacea) from the arid zones of Western Australia, Zootaxa 5655 (1), pp. 1-103 : 37-40

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5655.1.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:4411E6C2-D4C5-4340-AF6B-FDDBB0F7E1A1
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15822705
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/0399C326-FF9F-FFF5-53BB-0642FD78F9D5
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Atopobathynella jessicae Perina & Camacho
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Atopobathynella jessicae Perina & Camacho , sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:6AD09A1C-6EFD-4D21-90F5-A8434331BED1

( Figs. 12–13 View FIGURE 12 View FIGURE 13 )

Material examined. Holotype male. AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: Miralga Creek, Pilbara , karaman STXKARA01, 21°06'37.7343"S, 119°11'40.1582"E, 17 May 2019, D. Main, P. Runham ( WAMC 78881 — BES8283 , permanent slide). GoogleMaps

Paratype: 1 female, same detail as holotype ( WAM C78882 About WAM — BES8284 , permanent slide) .

Diagnosis. Atopobathynella jessicae sp. nov. belongs to a group of Atopobathynella species that have antennal organ (AO) without protuberance and formed by two setae of different length; distal endite of maxillula with five claws; inhomonomous spines on sympod of the uropod; exopod of the uropod with two distal setae. It differs from all other species in the male ThVIII, which has dentate lobe like a four-fingered glove, outer lobe vase-shaped (tall cap that tapers upwards), and basipod with three lobes, one of these with distal spicules. The sequenced specimens differ from all the other Atopobathynella species sequenced by COI = 13.6–21.0% and 12S = 26–37% (Appendices 3, 4).

Description male holotype (WAMC78881). Body length of 0.93 mm. Body eight times as long as maximum width, elongated, almost cylindrical, segments slightly widening and lengthening towards posterior end of body.

Antennula ( Fig. 12A View FIGURE 12 ): six-segmented. All articles wide, of similar width and rectangular. The first is the longest, the second and third are similar and longer than the fourth and fifth, which are equal in length, and the last article is the shortest. Antennal organ represented by two ventral setae of different length, thicker at base, with the longest two times the length of the other one and extending beyond the distal end of the third article. Inner flagellum very small, almost square, with three setae. Small plumose setae present on the inner angle of the distal end of the fourth segment, in addition to the two typical plumose setae (in this case short) located on a small protuberance. Articles five and six with three terminal aesthetascs each. Antennular setation as in Fig. 12A View FIGURE 12 .

Antenna ( Fig. 12C View FIGURE 12 ): one-segmented with three smooth setae, two terminal and one subterminal.

Labrum ( Fig. 12D View FIGURE 12 ): almost flat, free edge with 16 teeth, seven long teeth on each side and two centrals smaller.

Paragnaths: absent.

Mandible ( Fig. 12E View FIGURE 12 ): pars incisiva with three teeth; pars molaris with five claws, the most distal one thicker, denticulated, and almost perpendicular to the others, the two most proximal ones joined together; tooth on ventral edge present. Mandibular palp with one long distal seta reaching beyond the pars incisiva.

Maxillula ( Fig. 12F View FIGURE 12 ): proximal endite with four unequal claws; distal endite with five claws, with the two distal ones smooth and the other three denticulated; three smooth subterminal setae on the outer distal margin.

Maxilla ( Fig. 12G View FIGURE 12 ): four-segmented, setal formula 2, 3, 11, 1.

Thoracopods I to VII ( Figs. 13A–G View FIGURE 13 ): length slightly increasing from thoracopod one to four, last three similar in size. Epipod present in all thoracopods, about half the length of the corresponding basipod. All basipods with one distolateral seta shorter than the first article of the endopod on ThI to III and exceeds the distal end of the first article in the other Ths. Exopod one-segmented in all thoracopods; exopod of ThI ( Fig. 13A View FIGURE 13 ) reaching the distal end of the second article of the endopod; exopod of ThII similar in length to the first two articles of the endopod and slightly longer than the first two articles of the endopod in ThIII to VII. Exopod of ThI bearing two barbed terminal setae, the outer very small, the inner one long, reaching the distal end of the longest claw of article four of the endopod; exopod of ThII to VII bearing two barbed terminal setae (the outer one very small, the inner one long, reaching the distal end of the claw of article four of the endopod on ThII and much longer in the rest of thoracopods) and one subterminal barbed seta half of the length of the long distal seta in ThIV and V, and about three times shorter in ThVI–VII. Endopod four-segmented, first article short with one seta on Th I, and no seta on the rest of thoracopods; second and third articles long and similar in length; second article with one outer plumose seta in all thoracopods, and one inner smooth seta on Th I only; third article with one inner and one very short outer seta on ThI , and one small outer seta on the rest of thoracopods; fourth article very reduced with two strong claws of different length on thoracopod I, and one long strong claw on thoracopod II to VII. Setal formula of endopods as follows:

ThI 1+0/1+1/1+1/2

ThII to VII 0+0/0+1/0+1/1

Thoracopod VIII ( Figs. 12H–I View FIGURE 12 ): compact, like a balloon. Penial region with massive protopod. Outer lobe vase-shaped (tall cap that tapers upwards), which reaches the distal end of basipod, well defined at base in latero-external view. Short inner lobe. Dentate lobe like as four-fingered glove. Basipod without delimited base, with three lobes, one with distal spicules and the other two oval shaped. Basipod with seta of uncertain origin.

Pleopod not seen.

Uropod ( Fig. 13H View FIGURE 13 ): sympod about four times as long as wide, about five times the length of the exopod and endopod, which are similar in length, sympod with six inhomonomous spines (the most distal one bigger) occupying the distal half of the sympod. Exopod with two terminal barbed setae, and one basal long plumose seta. Endopod distally drawn out into a long dagger-shaped structure, distolateral angle bearing two plumose setae, one reaching the end of the endopod, while the other one extends beyond.

Pleotelson ( Fig. 13I View FIGURE 13 ): with one lateral plumose seta on each side; anal operculum not protruded.

Furca ( Fig. 13I View FIGURE 13 ): rami robust and conical, with five barbed spines; the three basal ones smaller, just over half of the size of the distal spine. Two dorsal plumose setae, the inner one very short and the outer one as long as the distal spines.

Female paratype differs from male in the second antennular segment ( Fig. 12B View FIGURE 12 ) that bears no antennal organ, but a small seta, and in the reduced stalk/tongue-like thoracopod VIII ( Fig. 12J View FIGURE 12 ).

Variability: was observed in body size: male 0.93 mm, female 0.82 mm.

Distribution and remarks. Atopobathynella jessicae sp. nov. has been collected in one Karaman sample near the Miralga creek, a tributary of the De Grey River Catchment ( Fig 1 View FIGURE 1 ). It appears distantly related to all other Atopobathynella taxa ( Fig. 5 View FIGURE 5 ).

Etymology. The name of the species is dedicated to a colleague, Jessica Delaney, who has extensively sampled the Pilbara region for aquatic and hyporheic fauna.