Shane Ahyong

Australian Museum · Marine Invertebrates

Modern advances in DNA sequencing hold the promise of facilitating descriptions of new organisms at ever finer precision but have come with challenges as the major Codes of bionomenclature contain poorly defined requirements for species and subspecies diagnoses (henceforth, species diagnoses), which is particularly problematic for DNA-based taxonom...

A new assessment of the global biodiversity of decapod Crustacea (to 31 December 2022) records 17,229 species in 2,550 genera and 203 families. These figures are derived from a well-curated dataset maintained on the online platform DecaNet, a subsidiary of the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS). Distinct phases are recognised in the discovery...

The pea crabs, superfamily Pinnotheroidea, are exceptional among brachyuran crabs in their diverse symbiotic associations involving both inquilinism and protective symbiosis. While this group presents a rare opportunity for evolutionary comparative study of host switching and morphological evolution in marine macroinvertebrates, previous phylogenet...

We present the first complete mitochondrial genomes for Anaspidacea by sequencing 24 specimens from 12 different species in four genera (AnaspidesThomson, 1894; ParanaspidesSmith, 1908; AllanaspidesSwain, Wilson, Hickman & Ong, 1970; and MicraspidesNicholls, 1931). We recovered 20 complete (13 protein coding genes, two ribosomal RNA genes, 22 trans...

Catastrophic megafires can increase extinction risks; identifying species priorities for management and policy support is critical for preparing and responding to future fires. However, empirical data on population loss and recovery post-fire, especially megafire, are limited and taxonomically biased. These gaps could be bridged if species' morphol...

The poorly known brachyuran crab, Pronotonyx laevis Ward, 1936, from northern Australia, is redescribed based on type and other material. We document adults of both sexes and confirm the taxonomic placement of the Pronotonyx in the Pilumnidae. Pronotonyx is most similar to the Australian Pseudocryptocoeloma parvum Ward, 1936, differing in features...

Species of the genus Anaspides, known as mountain shrimps, are endemic to Tasmania and inhabit a variety of freshwater habitats such as mountain tarns, pools, creeks and runnels, as well as caves. Until 2015 only two species of Tasmanian mountain shrimps were recognized, A. tasmaniae (Thomson, 1893), which was believed to be widespread all over the...

Decapod crustaceans, shrimps, crabs, prawns and their allies are highly visible and important members of marine environments. They are among the most charismatic of marine animals, inhabiting beaches, rocky shores and the deep sea, hiding under stones, burrowing in the sediment and nestling in among algae and many other microhabitats. However, most...

Mantis shrimps (Stomatopoda Latreille, 1817) are marine predatory crustaceans of the group Hoplocarida Calman, 1904 with an interesting, though incompletely known, evolutionary history. Here we introduce a new species of fossil mantis shrimps, Ostenosculda teruzzii n. gen., n. sp. from the Early Jurassic (Sinemurian) limestone formation of Osteno (...

The Giant Sydney Crayfish (Euastacus spinifer (Heller, 1865)) was thought to have a wide range in New South Wales, Australia, spanning some 600 km north–south. A recent extensive molecular phylogenetic and population genomic analysis of E. spinifer across its geographical range revealed strong population structure corresponding to several major geo...

For much of terrestrial biodiversity, the evolutionary pathways of adaptation from marine ancestors are poorly understood, and have usually been viewed as a binary trait. True crabs, the decapod crustacean infraorder Brachyura, comprise over 7,600 species representing a striking diversity of morphology and ecology, including repeated adaptation to...

Estimating stomatopod species diversity using morphology alone has long been difficult; though over 450 species have been described, new species are still being discovered regularly despite the cryptic behaviors of adults. However, the larvae of stomatopods are more easily obtained due to their pelagic habitat, and have been the focus of recent stu...

The crabs collected by the RV Hakuhō Maru (KH-72-1 cruise) in the South China Sea are recorded as the fourth part following the previous three parts of the series (Sulu Sea and Sibutu Passage, Timor Sea, and Sahul Shelf). They are mostly shallow water inhabitants, representing 35 species of 31 genera in 13 families, with two new species of the fam...

Unravelling the evolutionary history of taxa requires solid delimitation of the traits characterising these. This can be challenging especially in groups with a highly complex taxonomy. The squat lobster family Munididae contains more than 450 species distributed among 21 genera, Munida being the most speciose (~300 species). Previous phylogenetic...

Prior to the present study, five species in four genera of the mantis shrimp superfamily Gonodactyloidea were known from Lord Howe Island, Australia. The 2017 Australian Museum expedition to Lord Howe Island made a small but significant collection of stomatopods, comprising four species: Chorisquilla tweediei (Serène, 1950), Gonodactylaceus falcatu...

Australia is home to over 140 species of freshwater crayfish (Decapoda: Parastacidae), representing a centre of diversity for this group in the Southern Hemisphere. Species delimitation in freshwater crayfish is difficult because many species show significant variation in colouration and morphology. This is particularly evident in the genus Euastac...

Upside-down jellyfish (Cassiopea spp.) are predominantly tropical, but there have been recent reports of medusae in temperate environments. In 2017 they were recorded in temperate Lake Macquarie, Australia, where they have a tendency to disappear from this area through late winter (Austral, August). This raises questions about the role of temperatu...

The crabs collected from the Sahul Shelf, in the Australian part of the Timor Sea by the RV Hakuhō Maru (KH-72-1 cruise) are identified and recorded, with some taxonomic comments. They are referred to 40 species of 29 genera in 10 families, including 2 new majoid species, Naxioides sahulensis sp. nov. (Epialtidae) and Prismatopus peterngi sp. nov....

To assist with management and conservation, the Action Plan compiles existing knowledge on taxonomy, conservation status, description, cultural significance, distribution and habitat, biology and ecology as well as threats, conservation priorities and knowledge gaps for each priority Euastacus

The mantis shrimp family Lysiosquillidae includes the largest known stomatopods and presently includes three genera: Lysiosquilla Dana, 1852, Lysiosquillina Manning, 1995, and Lysiosquilloides Manning, 1977. Since 1995, new species assigned to all three lysiosquilloid genera have been recognised: Lysiosquilla manningi Boyko, 2000, Lysiosquillina li...

The brachyuran crab Pseudorhombila haswelli Miers, 1884, described on the basis of two juveniles from the Arafura Sea, is a poorly known species of uncertain systematic position. It was made the type and only species of Homoioplax Rathbun, 1914, and assigned to the Prionoplacinae (Goneplacidae). Subsequent revisions of the goneplacids showed Priono...

The exceptional hidden diversity included in the squat lobster genus Phylladiorhynchus and its wide bathymetric and geographic range make it an interesting group to thoroughly study its evolutionary history. Here we have analyzed the entire currently known species diversity of Phylladiorhynchus using an integrative approach that includes morphologi...

Aim After environmental disasters, species with large population losses may need urgent protection to prevent extinction and support recovery. Following the 2019–2020 Australian megafires, we estimated population losses and recovery in fire‐affected fauna, to inform conservation status assessments and management. Location Temperate and subtropical...

The present study is the second part of a series of reports on the crabs collected by the KH-72-1 cruise of the RV Hakuhō Maru from the seas of East and Southeast Asia. In this report, 16 species of 14 genera in 10 families of the crabs collected in the depths of the Timor Sea, 295–690 m, are recorded. There were no species common to the Sulu Sea...

Peppermint shrimp resembling Lysmata vittata Stimpson, 1860, a species native to the Indo-West Pacific, were found in the lower Chesapeake Bay and adjacent coastal embayments in 2013, representing the first recorded introduction of this species in the northwestern Atlantic. Conflicting morphological descriptions, inconsistent morphological terminol...

Upside-down jellyfish ( Cassiopea sp.) are mostly sedentary, benthic jellyfish that have invaded estuarine ecosystems around the world. Monitoring the spread of this invasive jellyfish must contend with high spatial and temporal variability in abundance of individuals, especially around their invasion front. Here, we evaluated the utility of drones...

The present study, forming part of a multi-faceted project initiated in response to the anticipated bushfire impact, is the most comprehensive molecular taxonomic analyses conducted on Euastacus to date. It utilised targeted field collection and took advantage of existing curated sample collections to assemble a comprehensive crayfish tissue collec...

This study reports on new squat lobsters of the genus Munida collected during recent surveys of Australia’s continental margins. We report on 33 species of Munida including seven new species and 14 new range extensions for Australia. More than 500 specimens were collected, mostly from the western continental margin of Australia, but also including...

Aim The incidence of major fires is increasing globally, creating extraordinary challenges for governments, managers and conservation scientists. In 2019–2020, Australia experienced precedent‐setting fires that burned over several months, affecting seven states and territories and causing massive biodiversity loss. Whilst the fires were still burni...

The coastal marine environments in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone harbour a rich diversity of mantis shrimps. However, several regions have not been adequately surveyed for their stomatopod faunal composition. In this paper, we report the first records of two species, Gonodactylopsis drepanophora (de Man, 1902) and Cloridina malaccensis (Mannin...

Many species of the gastropod genus Philine have been named from northeastern Asia but scanty descriptions based predominantly on shells make it difficult to determine which are valid. This, plus the sporadic anatomical and genetic information available for many of these species has led to what may be described as an un-integrated taxonomy. In this...

The French carcinologist and oceanographer Alain Crosnier (1930–2021) had a most influential role in modern carcinology. This tribute reviews his contributions to organising oceanographic expeditions; expanding collections of specimens, particularly from the deep sea; and supporting international collaboration for taxonomic investigations of the ri...

New methods in taxonomy and systematics can influence the overall practice of formally naming and describing biodiversity. DNA barcoding has been controversial since its emergence, but now, large scale species descriptions exclusively based on barcodes have created what can be called a 'new quality of performance'. Its limitations are discussed fro...

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New methods in taxonomy and systematics can influence the overall practice of formally nam-ing and describing biodiversity. DNA barcoding has been controversial since its emergence, but now, large scale species descriptions exclusively based on barcodes have created what can be called a "new quality of performance". Its limitations are discussed fr...

Guerra-García & Ahyong (2020) erected the genus Pseudoliropus (type species Pseudoliropus keablei Guerra-García & Ahyong, 2020) for a new species of caprellid amphipod from southern Australia. Shortly after publication the authors became aware that the genus name was preoccupied by the little known, caprellid Pseudoliropus Laubitz, 1970 (type speci...

The iconic ‘mountain shrimps’ of the genus Anaspides Thomson, 1894, are endemic to Tasmania, inhabiting various freshwater habitats such as mountain tarns and creeks, as well as streams inside caves. They are often labelled as ‘living fossils’ because of their close resemblance to their Triassic relatives. Prior to 2015, only two species were recog...

Uniting arthropods and the deep sea as a research focus allows us to combine the largest habitat on Earth with the most abundant and successful animal group on our planet. To set the stage for this volume, we briefly introduce the deep-sea environment, the history of its exploration and gaps in our knowledge in terms of global distributions of biod...

We report the mitochondrial genome of Sabella spallanzanii, an invasive Mediterranean sabellid introduced to Australia and New Zealand. The mitogenome is 15,581 bp long and consists of 38 genes, including 13 protein coding genes, two rRNA genes, and 23 tRNA genes. It shows deviations from the putative annelid ground pattern, such as gene order re-a...

Pelagic biofoulers such as barnacles or bryozoans settle and raft on natural debris like pumice or seeds. Recent influxes of marine debris into the world’s oceans, especially plastic, have increased habitat availability for these biofoulers. Goose barnacles in the genus Lepas are some of the most common biofouling taxa globally, and play an importa...

A new genus and new species of blind freshwater cave crab are described from Chongzuo City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China based on morphology and mitochondrial 16S rDNA sequences. The new genus, Phasmon gen. nov., is established for P. typhlops sp. nov., which is only the second blind cave crab known from China and East Asia. The combinat...

The poorly known genus Lacunipotamon Dai, Song, He, Cao, Xu & Zhong, 1975, is studied and reviewed. Two new species, Lacunipotamon yuanshi sp. nov. and Lacunipotamon cymatile sp. nov. from Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, respectively, are described based on morphology and mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequ...

Prior to the present study, the mantis shrimp superfamily Eurysquilloidea Manning, 1977, with the single family Eurysquillidae Manning, 1977, contained six genera and 32 species, most of which occur in the Indo-West Pacific. A new genus and species of eurysquilloid, Liusquilla taiwanica , recently discovered off southeastern Taiwan, is described he...

Background Our knowledge of the benthic fauna at lower bathyal to abyssal (LBA, > 2000 m) depths off Eastern Australia was very limited with only a few samples having been collected from these habitats over the last 150 years. In May–June 2017, the IN2017_V03 expedition of the RV Investigator sampled LBA benthic communities along the lower slope an...

This chapter summarizes global patterns and mechanisms of both ecological and historical crustacean biogeography resulting in the contemporary species distributions described over the past decades. In the pelagic realm, hydrographic features such as ocean currents, physical depth profiles, and latitudinal temperature gradients are major structuring...

The evolution of the Crustacea following their origins in the Cambrian is outlined, with an overview of their paleontological history and global distributions into modern times. Major recent developments in arthropod evolution include recognition that Hexapoda is nested within Crustacea. Perspectives also changed during the last decades of the 20th...

Pinnotherid crabs are well known as obligate associates of other marine invertebrates, frequently bivalve molluscs. Knowledge of the Australian pinnotherid crab fauna is expanded by description of a new species of Viridotheres Manning, 1996, representing the first record of the genus from Western Australia. The new species of Viridotheres is most s...

Three new Indo-West Pacific species of pinnotherid crabs are described, one each of Arcotheres, Buergeres and Nepinnotheres. Arcotheres pollus, described from Paway Island, Mergui Archipelago, is most similar to A. boninensis (Stimpson, 1858), A. pernicola (Bürger, 1895) and A. purpureus (Alcock, 1900), sharing a transversely ovate carapace and lon...

Caprellids from mesophotic and deep-sea waters from Australia have been scarcely studied. A new genus Pseudoliropus gen. nov., and two new species Pseudoliropus keablei and Pseudoprotella australiensis sp. nov. are described based on material collected from 56 to 1125 m deep during surveys on board the vessels RV Sprightly (1973), FRV Kapala (1977-...

An annotated checklist of the mantis shrimps (Stomatopoda) occurring in India is compiled from published literature and specimens collected from coastal areas of Gujarat state. A total of 72 species, 35 genera, 10 families and 5 superfamilies reported from Indian waters are listed. Four species were recorded for the first time from Gujarat while on...

The pinnotherid crab genus, Viridotheres Manning, 1996, is recorded for the first time from the southwestern Pacific in the new species, V. asaphis, described based on specimens from Australia and New Caledonia. The new species most closely resembles V. sanguinolariae (Pillai, 1951) from India, differing chiefly in the proportional length of the wa...

About 12,000 of the 67,000 described species of crustaceans occur in fresh water. Crustaceans have colonized almost every type of freshwater environment in most parts of all continents. A common theme in marine-to-freshwater transitions is not only acquisition of osmoregulatory capabilities to cope with hyposalinity, but also optimizing reproductiv...

A new species of the caprellid genus Paraproto, P. murrayae n. sp. is described based on specimens collected from New South Wales, Australia. The new species was collected from brown algae in shallow water (16–19 m deep). Paraproto murrayae n. sp. is very similar to P. tasmaniensis Guerra-García & Takeuchi, 2004 but can be distinguished mainly by t...

The mantis shrimp superfamily Eurysquilloidea Manning, 1977, with the single family Eurysquillidae Manning, 1977, contains six genera and 32 species, the majority of which occur in the Indo-West Pacific. Here, we describe a new species of eurysquillid, Ankersquilla pardus, from the central and western Pacific that cannot be assigned to any recogniz...

Biogeographic regionalisations extract patterns of co-occurrence from different taxa to form a hierarchical system of geographical units of different scales. This system is useful for revealing biogeographic patterns and can be used as the basis for scientific communication between different fields. The history of Chinese freshwater biogeography is...

The small galatheid squat lobster genus Phylladiorhynchus currently contains five species, three of which supposedly have wide Indo-Pacific distributions. To date, two putatively widespread species, P. pusillus and P. integrirostris have been recorded from New Zealand and Australian waters. Here, we review the New Zealand and eastern Australian spe...

Deepwater sampling in New Zealand and southern Australian waters over the past two decades has significantly improved knowledge of all invertebrate groups, including decapod crustaceans. Thorid shrimps of the genus, Paralebbeus Bruce & Chace, 1986 are associated with deepwater hexactinellid sponges, with four species known to date from scattered lo...

The Stomatopoda of Korea have, in general, been poorly studied, with eight species recorded to date. A recent study of stomatopods collected by SCUBA diving and commercial fishing trawlers from Korean waters, however, resulted in the discovery of first records of six species from the study area. Among them, four belong to the superfamily Squilloide...

The holotype of the pinnotherid, Pinnotheres socius Lanchester, 1902, is extant and deposited in the University Museum of Zoology, Cambridge. The taxonomy of this pea crab is treated in this note and the specimen is illustrated by photographs and line drawings of the third maxilliped and pereiopods. Although the ovigerous type specimen is damaged,...

Orthotheres Sakai, 1969, was recently restricted to three species from the western Pacific, noting that other species assigned to this genus from the Americas, Philippines and Palau belonged to other genera. Studies of the non-Orthotheres material confirm that the species from the Americas should be placed in a new genus, Mesotheres, characterised...

The cymonomid crabs of New Zealand and Australia are revised. Prior to the present study, three species each were known from New Zealand and Australia, respectively. Here, eight new species are described and the six previously known species are redescribed and refigured based on type material. Although based on few locality records, the New Zealand...

Species of the bopyrid isopod genus Rhopalione Pérez, 1920, are parasites of Indo-West Pacific pinnotherid crabs. Unlike other bopyrid parasites of brachyurans that occupy the branchial chambers, however, species of Rhopalione (subfamily Pseudioninae) infest the abdominal cavity. Prior to the present study, four species of Rhopalione were recognize...

The mantis shrimp superfamily Squilloidea, with over 185 described species, is the largest superfamily in the crustacean order Stomatopoda. To date, phylogenetic relationships within this superfamily have been comprehensively analysed using morphological data, with six major generic groupings being recovered. Here, we infer the phylogeny of Squillo...

The present study describes the first live occurrence of a species of mantis shrimp i.e. Harpiosquilla harpax from the Chilika lagoon. It was a new record to Chilika after the opening of natural inlet due to super cyclone Phailin during October 2013 and range extension from Visakhapatnam coast. However, concrete information regarding its population...

A new species of Viridotheres is described from material in the collections of the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, representing the first record of the genus from Indonesia. The new species most closely resembles V. takedai Ahyong, Komai & Watanabe, 2012 from Japan, and, significantly, shares the well-developed G2 exopod. Males of a second species o...

Four species of freshwater crabs from three genera and two families ( Cantopotamonhengqinense Huang, Ahyong & Shih, 2017, Nanhaipotamonguangdongense Dai, 1997, Nanhaipotamonmacausp. n. , and Somanniathelphusazanklon Ng & Dudgeon, 1992) are documented from Macau for the first time. One new species, Nanhaipotamonmacausp. n. , is described. The large...

The chirostyloidean squat lobster genus Gastroptychus Caullery, 1896 is revised and is split into two genera: Gastroptychus sensu stricto (type species, Ptychogaster spinifer A. Milne-Edwards, 1880) and Sternostylus new genus (type species, Ptychogaster formosus Filhol, 1884). Gastroptychus sensu stricto, is restricted to nine species with a sterna...

Background: The Great Australian Bight (GAB) comprises the majority of Australia’s southern coastline, but to date its deep water fauna has remained almost unknown. Recent issuing of oil and gas leases in the region has highlighted this lack of baseline biological data and established a pressing need to characterise benthic abyssal fauna. Methods:...