Crustaceans from antipatharians on banks of the northwestern Gulf of Mexico

Abstract

The stalked barnacle Oxynaspis gracilis, the chirostylid squat lobster Uroptychus sp., and the caridean shrimps Periclimenes cf. antipathophilus and Pseudopontonides principis have been collected at 68–124 m by a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) on banks in the northern Gulf of Mexico. These species inhabited six species of antipatharian hosts. Pseudopontonides principis, O. gracilis, and U. sp. were not confined to a single host species. Except for O. gracilis, collected by ROV in 2004–2005, these species have not been reported previously in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico.