Family ARISTEIDAE Wood-Mason, 1891

Museums

Regional Maps

• Aristeinae Wood-Mason, J. 1891. Phylum Appendiculata. Branch Arthropoda. Class Crustacea. In Wood-Mason, J. & Alcock, A., Natural history notes from H.M. Indian marine survey steamer "Investigator", Commander R.F. Hoskyn, R.N., commanding. No. 21. Note on the results of deep sea dredging during the season 1890–91. Annals and Magazine of Natural History 6 8: 269-286 [Date published October 1891] [278] [as Aristaeina; name in the corrected spelling, Aristeinae, placed on the Official List of Family-Group Names in Zoology, see International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature 1969. Opinion 864. Penaeid generic names (Crustacea, Decapoda): addition of twenty-eight to the Official List. Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 25: 138–147 (141)].

  Secondary source:

   International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature 1969. Opinion 864. Penaeid generic names (Crustacea, Decapoda): addition of twenty-eight to the Official List. Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 25: 138-147.

• Pérez Farfante, I. & Kensley, B. 1997. Penaeoid and sergestoid shrimps and prawns of the world. Keys and diagnoses for the families and genera. Mémoires du Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris [1936-1950] 175: 1-233 [33]

Introduction

This family of pelagic shrimps is represented in Australian waters, by 13 species, and all nine recognised genera. Aristeids typically live in waters off the continental shelf down to abyssal depths, with one species, Plesiopenaeus armatus (Bate), having been found to a depth of over 5400 m. There have been only a few works dealing directly with the Australian aristeids, the most notable being by Grey et al. (1983) who provided accounts and colour pictures for several Australian species; Kensley et al. (1987) who reported a number of new Australian records; and, most recently, Dall (2001) who doubled the number of species previously known and provided a key to genera.

Diagnosis

Rostrum usually elongate in females, sexually dimorphic in several genera, being elongate in females and juvenile males, short in adult males; usually with only three dorsal rostral/postrostral teeth (more only in Aristaeomorpha); lacking ventral teeth. Carapace lacking postorbital and pterygostomian spines; antennal and branchiostegal spines always present; postantennal spine rarely present and hepatic spines often lacking; cervical and postcervical sulci sometimes present, most often reaching dorsal midline, or almost absent and visible only laterally. Third abdominal somite sometimes carinate, fourth to sixth somites always carinate. Telson apically acute, bearing three or four pairs of movable lateral spines. Eye with optic calathus bearing mesial tubercle; ocular scale and styliform projection lacking. Antennule with prosartema reduced to setose boss; flagella unequal, dorsal flagellum short, flattened for most of its length, inserted proximally on third segment; ventral flagellum sexually dimorphic in some genera. Palp of first maxilla consisting of single curved article. Exopods present on all maxillipeds, present or absent on pereiopods. Third through fifth pleopods biramous. Pleurobranchia on somites IX to XIV; one arthrobranchia on somite VII, two on somites VIII through XIII; podobranchia on second maxilliped through second or third pereiopods; epipod present on maxillipeds and first to third or fourth pereiopods. Petasma open; ventral costa usually projecting free for variable fraction of its length, often extending as far as distal margin of dorsolateral lobule. Second pleopod of male bearing appendix masculina and appendix interna, lacking distolateral projection. Thelycum open; sternite XIV with deep concavity, sternite XIII with variously shaped shield-like median protuberance. (After Pérez Farfante & Kensley 1997).

General References

Dall, W. 2001. Australian species of Aristeidae and Benthesicymidae (Penaeoidea: Decapoda). Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 46(2): 409-441

Grey, D.L., Dall, W. & Baker, A. 1983. A Guide to the Australian Penaeid Prawns. Darwin : Northern Territory Government Printing Office 140 pp. 51 colour pls.

Kensley, B., Tranter, H.A. & Griffin, D.J.G. 1987. Deepwater Decapod Crustacea from Eastern Australia (Penaeidae and Caridea). Records of the Australian Museum 39: 263-331

Pérez Farfante, I. & Kensley, B. 1997. Penaeoid and sergestoid shrimps and prawns of the world. Keys and diagnoses for the families and genera. Mémoires du Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris [1936-1950] 175: 1-233

History of changes