A dodecapodous pycnogonid

• Published in: Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Containing Papers of a Biological Character
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: The Royal Society 1933
• Subjects: Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.1933.0034; https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rspb.1933.0034

Among of Pycnogonida obtained by Sir Douglas Mawson, F. R. S., on his latest voyage to the Antarctic is a specimen presenting the novel and remarkable feature of having six pairs of legs. It is of relatively gigantic size, spanning 20 inches from tip to tip of its outstretched legs, and represents a new species which we propose to refer to a new genus. The purpose of this paper is to give a preliminary diagnosis of the genus, a brief description of the specimen for systematic purposes, and a discussion of its bearing on the morphology and phylogeny of the Pycnogonida. Dodecolopoda , gen. nov. Differing from Decolopoda only in possessing six instead of five trunk-somites, each bearing a pair of legs.