(Stebbing, 1902)
Diagnosis:
No spinules on merus and ischium of the pereiopods.
Type:
Type locality: "Buffalo River north 15 miles. Depth, 310 fathoms [= 567 m]. Bottom, coral and mud", Natal, South Africa, about 33°S 28°E. Holotype male in SAM, no. A 993 (in alcohol; condition good).
Geographical Distribution:
S.W. Africa ( Valdivia Bank off Namibia); S.E. Africa (Cape Province north of East London, and Natal, South Africa); St. Paul Island; New Zealand. A Projasus puerulus stage taken off New South Wales, might belong here. A distribution map is provided by Webber and Booth (1988).
Habitat and Biology:
Depth range from 370 to 841 m; bottom: mud with rocks and coral.
Size:
Carapace length of S.W. African females 7.0-7.8 cm. Maximum total length for East African material: 13.4 cm (males) and 15 cm (females), maximum carapace length about 6 cm for both sexes. Specimens from St Paul Island had carapace length 7 cm (in both sexes). However, the sizes of specimens from New Zealand reported upon by Webber and Booth (1988) were distinctly larger: carapace length 6.9-8.2 cm (males) and 6.8-9.2 cm (females)
Interest to Fisheries:
So far none. The species is rare, and even though it lives on soft substrates, evidently is seldom caught in trawls.