Review of Mothocya Costa, in Hope, 1851 (Crustacea: Isopoda: Cymothoidae) from southern Africa, with the description of a new species

Abstract

Three species of Mothocya are reported from the east coast of southern Africa: Mothocya plagulophora (Haller, 1880) from Maputo, Mozambique, from the gills of Hemiramphus far (Forsskål, 1775); Mothocya renardi (Bleeker, 1857) from diverse localities in South Africa and Mozambique, from the hosts Strongylura leiura (Bleeker, 1850) and Tylosurus choram (Rüppell, 1837); and Mothocya affinis sp. nov. from Sodwana Bay, South Africa, from the gills of Hyporamphus affinis (Günther, 1866). Mothocya affinis sp. nov. is characterised by relatively small size (maximum 16 mm); large, wide coxae on pereonite 7 that overlap the pleon; uropods that do not extend past the pleotelson posterior margin; produced anterolateral margins on pereonite 1; and a twisted pleon and pleotelson. Mothocya katoi Nunomura, 1992 and Mothocya toyamaensis Nunomura, 1993 are both transferred to the genus Ceratothoa, with M. katoi being placed into junior synonymy with Ceratothoa guttata (Richardson, 1910). Irona ogcocephalus Avdeev & Avdeev, 1974 and I. callionymus Avdeev & Avdeev, 1974 are both transferred to Elthusa, and Irona trillesi Rokicki, 1986 is synonymised with Mothocya longicopa Bruce, 1986. A key to the south-western Indian Ocean species of Mothocya is given, and a table summarising recent and new nomenclatural acts in the genus is provided.

Keywords: cymothoid, gill chamber, isopod, marine fish parasite, Mozambique, South Africa