Pycnogonida |
Pantopoda |
Phoxichilidiidae
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Reef-associated; depth range 1 - 6 m (Ref. 102570). Tropical
Indo-West Pacific: New Caledonia; Melanesia and Micronesia.
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Size small, trunk first and second segmentation lines complete, line between third and fourth segments lacking. Lateral processes short, almost touching at bases, glabrous. Neck extension over proboscis very short, ocular tubercle short, eyes well defined. Proboscis robust, short, with prominent ventrolateral tubercles. Abdomen very short, a truncate cone. Chelifores slender as land as proboscis, functional chelae hanging anterior to proboscis mouth, chelae fingers with 4 - 5 tiny teeth. Palps entirely lacking. Ovigers 6 - segmented, third segment longest, without evidence of proximal segmentation, sixth segment a conical bud, no segment with strong setae or spines. Legs short, robust, with very few setae. Tarsus very short, propodus short, robust, well curved, with 3 heel spines, several tiny sole spines, a very long claw, and extremely tiny auxiliaries. Male femoral cement gland openings as 7 - 8 dorsolateral slits proximal to jus past median point of segment (Ref. 9).
This is very common species in littoral and shallow depths. It appears in many reports treating collections from the Indo-West Pacific. It has not been collected as yet in the western hemisphere or the west coast of Africa (Ref. 9).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Members of the class Pycnogonida are gonochoric and sexually dimorphic. During copulation, male usually suspends itself beneath the female. Fertilization occurs as the eggs leave the female's ovigers. Males brood the egg masses until they hatch. Life cycle: Eggs hatch into protonymphon larva then to adults.
Child, C.A. 1998. (Ref. 9)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-1)
CITES status (Ref. 108899)
Not Evaluated
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Human uses
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More information
Trophic EcologyFood items
Diet
Food consumption
Ration
Predators
Population dynamicsGrowth
Age/Size
Length-weight
Length-length
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Recruitment
Abundance
Life cycleReproductionMaturityFecunditySpawningEggsEgg developmentLarvaeLarval dynamics Human RelatedAquaculture profile
Stamps, Coins Misc.
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature
(Ref.
115969): 16 - 29.2, mean 27.9 (based on 3356 cells).
Price category
Unknown.