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Linderiella jebalae sp. Nov. (Crustacea: Branchiopoda: Anostraca), a new species from the Rif mountains (northern Morocco)

Abstract:

A new species of fairy shrimp, Linderiella jebalae sp. nov., was found in temporary ponds located in the Rif region of northern Morocco. Morphological characters of females, such as the basal long warty outgrowth of the antennae, the high-ly developed cuticular papillae in the second genital segment, and the presence of a keel-shaped process directed posteri-orly in dorsal side of the brood pouch, clearly distinguish this species from the others of the genus. In the case of males, the basiomedial antennal outgrowth and the distal segment of the antenna are diagnostic features for the species. Cyst or-namentation, characterized by thick, blunt and sometimes truncated spines, also separate this species. This is the fourth known Palaearctic Linderiella species, all of them described recently (from 1980s onwards) and located in a restricted area, from south-eastern France to Iberian Peninsula and Morocco.