Abstract

Four undescribed species of Tanaidacea were discovered during a baseline monitoring program conducted off the coast of Ghana. The specimens came from a deep-water reef largely composed of the ahermatypic coral, Lophelia pertusa. The tanaidacean material was collected during November 2012 onboard the RV Dr Fridtjof Nansen using a van Veen grab in depths of between 375 and 386 m. Three of the new species described herein are tanaidomorphans belonging to the genera Bathyleptochelia (Leptocheliidae), Pseudotanais (Pseudotanaidae) and Cryptocopoides (Cryptocopidae). The fourth species, an apseudomorphan, belongs to Calozodion (Metapseudidae), a genus hitherto known only from shallow waters (<200 m). This report constitutes the first records of tanaidaceans from a deep-sea Lophelia reef.