ORNAMENTAL DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS

FROM N.E. ARNHEM LAND, AUSTRALIA

EMIL MAKOVICKY

MAKOVICKY, E. 2003. Ornamental diamond patterns in Aboriginal bark paintings from N.E.

Arnhem Land, Australia. Records of the South Australian Museum 36(1): 1-20.

This paper is a symmetrological study of the geometric art of Aboriginal bark paintings from

northeastern Arnhem Land, Australia. Ornamental diamond patterns in these paintings display

complex symmetries and the current study tests the feasibility of a symmetrological approach

to the description of these patterns and to the definition of the artistic canons of different clans

of the Yirritja moiety. This first attempt furnishes all the necessary methods and definitions for

detailed follow-up studies of the subject.

E Makovicky, Geological Institute, University of Copenhagen, @ster Voldgade 10, DK-1350

Copenhagen K, Denmark. Manuscript received 19 February 2001.

INTRODUCTION

The bark paintings of Armhem Land are perhaps

the finest creations of contemporary Aboriginal

art. Their technical excellence is combined with

considerable stylistic variation across the region

from east to west. In western Arnhem Land the

background to the figures tends to remain free of

infilling while the figurative representations are

infilled; the opposite is practised in northeastern

Amhem Land. Infilling is not practised elsewhere

in Australia (Morphy 1981: 56).

In general, bark paintings and other works of

art are representations of the ancestral past

(Dreamtime) when the world creators transformed

the earth through their actions, creating the entire

landscape as it is known to the Aborigines today

— landforms, skies, flora, fauna, geography and

social structures. The Ancestral Beings entrusted

distinct areas of northeastern Arnhem Land to

different clans for perpetuity (Morphy 1981: 59).

The paintings are in many cases believed to be

inherited from Ancestral Beings and they relate to

them and the stories about their deeds on a

number of levels with progressively deeper

meaning.

Via connections between particular Ancestral

Beings and distinct clans/moieties, a system of

ownership or distribution of rights in paintings

developed. In northeastern Arnhem Land these

rights are exercised by patrilineal clans or their

sections. A person also has some rights in the

paintings of his mother’s clan. Control over

paintings and propagation of knowledge about

them belongs to the senior male members of the

clan; learning the interpretation of designs is a

part of male initiation (Morphy 1981: 57).

Aboriginal artists employ four colours — red,

white, black and yellow — combining ochres,

manganese oxides, charcoal, kaolin and other

white materials with, originally, plant juice

fixative. A sheet of bark is flattened with the help

of fire and its surface smoothened. The surface

priming is done by means of red, rarely black or

yellow, ochre colour. Selected areas of the

sketched design are infilled with cross-hatching.

According to Caruana (1994: 26), cross-hatched

clan designs are called dhulang in northeastern

Arnhem Land. At first, the ground is covered with

parallel white lines. A second set of lines is

painted across it in white, red, yellow or black;

sometimes also in an alternating colour sequence.

Flat colouring is used as well; dotted patterns are

infrequent.

The cross-hatching in two or more colours adds

a radiating shimmer to the Aboriginal bark

paintings (Morphy 1992); this brilliance technique

is shared with the paintings of very few other

cultures. The difference between the cross-

hatched, shimmering areas and the flat-coloured

patches is the fundamental means of artistic

expression in the patterns treated in this study.

According to Morphy (1981: 64), the main

components of northeastern Arnhem Land

paintings are the ground colour, a border,

dividing lines (compartments) and the figurative

and geometric representations. The figures form

a narrative scene that is often understandable

2 E MAKOVICKY

only to the initiated men and has different

depths of meaning. The geometric elements are

not iconic and an element can have a host of

meanings depending on the context; its

decoding requires prior instruction. The

geometric patterns are owned by distinct clans;

their similarities and differences reflect those

between these social groups. The style of

northeastern Arnhem Land is a product of

combining two different (ie figurative and

geometric) systems of representation (meaning)

in one painting. Geometric elements are

especially important for paintings created in

closed context with a restricted, initiated

audience.

There are two principal categories of geometric

patterns in the bark paintings from northeastern

Arnhem Land: two-coloured or multicoloured

stripe patterns and similarly coloured diamond

patterns; they rarely combine in striped diamonds.

The diamond patterns (owned by the clans of

the Yirritja moiety) are the object of the present

study. The richness and_ unparalleled

sophistication of their colouring schemes appears

worthy of a symmetrological/crystallographic

study from at least two points of view. On the

basis of our observations, we believe that the

colouring is yet another, large-scale device to

enhance the brilliance (the shimmering effect) of

Yirritja bark paintings, and this unique artistic

device deserves a more detailed description. On

the other hand, this colouring might indicate the

kinship between different clans and moieties.

Thus far, only the overall pattern shapes have

been invoked in the latter context (Morphy 1981:

62).

The studied material is primarily based on

photographs collected by Prof. Howard Morphy

prior to 1980 and unselfishly made available for

the current project. This choice enabled the author

to concentrate upon an older period of Aboriginal

bark painting, preceding its present market

context. It has been supplemented by observations

made in the collections of the University of

Western Australia and several thematic

exhibitions as well as by published photographic

material.

The author is aware of the limited size of the

sample of material studied. However, the present

paper is an exploratory analysis of the problem:

its primary purpose is to investigate the feasibility

of a symmetrological approach to the complex

colouring schemes rather than producing

definitive answers on their applicability to the

kinship and inheritance problems.

SELECTED EXAMPLES

Figure 12, painted by a member of the

Dhalwangu clan in 1975, contains two black-

coloured long-necked tortoises in a 2-fold rotation

arrangement on the back of a yellow tortoise; the

high symmetry of the yellow tortoise body is

broken only by its long neck. Water courses

appear indicated by a cross-hatched striped pattern

and tracks from tortoise feet. All are two-coloured

on white background. Additional interpretations

can be found in Morphy (1979: 309).

Four quadrants of the painting contain a

diamond pattern outlined in yellow ochre and

white frames and occasionally degenerated into a

zig-zag. Investigating the periodicity of this

pattern, we observe that the diamonds at the

corners of a rectangular mesh are flat-coloured

whereas the central diamond is cross-hatched. The

flat-coloured diamonds are alternatively coloured

red and black. The cross-hatched pattern is three-

coloured, repeating the sequence white—red—

white—black— (repeat). The resulting repetition

period is a 4-fold of the basic one, a double of the

flat-coloured sequence. The black—red alternation,

occasionally also the red—yellow alternation on

white background, dominates the painting.

The painting by a member of the Madarrpa clan

(1975) in Figure 13 is compartmentalised

perpendicular to its length into alternating striped,

fish-populated ‘water’ portions and diamond-

covered portions without iconic element. A broad-

bodied crocodile occupies the entire long axis of

the painting with enough space to depict its scales

as a diamond pattern.

The black-red alternation dominates the

painting. With one possible exception of one-

coloured flat-coloured diamonds, the red—black

exchange takes place perpendicular to the picture

length. All cross-hatched patterns — those present

as stripes or those included in the diamond fields

— have a white-red—white—-black-— (repeat)

colouring periodicity, parallel to the previous

colour change. Diamond fields have non-diamond

‘tails’, giving the painting a forward thrust.

The two paintings by the Gumatj clan (1975) in

Figures 14 and 15 offer multiple complications of

the diamond scheme. Fig. 14 depicts a story of

birds tracking along the picture and a goanna. The

animals track across red and black striped fields

on white cross-hatched background. Fields of

diamonds occur in all four quarters, alone or as

integral parts of a presumed landscape through

which the birds track. The flat-coloured designs

are either one-coloured (red) or, in the majority of

DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS 3

cases, show a red and black sequence. The cross-

hatched patterns are either yellow—black

sequences parallel to the previous ones or three-

colour sequences with periodicity faults.

Figure 15 consists of a kangaroo attacked by a

crocodile and, presumably, a large ray-fish, and

presents an array of diamond colouring schemes.

The attack itself takes place in a river, cross-

hatched red and black on white background. The

flat-coloured diamonds are mostly two-coloured,

red—black, red-ochre yellow, rarely only red. The

arrays of cross-hatched patterns are more

complicated: chessboard ochre and black or two-

coloured black and yellow rows separated by

white rows. The latter case again has two

variations, according to a parallel or a chessboard

scheme for the components of the coloured rows.

The Gumatj painting in Figure 1, produced in

1959-60, has one system of diamonds, changing

to zig-zagging paths, all flat-ochre coloured.

4 Vu

FIGURE 1. Bark painting by a member of the Gumatj clan (1959-60). Courtesy of H. Morphy.

Cross-hatched red and black striped areas with

white background surround the black and ochre

figures with spear throwers, separated from two

black trees by a narrow river. The cross-hatched

diamonds are one-coloured in the majority of

fields (finely ochre and red ruled). In the

uppermost main field, a unique sequence of

colour—colour—white repeats; in the central lower

panel three-coloured cross-hatched diamonds are

present, coloured either parallel or antiparallel to

each other.

E MAKOVICKY

The painting in Figure 2 (Gumatj clan 1975)

recounts the story of a freshwater crocodile and

fish in a red and white striped river. Three

transversal compartments contain six diamond

fields with rich ornamentation. All flat-coloured

diamonds are one-coloured, red with expressive

white frames. The cross-hatched diamond subset

oscillates, by way of errors in repetition, between

the three-coloured sequences black—red—white—

black—red—white- (repeat) and black-red—white—

red—black—white—black- (repeat), respectively;

tigen ae teehee mae '

HES,

DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS b

both of these are present as a sufficiently long

pure sequence. A fragment of the sequence red—

black—-red—black— (repeat) and that of white—-red—

white—black-— (repeat) (as well as pure cross-

hatched white on the crocodile’s back) have been

employed as well. The former long colour

sequences and the ‘one-coloured’ river stripes

produce a colour impression very distinct from

the previous examples.

These examples show a _ need _ for

systematisation of coloured diamond patterns

from northeastern Arnhem Land if further study is

to be undertaken. The science of symmetry offers

the most efficient means for such systematisation.

FUNDAMENTAL LANGUAGE OF SYMMETRY

The Aboriginal diamond patterns are by their

nature two-dimensional periodic patterns. In such

patterns a single motif (eg an individual lozenge)

or motifs repeat infinitely. All repetitions of a

given motif are related to each other by one or

several exactly defined ways, called operations of

symmetry. All symmetry equivalent motifs have

the same shape and size and the same

a b

) &

% ¢

m g

surroundings from the point of view of symmetry

and geometry. The symmetry-equivalent motifs

can be related to each other by translation (pure

displacement without a change in orientation),

reflection (on a reflection axis in the plane of the

pattern or on the reflection ( = mirror) plane m

perpendicular to the plane of the pattern,

depending on the nomenclature used by the

particular author; see Fig. 3e) or rotation (by an

angle of n/360° around an n-fold rotation axis

perpendicular to the plane of the pattern; the

permitted values of n are 2, 3, 4 and 6; see Fig.

3a). A combination of reflection with translation

(by half of the full repetition period of the

periodic pattern) gives glide-reflection planes

(axes) g (Fig. 3f).

From the infinite number of translation vectors

between the periodically displaced copies of the

same motif that can be found in a two-

dimensionally periodic pattern, we usually select

the two shortest ones. For the symmetries

observed in the present work, these comprise an

angle of 90° or quite a general obtuse angle and

they are not equal in length and kind (eg Figs

3c,d; 4a; Sa,d). The two vectors define a

parallelogram, by the translation (displacement) of

io}

FIGURE 3. Fundamental elements of symmetry in Aboriginal diamond designs. Unmarked symbols (eg m) are

colour-preserving elements whereas the primed symbols (eg m’) are elements of dichroic symmetry; p and c —

primitive and centred unit mesh with the a (vertical) and b (horizontal) axes indicated; 2 — twofold axis; m —

mirror plane; g — glide reflection plane.

E MAKOVICKY

be wwe cle enon denne

ween oo

FIGURE 4. Plane group cmm. a, reflection planes, glide-reflection planes and 2-fold axes in one unit mesh. In b to

f, unit mesh axes (full lines) and position of symmetry planes (stippled) are indicated: b and d show an asymmetric

motif in a general position and c, e and f show motifs in special positions (c, motif on reflection planes, e, motif on

2mm intersections, and f, motif on 2-fold axes; all motifs with appropriate own symmetry).

DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS 7

which the entire pattern can be reconstructed. This

parallelogram is called a unit mesh (unit cell). The

unit mesh is primitive when the translation-

equivalent copies of the motif are only in its

comers (Fig. 3d), or centred when an additional

copy lies in its centre ( Fig. 3c).

Only five basic shapes of unit mesh exist in

planar patterns. All the patterns with a given type

of unit mesh belong to the same system. These

systems are as follows (a and b are the selected

vectors, Y is their angle):

i) Oblique (a # b, y # 90°); symmetry

represents pure translations or translations

and 2-fold axes

ii) Rectangular (a # b, y = 90°, Figs 3d, Se, 6a);

symmetry elements present: reflection planes

and glide-reflection planes that can be

combined with each other and with 2-fold

axes

iii) Diamond (rhombic, centred rectangular)

system which can either be described by a

diamond-shaped mesh (a = b, 120° # y # 90°)

or by a rectangular mesh with an additional

translation-equivalent point in its centre, a

so-called centred mesh (a # b, y = 90°, Figs

3c, 4a); relevant symmetry represents a

combination of reflection and glide-

reflection planes with or without 2-fold axes

iv) Square (a = b, y = 90°); 4-fold axes

combined with 2-fold axes with or without

reflection and glide-reflection planes

v) Hexagonal (equilateral triangular) (a = b,

y = 120°); 3-fold axes with or without

reflection and glide-reflection planes, or 6-,

3- and 2-fold axes with or without these

planes of symmetry.

The second and third systems are most relevant

for the present study; less frequent is the first one.

For our diamond patterns, the y angle of the

oblique unit mesh is determined by the position

and shape of the diamonds; if symmetry is

ignored, metrically they are still rectangular. The

hexagonal and square systems, so relevant for

Islamic patterns (Abas & Salman 1995: 138;

Makovicky & Makovicky 1977), are absent in

Aboriginal art.

The operations of symmetry in the plane form

unique combinations, the so-called plane (or two-

dimensional) symmetry groups. Within these

unique combinations of symmetry operations, any

operation can be replaced by a combination of

two or more other symmetry operations present in

the given symmetry group. When two or more

symmetry operations are combined, the result does

not depend on the sequence of operations chosen.

Finally, any operation in the group has its inverse

— a combination of a symmetry operation and its

inverse results in a transformed motif which is

identical to the original. Only 17 distinct plane

groups of symmetry can be found in all two-

dimensional patterns, from which four have been

encountered in the present study. From the above

listing of two-dimensional systems, the presence

of certain rotation axes and, for some cases, the

presence/absence of reflection planes in a plane

group determines the geometry of unit mesh and

the system to which the plane group belongs.

Books on symmetry written by mathematicians

often start with abstract mathematical groups, then

proceed to derive the two-dimensional groups of

symmetry and do not always get down to the

problems of their practical application. An

exception is the book by Abas & Salman (1995),

in which a profusion of examples with basic

symmetrological information attached are given.

A non-mathematical approach to plane groups is

taken by Washburn & Crowe (1998: 58) in a book

intended to teach anthropologists ‘the symmetries

of culture’.

Crystallographers are perhaps the most frequent

practical users of symmetry groups. The

approaches and notions used in the present paper

come partly from this experience. The chapters on

symmetry in crystallographic textbooks range

from highly mathematical (but always practical)

to almost purely geometric; the reader can find an

understandable/complete approach to plane

groups in Klein (2002).

The crystallographic notation of plane groups

used here consists of 4-place symbols. The first

letter p or c denotes primitive or centred mesh,

respectively (Figs 3c,d); the integer ‘n’ denotes

the highest order of rotation (2-fold rotation for

the present cases); the next letter denotes a mirror

plane m or a glide-reflection plane g perpendicular

to the a axis (which points downwards in each

figure); and the following letter indicates such

planes perpendicular to the b axis (which points

to the right) (Figs 4, 5, 6).

Thus, for example, cmm denotes a centred mesh

with mirror planes perpendicular to the mesh axes

a and b; p2 denotes a primitive mesh with a 2-

fold rotation axis; and pgg denotes a primitive

mesh with glide reflections perpendicular to axes

a and b (see Fig. 5).

The trivial factors (the directions to which no

perpendicular symmetry planes exist) are omitted

in the abbreviated symbols commonly used. They

would have been denoted by ‘1’ on the relevant

8 E MAKOVICKY

ay |

& Abd

6 Oooo

: ae

cmm

Pgg

FIGURE 5S. a, uncoloured diamond pattern with unit mesh and the plane group cmm indicated. b and c, pattern of

halved and quartered diamonds, respectively (a and b contain special positions, ¢ general positions). d and e,

uncoloured diamond patterns with oblique partitioning: d, plane group p2, e, plane group pgg. In this and the

following figures, the a axis of the mesh points downwards, the b axis to the right.

position of a full symbol. Other rules of notation

are valid for the square and hexagonal systems,

with 4-, 3- and 6-fold axes, which were not

encountered in this study.

Application of plane groups of symmetry does

not require their (re)derivation, but depends

critically on their correct interpretation. In this

connection, division of elements of the motif into

those placed in general positions (not situated on

any element of symmetry) and in special positions

(situated on an element of symmetry or in an

intersection of several elements of symmetry) is

of the most fundamental importance although it is

rarely mentioned outside the field of

crystallography. An element (ie motif) in the

special position ought to have symmetry at least

equal to the symmetry elements on which it is

positioned. If its symmetry is lower, it reduces the

overall symmetry of the pattern; if it is higher, it

may result in stacking errors in the design. An

element in general position is asymmetric by

virtue of its position. If it has any other symmetry,

it again can lead to errors in pattern periodicity.

As an example, the elements of, and the general

and special positions in, the plane group cmm are

illustrated in Figure 4. This group has a centred

unit mesh and two sets of mirror planes,

respectively perpendicular to the a and b axes. As

can be seen in Fig. 4, these ‘principal symmetry

elements’, which form part of the plane group

symbol, are interleaved by glide-reflection planes.

Two-fold axes occur on intersections of all

symmetry planes of the same kind.

If the patterns encountered in the present study

are studied on the uncoloured level (as field-and-

line patterns) they are reduced to the patterns

shown schematically in Figure 5. In the

fundamental type, Fig. 5a, the framed diamonds

can occasionally become squares or be partitioned

into halves (Fig. Sb), but nearly all Aboriginal

artists use the simple diamond grids from Fig. 5a.

In this pattern, each diamond is in a special

position of the plane group cmm, on the

intersection of two mirror planes and a 2-fold

axis. Its shape (own symmetry) corresponds to this

site symmetry (Fig. 5a). When the diamond is

DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS 9

symmetrically divided into two halves (Fig. 5b),

each of these is still in (another) special position,

straddling a mirror plane. When it is divided into

four quarters (Fig. 5c), these are in general

positions and, as a consequence, each of them is

asymmetric.

If two opposite edges of a diamond element

have been accentuated by a colour stripe (as done

by the Aboriginal artists in some instances), its

symmetry is reduced to 2-fold rotational only and

the mirror planes are lost. The two simplest

arrangements yield symmetry groups p2 and pgg

(Fig. 5d,e, in which the edge stripes were

enlarged to fill the entire halves of the diamond

field).

We shall see that in the process of colouring,

the Aboriginal artists often made consecutive rows

of diamonds non-equivalent and effectively

separated them from each other by giving them

different colour sequences, symmetries and

periodicities. Each subset of this kind has

symmetry pmm before colouring is applied (Fig.

6a). If two opposite edges of each diamond are

accentuated, subsets with symmetries cmm, pgm

(both with a larger unit mesh) and p2 (Fig. 6b)

result.

A simple extension of groups of symmetry can

be achieved when a change of colour of the

element (ie diamond) acted upon is assigned to

each step of a particular operation of symmetry. A

change of colour from ‘white’ to ‘black’ (and

back in the next step) can be assigned to

translations, centration, or 2-, 4- or 6-fold rotation,

as well as to the reflection and glide-reflection

planes. Such operations are called operations of

antisymmetry and the symmetry groups are called

dichroic or black-and-white, or groups of

antisymmetry. In the case of two-dimensional

404, 444:

(oo CO)

Vee 006

DOO ay

00 4

pmm

FIGURE 6. Two examples on an uncoloured diamond

subset: a, plane group pmm, b, plane group p2.

periodic patterns in plane, 46 plane groups can be

discerned when the above 17 uncoloured plane

groups are not counted. In the symbols the colour-

changing symmetry operators are primed, the

colour-unchanging ones are left unprimed (Figs

3b,g,h).

The above discussed diamond patterns with

symmetries cmm, pmm, pgg, pgm and p2 can yield

a number of dichroic patterns. Examples are given

in Figs 7-9. Several of them will be discussed in

detail here.

Figures 1, 2 and 12-15 show dichroic patterns

in which the diamonds at the vertices of the unit

mesh are coloured in one way (flat colour)

whereas those in its centre are coloured in a

different way (cross-hatched). If these two styles

of colouring are interpreted as black and white,

respectively, this general colour scheme is

identical with that in Fig. 7b. Using the cmm

pattern in Figs 4a and 5a as reference, we can see

that the following symmetry operations became

colour-changing operations: the translation from

the origin to the centre of the unit mesh, the glide-

reflection planes and one half of 2-fold rotation

axes (ie those along the lozenge edges). On the

abe

eee

ane

eee

cm'm'

FIGURE 7. Dichroic plane groups for selected diamond patterns: a, the basic one-coloured pattern, b, p.mm2 with

special positions, c, cm’m’ with general positions, d, ditto with a special position only.

10 E MAKOVICKY

> 4

999

$99 999

$99 909

Pa2

> 999 Wd

HOY 000 9OO 009

999 999 909

000 999

pm'g

009

pmg cm'm

FIGURE 8. Dichroic colouring of a p2 diamond pattern: a, dichroic plane group p2’, b, p,.2, of the pmg pattern: c,

pm’g, d, pmg’; and of the cmm pattern: e, cm’m.

other hand, the ‘principal symmetry elements’

which enter the group symbol, ie the two systems

of reflection planes, the other half of rotation axes

and the translations along the unit-mesh edges,

remain colour-preserving. Thus, this dichroic

group can be described by the symbol p.mm2?,

where C’ denotes the colour-changing operation

of mesh centration.

On the other side of the spectrum is a cm’m’

pattern (Fig. 7c), in which both systems of mirror

planes and the associated glide-reflection planes

change colour on reflection, whereas the

centration vector and all 2-fold rotation axes (cf

Fig. 5c) preserve the colour of elements they act

upon. Pattern in Fig. 7c shows general positions

for this group; that is, each lozenge is cut up into

four parts which do not lie on any symmetry

elements and could even be moved apart as in

Fig. 4d of the uncoloured parent group. The

colour of special positions, on m’ planes or on

2m’m’ intersections, can be obtained by lumping

the appropriate two or four quarters together and

averaging their colour. They will be grey, with

both black and white components present at the

same time, and therefore will remain unchanged

even if subjected to colour-changing operations of

symmetry (Fig. 7d).

As a final example, the two simplest dichroic

colourings of the p2 pattern shown in Figs Se and

6b result in the patterns in Fig. 8a,b. In the first

644 406 60404 60406

90% 699

44 904 4

044

Ppamm

poe 0590

40% 40004

909 000% 99000

PpmmM

camm

FIGURE 9. a, monochroic and b-d, dichroic, colouring of the pmm diamond subset; b, p,.mm, ¢, p,mm and d,

c mm.

DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS 11

case all 2-fold axes become colour-changing,

resulting in symmetry p2', whereas in the second

case only half of their set will represent colour-

changing operators. The latter case can be

conveniently described as a doubling of one of

the unit-mesh edges by a colour-changing

translation, in this case as p_.2. The cases based

on the plane groups pmg and cmm give a broader

spectrum of dichroic colouring (Fig. 8c-e).

A rectangular pmm example in Fig. 9a that can

be coloured by a two-coloured translation b’ or a’

as p,mm or p,mm (Fig. 9b,c) leads towards a

generalisation of this process for more than two

colours, and to the simplest type of coloured

groups of symmetry in which colours of all (or

selected) elements of a pattern change periodically

along one translation direction. Along this colour-

modulation direction the fundamental translation

of the pattern will change to its n-tuple for the

sequence of n colours involved.

Thus, trichroic modulation of the pmm pattern

of diamonds will result in a trichroic plane

symmetry group with a tripled b-translation (Fig.

10). If we study the chromaticity (colour action)

of mirror planes perpendicular to the colour-

modulated b direction as well as that of 2-fold

axes, we find that it is only partial for this case.

These symmetry elements alternate only two

colours, leaving the third one unchanged. The

resulting plane group symbol is correspondingly

complicated, p,°’mm?"2%". Superscripts in round

brackets indicate the number of permutated

colours and, following the comma, the number of

unchanged colours. When ignoring the symmetry

of the underlying pattern, this plane group can be

simplified to p,%m1; in this case the colour

scheme employed is presented as simple vertical

FIGURE 10. Trichroic modulation of the pmm diamond

subset; trichroic plane group p,9mm?)22.

6494904

9444044

4444444

4444404

Ppmm

FIGURE 11. Diamond pattern from a crocodile’s back.

Gumatj bark painting. Colouring of diamonds is

interpreted by a dichroic plane group.

colour stripes overlying the correspondingly

coloured diamonds. Extension of the dichroic

c,mm principle in Fig. 9d to more colours is much

more complicated; it can be seen, for example, on

the cross-hatched diamonds of the drawing in Fig.

17f.

CLASSIFICATION OF OBSERVED DIAMOND PATTERNS

The observed diamond patterns can be

classified according to the following properties of

the colouring schemes employed by Aboriginal

artists:

i) maximally two colours, black and red are

used for flat-coloured diamonds, plain white

being consistently avoided; the flat-coloured

diamonds are either all of one colour or they

are simply two-colour modulated

ii) one to three colours have been used for the

cross-hatched diamonds — either the vector

of the colour-modulation wave is parallel to

the b axis, or the wave is diagonal to the two

axes of the pattern; in rare cases, the colour

modulation vector is parallel to the a axis.

The resulting classification is given in Table 1.

THE OBSERVED SYMMETRY GROUPS

As remarked earlier, the entire body of coloured

diamond patterns suggests that, on the whole, the

flat-coloured and the cross-hatched subsets are

treated independently from each other. Their

E MAKOVICKY

TABLE 1. Colouring schemes observed for the two component subsets in the Aboriginal diamond patterns.

Colour type

Flat-coloured

Cross-

hatched

Notes:

a axis runs parallel to the long diagonals of diamonds.

Polychroism*

(colour index)

Mesh size*

& type

axb

ax 2b, p

ax 4b, p

ax3b

ax 6b

2a x b,p

2a x 2b, p

2a x 2b,c¢

2a x 4b, c

3a x 3b, p

Wave-vector of colour

modulation and coloured

plane group

wave-vector undefined

pmm

P,Omme220)

wave-vector undefined

pmm

P,Omm? )Q21)

Pypymm2

p,mm

diagonal

Cc % mm

diagonal

(3) G)Q(21)

Py b 2

b axis runs parallel to the short axis of diamonds, at 90° to the a axis.

Colour index indicates the number of alternating colours. Mesh size is expressed in terms of the fundamental,

uncoloured periodicities. Wave-vector of a colour modulation wave is a vector perpendicular to the consecutive

coloured rows; its length is equal to that of a complete colour permutation. Coloured plane groups are explained in

the text.

Expansion by

intervening neutrally

coloured stripes of

diamonds parallel to a

yes

Expansion by intervening, neutrally coloured (in the observed cases white) stripes of lozenges parallel to the a

axis always expands the b parameter by two fundamental b lengths.

first colouring stage, see text.

pattern.

coloured plane groups are summarised in Table 1. a)

From the symmetrological viewpoint, only the

three simplest combinations of flat-coloured and

cross-hatched diamonds can be treated as one

whole; artists might have done it for these simple

cases as well:

For the special case of a sequentially dichroic sequence, with the a axis expanded by the white diamonds of the

One more (neutral) colour, which is not counted into the colour index of the colour group, is present in the

The simplest colouring of the diamond

pattern, in which both the flat-coloured and

the cross-hatched components have only one

colour each (Fig. 16a) can be described, as

was done in the section on symmetry, by

means of the dichroic plane group p.mm2.

DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS

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b) A monochromatic pattern (Fig. 16b,c,d) (a x

b) of the flat-coloured subset can be

described by the uncoloured plane group

pmm2. However, it can also be incorporated

into the dichroic cross-hatched component

(red- and white-hatched diamonds) of the

pattern as its special positions on colour-

changing mirror planes and 2-fold axes, The

single flat colour can then be understood as a

balanced mixture of two pure, hatched

colours from general positions and therefore

it does not change when translated by the

colour-changing translation 67/2.

Thus, this pattern taken as a whole has the

same dichroic symmetry, p,imm2, as its

cross-hatched portions. The colour-changing

operators are the b/2 translation and the

mirrors and 2-fold axes situated at b/4 and

3b/4.

c) The only other pattern still described by a

single unit mesh and symmetry group is the

dichroic pattern in Figure 16e. In this pattern

both components are colour-modulated, with

the wave vector of the modulation parallel to

the b axis. Each component taken alone

would have symmetry p,.mm2, but the entire

pattern (with the phase shift between the

modulation of the flat-coloured and the

cross-hatched components equal to 1/2 6 of

the underlying a x b lozenge pattern) has

symmetry p,7-’mm°'2"", None of the

components is in a special position in respect

to the coloured translation 6/2.

For all other cases, amalgamation of the two

components of the pattern into one whole either

leads either to a significant loss of the symmetry

information needed to describe the colouring

schemes devised by the Aboriginal artist

(especially the a x 2b modulation of the flat-

coloured component), or yields unrealistically

large repetition periods.

Therefore, separation of the two components of

the pattern is natural to, and the only proper

representation of, the colouring schemes designed

by the Aboriginal painters. The contradiction of

the two subsets creates a pleasant internal tension

(large-scale shimmer) in the pattern, arrests the

eye of the beholder and leads him to an intentional

or unintentional analysis of the not too overloaded

colouring scheme. The pleasure of the colour

contrasts and of the recognition process is similar

to that felt by beholders of good modern abstract

paintings.

The majority of complex patterns in which the

two-coloured subsets have unit cells of unequal

size nearly always display the same mesh and

symmetry for the flat-coloured red and black

subset (a x 2b) p,imm2; the rare exception p,.mm2

is in Fig. 16f. The mesh size and coloured plane

groups differ widely for the cross-hatched subset;

it is primarily the sequences with dichroic

symmetry that are observed. The dichroic plane

groups p,.mm2, p,mm2 (the colour change being

perpendicular to that in the flat-coloured

component in this case) or c,mm2 (eg Fig. 17b)

occur according to the direction of the colour-

modulation wave. Most of them occur in an

expanded version in which the b parameter of the

unit mesh is expanded by the width of two colour-

preserving (‘neutral’) white-hatched diamonds.

The latter represent special positions between

every consecutive, red—black and black—red pair

of lozenges situated in general positions (Fig.

17a,b in the above sequence).

The highest colour index (number of alternating

colours) observed for the cross-hatched

component is three (a white-red—black repetition),

with the colour modulation vector parallel to b. In

Fig. 17e this unit mesh (a x 3b), with the space

group p,°'mm2"" is combined with the

monochromatic flat-coloured mesh (a x b) pmm2.

More difficult is the case of white—black—red—

white-red—black—white—black— (repeat) cross-

hatched sequence attempted in the Gumatj

painting in Fig. 2. The resulting b axis is a

sextuple of the fundamental one: the b/2

parameter is three-coloured and the mirror plane

perpendicular to b at 0 and 1/2 b is uncoloured,

reflecting (ie reversing) the colour sequence.

Thus, the complete description is p,,,\°mm2.

In the already mentioned, rare, trichroic case

from the Gumatj clan (Fig. 17f), the colour

modulation wave is parallel to the diagonal of the

fundamental uncoloured mesh. Its oblique mesh

(a’ x 3b; a’ = a+ b of the fundamental

uncoloured mesh) has symmetry p,°)2", If, as an

alternative, the axes of the hatched pattern are

selected as three-coloured sequences parallel to

the axes of the flat-coloured mesh, the resulting

coloured mesh is rectangular p°),/2°). The

colour modulation vector, perpendicular to the

diagonal modulation wave, is equal to 3b - a of

the fundamental mesh.

THe Usep Versus UNUSED SYMMETRY

COMBINATIONS

Even being limited only to the rectangular and

oblique systems and ignoring, in agreement with

DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS 17

the Aboriginal artists, the additional colouring

possibilities which arise in the case when

diamonds turn into squares and the underlying

pattern belongs to the square system, comparison

of the possible colouring schemes (plane groups)

with the actually used ones reveals the very

restricted choice the Aboriginal artists have made.

As we have seen, the fundamental uncoloured

(or one-coloured) lozenge sets have symmetries

cmm, pmm, pgg, pgm or p2. From the first two

plane groups, the following categories of dichroic

plane groups with unchanged basic translation

vectors can be derived: cm’m, cm’m’, p.g8,

P-mm and p..gm from cmm, and pm’m and pm'm’

from pmm. For a doubled a parameter, the plane

groups p,mm, p..mg (and their permutation for

the doubled b parameter), and for doubled a and b

parameters c,mm, can be added. Some of them

are illustrated in Figs 7-9, 16 and 17, and the

remaining ones can be found in Washburn &

Crowe (1998). Whereas c,,mm and p,.mm (or its

rotated version, p,.mm) can occur both with whole

diamonds of one colour or with diamond halves

coloured oppositely, some of the symmetry groups

require symmetric division of each diamond into

two or four oppositely coloured portions (Figs 7,

8). As a rule, such division (known, eg, from the

Acoma Pueblo pottery (New Mexico), Mehinaku

and other tribes in Brazil, and Turkoman carpets

of Central Asia) was almost never attempted by

the Aboriginal artists. Thus, all groups with

colour-changing mirror planes (which may not

transpire from the group symbol because it only

shows the colour-preserving g planes parallel to

them) fall out and we are left with just the three

rectangular plane groups of symmetry described

from bark paintings, ie p mm (p,.mm), p..mm and

c,mm (Figs 7, 9). The only exception, which has

colour-changing mirror planes, is the occurrence

of the overall dichroic group p,%mm®?2°) (Fig.

16e) mentioned above. It is based on the

uncoloured group pmm, and the lozenges in the

central horizontal row of its mesh are non-

equivalent to those situated on the a and b vectors.

It might be better to divide this pattern into two

independent components, both with symmetry

p,mm, in line with the other patterns of the series

and, perhaps, in agreement with the understanding

of its structure by the artist himself.

The trichroic plane groups used by Aboriginal

artists are only of the simplest type. They are

based on a juxtaposition of colour stripes that

results in a unidirectional colour modulation (ie

periodic colouring) of the underlying geometric

pattern. Beside the cases when the modulation

vector is parallel to the axes of the fundamental

mesh (Fig. 17e), the above mentioned more

complicated case of diagonal waves has been

worked out by the Gumatj artist (Fig. 17f).

However, the corpus of potential, but unused,

trichroic combinations is large.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

The present study has examined the

applicability of more exact crystallographic

methods to Aboriginal art studies. Its preliminary

results were summarised in the general paper by

Makovicky (1986) and presented in Perth in 1987.

Since then, some concepts have been revised and

new material added.

The advantages of using plane groups of

symmetry for analysis of larger bodies of

ornaments are indisputable today (Abas & Salman

1995; Makovicky 1989; Makovicky & Makovicky

1977; Makovicky & Fenoll 1997). The description

of coloured ornaments by means of dichroic or

polychromatic groups of symmetry is less

widespread but equally effective (Makovicky

1986; Makovicky & Fenoll 1999; Washburn &

Crowe 1998:63). On the one hand it gives a short-

hand notation for the colouring schemes applied,

and on the other it allows the identification of

colouring sequences built on the same principle,

notwithstanding the colour combinations or

element shapes used. For example, the Aboriginal

colour sequences red—white, black—red and red—

yellow are described by the same dichroic plane

group (Fig. 16e,f), expressing the same colouring

intention as well. Dichroic or polychromatic

groups of symmetry are the best tool for further

analysis of distinct sequences based on the same

underlying pattern, as in the present case.

Symmetrological analysis shows that black, red

and ochre yellow always play a role in colour

alternation/permutation in Aboriginal patterns,

whereas the role of white is varied. It is not used

as a flat colour; in its cross-hatched form it either

represents yet another regular colour (in sequences

such as red—white, black—red—white— (repeat) (Fig.

17e) or red—yellow—white-— (repeat)) or it is the

neutral colour interspaced in colour sequences, in

principle dichroic, such as white—red—white—

black—white-— (repeat), eg Fig. 17a. The latter case

can also be interpreted as a sequentially dichroic

sequence in which the cross-hatched subset is

divided into a white and a non-white subset; the

latter subset is further divided into two distinctly

coloured subsets of diamonds. The second

18 E MAKOVICKY

colouring step can take more fanciful forms — it

can be centred, as in Fig. 17b, or periodic at a

right angle to the first step, as in Fig. 17c. The

rare occurrence of these sequences in Aboriginal

paintings is in contrast to their common

occurrence elsewhere (Makovicky 1986;

Makovicky & Fenoll 1999).

Lack of green and blue earthy pigments

undoubtedly contributed to the four-colour palette

and colour sequences of Arnhem Land artists.

Another technical limitation which might have

played a role in the choice of colouring schemes/

sequences (coloured plane groups) is the size of

bark surfaces available and of the fields into

which they were traditionally divided.

The symmetrological results of the present

study are satisfactory: the artistic canon of the

Yirritja diamond patterns can be successfully and

exactly described by means of coloured symmetry

groups and colour modulation waves. However,

the number of bark paintings available for this

study does not allow us to reach the other goal of

this investigation, that of potentially associating

the distinct colouring schemes with different clans

of the Yirritja moiety. However, the present

investigation has defined all the necessary means

for such a follow-up study based on detailed

investigations in the field and in museum

collections.

What are the preliminary results obtained from

the limited material? At present, it appears that

the Dhalwangu clan uses preferably one- and two-

coloured sequences, resulting in the plane groups

shown in Fig. 16a,c-f; one suggestion of a pmm/

p,°mm®” combination (as in Fig. 17e) was seen.

The version in Fig. 17a with interspaced white

cross-hatch is important, both in the red—black and

red—yellow varieties.

The Madarrpa clan uses similar simple patterns,

such as those in Figs 16b,c,e and 17a. However,

in the work of Wakuthi Marawili in 1982, the

palette explodes into a spectrum of p,°mm®@2%)

sequences for both the flat-coloured and the cross-

hatched subsets. Placing the ‘starting’ block of

one subset next to that of the other subset and

running the colour permutations in the same

directions in both subsets, a very effective colour

scheme has been devised (Caruana 1994: Fig. 56).

A combination of the same flat-coloured 3-fold

sequence as above with a two-coloured white-

interspaced cross-hatched sequence p,.mm rims

this bark painting. The same artist created a panel

with patterns such as those in Figs 16e and 17d

for the Berndt Museum of the University of

Western Australia.

The Gumatj bark paintings contain the most

complicated examples of colouring. Starting with

a monochromatic flat-coloured subset, patterns in

Figs 16a,c and 17e (with stacking faults in the

colouring sequence) are observed. With a bi-

coloured flat-coloured subset, powerfully coloured

versions of Figs 16e and 17a were designed; well

used also is the pattern of Fig. 17c with the two

colour-modulation directions at right angles to

each other. The chessboard-based pattern of Fig.

17d is accompanied by imperfect versions of the

patterns of Fig. 17b,f. A particular type of pattern

reproducing that of a crocodile’s back is in Fig.

11. Faults in three-coloured cross-hatched

sequences are frequent, sometimes making the

interpretation of the depicted panels ambiguous.

Patterns with partitioned diamonds are

infrequent. A rare example with the black flat-

coloured subset possessing a longitudinal partition

and constructed according to the schemes in Fig.

16a,c, and a pattern similar to that of Fig. 17a, but

with one-coloured flat-coloured elements, comes

from the Munyuku clan (Morphy 1979: 304).

Only rare examples were seen of diamond

patterns with diagonally or parallel three-striped

diamonds. A faultless p2' pattern of this type was

painted by J. Wululu, central Arnhem Land

(Yirritja, in Caruana 1994); a mixture of p2' (even

P,,2), and pgm’ (due to faults in colour sequence)

from Gupapuyngu clan (Milingimbi, Arnhem

Land, 1963) is reproduced by Cooper et al (1981).

A similar mixture of p2' and p,.2 is found in a

Gumatj pattern (Fig. 1) from 1959-60; and a

faultless combination of flat-coloured (dotted)

pmm and cross-hatched p2' in a Gupapuyngu

(1948) pattern, both photographed by H. Morphy.

Apparently, these examples are fairly marginal to

the entirely cross-hatched striped sequences of

other clans, eg Marrakulu, Manggalili, Rirratjingu

(Morphy 1981: 63; Caruana 1994: 64-67), as well

as of those from central Arnhem Land.

Although the amount and breadth of material

studied limits severely the validity of our

conclusions, it appears that there exist observable

clan-specific differences in the latitude of designs

used. However, they are easily transcended in the

production of especially talented bark painters,

such as W. Marawili of the Madarrpa clan.

Without doubt, the largest frequency of complex

designs occurs in the paintings by members of the

Gumatj clan. To the contrary, the Dhalwangu

creators of exceptionally powerful turtle paintings

used their basic pattern language to a great

advantage without complicating it by more

complex colour schemes.

DIAMOND PATTERNS IN ABORIGINAL BARK PAINTINGS 19

How old are the diamond designs? Old

examples are rare; the Dhalwangu example from

1952 (Sutton 1990: 21) contains the same

colouring combinations (coloured plane groups)

as the new paintings (Figs 16a,c,e). Other

Dhalwangu examples from 1948 contain the same

patterns. Gumatj painting from 1959 to 1961

contains a pattern of the Fig. 16c type. The

assertion is that the coloured diamond patterns are

traditional (Morphy 1981: 62) and may have had

their origin in contacts with Macassan trepang

fishermen who brought Indonesian utilitarian art

(eg patterned fabrics) with them (Mulvaney 1981:

16). The symmetrological independence of the

northeastern Arnhem Land diamond patterns, and

of their colouring, from the original Macassan

examples is apparent from a perusal of Indonesian

textile patterns, which are largely based on

symmetries other than those used by Arnhem

Land artists.

From a symmetrological point of view, the

majority of studied Aboriginal coloured diamond

patterns have a unique character. In several

cultures a dichroic division of elements into a

white and a coloured subset was common, with

the former left intact and the latter again divided

into two differently coloured subsets. These

patterns were defined as sequentially dichroic by

Makovicky and Fenoll (1999); examples from

different cultures (especially Islamic and Old

Egyptian) are given in Makovicky (1986). The

Amhem Land Aborigines acted differently in most

instances. With the exception of the simplest

patterns, illustrated in Fig. 16b—d, both of the two

primary subsets (ie the flat-coloured and the cross-

hatched) are further dichroically or trichroically

subdivided. Only the cross-hatched sequences in

Fig. 17a—c, with rows of white ‘colour-neutral’

diamonds, were produced by the process of

sequentially dichroic colouring.

In conclusion, with powerful dichroic and

trichroic sequences, Aboriginal artists created a

unique dynamic whole in which the two different

periodicities produce a captivating internal tension

and a wonderfully shimmering colour effect. The

overall impression can be described as two quite

different colour waves transcending the same

complex pattern. They are in contrast to the

simple colouring of the animals, persons and

objects that supply the narrative of the painting.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This contribution was made possible by the

generosity of Prof. Howard Morphy (Australian

National University, Canberra) who shared with the

author his photographic material on bark paintings from

Arnhem Land. Professional help by Mrs Britta Munch,

Mrs Camilla Sarantaris and Mr Ole B. Berthelsen

(University of Copenhagen) was highly appreciated. The

South Australian Museum kindly covered the

publication expenses; Dr Allan Pring and Dr Barry

Craig of that Museum were instrumental in organising

this publication.

REFERENCES

Abas, SJ & Salman, AS 1995. ‘Symmetries of Islamic

Geometrical Patterns’. World Scientific: Singapore.

Caruana, W. 1994. ‘Aboriginal Art’. Thames and

Hudson: London.

Cooper, C. (ed). 1981. ‘Aboriginal Australia’.

Australian Gallery Directors Council: Sydney.

Edwards, R & Guerin, B. 1972. ‘Aboriginal Bark

Paintings’. Rigby Ltd: Adelaide/Sydney.

Klein, C. 2002. ‘Mineral Science’, 22nd edn. John

Wiley & Sons, Inc: New York

Makovicky, E. 1986. Symmetrology of art. Coloured

and generalized symmetries. Computers &

Mathematics with Applications 12B: 949-980.

Makovicky, E. 1989. Ornamental brickwork.

Theoretical and applied symmetrology and

classification of patterns. Computers & Mathematics

with Applications 17: 955-999.

Makovicky, E & Fenoll Hach-Ali, P. 1997. Brick-and-

marble ornamental patterns from the Great Mosque,

and the Madinat-al-Zahra palace in Cordoba, Spain.

I. Symmetry, structural analysis and classification of

two-dimensional ornaments. Boletin Soc. Espanola

de Mineralogia 20: 140.

Makovicky, E & Fenoll Hach-Alf, P. 1999. Coloured

symmetry in the mosaics of Alhambra, Granada,

Spain. Boletin Soc. Espanola de Mineralogia 22:

143-183.

Makovicky, E & Makovicky, M. 1977. Arabic

geometrical patterns — treasury for crystallographic

teaching. Neues Jahrbuch fiir Mineralogie,

Monatshefte 2: 58-68.

Morphy, H. 1979. Yolngu art. Communicating in paint.

Australian Natural History 19: 304-309.

Morphy, H. 1981. The art of northern Australia. Jn C

Cooper (ed). ‘Aboriginal Australia’ pp. 52-65.

Australian Gallery Directors Council: Sydney.

Morphy, H. 1992. From dull to brilliant: The aesthetics

of spiritual power amongst the Yolngu. Jn J Coote &

20 E MAKOVICKY

A Shelton (eds). ‘Anthropology, Art and Aesthetics’. Aboriginal Australia’. George Braziller Publishers:

Clarendon Press: Oxford. New York.

Mulvaney, J. 1981. Origins. In C Cooper (ed). Washburn, D & Crowe, D. 1998. Symmetries of

‘Aboriginal Australia’ pp. 14-27. Australian Gallery Culture, 3rd edn. University of Washington Press:

Directors Council: Sydney. Seattle.

Sutton, P. (ed). 1990. ‘Dreamings: The Art of

SHALLOW-WATER CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND

LOMBOK (INDONESIA): FAMILIES BODOTRIIDAE AND LEUCONIDAE

U. MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

Summary

Twenty species are identified from the families Bodotriidae and Leuconidae from 39 shallow-water

stations around Australia and one location in Indonesia. Of these 20 species, two are possibly

conspecific. One species of the genus Leptocuma has to stay in open nomenclature because of the

poor condition of the specimen. The genus with the most species is Cyclaspis with 11

representatives in the samples. Two of them, Cyclaspis ursulae sp.n. from the exsculpta-group and

Cyclaspis lissa sp.n., are new to science; Cyclaspis strumosa and C. cf. strumosa are also discussed.

A new species of the genus Mossambicuma is described. This genus has been monotypic since Day

(1978) described it from the western Indian Ocean. New species are also described for the genera

Leptocuma, Glyphocuma, Pocrocuma and Bodotria. Only one representative of the family

Leuconidae was found, in Tasmania, extending the distribution of that species, Ommatoleucon

ocularis.

SHALLOW-WATER CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND LOMBOK

(INDONESIA): FAMILIES BODOTRIIDAE AND LEUCONIDAE

U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL, U. 2003. Shallow-water cumacean Crustacea from Australia and

Lombok (Indonesia): families Bodotriidae and Leuconidae. Records of the South Australian

Museum 36(1): 21-57.

Twenty species are identified from the families Bodotriidae and Leuconidae from 39

shallow-water stations around Australia and one location in Indonesia. Of these 20 species, two

are possibly conspecific. One species of the genus Leptocuma has to stay in open nomenclature

because of the poor condition of the specimen. The genus with the most species is Cyclaspis

with 11 representatives in the samples. Two of them, Cyclaspis ursulae sp.n. from the

exsculpta-group and Cyclaspis lissa sp.n., are new to science; Cyclaspis strumosa and C. cf.

strumosa are also discussed. A new species of the genus Mossambicuma is described. This

genus has been monotypic since Day (1978) described it from the western Indian Ocean. New

species are also described for the genera Leptocuma, Glyphocuma, Picrocuma and Bodotria.

Only one representative of the family Leuconidae was found, in Tasmania, extending the

distribution of that species, Ommatoleucon ocularis.

U Miihlenhardt-Siegel, Deutsches Zentrum fiir Marine Biodiversitatsforschung, Zoologisches

Institut und Zoologisches Museum, Martin-Luther-King-Platz 3, D 20146 Hamburg.

Manuscript received 9 August 2001.

Following the comprehensive studies of Herbert

Hale from 1928 to 1952 (Hale 1928, 1936, 1937,

1944, 1945, 1948, 1952) on Cumacea from

Australia, very little work was done on these

Crustacea in this region until Tafe & Greenwood

(1996) did their investigations at Moreton Bay,

Queensland.

The family Bodotriidae comprises 31 genera,

five of them endemic to Australian waters. The

Bodotriidae genus with the most species is

Cyclaspis with 118 species, many (46%) of them

described from Australia. Despite the

comprehensive and intensive studies of the

authors mentioned above, even more undescribed

species remain. The descriptions of two of these

are given here. For detailed generic diagnosis and

subdivision of the genus see Tafe & Greenwood

(1996) and for synonyms see Bacescu (1988).

The other genera mentioned in this study are

Bodotria (Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans),

Leptocuma (Australia and West Atlantic),

Mossambicuma (Western Indian Ocean,

Mozambique), Glyphocuma_ (Australia),

Picrocuma (Australia) from the family

Bodotriidae and Ommatoleucon (Australia) from

the family Leuconidae.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Material collected in shallow coastal waters

using a hand net by Prof. Dr. G. Hartmann and

Dr. G. Hartmann-Schréder during their expedition

to Australia September 1975 to February 1976:

Western Australia

WA sample 10, Broome, 10 September, fine

sandy eulitoral

WA samples 14+15, Broome, close to Willie

Creek

WA samples 17+18, Derby, 20 September, silty

lower eulitoral

WA sample 23, Broome, 24 September,

mangroves

WA sample 27, Port Hedland, 27 September,

close to low tide, fouling :

WA sample 28, Port Hedland, 27 September, fine

sand on reef top

WA sample 30, Port Hedland, 28 September, silty

clay, mangroves

WA sample 35, Port Samson, 30 September, sand

and algae, coarse sand and mud

WA sample 37, 7 km east of Dampier, Horsines

Cove, 2 October, shell hash — sand,

mangroves

WA sample 39, Dampier, 3 October, fine sand

eulitoral, in front of tidal flat edge

WA sample 46, 24 km south of Exmouth,

10 October, fine sand, eulitoral, between reefs

WA sample 66, Drummonds, close to Geraldton,

21 October, fine sand

22 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

WA samples 67+68, Jurien close to Cervantes,

24 October, sand

South Australia

SA sample 126, Port Lincoln, Proper Bay,

4 December, sand and seagrass

SA sample 129, Port Augusta, 6 December,

mangroves, silt and shell hash

Victoria

VIC sample 148, Foster, Port Welshpool,

28 December, mangroves, soft silty sand

VIC sample 165, southern dead end of Clarence

River, near Yamba, 18 January 1976,

brackish water and mangroves.

Additional unidentified material was available

from the South Australian Museum, Adelaide:

Various stations, Noosa R., 40 mesh tow net, June

1940, leg. ISR Munro;

Whiting Ground, Waterhouse Bay, east end

Thistle Island, 4 March 1931, 8 — 8.3

fathoms;

North end Herald Bight, Shark Bay, 3 fathoms,

sand, ‘Isobel’ W.H., 21 November 1945,

submarine light, temperature: 24.22° C;

Whalers Bay, Thistle Is., 3 February 1941,

submarine light, leg. K. Sheard;

Near Pt. Maclaren, Thorny Passage, Whiting

Ground, 3.5 fathoms, 8-8.30 pm, 2 March

1941, submarine light, leg. K. Sheard.

Material collected by Dr. V. Siegel and the

author, shallow subtidal water:

Tasmania

TAS Nubeena, 6 November 1995, soft silty sand

with detritus

TAS Marion Bay, 5 November 1995, fine sand

and sea grass

Queensland

QLD, Lizard Island 1992:

11 November, mangroves, 0.1 m, soft sand

12 November, Turtle Bay, 15 m, sand

13 November, sand, 10 m

14 November, Turtle Bay, 16 m, coarse sand

15 November, Turtle Bay, 15 m, soft sand

17 November, Mermaid Bay, 7-10 m

17 November, sand, 7 m

18 November, North Reef, 19 m, sand

19 November, Lagoon, 7 m, sand

19 November, Watson’s Bay, 17 m, sand

19 November, sand, 2 m

20 November, Pidgin Point, 12 m

20 November, Watson’s Bay, 16 m

21 November, South Reef, 12 m

Material collected by Dr. J. Martens and Dipl.

Biol. U. Heuer:

Indonesia, Lombok, Plankton/Neuston, 9 March

1996, 0-10 cm.

The material is deposited at the Zoological

Museum of the University of Hamburg (ZMH) or

in the South Australian Museum, Adelaide

(SAM).

SYSTEMATICS

Order CUMACEA Kroyer, 1846

Family BODOTRIIDAE T. Scott, 1901

Subfamily BODOTRIINAE T. Scott, 1901

Genus Bodotria Goodsir, 1843

Bodotria cf. biplicata Gam6, 1964

(Figure 1)

Material

Lombok: 1 juvenile male; ZMH K 39930.

Remarks

The juvenile male (1.5 mm in length) has

the pleopods barely developed; the total

length is about half as long as the holotype

(2.7 mm). Its two lateral carinae and the

dorsomedian carina are well marked in the

anterior half, the pitted structure of the

carapace makes the individual similar to B.

pulchella (Sars, 1878). It is differentiated

from B. pulchella by the unsegmented

uropod’s endopod, which makes it likely to

be conspecific with B. biplicata.

Distribution

Japan, Korea and Indonesia.

Bodotria cf. minuta Kurian, 1961

(Figure 1)

Material

Lombok: 1 juvenile female; ZMH K 39929.

Remarks

The juvenile female in the collection has the

uropods’ rami missing. It fits quite well with

Kurian’s (1961) description: carapace without

carinae, first free pereionite small, in the present

female not as free as in adult female, pigment

spots present, as figured by Kurian.

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 23

FIGURE 1: Bodotria cf. minuta juvenile female: habitus

(upper left); scale a: 1 mm. Bodotria cf. biplicata

juvenile male: habitus (lower left), same scale.

Cyclaspis supersculpta male: habitus (upper right);

scale a: 1 mm. Cyclaspis chaunosculpta ovigerous

female (lower centre): H: habitus, U: pleonite 6 and

uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (U). b

24 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

Distribution

Southern India and Indonesia.

Bodotria unacarina sp.n.

(Figures 2 and 3)

Material

WA: 35: 1 subadult male, 1 subadult female, 1

juvenile.

QLD: Lizard Island 1992: Turtle Bay

(15 November, 15 m): 2 juvenile females; Pidgin

Point: 1 subadult male, 1 juvenile female; ZMH K

39931; sand (2m): 3 ovigerous and 2 subadult

females, 1 male, 10 juveniles; SAM C 5996.

Holotype: ovigerous female SAM C 5995a,

SAM C 5995b: extremities of paratype

Paratypes: 2 ovigerous females, 2 subadult

females, 1 male (dissected), SAM C 5996

Leg.: V. Siegel & U. Miihlenhardt-Siegel

Date: 19 November 1992

Locus typicus: Australia, Great Barrier Reef,

Lizard Island, sand (2 m).

Diagnosis

Bodotria with one lateral carina in female,

uropod’s endopod unsegmented, 11 and one

terminal setae on endopod in male, two median

and one terminal setae in female, no scaly

structure on carapace, uropod’s peduncle longer

than endopod in male.

Description

Based on holotype, ovigerous female, 2.2 mm

length in total:

Carapace with a dorsomedian carina and one

lateral carina on each side, proportion length to

height 1.6, length to width 1.2. Pseudorostrum

shorter than length of ocular lobe; siphonal tube

moderately long; dorsomedian line straight;

antennal notch narrow; anterolateral margin

smooth.

Integument granulose; eyes with six lenses. First

free thoracic segment not visible, the second

pedigerous segment longer than following, free

segments combined shorter than carapace, lateral

carina continued on second pedigerous segment,

third to fifth segment with lateral plates.

Abdomen 1 mm in length, a little shorter than

carapace and free thoracic segments combined,

pleonite 6 proportion length to width 1.2.

Description of extremities is based on paratype,

ovigerous female:

First antenna geniculated, basal article longest,

middle article shortest, main flagellum two-

segmented, distally with two aesthetascs and one

seta, accessory flagellum rudimentary, only three

setae visible; mandible pars incisiva with three

teeth, between pars incisiva and pars molaris 11

setae.

Maxilliped 2 long basis, merus outer margin

dilated, carpus and propodus equal in length,

longer than merus, dactylus with stout terminal

seta; maxilliped 3 basis longest article, with short

distal prolongation, not reaching articulation

between ischium and merus; ischium longer than

merus, merus with short terminal prolongation,

carpus distally geniculated, propodus and dactylus

subequal in length, terminal seta stout, exopod

present (not figured).

Pereiopod 1 basis longer than rest of extremity,

carpus second longest article, propodus and

dactylus subequal in length, dactylus half as wide

as propodus, exopod present; pereiopod 2 basis

longer than rest of extremity, covered with hair-

like setae, ischium missing, merus and carpus

equal in length, propodus short, dactylus tapering

with one terminal and two subterminal setae;

pereiopods 3 to 5 similar in shape, the hinder

extremities getting shorter due to diminishing

length of basis; uropod’s endopod unsegmented,

one long and one short seta at inner margin, one

terminal seta, peduncle longer than pleonite 6

(length proportion 1.7) and endopod (length

proportion 1.6), exopod a little shorter than

endopod.

Male with five pairs of well developed

pleopods, 2.8 mm in length, abdomen longer than

carapace and free thoracic segments combined,

pseudorostral lobes meeting in a point in front of

ocular lobe, abdominal segments larger than in

female; proportions of peduncle to pleonite 6 is

1.1, peduncle to endopod 1.2, pleonite 6 length to

width 1.4. Bases of first two pedigerous

extremities longer than in female, uropod’s

peduncle with ten long and seven shorter setae,

endopod with nine spine at inner margin,

additional one terminal and one subterminal spine,

exopod with 11 long plumose setae at inner

margin and one strong terminal seta.

Etymology

The new species is named after its most striking

morphological character, the single lateral carina.

Remarks

Bodotria species with unsegmented uropod’s

endopod, one lateral carina, and proportion of

pleonite 6 length to width close to 1.2, as in the

new species are: B. arenosa (Goodsir, 1843) from

the northeastern Atlantic; B. armata Tafe &

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 25

FIGURE 2: Bodotria unacarina sp.n. ovigerous female: H: habitus female, A1: first antenna, Md: mandible, Mxp2:

maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, PS:

pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Al, Mxp2, Mxp3, P1, P2, P3, P4, PS,

U), scale c: 0.1 mm (Md).

26 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

FIGURE 3: Bodotria unacarina sp.n. adult male: H: habitus, subadult male A1: first antenna, Mxp3: maxilliped 3,

Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, P5: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods.

Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Al, Mxp3, P1, P2, P3, P4, PS, U enlarged), scale c: 0.1 mm (U).

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 27

TABLE 1: Comparison of some characters of selected Bodotria species with unsegmented uropod’s endopod,

n.d.: no data.

Bodotria Bodotria Bodotria Bodotria Bodotria

arenosa armata armata

sex male female male

lateral carina 1 1 1

Proportions

pleonite 6 length:width 13 12 1.2

peduncle:pleonite 6 1.7 1.5 1.6

peduncle:endopod 15 1.4 n.d.

pedigerous segment visible? — ? 2}

setae at endopod 4+1 ? 1141

Greenwood, 1996 from Moreton Bay,

Queensland; and B. rugosa Gamé, 1963 and B.

serrata Harada, 1967 from Japan (Table 1). The

new species resembles B. arenosa with respect to

the females’ length proportions of the uropod’s

peduncle to pleonite 6 and endopod, respectively.

It differs from that species in the number of setae

on the endopod. The new species differs from the

geographically close species B. armata in missing

the scaly structure of the integument, and the

length proportions peduncle to endopod and to

pleonite 6. The female’s length proportion of

peduncle to pleonite 6 is 1.5 in B. armata and 1.7

in B. unacarina sp.n., and the proportion of

peduncle to endopod is 1.4 in B. armata and 1.6

in B. unacarina sp.n. The male’s length

proportions of peduncle to pleonite 6 are 1.6 in B.

armata compared to 1.1 in B. unacarina sp.n. The

differences between females of the new species

and B. rugosa are the relatively longer uropod’s

peduncle relative to pleonite 6 and endopod in the

new species. The differences between males of

the new species and B. serrata is the relatively

shorter uropod’s peduncle.

Genus Cyclaspis Sars, 1865

Cyclaspis caprella Hale, 1936

(Figure 4)

Material

TAS: Nubeena: 1 subadult, 2 ovigerous

females; ZMH K 39917.

Remarks

Hale (1936) described the male of his new

species from Yorke Peninsula, South Australia,

and emended the description for the males from

Bodotria Bodotria

rugosa serrata wunacarina n.sp. unacarina n.sp.

female male female male

1 1 1 1

1.3 1.1 1.2

1.2 2S LF 1.1

1.2 1.6 1.6

+ ? - -

24+2 1342 2+1 1141

the same location (Hale, 1944). He mentioned the

females (Hale, 1944) and gave a short description

and a few figures of the females from Kettering,

Tasmania (Hale, 1948). Additional figures of the

females’ extremities are given herein. The species

is easily identified by the anterior ‘horns’ formed

by the acute anterolateral corners, narrow ocular

lobe with terminal eye, pseudorostral lobes not

meeting in front of the ocular lobe, strongly

elevated second pedigerous segment, fourth and

fifth pedigerous segments with a pair of triangular

teeth on dorsum, the first pleonite with a strong

procurved tooth on each side near the dorsal

posterior end. The uropod’s exopod has two

apical mucrones, as mentioned by Hale (1944).

Cyclaspis chaunosculpta Tafe & Greenwood,

1996

(Figure 1)

Material

QLD: Lizard Island 1992: Lagoon (7m): 1

female with developed oostegites; ZMH K 39920.

Remarks

The habitus of the specimen fits quite well

with the figure in Tafe & Greenwood (1996).

Additionally, pleonite 6 and uropods are

figured (Fig. 3). The carapace structure of the

Lizard Island specimens seems to have smaller

sponge-like pits than in the Moreton Bay

specimens.

Cyclaspis cottoni Hale, 1937

(Figure 5)

Material

TAS: Marion Bay: 3 ovigerous females, 4 adult

and 5 subadult males; SA: 126 (Port Lincoln): 1

28 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

FIGURE 4: Cyclaspis caprella, ovigerous female: H: habitus, Al: antenna 1, Mxp2: maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped

3, Pl to P4: pereiopod 1 to 4, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Al, Mxp2, P2, P3,

P4), scale c: 0.1 mm (Mxp3, P1, U).

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 29

FIGURE 5: Cyclaspis cottoni: H: habitus ovigerous female and adult male, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1,

U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp3 male, Mxp3 female enlarged, male and

female uropods enlarged), scale c: 0.1 mm (female Mxp3, P1, U).

30 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

ovigerous and 3 non-ovigerous females, 1 male

(broken), 12 juveniles; SA: 129 (Port Augusta):

10 females, 4 males, 2 juveniles; VIC: 148: 1

ovigerous, 6 non-ovigerous and 7 juvenile

females; ZMH K 39918.

Remarks

Hale (1937) described an ovigerous female and

some years later (Hale, 1944) the male. The most

striking characters are impressions at the

termination of the anterior, clear-cut part of the

dorsal carina and waviness of the double posterior

portion of the carapace (Hale 1937; 1944). Hale

stated the close position to C. herdmani Calman,

1904. It differs from that species in uropods’

exopods distally being truncate with two terminal

spines rather than acute as in C. herdmani.

The specimens from Tasmania (Figure 5) show

the female’s uropods’ endopods proximal part

appearing slightly serrated due to the scaly

structure, and having two spines in the distal

part, the exopod with 11 plumose setae at inner

margin.

The male’s endopods’ proximal part has eight

moderate long setae, the distal part being serrated

with two distal spines, acute tip, the exopod with

at least 11 plumose setae at inner margin, and the

peduncle with 10 long plumose setae at proximal

part, and 12 serrated setae at distal part.

Distribution

Extended to Tasmania, South Australia and

Victoria.

Cyclaspis granulosa Hale, 1944

Material

Whiting Ground, Waterhouse Bay, east end

Thistle Island, 4 March 1931, 8.0-8.3 fathoms; 4

males; SAM C 5989.

Remarks

The specimens from the collection of the South

Australia Museum fit quite well the following

characters given for C. granulosa; namely the

roughened structure of the carapace, the shape of

pereiopod 1, and the proportions and armature of

the uropods.

Cyclaspis pura Hale, 1936

Material

Whalers Bay, Thistle Is., 3 February 1941,

submarine light, leg. K. Sheard, 1 large, non-

ovigerous, and 2 subadult females; SAM C 5990.

Remarks

The specimens belong to the ‘levis group’ and

resemble closely the description of C. pura given

in Hale (1936, 1944) in that the uropod’s peduncle

is only a little longer than the rami, without long

setae, and the exopod has two terminal mucrones;

the uropod’s endopod is acute and in the present

material has three marginal serrated spines distally,

proximal part serrated; reticulation of carapace as

figured in Hale’s description.

Cyclaspis supersculpta Zimmer, 1921

(Figure 1)

Material

WA: 46: 4 subadult females, 6 juvenile females,

2 adult males, 15 juveniles; ZMH K 39919.

Remarks

Tafe & Greenwood (1996) described C.

chaunosculpta (see below) as being very similar

to C. supersculpta Zimmer, 1921, only differing

in having (C. supersculpta) or not having (C.

chaunosculpta) lateral bulges on either side of the

median dorsal ridge of the carapace; C.

chaunosculpta with more strongly developed

transverse ridges than in C. supersculpta. Because

of their variability, structures of the carapace are

not reliable characters to separate species, “...since

the ornamentation does not correspond uniformly

with any other obvious distinguishing characters”

(Day, 1978). Nevertheless, the ornamentation of

the carapace is often used to separate species of

the genus Cyclaspis (Tafe & Greenwood, 1996).

To find out whether the two species C.

supersculpta and C. chaunosculpta are synonyms,

more detailed analyses, such as molecular studies,

are necessary.

The present material resembles closely the

figure in Zimmer (1921).

Cyclaspis strumosa Hale, 1948

(Figure 6)

Material

QLD: Lizard Island 1992: Turtle Bay (15 Nov.,

15 m): 1 juvenile female, 1 adult male, 1 juvenile;

Turtle Bay (12 Nov., 15 m): 1 juvenile female, 1

subadult male; sand (7 m): 1 subadult female, 2

juveniles; sand (10 m): 1 juvenile; Pidgin Point: 1

juvenile female; Mermaid Bay: 1 juvenile; ZMH

K 39924.

Remarks

There are only two species described for

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 31

FIGURE 6: Cyclaspis strumosa: H: subadult female (above) and male (below) habitus from lateral, and carapace

from dorsal; female extremities: Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P4: pereiopod 4, PS:

pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H, female and male), scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp 3, P1, U), scale

c: 0.1 mm (P2, P4, P5).

32 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

Australian waters with an undulated dorsomedian

line in the frontal lobes region: Cyclaspis rudis

Hale, 1948 and C. strumosa Hale, 1948. Neither

species is included in the determination key

presented by Tafe and Greenwood (1996). C.

rudis is among others characterised by a scaly

structure of the carapace’s integument. The

specimens from Lizard Island resemble in most

respects C. strumosa. The juvenile female’s

outline (total length 2.7 mm) from dorsal view

with a swollen posterior part of the carapace given

in Hale (1948) is different from the outline of the

non-ovigerous female (total length 4.75 mm) from

Lizard Island. The female’s extremities are figured

herein. They resemble — aside of the sexual

differences typical for males like stouter basis in

first pereiopod, and more setae at uropod’s

peduncle and endopod’s inner margin — those of

the male given by Hale (1948). The inner and

outer margins of pereiopods 1 and 2 are not

serrated as in Hale’s figures.

Cyclaspis cf. strumosa Hale, 1948

(Figure 7)

Material

QLD: Lizard Island 1992: Mermaid Bay (7 m):

2 males; ZMH K 39925.

Description

Based on adult male, 4.3 mm in length.

Carapace 1.3 mm in length; ocular lobe wide,

reaching tip of pseudorostral lobes; pseudorostral

lobes not meeting in front of ocular lobe; siphonal

tube very short; antennal notch narrow, subrostral

tooth not acute; mediodorsal line a little

undulated; free thoracic segments short, combined

0.7 mm in length, the last two with dorsal hump;

abdomen 2mm in length, longer than carapace

and free thoracic segments combined; pleonite 6’s

proportion length to width 1.7.

First antenna basal article a little geniculated,

longer than following two articles combined;

accessory flagellum missing, main flagellum two-

segmented, its basal article more than twice as

long as distal, two terminal aesthetascs; second

antenna reaching end of body; mandible with four

teeth at pars incisiva, 12 long and strong setae

between pars incisiva and pars molaris.

Maxilliped 3 basis longer than rest of extremity,

distal prolongation over articulation merus to

carpus, ischium longer than body of merus, merus

with wide and long distal prolongation reaching

articulation carpus to propodus, carpus distally

widened, as wide as length of propodus, dactylus

short with stout terminal seta, exopod present;

pereiopod 1 basis longer than rest of extremity,

propodus second longest article, exopod present

(not figured); pereiopod 2 basis subequal to rest

of extremity, merus subequal in length to carpus,

carpus with three outer distal serrated setae,

propodus shorter than dactylus, the latter with two

short and one distal setae, which is longer than

dactylus; pereiopods 3 to 5 similar in shape, basis

shorter than rest of extremities, merus to propodus

subequal in length, dactylus short, distal seta at

propodus at least equal in length to dactylus and

its terminal seta combined; uropod’s peduncle

equal in length to pleonite 6, a little longer than

unsegmented endopod (length proportion 1.1), 13

plumose setae at inner margin of peduncle and

endopod as well, both rami with acute tip, no

terminal seta.

Female unknown.

Remarks

The specimens from Lizard Island resemble the

species described by Hale (1948), but differ from

the described adult male in basis, merus and

carpus of pereiopod 1 and 2, and uropods’

endopods having no serration.

Cyclaspis cf. agrenosculpta Tafe & Greenwood,

1996

(Figure 8)

Material

QLD: Lizard Island 1992: Turtle Bay (15 m,

sand): 1 subadult and 1 juvenile female; Watson’s

Bay (17 m): 1 female with developed oostegites;

ZMH K 39921.

Remarks

Female (subadult, total length 7.62 mm) from

Watson’s Bay, with right uropod’s endopod’s

subacute tip a little damaged, inner margin

serrated with nine hyaline ‘teeth’; exopod with 11

plumose setae, subacute tip, rami equal in length,

longer than peduncle, length proportion peduncle

to rami 0.78, length proportion peduncle to

pleonite 6 is 0.81; these specimens from Lizard

Island differ from those described by Tafe &

Greenwood (1996) in having uropod’s rami equal

in length instead of exopod longer, and peduncle

shorter instead of longer than rami and pleonite 6,

respectively, in Moreton Bay specimens. Habitus,

shape of first and second pereiopods, sculpturing

of carapace and structure of integument are the

same in Lizard Island and Moreton Bay females,

so they seem to be conspecific. Additional figures

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 33

FIGURE 7: Cyclaspis cf. strumosa male: H: habitus, Md: mandible, A1: first antenna, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, P1:

pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, PS: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods, left

exopod and right endopod figured. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (A1, Md, P2, P3, P4, P5), scale c: 0.1 mm

(Mxp 3, Pl, U).

34 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

FIGURE 8: Cyclaspis cf. agrenosculpta subadult female: H: habitus, Mxp2: maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, P1:

pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, PS: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale

a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp2), scale c: 0.1 mm (Mxp 3, P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, U), scale d: 0.1 mm (uropod’s

endopod enlarged).

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 35

of maxilliped 2 and 3, and pereiopods | to 5 are

given herein (Fig. 8).

Cyclaspis lissa sp.n.

(Figures 9 and 10)

Material

1 juvenile male, 12 juveniles; WA-27: 1

subadult female, 1 subadult male, 4 juveniles;

WA-28: 2 juvenile specimens; WA-39: 2 subadult

males, 1 subadult female, 2 juveniles; WA-66:

holotype: 1 ovigerous female, paratypes: 1

ovigerous female, 2 males, additional specimens:

5 ovigerous and 20 subadult females, 2 adult and

6 subadult males, 24 juveniles; WA-67+68: 1

subadult female; ZMH K 39926. WA-10: 4

ovigerous females, 3 subadult and 5 juvenile

females; SAM C 6078.

Holotype: female ZMH K 39927, K 39928:

extremities of paratypes female and male

Leg.: G. Hartmann & G. Hartmann-Schréder

Date: 21 October 1975

Locus typicus: Western Australia, Drummonds,

close to Geraldton, fine sand

Paratypes: 1 female used for dissection, 1 male,

1 male used for dissection.

Diagnosis

Cyclaspis with no ridges, pits or tubercles on

the carapace in female, in male no distinct humps

near the dorsal end of carapace, no granular

structure on the carapace; very short pseudorostral

lobes hardly meeting in a point in front of the

ocular lobe; basis of pereiopod 1 without distal

tooth and longer than the rest of extremities;

uropod’s peduncle longer than pleonite 6, and

longer than exopod; uropod’s exopod slightly

longer than endopod; uropods’ rami ending with

acute tips, no terminal setae or mucrones.

Description

Based on holotype, ovigerous female, total

length 3.4 mm.

Carapace smooth, dorsomedian carina present,

not pronounced; pseudorostrum very short,

meeting in a point in front of ocular lobe; siphonal

tube short; antennal notch very small, small

subrostral tooth acute; integument calcified;

ocular lobe present. Four thoracic segments visible

from above, first segment visible in ovigerous

female only from lateral, free thoracic segments

nearly half as long as carapace; abdomen as long

as carapace and thoracic segments combined;

pleonite 6 is 1.4 times longer than wide, shorter

than uropod’s peduncle.

Description of extremities based on paratype,

ovigerous female.

Maxilliped 2 basis longer than rest of extremity;

merus, carpus and propodus of similar length,

dactylus shorter, with stout terminal seta;

maxilliped 3 with exopod, geniculated basis

longest article, with distal process reaching joint

merus to carpus, ischium short, merus with distal

process reaching joint carpus to propodus, carpus

widened, propodus stout, shorter than carpus, with

two terminal setae, dactylus short and stout with

stout terminal seta, two subterminal setae.

Pereiopod 1 basis slender, longer than rest of

extremity, merus a little longer than ischium,

carpus and propodus subequal in length, both a

little longer than merus, dactylus slender with one

terminal and two subterminal slender setae,

exopod present; pereiopod 2 basis shorter than

rest of extremity, ischium short, merus second

longest article, dactylus subequal in length to

merus, with one terminal and two subterminal

setae; pereiopod 3 basis about as long as rest of

extremity, ischium a little shorter than merus, both

articles combined a little shorter than carpus,

propodus as long as merus, dactylus slender,

similar to terminal seta of propodus; pereiopod 4

basis shorter than rest of extremity, carpus second

longest article, dactylus half as long as terminal

seta, both combined as long as terminal seta of

propodus; pereiopod 5 carpus second longest

article after basis, dactylus as long as terminal seta

of propodus. Uropod’s peduncle without spines at

inner margin, longer than exopod, unsegmented

endopod shorter than exopod; both rami with

acute terminal ending; endopod with 6 serrated

spines, exopod with 6 setae at inner margin.

Male: Pseudorostral lobes hardly meeting in a

point in front of ocular lobe. Male has developed

pleopods of same length as holotype; carapace

shorter than in female, abdomen longer than

carapace and free thoracic segments combined,

four pedigerous thoracic segments visible.

Male’s extremities differ from female’s —

extremities are longer and basis of pereiopod 1

stouter. Uropod’s peduncle 1.7 times longer than

pleonite 6, inner margin with 18 plumose setae,

exopod longer than endopod, the latter with 11

short and proximally with two long setae.

Etymology

The new species is named after the smooth

structure of the carapace.

Remarks

Many species of the genus Cyclaspis have no

36 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

FIGURE 9: Cyclaspis lissa sp.n. ovigerous female: Mxp2: maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2:

pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, P5: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H),

scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp2, Mxp3, P1, P2, P3, P4, PS, U).

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 37

FIGURE 10: Cyclaspis lissa sp.n. adult male: H: habitus, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, P1: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2,

P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, P5: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods (the two long ‘setae’ between the

uropods peduncles belong to the antenna’s flagella). Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp3, P1, U), scale c:

0.1 mm (P2, P3, P4, PS).

38 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

ridges, pits or tubercles on the carapace, Hale

(1944) erected a key to these species in his

section 1. In this section he separated the ‘picta

group’ with eyes developed and_ the

pseudorostral lobes meeting for an appreciable

distance in front of the ocular lobe, and the ‘levis

group’ with pseudorostral lobes barely or not

meeting in front of the ocular lobe. Tafe &

Greenwood (1996) followed him in their

emended key. Thirty-five Cyclaspis species with

a smooth carapace are currently known. Only

two species out of these have the following

character combination as in the species described

above:

1) uropods’ rami ending with acute tips, no setae

or mucrones

2) very short pseudorostrum or pseudorostral

lobes hardly meeting in front of ocular lobe

3) uropod’s peduncle longer than pleonite 6

4) uropod’s peduncle longer than exopod

5) uropod’s exopod longer than endopod

6) basis of pereiopod | without distal tooth and

longer than the rest of extremities.

The combination of these characters is given in

Cyclaspis sheardi Hale, 1944. The new species is

close to C. sheardi because of the terminal seta of

pereiopod 2 being longer than dactylus in both

species. It differs from C. sheardi in not having

distinct humps near the dorsal end of carapace in

males, and in the absence of a granular structure

on the carapace. The pseudorostral lobes in males

in C. sheardi are very short but clearly meet in

front of carapace, whereas they hardly do in C.

lissa sp.n.

Cyclaspis ursulae sp.n.

(Figures 11 and 12)

Material

WA: 23: 2 subadult females, 1 adult and 1

subadult male, 8 juveniles; WA-30: 28 juveniles;

WA-37: 1 ovigerous and 1 subadult female, 1

adult and 7 subadult males, 17 juveniles; ZMH K

39923. WA- 4415: 2 subadult females, 1 subadult

male, 4 juveniles; SAM C 6079.

Habitus: ovigerous female holotype, subadult

and adult male

Extremities: WA-23 adult male total length

5.4mm, pleon damaged; WA-14+15 female with

developing oostegites, only carapace to first

pleonite, carapace length 1.6 mm.

Holotype: ovigerous female ZMH K 39922a,

ZMH K 39922b: extremities of paratypes

Leg.: G. Hartmann & G. Hartmann-Schroder

Date: 2 October 1975

Locus typicus: 7 km east of Dampier, Horsines

Cove

Diagnosis

Cyclaspis with quadrilateral area on each side

of the carapace defined by ridges, the anterior

transversal ridge not crossing the frontal lobe of

the carapace of the female, pitted carapace

structure in female, unsegmented uropod’s

endopod acute, uropod’s exopod with two distal

spines.

Description

Based on the holotype, 5.6 mm length in total.

Carapace seen from lateral with two transverse

ridges, the anterior not crossing the frontal lobe,

but turning backwards to meet the two ‘horns’

reaching forwards, formed by posterior ridge; seen

from dorsal transverse ridges do not cross

dorsomedian ridge but run parallel to it in

posterior part; pseudorostral lobes do not meet in

front of elongated ocular lobe; siphonal tube

short; dorsomedian line a little pronounced;

antennal notch small, anterolateral margin smooth,

anteroventral margin of carapace smooth,

integument reticulate, well calcified; eyes present;

four free thoracic segments visible, the first of

them (second pedigerous segment) with dorsal

prolongation, carapace and free thoracic segments

combined 2.81 mm in length.

Abdomen about same length as carapace and

free thoracic segments combined, with lateral

articular processes and dorsally a faint ridge

reaching the fifth pleonite; pleonite 6 shorter than

peduncle of uropod, length proportion of peduncle

to pleonite 6 is 1.38.

Description of extremities based on paratype

(WA-14+15) subadult female, carapace and free

thoracic segments combined 2.53 mm in length,

abdomen missing.

First antenna basis only a little geniculated,

longer than two following articles, outer margin

hairy, distal article second longest; main flagellum

two-segmented with four aesthetascs and two

short setae, accessory flagellum short, less than

half as long as main flagellum’s basal article, with

two short setae. Maxilliped 2 basis longer than

rest of extremity, distal inner part with one strong

spine, merus distal inner part with one long

plumose seta reaching distal end of carpus; this

article second longest, at inner margin four strong

plumose setae; propodus with four pairs of

plumose (only one row figured) setae at inner

margin, dactylus short with strong terminal spine;

maxilliped 3 basis a little geniculated, distal outer

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 39

FIGURE 11: Cyclaspis ursulae sp.n. ovigerous female: H: habitus, subadult female Al: antenna 1, Mxp2:

maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, PS:

pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp3, P1, P2, P3, P4, U), scale c:

0.1 mm (Al, Mxp 2, Mxp 3 distal part, PS).

40 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

FIGURE 12: Cyclaspis ursulae sp.n. male: H: habitus subadult (left) and adult (right) male, subadult male A1:

antenna 1, Mxp2: maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4:

pereiopod 4, PS: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp3, P1, P2, P3,

P4, U), scale c: 0.1 mm (Al, Mxp 2, Mxp 3 distal part, P5).

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 4)

prolongation reaching distal third of merus,

prolongation with ten plumose setae; merus outer

distal prolongation reaching articulation carpus to

propodus; carpus second longest article with

strong simple spine at outer and plumose seta at

inner distal margin, propodus a little longer than

dactylus, dactylus with four terminal spines, one

of them strong; exopod present.

Pereiopod 1 basis subequal in length to distal

articles combined, ischium equal in length to

merus, propodus second longest article, slender

dactylus a little shorter than carpus, with three

terminal setae, one of them stronger; exopod

present. Pereiopod 2 basis longer than rest of

extremity, ischium missing, merus second longest

article, carpus with one strong distal seta, dactylus

longer than carpus, with one strong terminal seta

more than twice as long as dactylus, and two

subterminal setae.

Pereiopod 3 basis shorter than rest of extremity,

ischium with two distal setae, one of them

reaching beyond articulation carpus to propodus,

metus and carpus equal in length, carpus with two

distal setae, two of them reaching to tip of

dactylus’ strong terminal seta. Pereiopod 4 similar

to pereiopod 3. Pereiopod 5 basis shorter than rest

of extremity, ischium with two long distal setae,

merus with one strong distal spine, carpus with

three distal setae, two of them reaching further

than dactylus’ strong terminal seta.

Uropod’s peduncle longer than pleonite 6, and

1.4 times longer than endopod, inner margin with

seven or eight simple setae, endopod with three

setae at proximal part of inner margin, distal part

serrated and with five or seven spines, tip

subacute; exopod longer than endopod, inner

margin appearing serrated due to scaly structure,

one long and one shorter terminal seta.

Adult (5.1 mm in length) and subadult (4.6 mm

in length) males (WA-37).

Carapace smooth in adult, sculptured in female

as in subadult male, pleonite 6 shorter than

uropod’s peduncle.

Description of extremities based on male

paratype (WA-23). First antenna as in female but

first article of peduncle longer and more slender,

accessory flagellum minute with three

aesthetascs.

Maxilliped 2 as in female, basis with one,

propodus with additional two strong plumose

setae, carpus with plumose setae at outer margin;

maxilliped 3 as in female; pereiopod 1 as in

female, basis with 5 spines; pereiopod 2 as in

female, basis longer and more slender; pereiopods

3 to 5 as in female; uropods, aside from sexual

differences (numerous setae at inner margins of

peduncle and rami), as in female.

Etymology

The species is named in memory of Ursula

Heuer, the co-collector of the material from

Indonesia.

Remarks

The new species and the three species

mentioned before belong to the exsculpta-group

of section 2 (Hale, 1944; Tafe & Greenwood,

1996). This group contains 18 species with a

quadrilateral area on each side of the carapace

defined by ridges or tubercles, distinct and

depressed in females, often indistinct in males

(Tafe & Greenwood, 1996). This group can be

extended by two species, C. strumosa and C.

rudis. From these species only males or young

females are known; the females might show the

typical transverse folds while the males have

carapace structures like males of other species of

the exsculpta-group. Within the exsculpta-group

there is a species subgroup with very similar

characters: C. chaunosculpta Tafe & Greenwood,

1996, C. persculpta Calman, 1905, C.

supersculpta Zimmer, 1921, C. tribulis Hale,

1928, C. exsculpta Sars, 1887, C. usitata Hale,

1932, and C. alveosculpta Tafe & Greenwood,

1996.

A comparison of characters of selected species

within the exsculpta-group is given in Table 2,

not including species with big lateral horns as in

C. aspera Hale, 1944 and C. bovis Hale, 1928,

and species with aberrant ridges at carapace like

C. australis Sars, 1887, C. indoaustralica

Bacescu, 1992 and C. similis Calman, 1907.

The new species resembles C. ornosculpta Tafe

& Greenwood, 1996 from Moreton Bay,

Queensland. The main character differing between

the two species is the anterior transverse ridge not

crossing the frontal lobe of the carapace of the

female in C. ursulae sp.n.

Genus Mossambicuma Day, 1978

Mossambicuma victoriae sp.n.

(Figures 13 and 14)

Material

VIC: 165: 2 females, 2 males, 1 exuvia; ZMH

K 39934. 1 male; SAM C 6080.

Holotype: ovigerous female; ZMH K 39932,

ZMH K 39933: extremities of paratypes

U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

TABLE 2: Character comparison of the exsculpta-group of the genus Cyclaspis. C: carpus, M: merus.

Exsculpta-group C. C. C3 C. C. C.

agrenosculpta alveosculpta candida chaunosculpta ursulae n.sp ursulae n.sp

female and adult male

subad. male

uropod’s endopod bluntly pointed acute acute acute acute acute

uropod’s exopod acute acute or acute acute spine 2 spines

tiny mucro

longest ramus exopod equal exopod equal exopod exopod

Length proportion

peduncle:pleonite 6, male 1.3 0.9 1.2 0.8 1.3 1.4

peduncle:pleonite 6, female 1.0 0.7 - - 1.4 -

peduncle:endopod, male 1.1 0.8 about | 0.8 1.2 1.2

peduncle:endopod, female 1.1 0.7 - - 1.4 -

setae at endopod, male 11 short, 21 13 spines, plumose 9 spines, 4 long, 4 long,

long plumose 27 long setae 12 plumose 15 short 17 serrated

setae at endopod, female 1 stout, 11 short - - 3 long, -

7 short 7 spines

pereiopod | C longer M C longer M - C longer M C longer M C longer M

no. of spines at basis, male 18 27 0? 21 - 5

long setae at pereionites 3 to 5 no 3to5 3 and 4 3 and 4 3 to5

structure of carapace reticulate reticulate 2 pitted, sponge pitted reticulate

Carapace ridges

transverse in female 2 2: - 2, first not 2, not meeting 2 lateral, |

pronounced on frontal lobe from dorsal

transverse in male 2 - 2? - - no

longitudinal - humps in - one hump in - 1 pair

female both sexes

dorsomedian carina present present o present present present

Exsculpta-group C. supersculpta C. Cc. Cc. Cc: C.

WA 46 supersculpta exsculpta mawsonae tribulis usitata

uropod’s endopod acute acute acute acute acute acute

uropod’s exopod acute acute mucro acute acute acute

longest ramus subequal equal equal exopod equal equal

Length proportion

peduncle:pleonite 6, male 1 - 0.6 1.2 - -

peduncle:pleonite 6, female 0.8 0.4 ~ - 1 0.8

peduncle:endopod, male 0.9 - 0.6 1.1 - -

peduncle:endopod, female 0.8 0.6 - - 1 0.9

setae at endopod, male 7 spines, 7 teeth, - 4 short, 7 short, 22 ~ -

28 plumose 13 long long plumose

setae at endopod, female 5-6 hairy setae serrated margin - - 14 short spines? 7 short spines

pereiopod | C longer M C equal to M C longer M C longer M C longer M C longer M

no. of spines at basis, male ¥5 M 0 0 0 0

long setae at pereionites 3 and 4 3 and 4 3 and 4 3.00 no no

structure of carapace - reticulate reticulate reticulate reticulate reticulate

Carapace ridges

transverse in female - 2 - - 2 2

transverse in male - - 2 1? > -

longitudinal - - 2 pairs 1 pair 1 pair -

dorsomedian carina =; present present present present present

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 43

TABLE 2: (continued)

Exsculpta-group C. C: G CG: C; C.

elegans ornosculpta prolifica persculpta rudis strumosa

uropod’s endopod acute acute acute acute acute acute

uropod’s exopod spine with spine ? acute acute acute

longest ramus subequal exopod exopod? equal equal endopod

Length proportion

peduncle:pleonite 6, male 1.0 1.1 - - 1 1.1

peduncle:pleonite 6, female 0.8 1.1 - 0.8 - -

peduncle:endopod, male 1. 1:3 - - 0.67 0.9

peduncle:endopod, female 0.9 1.4 1.0 0.8 - -

setae at endopod, male 18 plumose 7 spines, ? - 4 setae, 12 2 stout, 10

12 plumose long setae _ slender, serrated

setae at endopod, female serrated, 5 2 plumose, 4 short, 3 spines, - -

plumose setae serrated margin serrated serrated

pereiopod | C longer M C longer M C longer M ? C longer M C shorter M

no. of spines at basis, male 0 0 ? ? 0) 0

long setae at pereionites no no no 3 and 4 2 no

structure of carapace ? reticulate reticulate pitted scaly pitted

Carapace ridges

transverse in female 2 2 2 2 - -

transverse in male 2 - ? - no slightly 2 pairs

longitudinal 2 pairs 1 lateral pair - 2 pairs 1 pair no

dorsomedian carina present present, pronounced present present present

pronounced

Remarks - -

- 2 horns at middle - -

Leg.: G. Hartmann & G. Hartmann-Schréder

Date: 18. January 1976

Locus typicus: Australia, Victoria, southern

dead end of Clarence River, near Yamba, brackish

water and mangroves

Paratypes: female and male for dissection of

extremities.

Diagnosis

Mossambicuma with long siphonal tubes

separated but close together; no abrupt border

between carapace and second pereionite in female;

uropods’ peduncles shorter than pleonite 6 and

rami; third maxilliped basis and merus with long

distal prolongations; basis of pereiopod 1

geniculated; pereiopod 2 distal seta longer than

dactylus.

Compared to the other species of this genus, in

M. elongatum the basis of third maxilliped is

shorter and more geniculated, both basis and

merus of third maxilliped having a longer distal

prolongation in the new species.

Description

Based on the holotype, an ovigerous female,

length 2.7 mm.

Carapace compressed, longer than free thoracic

segments, first segment fused, lateral ridge

running from below frontal lobe dorsoposterior to

dorsomedian line; pseudorostrum long, siphonal

tubes long, separated but close together.

Dorsomedian line pronounced in anterior half,

less pronounced in posterior part where lateral

ridge runs parallel to dorsomedian line, very last

part of carapace without ridge or pronounced

dorsomedian line; antennal notch shallow;

anterolateral margin smooth; anteroventral margin

of carapace smooth; integument weakly pitted;

eyes present.

Four thoracic segments visible; abdomen 1.1

times longer than carapace and thoracic segments

combined; pleonite 6 is 1.5 times longer than

uropods’ peduncles and 1.4 times longer than

wide.

Description of extremities, based on paratype,

ovigerous female, length 3 mm. First antenna

long, mid article 1.1 times longer than basal one,

both combined 1.1 times longer than distal one;

main flagellum two-segmented, terminal with one

aesthetasc and one short, two long setae, accessory

flagellum reduced, replaced by one seta;

maxilliped 3 basis geniculated, with long and

44 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

FIGURE 13: Mossambicuma victoriae sp.n. ovigerous female: H: habitus, Al: first antenna, Mxp3: maxilliped 3,

Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, P5: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods.

Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Al, Mxp3, P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, U).

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 45

FIGURE 14: Mossambicuma victoriae sp.n. male: Mxp2: maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2:

pereiopod 2, P4: pereiopod 4, P5: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 0.1 mm (Mxp2, Mxp3, P1, P2,

P4, PS, U).

46 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

wide outer distal prolongation carrying eight

plumose setae at inner margin, the two distal ones

very long, prolongation almost reaching

articulation carpus to propodus; ischium longer

than merus, the latter with long and wide outer

distal prolongation reaching articulation carpus to

propodus, propodus egg shaped, dactylus slender

with terminal claw-like seta, exopod present (not

figured); pereiopod 1 basis shorter than rest of

extremity, slightly geniculated, ischium shorter

than merus, both articles combined shorter than

carpus, propodus second longest article, dactylus

with three terminal setae, exopod present;

pereiopod 2 basis shorter than rest of extremity,

ischium missing, merus equal in length to

dactylus, longer than propodus but shorter than

carpus, terminal seta longer than dactylus;

pereiopod 3 basis equal in length to rest of

extremity, distal seta of carpus reaching tip of

terminal seta which is longer than dactylus;

pereiopod 4 basis equal in length to rest of

extremity, distal seta longer than dactylus;

pereiopod 5 similar in shape to pereiopod 4;

uropod’s peduncle short compared with pleonite 6

and rami, exopod two-segmented, longer than

endopod; dorsal ridge with double row of scales,

distal tip with two serrated spines; endopod

unsegmented with four strong and short spines at

inner margin; outer margin scaly, terminal tip with

acute plumose seta.

Males dorsomedian line and lateral ridge less

pronounced than in female; extremities dissected

from male paratype, length 2.5 mm; second

antenna reaching articulation of pleomers 3 to 4,

pereiopod 1 basis more stout but rest of extremity

more slender, pereiopod 2 shorter than in female,

uropods’ peduncles with 11 setae at distal part of

inner margins, endopod with 20 spines at

proximal part, distal part with scales, one terminal

plumose seta as in female, exopod with two

serrated terminal spines.

Etymology

The new species is named after the type

locality.

Remarks

Day (1978) described a new genus,

Mossambicuma, with the striking characters:

ischium of maxilliped 3 larger than merus, basis

of pereiopod 1 without distal projection, second

pereiopod without ischium, uropods’ peduncles

shorter than pleonite 6 and rami, pleonite 6 shorter

than fifth abdominal somite. She mentioned the

resemblance to the genus Eocuma Marcusen, 1894

but she also stressed the differences from this

genus, such as the form of the carapace and the

first pereiopod not having the distal projection of

basis typical for Eocuma. The genus

Mossambicuma seemed to be monotypic, with the

type species M. elongatum Day, 1978 found only

at the type locality, the Morrumbene estuary

(Miihlenhardt-Siegel, 1996). The Australian new

species clearly belongs to this genus. It differs

from the known species in the female’s habitus as

there is no abrupt border between carapace and

second pereionite, the siphonal tubes are longer,

the basis of third maxilliped is shorter and more

geniculated, both basis and merus of the third

maxilliped have a longer distal prolongation, the

basis of pereiopod 1 is geniculated, pereiopod 2

has a distal seta that is longer than the dactylus in

the new species but shorter in M. elongatum.

Subfamily VAUNTHOMPSONIINAE Sars, 1878

Genus Glyphocuma Hale, 1944

Glyphocuma oculodentata sp.n.

(Figure 15)

Material

QLD: Lizard Island 1992: Turtle Bay (15

November, 15m): 3 subadult females; sand

(10 m): 1 subadult female, 2 juveniles; Mermaid

Bay (7m): | juvenile; Lagoon (7 m): 1 juvenile;

ZMH K 39936.

Holotype: adult but non-ovigerous female;

SAM C 5997a, SAM C 5997b: extremities of

paratype

Leg.: V. Siegel, U. Miihlenhardt-Siegel

Date: 20 November 1992

Locus typicus: Australia, Queensland, Lizard

Island, Watson’s Bay, 16m

Paratypes: Watson’s Bay (16m): 2 adult

females, 3 juvenile females; SAM C 5998.

Diagnosis

Glyphocuma with six dorsomedian teeth in

anterior half of carapace and one strong tooth at

anterior end of ocular lobe reaching the tip of

pseudorostrum, accessory flagellum of antenna 1

half as long as basal article of main flagellum,

uropod’s endopod distal article a little longer than

basal.

Description

Based on holotype, a subadult female, 7.6 mm

in length.

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 47

FIGURE 15: Glyphocuma oculodentata sp.n. female: H: habitus, Al: first antenna, Md: mandible, Mxp2:

maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, PS:

pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropod. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.5 mm (anterior part of carapace enlarged),

scale c: 0.1 mm (Al, Md, Mxp2, P5), scale d: 0.1 mm (Mxp3, P1, P2, P3, P4, U).

48 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

Carapace slender, as long as free thoracic

segments, straight to posterior part of frontal lobe,

the dentated line ascending, the undentated

posterior half straight; pseudorostrum and

siphonal tube short; dorsomedian line dentated in

anterior half with six teeth; antennal notch

reaching the posterior end of ocular lobe;

subrostral tooth not pronounced; anterolateral

margin serrated; anteroventral margin of carapace

smooth; integument with fine reticulate structure

as figured in Figure 17; eyes present.

Five free thoracic segments visible from above,

the first one short, laterally covered by carapace

and second free thoracic segment, third and fourth

segments laterally produced backwards; abdomen

longer than carapace and thoracic segments

combined; pleonite 6 shorter than uropod’s

peduncle.

The description of the extremities is based on

paratype, a female. First antenna basal article

geniculated with many hair-like setae, both

following articles equal in length, main flagellum

two-segmented, distally with two aesthetascs and

one annulated long seta, accessory flagellum two-

segmented, half as long as basal article of main

flagellum, with three terminally plumose setae and

one shorter simple seta. Mandible with 17 setae,

pars incisiva with four terminal ‘teeth’, pars

molaris short and stout. Maxilliped 2 straight,

basis longer than rest of extremity, ischium more

than half as long as merus, carpus second longest

article with 6 plumose setae at inner margin and

one at distal outer margin, dactylus short and

stout, ending with stout terminal seta; maxilliped

3 basis long and slender, distal prolongation with

11 plumose setae, two of them being twice as

long as the others; ischium a little shorter than

merus; carpus and propodus equal in length,

dactylus with stout terminal seta, exopod present;

pereiopod 1 basis shorter than rest of extremity,

propodus second longest article after basis,

exopod present; pereiopod 2 dactylus second

longest article after basis, terminal seta shorter

than dactylus, ischium not visible, propodus small,

exopod present; pereiopod 3 carpus second

longest article after basis, dactylus short with

longer terminal seta, exopod present; pereiopod 4

carpus second longest article after basis, terminal

seta longer than dactylus; pereiopod 5 carpus

second longest article after basis, with two long

distal setae reaching beyond tip of dactylus’

terminal seta; uropod’s peduncle longer than rami

with 12 setae at inner margin, rami equal in

length, exopod with eight plumose setae at inner

and 13 stout setae at outer margin of distal article,

endopod two-segmented, basal article a little

shorter (factor 0.9) than distal, with seven setae at

inner and one at outer distal margin, distal article

with ten stout setae, the distal one being longer,

one long terminal and one shorter subterminal

seta.

Etymology

The new species is named after the tooth on the

ocular lobe.

Remarks

The new species resembles G. dentata Hale,

1944. In Jones’s (1984) species list, G. cf. dentata

(identified by J. Day) is mentioned for Lizard

Island. The specimens in the present collection

differ from G. dentata by: presence of the large

tooth at the distal tip of ocular lobe, which is

missing in G. dentata; accessory flagellum of

antenna 1 half as long as basal article of main

flagellum, being shorter in G. dentata; uropod’s

endopod distal article a little longer than basal,

but the distal being nearly half as long as basal

one in G. dentata.

Genus Leptocuma Sars, 1873

Leptocuma longidactylum sp.n.

(Figure 16)

Material

North end Herald Bight, Shark Bay, 3 fathoms,

sand, ‘Isobel’ W.H., 21 November 1945,

submarine light, temperature: 24.22°C ; 30 males;

SAM C 5992.

Holotype: male; SAM C 5991

Locus typicus: Australia, South Australia, north

end Herald Bight, Shark Bay, 3 fathoms, sand,

‘Isobel’ W.H., submarine light, temperature:

24.22°C

Date: 21 November 1945

Diagnosis

Leptocuma with two spines at distal end of first

pereiopod’s basis, ischium of second pereiopod

longer than carpus. Bases of the pereiopods in

males more slender and longer, compared to the

exopods’ bases.

Description

Based on the holotype, adult male, 3.6 mm in

length.

Carapace 0.9 mm in length, pseudorostral lobes

not meeting in front of ocular lobe, siphonal tube

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 49

FIGURE 16: Leptocuma longidactylum sp.n. adult male: H: habitus, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2:

pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 1 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp

3, P3, P4), scale c: 0.1 mm (P2), scale d: 0.1 mm (P1, U).

50 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

very short, dorsomedian line straight, not

pronounced; antennal notch wide and shallow,

anterolateral margin rounded, anteroventral

margin of carapace smooth; ocular lobe present,

no lenses visible; free thoracic segments 0.8 mm

in length, second thoracic segment longest;

abdomen 1.9 mm in length, longer than carapace

and free thoracic segments combined; pleonite 6

shorter than uropod’s peduncle.

The description of the extremities is based on

the paratype, adult male. Maxilliped 3 basis

much longer than rest of extremity, wider than

following articles, with four long, plumose

setae, inner margin with short plumose setae

and hair-like setae; merus a little wider than

ischium and carpus, subequal in length to

carpus and propodus, exopod present;

pereiopod 1 basis longest article but shorter

than rest of extremity, at distal inner margin a

serrated seta preceded by a longer serrated seta,

outer distal edge with hair-like setae; propodus

second longest article, exopod present;

pereiopod 2 basis longest article but shorter

than rest of extremity, proximal part wider than

distal, ischium longer than propodus, dactylus

second longest article, tapering, exopod present;

pereiopod 3 basis longer than rest of extremity,

ischium with three long and one shorter distally

annulated setae, merus with three annulated setae

in distal part; carpus distally with two long

simple setae, propodus and dactylus short,

exopod present; pereiopod 4 basis longest article

but shorter than rest of extremity, distally each

article with long simple setae: basis one, ischium

three, merus three, carpus two, propodus one

stout, dactylus one terminal stout, exopod

rudimentary; uropod’s peduncle longer than

pleonite 6 but shorter than rami, 9 to 19 setae at

inner margin; exopod equal in length to endopod,

inner margin with seven plumose setae, three

terminal long simple setae; endopod two-

segmented, proximal article 1.8 times longer than

distal, proximal article with 13, distal article with

six setae at inner margin, two long terminal and

one short hair-like setae at outer distal edge.

Etymology

The new species is named after the long

dactylus of the second pereiopod.

Remarks

Nine Australian Leptocuma species are

described for the genus. According to Tafe &

Greenwood (1996) they are divided into two

groups:

« Group 1 with smooth strong setae at

distomedial margin of first pereiopod’s basis,

propodus with well developed brush of setae

at distal end, uropod’s endopod proximal

article shorter or only a little longer than

distal. Only two of the Australian Leptocuma

species are in this group: L. pulleini Hale,

1928 and L. vicarium Hale, 1944.

¢ Group 2 with serrated seta at distal end of

first pereiopod’s basis preceded by another

serrated seta, distal end of propodus with few

setae, uropod’s endopod with distal article

longer than proximal. The new species

belongs to the second group. For South

Australia only two Leptocuma species are

described : L. pulleini Hale, 1928, belonging

to group 1, and L. sheardi, Hale 1936,

belonging to group 2.

The new species differs from L. sheardi in

having the bases of the pereiopods in males more

slender, and longer compared to the exopods’

bases; the distal articles of the new species’

pereiopods bear fewer long setae than those of L.

sheardi. The most striking characters of the new

species are the dactylus being longer than the

carpus and the long ischium, both of the second

pereiopod, which are unique within the genus.

Leptocuma sp.

(Figure 17)

Material

WA: 46, 1 ovigerous female; ZMH K 39935.

Description

Based on the strongly decalcified female, total

length 3.3 mm.

Carapace shorter than five free thoracic

segments, pseudorostral lobes not meeting in front

of rounded ocular lobe; abdomen subequal in

length to carapace and free thoracic segments

combined; pleonite 6 a little (1.2 times) longer

than wide, two anal valves visible, length

proportion of uropod’s peduncle to pleonite 6 is

1.5.

Maxilliped 3 basis longer than rest of extremity,

slightly geniculated, distal half of inner margin

with 14 plumose setae, distal outer margin sloping

backwards, with five long plumose setae, exopod

present; pereiopod 1 basis longest article, 0.77 as

long as rest of extremity, inner margin with seven

plumose setae, distal end of inner margin with

two stout serrated spines, outer distal end with

one short plumose seta, propodus second longest

article, 1.1 times longer than slender dactylus,

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 51

FIGURE 17: Leptocuma sp. female: Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4:

pereiopod 4, P5: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 0.1 mm (Mxp3, Pl, P2, P3, P4, P5), scale b:

0.1 mm (U).

U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

g[eWoJ :J ‘o[eu :U

v g 9 8 é é UIZICUL JajNO [eIsSIP

Ol Jey [easIp 72

[eISIP 18 pT yoys*xod

ye Suo] P/E ISP] é é UIs Ie! JOUUT

siseq 38 oejas ‘¢ padiypixey]

W6 J9 Jg “wg JIT Jg Wg w¢-y wg J6 “Wg aponze [eisip podopua

wey JTI J6 “Wh 381 JLT “Wg wyI-ol wg] JIT ‘WoT ajonue jeuntxosd podopue

wo] J7I Jp WL JST JOT “WeEz wig-¢ é JT West ajounpad

podo.n 3e avjas Jo 1aquinyy

90 L0 80 90 80 $0 el 90 snAjoep:snpodod ‘7q

[enba yenba [enbo yenbo yenbo oxa snurel \so3uo]

81 cl 07 oT JET Ll 97 cl [ejstp:[eseq podopus s,podoin

60 VT im 60 I 60 é 60 podopua :ajounpad s podosn

cl UT CT eT UT el TT TT snjAjoep:snpodoad ‘|g

suor10do0.1d-y}3ue']

‘uds wnjd4jovpisuo] ‘ds Ipapays undafissas undysqo 1Mpauuay umipausayul aDiDg4vq Jayaereyd

1 "1 "1 "7 "7 7 “1 1

"Xa$ Joyye ul siseq s,podorasad jsIJ JO pud [eysIp ye soutds payesas Om} YIM Sotoods nuNDo}daT Jo uOsIIedWOD :¢ ATAV.L

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 53

exopod present; pereiopod 2 basis as long as

merus, carpus and propodus combined, carpus

second longest article, about twice as long as

propodus, propodus with 12 hair-like setae at

distal end, 0.68 times as long as tapering dactylus,

dactylus with 11 terminal and subterminal hair-

like setae, exopod present; pereiopod 3 basis

longer than rest of extremity, carpus a little shorter

than merus, which is second longest article,

propodus and dactylus short, ischium, merus,

carpus, and propodus distally with long terminal

annulated setae, dactylus with one strong terminal

seta, exopod present; pereiopod 4 similar to

pereiopod 3, but basis shorter than rest of

extremity, exopod rudimentary; pereiopod 5 basis

much shorter than rest of extremity, carpus second

longest article, fewer setae than preceding

extremities, propodus with two long terminal

setae. Uropod’s peduncle with 12 unequal spiny

setae at inner margin, 1.1 times longer than

endopod; uropods’ rami: exopod with five setae at

inner, three at outer margin, and one seta each

terminally and subterminally, a little longer than

endopod; endopod two-segmented, basal article

1.2 times longer than distal, basal article with 11,

distal article with four unequal setae at inner

margin, one longer terminal seta.

Remarks

Five species of the genus Leptocuma are

described with two serrated spines located distally

at the basis of first pereiopod: L. obstipum Hale,

1944, L. intermedium Hale, 1944 both from New

South Wales; L. serriferum Hale, 1944 from West

Australia and New South Wales; L. barbarae Tafe

& Greenwood, 1996 and L. kennedyi Tafe &

Greenwood, 1996 both from Queensland. In L.

sheardi Hale, 1944 described from South Australia,

only males have two serrated spines at the basis of

first pereiopod, females have one. The female of

the Western Australian material is compared with

the other species mentioned (Table 3). It does not

fit with any of the described species, so it is

probably new. It is not named because of the poor

condition of the single specimen.

Genus Picrocuma Hale, 1936

Picrocuma poecilotum Hale, 1936

Material

Various stations, Noosa R., 40 mesh tow net,

June 1940, leg. ISR Munro; 6 ovigerous females,

SAM C 5993.

Remarks

The specimens from the collection of the South

Australian Museum fit the most striking characters

of P. poecilotum given in Hale (1936). These are

the large second pereionite, the pseudorostral

lobes meeting in front of ocular lobe, a dorsal

hump seen in lateral view behind the ocular lobe

in males and juveniles, and more posterior in

ovigerous females. A comparison of the characters

within the genus is given in Table 4.

TABLE 4: Comparison of Picrocuma species. |: length, w: width.

Picrocuma Picrocuma Picrocuma

poecilotum crudgingtoni rectangularis n.sp.

Carapace

male I:w 1.8 1.7 1.7

female l:w 1.5 ? 1.6

Dorsal humps behind ocular lobe pereionite 2 no

Uropods’ endopods’ setae

male 12 + 1 long 6+ 1 long 8+ 1 long

female 3 4+ 1 long

Uropods’ proportions

peduncle I:w, male 3? 2? 4.5

peduncle l:w, female 3.5

endopod I:w, male 3.4 3.9 5.8

endopod I:w, female 3.1

peduncle:pleonite 6, male 1.5 1.4 1.8

peduncle:pleonite 6, female 1.3 1.5

endopod:peduncle, male iy 0.9 0.7

1: length; w: width

54 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

Picrocuma rectangularis sp.n.

(Figure 18)

Material

WA: 17+18: 7 males, 10 females;

Holotype: non-ovigerous female; ZMH K

39938.

Leg.: G. Hartmann & G. Hartmann-Schréder

Date: 20 September 1975

Locus typicus: Derby, silty lower eulitoral zone

Paratypes: WA-28, Port Hedland, 27 September

1975, fine sand on reef top, 2 males, 3 females,

ZMH K 39939; 1 male, 2 females; SAM C 6081.

Diagnosis

Minute species of Picrocuma, uropod’s

peduncle slender, long compared to the other

known species, uropods’ rami with a rectangular

shape.

Description

Based on holotype, female 1.4 mm in length.

Carapace smooth, shorter than free thoracic

segments, proportion length to width 1.6;

pseudorostrum as long as ocular lobe, siphonal

tube not visible; dorsomedian line not

pronounced; antennal notch not present;

anterolateral margin smooth; anteroventral margin

of carapace rounded. Integument, although

decalcificated due to fixation in formalin, with a

reticulate pattern visible in higher magnification;

eye not pigmented.

Five free thoracic segments visible, the first

slender, second long; abdomen shorter than

carapace and free thoracic segments combined;

pleonite 6 shorter than wide (0.9), shorter than

uropods’ peduncles, length proportion peduncle to

pleonite 6 is 1.5.

Description of extremities based on paratype.

First antenna basal article geniculated, distal

article longest, accessory flagellum minute, main

flagellum short, two-segmented, three distal setae.

Maxilliped 3 basis slightly geniculated, shorter

than rest of extremity, carpus second longest

article, dactylus with strong terminal and three

hair-like subterminal setae, exopod present;

pereiopod 1 basis shorter than rest of extremity,

carpus second longest article, similar in shape to

maxilliped 3, exopod present; pereiopod 2 basis

shorter than rest of extremity, ischium missing,

dactylus second longest article after basis; merus,

carpus, and propodus decreasing in length,

exopod present; pereiopod 3 with exopod, similar

to pereiopods 4 and 5, basis shorter than rest of

extremities, carpus second longest article;

uropod’s peduncle longer than rectangular rami,

inner margin without armature, exopod longer

than unsegmented endopod, exopod with one long

and one short terminal spine, endopod with three

spines at inner margin, one terminal spine 0.6

times as long as endopod.

Male 1 mm in length, similar to female, except

for following characters: antenna 1 basal article

not geniculated, basis of maxilliped 3 more

slender, exopods’ basal article more rounded than

in female in all extremities, uropods’ peduncles

longer than in female, length proportion peduncle

to pleonite 6 is 1.8, rami equal in length, endopod

with eight spines at inner margin and one terminal

longer one.

Etymology

The new species is named after the rectangular

shape of its uropods’ rami.

Remarks

Only two species are currently known in the

genus Picrocuma: P. poecilotum Hale, 1936 from

Queensland, Tasmania and South Australia and P.

crudgingtoni Tafe & Greenwood, 1996 from

Queensland. The main characters given by Tafe &

Greenwood (1996) are compared in Table 4. The

most important difference of the new species

compared with the known ones is the uropods’

rami having a rectangular shape, being longer in

males than in females, the endopod having eight

lateral plus one terminal spine; and the uropod’s

peduncle being longer compared to pleonite 6

than in the other two species.

Genus Vaunthompsonia Bate, 1858

Vaunthompsonia cf. cristata Bate, 1858

Material

Near Pt. Maclaren, Thorney Passage, Whiting

Ground, 3.5 fathoms, 8-8.30 pm, 2 March 1941,

submarine light, leg. K. Sheard: three males, SAM

C 5994.

In this material the pereiopods are broken;

however, One can infer the specimens are close to

V. cristata based on the serrated margins of

carapace and pleonite 6, and the anal valves each

ending in a fine hair. All these characters are

typical for this species.

Family LEUCONIDAE Sars, 1878

Genus Ommatoleucon Watling, 1991

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 55

FIGURE 18: Picrocuma rectangularis sp.n. female (above): H: habitus, Al: first antenna, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, P1:

pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3: pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, PS: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale

a: 0.5 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm (Al, Mxp3, Pl, P2, P3, P4, PS, U). Picrocuma rectangularis sp.n. male (below):

H: habitus, Al: first antenna, Mxp2: maxilliped 2, Mxp3: maxilliped 3, Pl: pereiopod 1, P2: pereiopod 2, P3:

pereiopod 3, P4: pereiopod 4, P5: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods. Scale a: 0.5 mm (H), scale b: 0.1 mm

(Al, Mxp2, Mxp3, P1, P2, P3, P4, PS, U).

56 U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

FIGURE 19: Ommatoleucon ocularis: H: habitus adult male (upper right) and subadult female (upper left), male’s

extremities: Mxp3: maxilliped 3, P2: pereiopod 2, P4: pereiopod 4, P5: pereiopod 5, U: pleonite 6 and uropods.

Scale a: 0.5 mm (H, U), scale b: 0.1 mm (Mxp3, P2, P4, P5).

CUMACEAN CRUSTACEA FROM AUSTRALIA AND INDONESIA 57

Ommatoleucon ocularis (Hale, 1945)

(Figure 19)

Material

TAS: Nubeena: 6 males, 2 subadult females;

ZMH K 39937.

Remarks

The first record for members of the family

Leuconidae from Tasmania fits well with the

characteristics Hale (1945) gave for his new

species, Leucon ocularis, which was transferred

by Watling (1991) into his new genus

Ommatoleucon. The diagnostic characters of this

genus are: uropods’ endopods unsegmented,

straight pseudorostrum in front fringed with setae,

ocular lobe not distinctly defined, eye present,

pedigerous segments depressed, uropods’ exopods

with three unequal distal spines, inner margin with

three plumose setae and a spine next to terminal

three, endopod with 11 short spines at inner

margin. The eye in the present specimens appears

to be submerged in the carapace.

Distribution

South Australia, St. Vincent Gulf, 19 m;

Tasmania, Nubeena, 0.5 m.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The sampling in the years 1975-76 by Drs G.

Hartmann and G. Hartmann-Schréder was financially

supported by the DFG. Sampling at Lizard Island in

1992 was allowed by permit No. G92/375, Great Barrier

Reef Marine Park Regulations, Queensland.

Many thanks to:

the crew of Lizard Island Research Station for kind

logistic and personal help: Dr. Anne Hoggett, Dr.

Lyle Vail, Marianne and Lance Pearce;

the South Australian Museum for loaning cumacean

material for identification;

Dr. B. Hilbig for correcting the English text;

H.-D. Totzke for critical comments;

my husband Dr. V. Siegel for help with collecting

and financial support;

the Zoological Museum, Hamburg, for providing an

actual place where the work involved could be

undertaken.

REFERENCES

Bacescu, M. 1988: Cumacea I. Jn H-E Gruner & LB

Holthuis (eds). Crustaceorum Catalogus. Pars 7: 1—

173.

Day, J. 1978. Southern African Cumacea, part 2, Family

Bodotriidae, subfamily Bodotriinae. Annals of the

South African Museum 75(7): 159-290.

Gam6, S. 1964. On three new species of Cumacea from

the southern Sea of Japan. Crustaceana 7: 241-253.

Hale, HM. 1928. Australian Cumacea. Transactions of

the Royal Society South Australia 52: 3148.

Hale, HM. 1936. Three new Cumacea from South

Australia. Records of the South Australian Museum

5: 395-403.

Hale, HM. 1937. Further notes on the Cumacea of South

Australian reefs. Records of the South Australian

Museum 6: 61-74.

Hale, HM. 1944. Australian Cumacea, no. 7, The genus

Cyclaspis. Records of the South Australian Museum

8: 63-142.

Hale, HM. 1945. Australian Cumacea, no. 10, The

family Leuconidae. Transactions of the Royal

Society South Australia 69: 86-95.

Hale, HM. 1948. Australian Cumacea, no. 14, Further

notes on the genus Cyclaspis. Records of the South

Australian Museum 9: |-42.

Jones, AR. 1984. Sedimentary relationships and

community structure of benthic crustacean

assemblages of reef-associated sediments at Lizard

Island, Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs 3: 101-111.

Kurian, CV. 1961. Three species of Cumacea from the

Lakes of Kerala. Bulletin of the Central Research

Institute, University of Kerala, Trivandrum, 8: 55—

61.

Miihlenhardt-Siegel, U. 1996. Ein Beitrag zur Cumacea-

Fauna aus dem Ktistenflachwasser des siidlichen

Afrika, mit Beschreibung von Cumella hartmanni

sp.n. Mitteilungen aus dem hamburgischen

zoologischen Museum und Institut 93: 117-140.

Sars, GO. 1878. Nye Bidrag til Kundskaben om

Middelhavets Invertebratfauna. Archiv for

mathematic of naturvidenskab 3-4: 1-60.

Tafe, DJ & Greenwood, JG. 1996. The Bodotriidae

(Crustacea: Cumacea) of Moreton Bay, Queensland.

Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 39(2): 391-

482.

Watling, L. 1991. Revision of the cumacean family

Leuconidae. Journal of Crustacean Biology 11(4):

569-582.

Zimmer, C. 1921. Results of Dr. E. Mjéberg’s Swedish

Scientific Expeditions to Australia 1910-13. XXVI

Cumaceen. Kungligen Svenska

Vetenskapsakademiens Handlingar 61(7): 4-13.

AN ANNOTATED CHECKLIST OF THE AUSTRALIAN

ACANTHOCEPHALA FROM MAMMALIAN AND BIRD HOSTS

L. R. SMALES

Summary

A compilation of all the records of acanthocephalans parasiting Australian mammals and birds is

presented, firstly as a parasite-host list and then as a host-parasite list. Current and original parasite

and host names are given. References for and localities of each record are provided. Hosts from

Australian sub-Antarctic and Antarctic waters are included but Papua New Guinea records are

excluded.

AN ANNOTATED CHECKLIST OF THE AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA FROM

MAMMALIAN AND BIRD HOSTS

LR SMALES

SMALES, LR. 2003. An annotated checklist of the Australian Acanthocephala from

mammalian and bird hosts. Records of the South Australian Museum 36(1): 59-82.

A compilation of all the records of acanthocephalans parasitising Australian mammals and

birds is presented, firstly as a parasite—host list and then as a host—parasite list. Current and

original parasite and host names are given. References for and localities of each record are

provided. Hosts from Australian sub-Antarctic and Antarctic waters are included but Papua

New Guinea records are excluded.

LR Smales, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Central Queensland University,

Rockhampton, Queensland 4702. Manuscript received 5 July 2002.

A list of type specimens of the Acanthocephala

held in the South Australian Museum was

compiled by Smales (1983), followed by a

complete list of the Australian Acanthocephala by

Edmonds (1989), more than 10 years ago. Since

then new species have been described, additional

material has been collected and many host and

parasite taxa have been revised. It is, therefore,

timely to produce updated lists that treat all the

known acanthocephalans from Australian hosts.

This checklist is a compilation based on all

published records up to 2002, augmented by the

examination of all the specimens deposited in the

Queensland Museum, Brisbane (QM); South

Australian Museum, Adelaide (SAM); registration

numbers prefixed as AHC, Australian Museum,

Sydney (AM); the South Australian Research &

Development Institute, Adelaide (SARDI); and

the CSIRO Wildlife Collection, Canberra

(CSIRO). It is limited to data from mammalian

and bird hosts, including presumed paratenic hosts

and accidental hosts; fish hosts are presently being

reviewed (Pichelin, pers. comm.), amphibian hosts

were recently treated by Barton (1994) and

reptilian hosts by Pichelin et al (1999).

Although for the most part restricted to records

of parasites from the Australian states, records

from marine hosts collected from Australian sub-

Antarctic and Antarctic territories have also been

included. In these latter cases only material held

in Australia is listed although the known

distribution of such species may be circumpolar.

Parasite nomenclature is based on the system of

classification of Amin (1985, 1987) and Golvan’s

(1994) alphabetical list of genera and species.

Host nomenclature is based on Strahan (1995) for

the mammals, and Marchant and Higgins (1990-

2001) and Schodde and Mason (1999) for the

birds.

Each record is given using the current parasite

name followed by its synonyms. Because there

have been numerous changes to the taxonomy of

many species, all known synonyms of the parasite

are listed although some earlier records could not

be accessed directly. This is followed by each

host, with localities, specific references to

Australian material, and museum registration

numbers. If the current name of the host differs

from that used in the original reference it is given

as ‘host as ...’ after the reference in the host—

parasite list. The type host is designated by an

asterisk.

The following abbreviations are used for

localities: NSW (New South Wales), NT

(Northern Territory), Q (Queensland), V

(Victoria), T (Tasmania), SA (South Australia),

WA (Western Australia).

ParasiTE—Host List

CLASS ARCHIACANTHOCEPHALA

Gigantorhynchidae Hamman, 1892

1. Mediorhynchus alecturae (Johnston &

Edmonds, 1947)

Syns: Echinorhynchus (Gigantorhynchus) sp.

Johnston, 1912; Johnston & Deland, 1929

Empodius alecturae Johnston & Edmonds, 1947

Empodisma alecturae Yamaguti, 1963

Mediorhynchus alecturae Golvan, 1962; Byrd &

60 LR SMALES

Kellog, 1971; Schmidt & Kuntz, 1977;

Smales, 2002a

Host: Alectura lathami Gray,* Q, Johnston 1912a:

106, 1912b: 72; Johnston & Deland 1929:

148; Smales 2002a: 375; AHC 1186, 2930,

4128, 2250, 427470-78, 42918-23.

2. Mediorhynchus colluricinclae Smales, 2002

Hosts: Acanthochoera chrysoptera (Latham), SA,

Smales 2002a: 377-380; AHC 4627

Coluricincla harmonica (Latham)*, SA, Smales

2002a: 377-380; AHC 5081, 5102, 18796,

28396

Pomatostomus superciliosus (Vigors &

Horsfield), SA, Smales 2002a: 377-380; AHC

5118

Rhipidura leucophrys (Latham), SA, Smales

2002a: 377-380; AHC 5040.

3. Mediorhynchus corcoracis Johnston &

Edmonds, 1951

Syn: Echinorhynchus sp. Cleland, 1922; Johnston

& Deland, 1929a

Hosts: Corcorax melanoramphos (Vieillot),*

NSW, Q, SA, V, Cleland 1922: 108;

Johnston & Deland 1929: 151; Johnston &

Edmonds 1951:1-3; Smales 2002a: 375;

AHC 3365, 3366, 3426, 5091, 6561, 23814,

42481-503

Corvus bennetti North, SA, Johnston & Edmonds

1951:1-3; Smales 2002a: 375; AHC 3269

Corvus coronoides Vigors & Horsfield, SA,

Smales 2002a: 375; AHC 5086

Corvus mellori Matthews, SA, V, Smales 2002a:

375; AHC 5088, 5108, 5109, 11530, 18225

Corvus tasmanicus Matthews, Tas, AHC 4586,

4633.

Corvus sp. SA, AM W1056, W1065

‘crow’, SA, NT, Smales 2002a: 375; AHC 1056,

1065, 3361

Grallina cyanoleuca (Latham), SA, NT, Smales

2002a: 375; AHC 434, 18222.

4. Mediorhynchus robustus Van Cleave, 1916

Syns: Mediorhynchus garruli Yamaguti, 1939

Mediorhynchus robustus Van Cleave, 1916;

Schmidt & Kuntz, 1977

Host: Grallina cyanoleuca (Latham), Q, Smales

2002a: 375; QM GL11212 Specimens

collected by J.W. Fielding, 1912, identified by

H.H. Baylis, 1926, are now missing. This

identification is doubtful but cannot be

confirmed.

5. Mediorhynchus sp. A

Host: Stiltia isabella Vieillot, NT, Smales 2002a:

375; CSIRO A21, identification by G.

Schmidt but material missing from the

collection.

6. Mediorhynchus sp. B

Hosts: Acanthogenys rufogularis Gould and

‘gull’, SA, Smales 2002a: 375; AHC 5126,

20640, 2 female specimens and 1 fragment

only available for study.

7. Mediorhynchus sp. larvae

Presumed paratenic host: [soodon macrourus

(Gould), Q.

Moniliformidae

8. Australiformis semoni (Linstow, 1898)

Syns: Echinorhynchus semoni Linstow, 1898

Prosthenorchis s.l. semoni Travassos, 1917

Gigantorhynchus sp. Johnston, 1910a; Johnston

& Deland, 1929

Gigantorhynchus semoni Porta, 1908; Johnston,

1909a, 1911; Johnston & Deland, 1929

Moniliformis semoni Johnston & Edmonds, 1952

Australiformis semoni Schmidt & Edmonds, 1989

Hosts: Antechinus agilis Dickman et al, AHC

19728-32, CSIRO A31, A36, A48, Antechinus

Stuartii Macleay, Schmidt & Edmonds 1989:

215-217

Isoodon macrourus (Gould), Q, NT, AHC 3416,

10512, 17994, 23308, 23309, 23316, CSIRO

AS, A6, A9, A61, A67, A107, QM GL14429,

GL14431, GL14433, GL14437, GL14438,

GL14440, GL14441, GL14442, GL14443,

GL14464, GL14465

Isoodon obesulus (Shaw),* NSW, Q, T, WA,

Linstow 1898: 471; Johnston 1909a: 521;

Johnston & Edmonds 1952: 215-217; Schmidt

& Edmonds 1989: 215-217; AHC 4090, 8325,

17929, 17930, 17931, 17932, 17980-91,

18038, 18041, 18207, 18208 42513-22,

CSIRO A90, A92

Perameles gunnii Gray, T, V, Schmidt &

Edmonds 1989: 215-217; AHC 5036, 5037,

5049, 5087, 11424, 11430, 16348, 16350,

16351, 17928, 17992, 17993, 18039, 18117,

18175, 18213, 23302, 23305, 23317, 23320,

23322, 23327, 23328, 23329, 16348, 16350,

16351, 17928, CSIRO A2, Al4

Perameles nasuta Geoffroy, NSW, Q, Johnston

1910: 27, 1911: 50; Johnston & Edmonds

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST 61

1952: 215-217; Schmidt & Edmonds 1989:

215-217; AHC 5093, CSIRO A3, A7, A66,

QM GL14430, GL14436, G211343

Phascogale tapoatafa (Meyer), NSW, Johnston

1910: 27, 1911:50; Johnston & Edmonds

1952: 18-20; Schmidt & Edmonds 1989: 215-

217

Potorous tridactylus (Kerr), T, AHC 10069,

18577, 17995

Bandicoot, no locality data, Q, T, AHC 3394,

3395, 3404,7850, 17978, 17995, 18576.

9. Moniliformis moniliformis (Bremser, 1811)

Syns: Echinorhynchus moniliformis Bremser,

1811

E. grassi Deffke, 1891; E. canis Porta, 1914; E.

belgicus Raillet, 1918

Gigantorhynchus Hamman, 1892 pro parte

Gigantorhynchus moniliformis Porta, 1908;

Johnston, 1909b, 1909c, 1909d, 1912b, 1913,

1916; Nicoll, 1914

Hormorhynchus moniliformis Johnston, 1918a;

Fielding, 1927; Southwell & McFie, 1925

Moniliformis moniliformis Travassos, 1915, nec

M. moniliformis sensu Travassos, 1917 see

Golvan, 1994; Johnston & Edmonds, 1952

Moniliformis dubius Meyer, 1932; Johnston &

Deland, 1929; Meyer, 1933

Hosts: Rattus rattus (Linn.), NSW, Q, SA,

Johnston 1909d: 583, 1909b: 218, 590, 1909c:

81, 1912b: 83, 1916: 43; Johnston 1918a: 69;

Fielding 1927: 123; Southwell & McFie 1925:

171; Johnston & Deland 1929: 147; Johnston

& Edmonds 1952: 20-21; AHC 42507, 42508,

42510

Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout), NSW, Q, NT,

SA, Johnston 1909b: 218, 590, 1909c: 81,

1912b: 83, 1913: 93, 1916: 43; Johnston

1918a: 69; Fielding 1927: 123; Southwell &

McFie 1925: 171; Johnston & Deland 1929:

147; Johnston & Edmonds 1952: 20-21;

Edmonds, 1989: 127; QM GL11008,

GL11068, GL11091, GL14434, AHC 2486,

3419, 42504, 42505, 42506, 42509, 42511

Rattus fuscipes (Waterhouse) Edmonds, 1989: 128

rat, Rattus spp., NSW, Q, Nicoll 1914: 4; AM

W305, W1602, QM GL11572, GL11703,

AHC 42512.

Oligocanthorhynchidae

10. Macracanthorhynchus hirudinaceus (Pallas,

1781)

Syns: Taenia haeruca Pallas, 1766 pro parte, T.

hirudinaceus Pallas, 1781

Echinorhynchus hirudinaceus Pallas 1781; E.

gigas Bloch, 1782

Gigantorhynchus hirudinaceus Porta, 1908;

Johnston, 1909a, 1909c

Homorhynchus hirudinaceus Johnston, 1918b

Gigantorhynchus gigas Meyer, 1928

Macracanthorhynchus hirudinaceus Travassos,

1917; Johnston & Deland, 1929

Host: Sus scrofa Linn.,* Q, NSW, SA, V,

Johnston 1909d: 583, 1909c: 79, 1918b: 216;

Johnston & Deland 1929: 147; AHC 1596,

2471, 3422, 8480, 15473, 18500, 18903,

19018, 22539, AM W5549, W201622,

SARDI A110.

11. Multisentis myrmecobius Smales, 1997

Host: Myrmecobius fasciatus Waterhouse,* WA,

Smales 1997: 301-307; AHC 30021, 30022,

30034-35, 30091-93, 30096.

12. Oncicola pomatostomi (Johnston & Cleland,

1911)

Syns: Echinorhynchus pomatostomi Johnston &

Cleland, 1911; Johnston & Deland, 1929

Echinorhynchus s.l. pomatostomi Petrochenko,

1958

Oligocanthorhynchus pomatostomi Tubangi, 1933

Oncicola sp. Banks, 1952; Edmonds, 1957a

Oncicola pomatostomi Schmidt, 1983

Paratenic hosts: Acanthiza chrysorrhoa (Quoy &

Gaimard), SA, WA, Mawson et al 1986: 273

Amytornis purnelli Mathews, WA, Mawson et al

1986: 272

Anthochaera carunculata (White), WA, Mawson

et al 1986: 274; AHC 4684

Anthus novaeseelandiae (Gmelin), WA, Mawson

et al 1986: 266

Aphelocephala leucopsis Gould, SA, Cleland

1922: 108; Schmidt 1983: 397-399; CSIRO

A34

Artamus cinereus Vieillot, NT, Q, Mawson et al

1986: 281; AHC 18217

Artamus superciliosus (Gould), Edmonds 1989:

128

Cinclosoma castonotus Gould, SA, Johnston &

Deland 1929: 149; Schmidt 1983: 397-399

Cinclosoma cinnamoneum Gould, SA, NT,

Johnston & Deland 1929: 149; Schmidt 1983:

397-399; Mawson et al 1986: 270; AHC 4896

Climacteris affinis (Blythe), AHC 18212

62 LR SMALES

Climacteris leucopsis, AHC 1801

Climacteris melanura Gould, WA, Mawson et al

1986: 274; Schmidt 1983: 397-399

Climacteris picumnus Temminck, SA, Cleland

1922: 108; Johnston & Deland 1929: 150;

Schmidt 1983: 397-399; AHC 5099

Colluricincla harmonica (Latham), SA, AM

W1079

Cormobates leucophaea (Latham), SA, Johnston

& Deland 1929: 151; Schmidt 1983: 397-399

Daphoenositta chrysoptera (Latham), NT, WA,

Mawson et al 1986: 273; CSIRO A40, A47

Grallina cyanoleuca (Latham), NT, Mawson et al

1986: 281; AHC 5110

Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham), NT, SA, Mawson

et al 1986: 282

Hylacola sp., no locality data, AHC 8863

Lalage leucomela (Vigors & Horsfield), NT,

Mawson et al 1986: 267

Lichenostomus plumulus (Gould), WA, Mawson

et al 1986: 276

Lichenostomus virescens (Viellot), WA, Mawson

et al 1986: 276

Malurus cyaneus (Ellis), SA, AHC 28011

Manorina flavigula (Gould), NT, SA, WA,

Mawson et al 1986: 275; CSIRO A32

Melanodryas cucullata (Latham), NT, Mawson et

al 1986: 267

Microeca leucophaea (Latham), Q, Mawson et al

1986: 268

Nycticorax caledonicus (Gmelin), Q, CSIRO A46

Oreoica gutturalis (Vigors & Horsfield), NT,

Mawson et al 1986: 269

Pachycephala inornata Gould, SA, Johnston &

Cleland 1911: 115; Schmidt 1983: 397-399

Pachycephala rufiventris (Latham) NT, Mawson

et al 1986: 268; Schmidt 1983: 397-399

Pedionomus torquatus Gould, SA, Johnston &

Deland 1929: 148; Schmidt 1983: 397-399;

AM W955

Petroica goodenovii Vigors & Horsfield, NT,

CSIRO A33

Poephila cincta (Gould), Q, Mawson et al 1986:

279

Pomatostomus halli (Cowles), Q, CSIRO AS7

Pomatostomus ruficeps (Hartlaub), SA, Johnston

& Deland 1929: 150; Schmidt 1983: 397-399;

AHC 557, 5072, CSIRO A56, SARDI A112-3

Pomatostomus superciliosus (Vigors &

Horsfield), (*paratenic), NT, Q, SA, WA,

Johnston 1910: 107; Johnston & Cleland

1911: 112; Cleland 1922: 107; Schmidt 1983:

397-399; AHC 1729, 1804, 2707, 5054, 5074,

5077, 5078, 42537, 42538, AM W293,

CSIRO A27

Pomatostomus temporalis (Vigors & Horsfield),

NSW, NT, Q, WA, Johnston & Cleland 1911:

112; Cleland 1922: 108, Mawson et al 1986:

270; Schmidt 1983: 397-399; AHC 18459,

CSIRO A104, SARDI A112-9

Sericornis brunneus (Gould), SA, WA, Johnston

& Deland 1929: 150; Mawson et al 1986: 272;

AHC 28012, 28013, AM W1080

Sericornis cautus (Gould), SA, Mawson et al

1986: 272

Sericornis fuliginosus (Vigors & Horsfield), WA,

Mawson et al 1986: 272; CSIRO A26

Sericornis pyrrhopygius (Vigors & Horsfield),

SA, Johnston & Cleland 1911: 112; Schmidt

1983: 397-399; AHC 1802

Strepera versicolor (Latham), SA, CSIRO A60

Turnix castanota (Gould), SA, Mawson et al

1986: 246; AHC 5073

Turnix velox (Gould), Q, Mawson et al 1986; 246

Zoothera dauma (Latham), Q, SA, Schmidt 1983:

397-399; AHC 3369

Zoothera lunulata (Latham), Schmidt, 1983: 397-

399

bird, SA, WA, AM W889, W1078

Definitive hosts: Felis catus Linn.,* NSW, NT,

SA, V, Schmidt 1983: 397-399; AHC 9565,

15077, 18196, 18444-48, 18460, 18462-67,

30181-93, 30438, CSIRO A12, SARDI A112 -2,

4-8

Canis familiaris dingo Blumenbach, NT,

Edmonds 1957a: 79; Schmidt 1983: 397-399;

AHC 18443,18461, SARDI A112-1.

CLASS PALAEACANTHOCEPHALA

Centrorhynchidae

13, Centrorhynchus asturinus (Johnston, 1912)

Syns: Gigantorhynchus (sensu latum)Travassos,

1917

Gigantorhynchus asturinus Johnston, 1912a, 1913

Centrorhynchus asturinus Johnston, 1918b;

Travassos, 1926; Southwell & McFie, 1925;

Johnston & Deland, 1929; Golvan, 1956a;

Petrochenko, 1958; Yamaguti, 1963 as C.

asturinum

Echinorhynchus bazae Southwell & McFie, 1925

Prosthorhynchus bazae Travassos, 1926

Gordiorhynchus falconis Johnston & Best, 1943;

Petrochenko, 1958

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST 63

Centrorhynchus falconis Golvan, 1956a

Hosts: Accipeter cirrocephalus (Vieillot), NSW,

Q, Southwell & McFie 1925: 163; Johnston &

Deland 1929: 148; QM GL11509

Accipeter fasciatus (Vigors & Horsefield), NSW,

NT, SA, Southwell & McFie 1925: 163;

Johnston & Deland 1929: 148; AHC 3377,

8860, 42208-09

Accipeter novaehollandiae (Gmelin),* Q,

Johnston 1912a: 108, 1913: 93; Southwell &

McFie 1925: 164; AHC 950, 42203, 42205-

07, QM GL11064, GL11213, G213458

Aviceda subcristata (Gould), NSW, Q, Johnston

1918: 215; Southwell & McFie 1925: 177;

AHC 3371

Circus approximans Peale, NSW, Q, SA,

Johnston 1918: 216; Mawson et al 1986: 244

Falco berigoria Vigors & Horsfield, NSW, NT,

Q, SA, Southwell & McFie 1925: 164;

Johnston & Deland 1929: 148; Mawson et al

1986: 245; AHC 5039, 5080, 19594, 42213-

13, QM GL11200

Falco cenchroides Vigors and Horsfield, Q, SA,

Mawson et al 1986: 246; AHC 5119, 5817,

19595

catbird or crested hawk, AHC 8874.

14. Centrorhynchus bancrofti (Johnston & Best,

1943)

Syns: Echinorhynchus sp. Johnston, 1912

Gordiorhynchus sp. Johnston, 1918;

Gordiorhynchus bancrofti Johnston & Best,

1943

Centrorhynchus bancrofti Golvan, 1956a

Presumed paratenic hosts: Antechinus agilis

Dickman et al, NSW, V, AHC 16299, CSIRO

Al17, A30, A35, A39, A43, A73, A78, A81,

A85, A86, A88

Antechinus stuartii Macleay, NSW, QM G213754

Antechnius swainsonii (Waterhouse), NSW,

CSIRO A23, A25, A72, A82, A84

Hosts: Ninox boobook (Latham), NSW, Q, SA,

Johnston 1912a: 109; Johnston 1918b: 216;

AHC 42210-11

Ninox strenua (Gould),* Q, Johnston & Best

1943: 226; Mawson et al 1986: 262; AHC

5060, 5101, 5114, 18057, CSIRO A68.

15. Centrorhynchus horridus (Linstow, 1897)

Syns: Echinorhynchus horridus Linstow, 1897,

Marval, 1905

Echinorhynchus sp. Johnston, 1910b; Johnston &

Deland, 1929

Prosthorhynchus horridus Travassos, 1926

Centorhynchus horridus Meyer, 1932; Johnston

& Edmonds, 1948, 1958; Golvan, 1956a;

Yamaguti, 1963, as C. horridum

Hosts: Dacelo novaeguineae (Hermann), Q, SA,

Mawson et al 1986: 264; AHC 941, 5098,

18044, 42224-25, QM G207576

Todiramphus macleayii (Jardine & Selby), Q,

CSIRO A65

Todiramphus sanctus (Vigor and Horsfield),* Q,

Johnston 1910b: 105; Johnston & Edmonds

1948: 69; AHC 5057, 5124, 18802, 42214-23,

QM G207319, G207575

Dacelo sp., Q, AHC 5130, 18187

kookaburra, Q, QM G207282.

16. Centrorhynchus sp. A

Host: egret, Q, single immature specimen;

proboscis armature not consistent with

described species from Australian localities,

QM G207066.

17. Centrorhynchus sp. B

Hosts: kingfisher, no locality data, AHC 5123

hawk, no locality data, AHC 5134.

18. Centrorhynchus spp.

Presumed paratenic hosts: Antechinus agilis

Dickman et al, NSW, V, CSIRO A35, A42,

A79, A87, A105

Antechinus swainsonii (Waterhouse) NSW,

CSIRO A18, A37

Phascogale tapoatafa (Meyer), NSW, CSIRO

A103

Sminthopsis leucopus (Gray), T, CSIRO A22.

Plagiorhynchidae

19. Plagiorhynchus charadrii (Yamaguti, 1939)

Syn: Prosthorhynchus charadrii Yamaguti, 1939;

Johnston & Edmonds, 1947

Plagiorhynchus charadrii Van Cleave, 1951 nec

Golvan, 1956b; Schmidt and Kuntz, 1966;

Smales, 2002b ;

Hosts: Acridotheres tristis Linn., V, Smales

2002b: 210; AHC 8648

Centropus phasianus Latham, Q, Smales

2002b: 210; AHC 1790, 1793, 1796

Charadrius alexandrius Linn., SA, T,

Smales 2002b: 210; AHC 5046, 5061, 5070

Charadrius ruficapillus Temminck, SA, T,

Mawson et al 1986: 251; AHC 5116,

18040, 18191

64 LR SMALES

Haematopus fuliginosus Gould, T, Smales 2002b:

210; AHC 7731

Haematopus longirostris Vieillot, T, Smales

2002b: 210; AHC 7730

Pachyptila tutur (Kuhl), T, Smales 2002b: 210;

AHC 8862

Thinornis rubricollis (Gmelin), V, SA, Johnston

& Edmonds 1947: 561; AHC 3362, 5075,

5083, 15595, 18779, 42426-37

Turdus merula Linn., T, Smales 2002b: 210; AHC

8876.

20. Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus (Goeze, 1782)

Syns: Echinorhynchus cylindraceus Goeze, 1782;

E. brumpti Blanc and Cauchemez, 1911; E.

pict Gmelin, 1791; E. musicapae Rudolphi,

1819; E. dimorphocephalus Westrumb, 1821;

E. obliquis Dujardin, 1845; E. pigmentatus

Marval, 1902

Centrorhynchus cylindraceus Schrank, 1788;

Travassos, 1926; Petrochenko, 1958

Prosthorhynchus Kostylev, 1915; Yamaguti, 1963

as P. cylindraceus; Golvan, 1956a, 1956b;

Edmonds, 1982

Prosthorhynchus genitopapillatus Lundstrom,

1942 see Golvan, 1994

Prosthorhynchus upupae Lopéz-Neyra, 1946

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus Schmidt and Kuntz,

1966; Schmidt, 1981; Amin et al, 1999;

Smales, 1988, 2002b

Presumed paratenic hosts: Antechinus agilis

Dickman et al, NSW, CSIRO A74

Hydromys chrysogaster, Geoffroy; Edmonds

1989: 130; AHC 19690

Isoodon obesulus (Shaw); T, Smales 1988: 1062-

4; AHC 18827, 18988, 19013, 19014, CSIRO

A94, A9S

Isoodon macrourus (Shaw), ACT, CSIRO A93

Perameles gunnii (Gray), T, CSIRO A96

Wallabia bicolor (Desmarest), NSW, AHC 7307

Sminthopsis leucopus (Gray), V, AHC 6559

Potorous tridactylus (Kerr), T, CSIRO A108

Vulpes vulpes Linn., V, AHC 6555

Hosts: Acridotheres tristis Linn., V, Edmonds

1989: 130; AHC 18034, 23847

Corvus coronoides Vigors & Horsfield, V, Smales

2002b: 210; AHC 18812, 18825 Gallina

tenebrosa Gould, V, Smales 2002b: 210; AHC

18087

Grallina cyanoleuca (Latham), V

Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham), T, V, Smales

2002b: 210; AHC 8877, 18035, 18226, 19046

Megalurus timoriensis Wallace, Johnston &

Deland 1929: 150; doubtful record

Sturnus vulgaris Linn., T, V, Smales 2002b: 210;

AHC 18186, 18203, 19426, 23849

Threskiornis molucca (Cuvier), T, Smales

2002b: 210; AHC 18182, 18205

Turdus merula Linn., T, V, Edmonds 1989: 130;

AHC 8879, 10011, 11381, 18033, 23850,

23851

Vanellus miles (Boddaert), T, V, Smales 2002b:

210; AHC 18021

Zoothera lunulata (Latham), V, AHC 32105

pigeon, Schmidt 1981: 597; AHC 23848

Hydromys chrysogaster Geoffroy; T, AHC 18183,

18209

Perameles gunnii (Gray), T, Smales 1988: 1062-

64; AHC 18184, 18206, 19012

21. Plagiorhynchus menurae (Johnston, 1912)

Syns: Echinorhynchus menurae Johnston, 1912b

Prosthorhynchus menurae Travassos, 1926;

Meyer, 1933; Johnston & Best, 1943;

Petrochenko, 1958, attributed in error to

Schaston, 1912

Plagiorhynchus menurae Golvan, 1956; Schmidt

and Kuntz, 1966; Smales, 2002b

Hosts: Menura alberti Bonaparte, NSW, Smales

2002b: 21; CSIRO A100, A101

Menura novaehollandiae Latham,* NSW, V,

Johnston 1912b: 88; Johnston & Best 1943:

226; AHC 6552, 17951, 17952, 17976, 18045,

18575, 22934, 32135, 42438-41, CSIRO ASO,

AS1, A52, A69, A70, A71, A89, A91.

22. Plagiorhynchus sp. Smales, 2002: 210

Hosts: Psophodes olivaceus (Latham), NSW,

CSIRO A55

Ptiloris victoriae Gould, Q, CSIRO A63.

23. Plagiorhynchus spp.

Possibly P. cylindraceus but cyst forms difficult

to determine with certainty

Presumed paratenic hosts: Antechinus agilis

Dickman et al, NSW, CSIRO A24, A41

Antechinus stuartii Macleay, NSW, QM GL

12584 slide no 213755

Isoodon macrourus (Shaw), ACT, CSIRO A98

Isoodon obesulus (Shaw), ACT, CSIRO A95

Sminthopsis leucopis, NSW, CSIRO A19.

24. Porrorchis hylae (Johnston, 1914)

Syns: Echinorhynchus sp. Johnston, 1912b

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST 65

Echinorhynchus hylae Johnston, 1914;

Petrochenko, 1958 as Echinorhynchus s.l.

hylae; E. bulbocaudatus Southwell & McFie,

1925; Johnston and Deland, 1929; E.

centropusi Tubangi, 1933

Prosthorhynchus bulbocaudatus Travassos, 1926

Gordiorhynchus hylae Johnston and Edmonds,

1948

Pseudoporrorchis hylae Joyeaux and Baer, 1935;

Edmonds, 1957a

Porrorchis hylae Schmidt & Kuntz, 1967; Smales,

2002b

Presumed paratenic host: Antechinus stuartii

Macleay, NSW, QM GL 12584 Slide No

213753, GL12593

Hosts: Burrhinus grallarius (Latham), Q, Smales

2002b: 210; QM G207024

Centropus phasianus (Latham),* NT, Q, WA,

AHC 5064, 5103, 5121, 18216, 18838 CSIRO

A64, QM GL11402, G207272, G207473;

Johnston & Deland 1929: 149; Edmonds

1957a: 76; Mawson et al 1986: 262; Smales

2002b: 210

Podargus strigoides (Latham), NT, Q, SA,

Johnston & Edmonds 1948: 74; Mawson et al

1986: 263; Smales 2002b: 210; AHC 857,

3411 (listed as types in the register but the

species was first described from C.

phasianus), 4606, 5084, 5129, 6553, 6562,

11214 15221, 18211, 18218, 18220, 18221,

42542-47, QM G207057, G207103, G207193.

25. Porrorchis hydromuris (Edmonds, 1957)

Syns: Pseudoporrorchis hydromuris Edmonds,

1957a

Porrorchis hydromuris Schmidt and Kuntz, 1967;

Smales, 2002b

Hosts: Hydromys chrysogaster Geoffroy,* Q,

Edmonds 1957a: 77; Smales 2002b: 210;

AHC 3398, 3402,5056, 5079, QM GL14411,

GL14432, GL14435, GL14460-63, GL14466

rat, QM GL14374.

26. Porrorchis sp.

Host: Felis catus Linn., NSW, possibly Q, Smales

2002b: 210; AHC 3414, QM GL12464.

Polymorphidae

27. Andracantha clavata (Goss, 1940)

Syns: Corynosoma clavatum Goss, 1940;

Johnston & Best, 1942; Johnston & Edmonds,

1953; Edmonds, 1955, 1957; Zdzitowiecki,

1986a, 1986b; Edmonds, 1989

Andracantha clavata: Zdzitowiecki, 1989, 1991

Hosts: Cygnus atratus (Latham), SA, AHC 3002,

3016

Eudyptula minor (Forster), V

Leucocarbo atriceps (King), Heard Is., Macquarie

Is., Edmonds 1955: 141, 1957: 96; AHC

18021, CSIRO A20

Leucocarbo colensoi Buller, Auckland Is.,

Campbell Is., Johnston & Edmonds 1953: 59

Leucocarbo fuscescens Viellot, SA, AHC 5058,

11213

Phalacrocorax melanoleucos Viellot, V, SA, WA,

Goss 1940: 12; Mawson et al 1986: 232; AHC

3384

Phalacrocorax sulcirostris (Brandt), SA, WA,

Goss 1940: 12; Mawson et al 1986: 231; AHC

18359

Phalacrocorax varius (Gmelin),* SA, WA, Goss

1940: 12; Johnston & Best 1942: 252; AHC

2698, 15434, 42274

Phalacrocorax verrucosus (Cabanis), Kerguelen

Is., Edmonds 1957b: 96

Phalacrocorax sp. Macquarie Is., AHC 18468

shag, WA, Goss 1940: 12-13; WAM WA73-83

Accidental host: Arctocephalus pusillus

(Schreber), SA, Johnston & Best 1942: 253;

AHC 22536.

28. Andracantha sp.

Identified as Corynosoma phalacrocoracis

Yamaguti, 1939: 337-338 now

Andracantha phalacrocoracis, Schmidt,

1975: 618-619. Specimens possibly

collected on the British, Australian and

New Zealand Antarctic Expedition of

1929-31. Probosces missing, therefore

identification can’t be confirmed.

Host: Leucocarbo atriceps (King), ‘Antarctic’

AHC 22639.

29. Arthmorhynchus johnstoni Golvan, 1960

Syns: Arythmorhynchus frassoni Johnston &

Edmonds, 1951

Arythmorhynchus johnstoni Golvan, 1960;

Edmonds, 1971

Host: Numenius madagascarensis (Linn.),* Q,

Johnston & Edmonds 1951: 3; Edmonds 1971:

60; AHC 22554, 42183, 42184, AM W4571,

QM GL11209 (specimen missing).

30. Arythmorhynchus limosae Edmonds, 1971

Host: Limosa lapponica (Linn.),* Q, Edmonds

1971: 58; AHC 42185-89, QM GL12403,

66 LR SMALES

GL12406, GL12415, GL12445, G213743,

G213744.

31. Bolbosoma baleanae (Gmelin, 1790)

Syns: Sipunculus lendix Phipps, 1774

Echinorhynchus balaenae Gmelin, 1790, E.

porrigens Rudolphi, 1814; E. mysticeti

Beneden, 1870

Bolbosoma balanae Van Cleave, 1953 in error,

see Golvan, 1994

Bolbosoma porrigens Johnston & Deland, 1929;

Meyer, 1932

Bolbosoma balaenae Petrochenko,

Zdzitowiecki, 1991

Hosts: Balenoptera acutorostrata Lacépéde,

Antarctic/ Pacific, AHC 30160, 30162

Globiocephala melas (Traill), SA, AHC

3423

whale probably Megaptera novaeangliae

(Borowski), NSW, Johnston & Deland 1929:

147; AHC 3423, 22544, AM G11124.

1958;

32. Bolbosoma capitatum (Linstow, 1880)

Syns: Echinorhynchus capitatus Linstow, 1880

Bolborhynchus capitatus Porta, 1906

Bolbosoma capitatum Porta, 1908; Meyer, 1932;

Edmonds, 1957a, 1987; Amin & Margolis,

1998

Hosts: Balaenoptera musculus Linn., SA, AHC

18826

Globicephala melas (Traill) Globicephala sp., T,

SA, Edmonds 1957a:78; AHC 11432

Pseudorca crassidens Owen, WA, SA, Edmonds

1957a: 78, 1987: 317; AHC 16308, 17979,

30159, WAM WA405-86

Physeter catodon Linn., T, AHC 10571

Accidental hosts: Arctocephalus foresteri

(Lesson), SA, AHC 19697

Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus (Schreber), V, T,

AHC 32114, 32126, 32132.

33. Bolbosoma turbinella (Diesing, 1851)

Syns: Echinorhynchus balaenocephalus Owen,

1803 see Golvan, 1994; E. turbinella Diesing,

1851

Bolborhynchus turbinella Porta, 1906

Pomphorhynchus turbinella Lieper & Atkinson,

1915 see Yamaguti, 1963

Bolbosoma turbinella Porta, 1908; Travassos,

1926; Baylis, 1929; Zdzitowiecki, 1991

Host: Balaenoptera musculus Linn., SA, AHC

18826.

34. Bolbosoma vasculosum (Rudolphi, 1819)

Syns: Echinorhynchus vasculosus Rudolphi,

1819; E. auranticus Risso, 1826; Diesing,

1851; E. pellucidus Leukart, 1828; E.

annulatus Molin, 1858; E. serrani Linton,

1888, juvenile worm, may be synonym, see

Golvan, 1994; E. bifasciatus Liihe, 1904

Bolbosoma aurantiacum Van Cleave, 1924;

Travassos, 1926

Bolbosoma vasculosum Porta, 1908: 273-274;

Petrochenko, 1958

Host: Mesoplodon bowdoini (Andrews), NT, SA,

AHC 30133

Accidental host: Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus

(Schreber) T, AHC 32106.

35. Bolbosoma sp.

Host: Pseudorca crassidens (Owen), no locality

data, AHC 30351

36. Corynosoma arctocephali Zdzitowiecki, 1984

Corynosoma singularis Skryabin & Nikolsky,

1971 pro parte; Hoberg, 1986

Corynosoma arctocephali Zdzitowiecki 1984a,

1986a, 1991; Hoberg, 1986

Host: Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus (Schreber),

Heard Island, AHC 12773.

37. Corynosoma australe Johnston, 1937

Syns: Corynosoma otarinae Morini & Boreo,

1960

Corynosoma australe Johnston, 1937; Johnston &

Edmonds, 1953; Vargara & George-

Nacimento, 1982; Zdzitowiecki, 1984a,

1986a, 1989; Smales, 1986; Pereira & de

Matos Neves, 1993

Hosts: Arctocephalus forsteri (Lesson), SA, AHC

19589, 30107, 41273

Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus (Schreber), V,

SA, AHC 10047, 18763, 18886, 18941,

18945, 18947, 19119, 19384, 22345, 30107,

30134, 32115, 32129

Arctocephalus tropicalis (Gray), V (Zoo), SA,

AHC 22972, 32108

Arctocephalus sp., SA, AHC 18931, 18934

Hydrurga leptonyx (Blainville) Auckland Is.,

Campbell Is., Johnston & Edmonds 1953: 58;

Smales 1986: 94; AHC 42235, 42236

Mesoplodon layardi (Gray), SA, AHC 24768

Neophoca cinerea (Peron),* SA, Johnston 1937:

13; Smales 1986: 94; AHC 15474, 22824,

23088, 30114, 31367, 42226-29, 42237,

32115, 32116, 32119

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST 67

Phocarctos hookeri (Gray); Auckland Is.,

Campbell Is., Johnston & Edmonds 1953: 58;

Smales 1986: 94; AHC 42231-34

Tursiops truncatus Montagu, V, AHC 24757,

32121

Accidental hosts: Eudyptula minor Forster, V

Leucocarbo atriceps (King), Heard Is., AHC

42279, 42280.

38. Corynosoma bullosum (Linstow, 1892)

Syns: Corynosoma mirabilis Skryabin, 1966

Echinorhynchus bullosus Linstow, 1892;

Corynosoma strumosum sensu Gower, 1939 see

Yamaguti, 1963

Corynosoma singularis Skryabin & Nickolsky,

1971, pro parte

Corynosoma bullosum Raillet & Henry, 1907;

Baylis, 1929; Travassos, 1926; Johnston &

Edmonds, 1953; Edmonds, 1955, 1957b;

Zdzitowiecki, 1984a, 1986a, 1991; Hoberg,

1986

Hosts: Mirouga leonina Linn.,* Crozet Is., Heard

Is., Macquarie Is., Marion Is., Johnston &

Edmonds 1953: 55; Edmonds 1995: 142;

Edmonds 1957b: 96; AHC 3396, 3804-10,

32107, 32131, 42240-65

Hydrurga leptonyx (Blainville), Heard Is., QM

G213756-63

Accidental host: Delphinus delphis Linn., WA,

AHC 18883.

39. Corynosoma cetaceum Johnston & Best,

1942

Syns: Echinorhynchus sp. Krefft, 1871

Corynosoma sp. Johnston & Deland, 1929

Corynosoma cetaceum Johnston & Best, 1942;

Figueroa & Puga, 1990; Aznar et al, 1999

Polymorphus cetaceus Schmidt & Dailey, 1971

Polymorphus arctocephali Smales, 1986;

Edmonds, 1989

Hosts: Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus

(Schreber), SA, V, Smales 1986: 97-99; Aznar

et al 1999: 59-70; AHC 13787, 14835, 23344,

33112, 32128, 32130, 32132, 32109, 32110,

43654-57

Delphinus delphis Linn.,* SA, V, Johnston &

Deland 1929: 149; Johnston & Best 1942:

250; AHC 3418, 18883, 30157, 40963, 40964,

42266-71

Hydrurga leptonyx (Blainville), V (Zoo)

Leptonychotes weddelli (Lesson), Antarctic, AHC

18025

Tursiops truncatus (Montagu), SA, V, Johnston &

Best 1942: 250; AHC 1778, 3602, 18362,

18678, 18743, 18949, 18951, 18970, 19646,

19950, 19952, 19959, 22831, 22838, 22839,

24757, 26198, 30111, 30144, 30145, 30156,

30328, 30331 30332, 32122-24, 32111,

32117, 32121, 32125, 32127, 42272, 42273

seal, Q (Zoo), QM G207090.

40. Corynosoma pseudohammani Zdzitowiecki,

1984

Syns: Corynosoma antarcticum Johnston & Best,

1937 nec C. antarcticum Rennie, 1906

Corynosoma hammani Edmonds, 1957b, possibly

a mixed infection of C. hammani and C.

pseudohammani, see Zdzitowiecki, 1984b

Corynosoma pseudohammani Zdzitowiecki,

1984b, 1986a, 1991; Hoberg, 1986

Hosts: Leptonychotes weddelli (Lesson),* Adelie

Land, Enderby Land, Johnston & Best

1937:10-12; Edmonds 1957b: 96; AHC

18020, 42238, 42239, 42291-93, 42296,

42297, AM W2872

Hydrurga leptonyx Blaineville, No locality data,

AHC 42298, 42299.

41. Corynosoma shakletoni Zdzitowiecki, 1978

Host: Pygoscelis papua Forster, Macquarie Is.,

Edmonds 1955: 141; Zdzitowiecki 1985: 11;

Hoberg 1986: 202; AHC 5067, CSIRO A38.

42. Corynosoma stanleyi Smales, 1986

Hosts: Hydromys chrysogaster Geoffroy,* Q, T,

V, Smales 1986: 92-94; Smales & Cribb 1997:

449-450; AHC 8878, 15642, 15643, 15660,

18163, 18768, 22343, 27791, 27792, 30432,

43539, 43540.

43. Polymorphus biziurae Johnston & Edmonds,

1948

Nickol, Crompton & Searle, 1999 [Nickol et al

comment generic assignment of P. biziurae is

difficult because the putative intermediate host

is a crustacean]

Hosts: Biziura lobata (Shaw),* NSW, SA,

Johnston & Edmonds, 1948: 71-74; AHC 625,

3375, 3387, 3424, 5106, 7489, 19404, 42443-

47, 424450-59

Cygnus atratus (Latham), SA, Mawson et al,

1986: 238; AHC 3391

Pelicanus conspicillatus Temminck, SA, Mawson

et al 1986: 228

Phalacrocorax sulcirostris (Brandt), SA, AHC

3382, 42449

68 LR SMALES

Phalacrocorax melanoleucos (Vieillot), SA, AHC

3384, 3389

Platalea flavipes Gould, SA, V, AHC 3388,

24061, 42455, 42457

Larus novaehollandiae Stephens, SA, AHC 3385

Threskiornis molucca (Latham), SA, T, AHC

3383, 3390, 5050, 13292, 42448, 42545,

42458.

44. Polymorphus brevis (Van Cleave, 1916)

Syn: Arythmorhynchus brevis Van Cleave, 1916b,

1945; Travassos, 1926; Golvan, 1960; Amin,

1985 as A. breve

Polymorphus brevis Meyer, 1933; Amin, 1992

Host: Botaurus poiciloptilus Wagler, Q, QM

GL11394, specimens missing from QM,

identification could not be confirmed.

45. Profilicollis sphaerocephalus (Bremser,

1811)

Syns: Echinorhynchus sphaerocephalus Bremser,

1811 in Rudolphi, 1819; E. haematopodis

Rudolphi, 1819; E. lari Rudolphi, 1819 see

Yamaguti, 1963

Filicollis sphaerocephalus Travassos, 1926;

Golvan, 1960

Polymorphus sphaerocephalus Van Cleave, 1947;

Webster, 1948; Schmidt & Kuntz, 1967;

Amin, 1992

Parafilicollis sphaerocephalus Petrochenko, 1958

Falsificollis sphaerocephalus Yamaguti, 1963

Profilicollis sphaerocephalus Khoklova, 1974;

Golvan, 1994: 17; Nickol, Crompton &

Searle, 1999

Hosts: Bizuria lobata (Shaw), SA, AHC 2988

Haematopus fuliginosus Gould, SA, AHC 5047,

18036, 18050 CSIRO A59

Haematopus sp., AHC 42307-14

Larus novaehollandiae Stephens, SA, T, AHC

296, 1873, 3364, 3372, 18049, 18210, 42305,

42306

Larus pacificus Latham, SA, CSIRO A58

Pelicanus conspicillatus Temmink, SA, AHC

3386

Phalacrocorax melanoleucos (Vieillot), SA, AHC

2662.

Rhadinorhynchidae

46. Rhadinorhynchus johnstoni Golvan, 1969

Rhadinorhynchus pristis Johnston & Edmonds,

1947

Rhadinorhynchus johnstoni Golvan, 1969

Accidental host: dolphin, NSW, Johnston &

Edmonds 1947: 17; AHC 19948.

Species inquirenda

No specimens or further reference corresponding

to these records can now be found.

1. Echinorhynchus sp.

Krefft, 1871: 212; Johnston & Deland, 1929: 147

Host: Delphinus forsteri Gray; probably D.

delphis Linn.

2. Echinorhynchus sp.

Johnston, 1912: 109; Johnston & Deland, 1929:

149

Host: Eurystomus orientalis

3. Echinorhynchus sp.

Johnston, 1910: 111; Johnston & Deland, 1929:

151

Host: Phylidonyris novaehollandiae (Latham) as

Meliornis novaehollandiae

4. Echinorhynchus sp.

Johnston, 1910: 107; Cleland, 1922: 108

Host: Psophodes olivaceus

5. ‘Echinorhynch’

Cleland, 1922: 108

Host: Myiagra inquieta (Latham).

Acanthocephala

The following bird hosts are listed in Mawson et

al 1986 as being infected with acanthocephalans

but the material was listed as unidentifiable and

has not been retained in any museum collection

for further study.

Hosts: Calidris ruficollis (Pallas), Coturnix

ypsilophora Bosc, Egretta alba Linn.,

Entomyzon cyanotis (Latham), Falco

longipennis Swainson, Hiraaetus

morphnoides Gould, Hydroprogne caspia

(Pallas), Macrorectes giganteus Gmelin,

Oxyura australis Gould, Peltohyas australis

Gould, Platalea regia Gould, Rallus

Philipensis Linn., Sterna nereis (Gould),

Tringa terek (Latham), Vanellus tricolor

(Vieillot).

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST

Host—ParasitTE List

MAMMALIA

Eutheria

Muridae

Hydromys chrysogaster

water rat

R. fuscipes

bush rat

R. norvegicus

brown rat

and as E. rattus

Rattus rattus

black rat

and as Epimys rattus

Rattus sp.

rat

Suidae

Sus scofa

pig

Felidae

Felis catus

feral cat

Canidae

Canis lupus dingo

dingo

as C. familiaris dingo

Vulpes vulpes

fox

Otariidae

Arctocephalus forsteri

New Zealand fur seal

(in error as type host

for C. australe)

A. pusillus

Australian fur seal

and as Gypsophoca dorifera

A. tropicalis

sub-Antarctic fur seal

Arctocephalus sp.

Neophoca cinerea

Australian sea lion

Phocarctos hookeri

New Zealand sea lion

Corynosoma stanleyi

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Porrorchis hydromuris

Moniliformis moniliformis

Macranthorhynchus hirudinaceus

Oncicola pomatostomi

Porrorchis sp.

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Bolbosoma capitatum

Corynosoma australe

Andracantha clavata

Bolbosoma capitatum

Bolbosoma vasculosum

Corynosoma arctocephali

Corynosoma australe

Corynosoma cetaceum

Corynosoma australe

70 LR SMALES

Phocidea

Hydruga leptonyx

leopard seal

Leptonychotes weddellii

Weddell’s seal

Mirouga leonina

southern sea elephant

Ziphidae

Mesoplodon bowdoini

Andrew’s beaked whale

Mesoplodon layardii

strap toothed beaked whale

Balaenopteridae

Balaenoptera auctostrata

minke whale

Balaenoptera musculus

blue whale

Megaptera novaeanglae

humpbacked whale

as ‘whale’ possibly Megaptera nodosa

Delphinidae

Delphinus delphis

common dolphin

as Delphinus forsteri

Rhadinorhynchus johnstoni

Globiocephalas melas

long finned pilot whale

as Globiocephalas melaena

Globiocephala sp.

pilot whale

Pseudorca crassidens

false killer whale

Tursiops truncatus

bottle nosed dolphin

Physeteridae

Physeter catodon

sperm whale

MARSUPIALIA

Dasyuridae

Antechinus agilis

agile antechinus

Antechinus stuartii

brown antechinus

Corynosoma australe

Corynosoma bullosum

Corynosoma cetaceum

Corynosoma pseudohammani

Corynosoma cetaceam

Corynosoma pseudohammani

Corynosoma bullosum

Bolbosoma vasculosum

Corynosoma australe

Bolbosoma balaenae

Bolbosoma capitatum

Bolbosoma turbinella

Bolbosoma balaenae

Corynosoma cetaceum

Echinorhynchus sp.

Bolbosoma balaenae

Bolbosoma capitatum

Corynosoma australe

Corynosoma cetaceum

Bolbosoma capitatum

Australiformis semoni

Centrorhynchus bancrofti

Centrorhynchus sp.

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Australiformis semoni

Centrorhynchus bancrofti

Plagiorhynchus sp.

Porrorchis hylae

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST 71

Antechinus swansonii

dusky antechinus

Phascogale tapoatafa

brush-tailed phascogale

as Phascogale penicillata

but may be Bettongia penicillata

Sminthopsis leucopus

white-footed dunnart

Peramelidae

Isoodon obesulus

southern brown bandicoot

I. macrourus

northern brown bandicoot

P. gunnii

eastern barred bandicoot

Perameles nasuta

long-nosed bandicoot

bandicoot

Potorodidae

Potorous tridactylus

long-nosed potoroo

Notorictidae

Myrmecobius fasciatus

numbat

Macropodidae

Wallabia bicolour

swamp wallaby

Spheniscidae

Eudyptula minor

little penguin

Pygoscelis papua

gentoo penguin

Phalacrocoracidae

Leucocarbo atriceps

blue eyed cormorant

as Phalacrocorax atriceps

Leucarbo colensoi

as Phalacrocorax colensoi

Auckland Island shag

Leucarbo fuscescens

black faced shag

as Phalacrocorax fuscescens

Phalacrocorax melanoleucos

little pied cormorant

AVES

Centrorhynchus bancrofti

Centrorhynchus sp.

Australformis semoni

Centrorhynchus sp.

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Plagiorhynchus sp.

Australiformis semoni

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Australiformis semoni

Mediorhynchus sp. larvae

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Plagiorhynchus sp.

Australiformis semoni

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Australiformis semoni

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Multisentis myrmecobius

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Andracantha clavata

Corynosoma australe

Corynosoma shakletoni

Andracantha clavata

Corynosoma australe

Andracantha sp.

Andracantha clavata

Polymorphus biziurae

Profilicollis sphaerocephalus

72 LR SMALES

Phalacrocorax sulcirostris

little black cormorant

as P. microcarbo

Phalacrocorax varius

pied cormorant

Phalacrocorax verrucosus

Kerguelen shag

Phalacrocorax sp.

Pelicanidae

Pelicanus conspicillatus

Australian pelican

Procellaridae

Pactyptila turtur

fairy prion

Ardeidae

Botaurus poicilopitus

Australasian bittern

Nycticorax caledonicus

rufous night heron ‘egret’

Plataleidae

Platalea flavipes

yellow spoonbill

Threskiornis molucca

sacred ibis

as Threskiornis aethiopica

Accipitidae

Accipiter cirrocephalus

collared sparrowhawk

Accipiter fasciatus

brown goshawk

Accipiter novaehollandiae

grey goshawk

as Astur novaehollandiae

and as Astur cinereus

Aviceda subcristata

Pacific baza

as Baza subcristata

Circius approximans

swamp harrier

hawk

Turnicidae

Turnix castanota

chestnut backed button quail

Turnix velox

little button quail

Falconidae

Falco berigoria

brown falcon

Andracantha clavata

Polymorphus biziurae

Centrorhynchus sp.

Andracantha clavata

Andracantha clavata.

Andracantha clavata

Polymorphus biziurae

Profilicollis sphaerocephalus

Plagiorhynchus charadrii

Polymorphus brevis

Oncicola pomatostomi

Centrorhynchus sp. A

Polymorphus biziurae

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Centrorhynchus asturinus

Centrorhynchus sp.

Oncicola pomatostomi

Centrorhynchus asturinus

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST

Falco cenchroides

Australian kestrel

Anatidae

Biziura lobata

musk duck

Cygnus atratus

black swan

Megapodiidae

Alectura lathami

Australian brush turkey

and as Catheturus lathami

Rallidae

Gallinula tenebrosa

dusky moorhen

Pedionomidae

Pedionomus torquatus

plains wanderer

Haematopodidae

Haematopus fuliginosus

sooty oystercatcher

Haematopus longirostra

pied oystercatcher

Haematopus sp.

Glaeolidae

Stiltia isabella

Australian pratincole

Burhinidae

Burhinus grallarius

bush thick-knee

Charadriidae

Chardris ruficapillus

red capped plover

as C. alexandrinus

Thinornis rubricollis

hooded plover

as Charadrius rubricollis

and C. cuculatus hooded dottrel

Vanellus miles

masked lapwing

Scolopacidae

Limosa laponica

bar-tailed godwit

Numenius madagascarensis

eastern curlew

as Numenius cyanopus

Centrorhynchus asturinus

Polymorphus biziurae

Profilicollis sphaerocephalus

Andracantha clavata

Polymorphus biziurae

Mediorhynchus alecturae

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus charadrii

Profilicollis sphaerocephalus

Mediorhynchus sp.

Porrorchis hylae

Plagiorhynchus charadrii

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Arythmorhynchus limosae

Arythmorhynchus johnstoni

Laridae

Larus dominicanus

kelp gull

Larus novaehollandiae

silver gull

Larus pacificus

Pacific gull

gull

Cuculidae

Centropus phasianus

pheasant coucal

Strigidae

Ninox boobook

southern boobook

LR SMALES

as Ninox novaseelandia

Ninox strenua

powerful owl

Podargidae

Podargus strigoides

tawny frogmouth

Alcedinidae

Dacelo novaeguineae

laughing kookaburra

Dacelo sp.

T. macleayii

forest kingfisher

Todiramphus sanctus

sacred kingfisher

kingfisher

Campephagidae

Lalage leucomela

varied triller

Menuridae

Menura alberti

Albert’s lyrebird

Menura novaehollandiae

superb lyrebird

Motacillidae

Anthus novaeseelandiae

Richard’s pipit

Muspicidae

Melanodryas cucullata

hooded robin

Microeca leucophaea

jacky winter

Turdus merula

European blackbird

Corynosoma shakletoni

Polymorphus biziurae

Profilicollis sphaerocephalus

Mediorhynchus sp. B

Plagiorhynchus charadrii

Porrorchis hylae

Centrorhynchus bancrofti

Porrorchis hylae

Centrorhynchus horridus

Centrorhynchus sp.

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus menurae

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus charadrii

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST

Zoothera dauma

white thrush

Zoothera lunulata

Bassian thrush

as Orecincla lunulata

Pachycephalidae

Colluricincla harmonica

grey shrike thrush

Oreoica gutturalis

crested bellbird

Pachycephala inornata

Gilbert’s whistler

Pachycephala rufiventris

rufous whistler

Rhipidura leucophrys

willie wag tail

Orthonychidae

Cinclosoma castonotus

chestnut quail thrush

as C. castaneum

Cinclosoma cinomomeum

cinnamon quail thrush

Petroica goodenovii

red capped robin

Psophodes olivaceus

eastern whipbird

Pomatostomatidae

Pomatostomus halli

Hall’s babbler

Pomatostomus ruficeps

chestnut crowned babbler

Pomatostomus superciliosus

white-browed babbler

Pomatostomus temporalis

grey crowned babbler

and as P. rubeculus

Sylviidae

Megalurus timorensis

tawny grassbird

Plocidae

Poephila cincta

black throated finch

Meliphagidae

Acanthagenys rufogularis

spiny cheeked honeyeater ~

Acanthochoera carunculata

red wattle bird

Acanthochoera chrysoptera

brush wattle bird

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Oncicola pomatostomi

Mediorhynchus colluricinclae

Oncicola pomatostomi

Mediorhynchus colluricinclae

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus sp.

Oncicola pomatostomi

Mediorhynchus coluricinclae

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Oncicola pomatostomi

Mediorhynchus sp. B

Oncicola pomatostomi

Mediorhynchus alecturae

Mediorhynchus colluricinclae

76 LR SMALES

Licheostomus plumulus

grey fronted honeyeater

Licheostomus virescens

singing honeyeater

Manorina flavigula

yellow throated miner

Sturnidae

Acridotheres tristis

common mynah

Sturnus vulgaris

common starling

Paradisaedae

Ptiloris victoriae

Victoria’s riflebird

Maluridae

Amytornis purnelli

dusky grasswren

Malurus cyaneus

superb fairy wren

Acanthizidae

Acanthiza chrysorrhoa

yellow rumped thornbill

Aphelocephala leucopis

southern white face

and as Climacteris leucopsis

Serricornis brunneus

red throat

as Pyrrhadaemus brunneus

Serricornis cautus

shy hylacola

Serricornis fuliginosus

calamanthus

Serricornis pyrrhopygius

chestnut rumped hyacola

as Hyacola pyrrhopygius

‘hylacola’

Neosittidae

Daphoenositta chrysoptera

varied sitella

Climacteridae

Climacteris affinis

white browed tree creeper

C. melanura

black tailed tree creeper

as C. wellsi

C. picumnus

brown tree creeper

Cormobates leucophaea

white throated tree creeper

as Climacteris leucophaea

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Plagiorhynchus charadrii

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Plagiorhynchus sp.

Oncicola pomatostomi

AUSTRALIAN ACANTHOCEPHALA CHECKLIST 77

Corcoracidae

Corcorax melanoramphas

white winged chough

Grallinidae

Grallina cyanoleuca

Australian magpie-lark

Artamidae

Artamus cinereus

black faced wood swallow

Artamus superciliosus

white browed wood swallow

Cractidae

Gymnorhina tibicen

Australian magpie

Strepera versicolor

grey currawong

Corvidae

C. bennetti

little crow

Corvus coronoides

Australian raven

C. mellori

little raven

C. tasmanicus

forest raven

Corvus sp.

Mediorhynchus corcoracis

Mediorhynchus robustus

Mediorhynchus corcoracis

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Oncicla pomatostomi

Oncicola pomatostomi

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Oncicola pomatostomi

Mediorhynchus corcoracis

Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus

Mediorhynchus corcoracis

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My thanks to L. Cannon, QM; P. Berents, AM; J.

Forrest, S. Pichelin, C. Kemper, SAM; M. O’Callaghan,

SARDI; D. Spratt, CSIRO who gave me access to their

museum collections and provided useful information

about specimens; and to R. Norman, P. Duigan and S.

McDonald who generously donated specimens. This

project was supported by the Australian Biological

Resources Study.

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TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES IN

THE RURAL LANDSCAPE OF THE LOWER MURRAY, SOUTH

AUSTRALIA

P. A. CLARKE

Summary

Since European settlement, Aboriginal peoole living in rural areas of southern South Australia have

had a unique relationship to the landscape, reflecting both pre-European indigenous traditions and

post-European historical influences. Aboriginal hunting, fishing and gathering practices in the

twentieth century were not relics of a pre-European past, but were derived from cultural forces that

have produced a modern indigenous identity. The Lower Murray ethnographic data presented in this

cultural geography study were collected mainly during the 1980s, supplemented with historical

information concerning earlier periods.

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES IN THE RURAL

LANDSCAPE OF THE LOWER MURRAY, SOUTH AUSTRALIA

PA CLARKE

CLARKE, PA. 2003. Twentieth-century Aboriginal harvesting practices in the rural

landscape of the Lower Murray, South Australia. Records of the South Australian Museum

36(1): 83-107.

Since European settlement, Aboriginal people living in rural areas of southern South

Australia have had a unique relation to the landscape, reflecting both pre-European indigenous

traditions and post-European historical influences. Aboriginal hunting, fishing and gathering

practices in the twentieth century were not relics of a pre-European past, but were derived from

cultural forces that have produced a modern indigenous identity. The Lower Murray

ethnographic data presented in this cultural geography study were collected mainly during the

1980s, supplemented with historical information concerning earlier periods.

PA Clarke, Science Division, South Australian Museum, North Terrace, Adelaide, South

Australia 5000. Manuscript received 4 November 2002.

INTRODUCTION

The Aboriginal people living in the Lower

Murray region during the twentieth century were

not hunters, fishers and gatherers in terms of their

total subsistence economy; nevertheless, they

continued some hunting, fishing and gathering

practices. This paper explores contemporary

relationships that indigenous people have with a

landscape that has been transformed into an

environment dominated by agricultural and urban

activities. Unlike some northern desert and

subtropical areas of Australia, where Aboriginal

subsistence economies persist in an altered form

in relative isolation (Altman 1987; Meehan 1982),

European-style economic development in the

south conflicts more directly with Aboriginal land

use. In the Lower Murray, Aboriginal people have

interacted extensively with Europeans since the

1830s. In spite of this, a distinct indigenous

identity has remained and developed throughout

this period (Clarke 1994, 1995, 1996a, 1996b,

1998b, 1999a, 2001a, 2001b, 2001ms). When

Europeans first arrived in the Lower Murray

region in the late 1830s, the Aboriginal people

living there were differentiated into numerous

descent groups and several dialects. Due to an

early population crash and the eventual relocation

of survivors into mission and state-controlled

institutions in the late nineteenth century, the

descendants formed a new cultural and social

identity. Throughout the twentieth century,

indigenous people with pre-European connections

to the Lower Murray landscape have called

themselves Ngarrindjeri.'

The pre-European hunter and gatherer

subsistence economy in the Lower Murray region

is, in comparison to the rest of southern Australia,

well documented. Clarke (1985a, 1985b, 1986a,

1986b, 1987, 1988, 1998a) and Cleland (1957,

1966) have studied the ethnobotany of the region.

Berndt and Berndt (1993), Campbell (1934, 1939,

1943), Campbell et al (1946), Clarke (1999b,

2001a, 2002), Hemming (1989, 1991), Hemming

and Jones (1989) and Luebbers (1978) have

provided overviews of the pre-European material

culture. The main focus in the current work is

with twentieth-century Aboriginal practices in the

Lower Murray, although when Negarrindjeri

people are concerned data is included from the

Riverland agricultural district of South Australia.

The paper stems from the author’s museum work

and doctoral research addressing how indigenous

people relate to a modern rural and urban

landscape. It provides a list of words recorded

from the local variety of Aboriginal English

spoken during the author’s field study in the

1980s. This adds to studies by Foster et al (1998,

In early sources, such as Taplin (1859-79, 1874, 1879), Ngarrindjeri is written as ‘Narrinyeri’.

84 PA CLARKE

2003) and Clarke (2001ms) that investigate the

historical origins of twentieth-century Aboriginal

English spoken in southern South Australia. Maps

showing places of significance to Lower Murray

people are provided elsewhere (Clarke 1994,

1999a, 1999b).

HisTorIcAL BACKGROUND

The Lower Murray cultural region covers that

part of the Murray-Darling Basin south of the

entrance of the Murray River into Lake

Alexandrina, including the southern coast of

SPORT ADELAIDE

K @ ADELAIDE CITY

Fleurieu Peninsula, the area surrounding Lake

Albert and the Coorong. It formerly had a

relatively high population density, with an

estimated 6,000 people living there (Brown 1918:

230-231; Clarke 1994: 57-63) prior to the first

smallpox epidemic of the 1830s. After official

European settlement at Encounter Bay in 1836,

the Aboriginal population continued to decline,

chiefly due to other introduced diseases and land

alienation (Clarke 1994: chapter 6; 1995: 156, end

note 1; Gale 1969; Smith 1980). The survivors

gradually moved into European-controlled

situations, such as pastoral stations, the Point

McLeay Aboriginal Mission and fringe camps

hes

ANNUM

Ewurray BRIDGE

poise BEND

POINT

MCLEAY

X — FRINGECAMP

FIGURE 1. Twentieth century fringe campsites from Adelaide to the South East of South Australia.

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 85

around towns (Fig. 1).* Indigenous hunting,

fishing and gathering activities declined as

agricultural practices took over, commencing first

in the northern section of the Lower Murray,

restricting Aboriginal people to smaller parts of

the landscape. Ngarrindjeri people worked in the

whaling industry at Encounter Bay from 1836

(Clarke 2001a: 27-32). On the northern shore of

Lake Alexandrina during the 1850s, Aboriginal

people were drawn to living in towns, such as

Milang and Wellington, due in part to their

involvement in the fish trade (Taplin Journals, 12

April 1859). In 1859 the missionary George

Taplin made plans to establish a fishing industry

at Point McLeay, on the southern shore of Lake

Alexandrina.? This appears primarily to have been

intended to make the local Aboriginal community

more sedentary. Additionally, local hunting,

fishing and gathering activities at this time would

also have served to supplement the mission’s poor

supplies of food, the result of a shortage of

capital.

By the end of the nineteenth century, the

physical environment of the Lower Murray had

deteriorated. Irrigation schemes up river, which

commenced in 1881 at Monteith and spread to

Loxton, Berri and Renmark, and across the border

into Victoria and New South Wales, kept water

levels low (Fenner 1931: 84; Griffin & McCaskill

1986: 22; Williams 1969: 84, 243-244; 1974: 49,

235-236, 240). This increased the saltiness of the

lakes and also decreased natural fish stocks. The

sea water entering Lake Alexandrina in 1901, due

to abnormally low river levels, destroyed the

lucrative wool washing industry that had been

established at Point McLeay in the early 1880s

(Jenkin 1979: 177-178, 206). In 1905 the

Aboriginal fishing industry started by George

Taplin ended due to competition with white

fishers who had the funds to obtain better

technology (Jenkin 1979: 211). The barrages at

Hindmarsh Island to prevent sea water entering

Lake Alexandrina were completed in 1940 (Linn

1988: 181; McCourt & Mincham 1987: 11). The

authorities in charge of the Point McLeay

Aboriginal Mission at the time were in favour of

their construction, as it promised them a more

reliable supply of water suitable for agricultural

purposes.* However, an unfortunate consequence

was that the barrages contributed to the siltation

of the Coorong Lagoon, which also had a decrease

in freshwater flow from the south due to the South

East drainage schemes (Griffin & McCaskill

1986: 22; Holmes & Waterhouse 1983: 49-50;

Jack Koolmatrie cited Ely 1980).

The acquisition by the South Australian State

Government of Narrung Station for subdivision

into farming allotments occurred under the Closer

Settlement Act 1907 (Holtham, cited in Padman

1987: 10). The loss of this station as a whole was

reported to be sorely felt by the Point McLeay

people, who were previously allowed by the

manager, George Hackett, to have free range over

it for hunting, fishing and gathering (McCourt &

Mincham 1987: 11). The Aborigines’ Friends’

Association, which administered Point McLeay

from its base in Adelaide, responded to the

planned subdivision by stating that ‘it would be

advisable to make the boundary between them

[farmers] and the blacks as wide as possible’.°

Due to growing problems that the Association had

with managing the mission, particularly with its

increasing resident population, the government

took it under direct control in 1916 as a mission

station (Jenkin 1979: chapter 9). The Lower

Murray could no longer support Aboriginal people

in a totally pre-European fashion, involving

seasonal movements across a range of ecological

zones. This region had become part of ‘rural

South Australia’.

THE MODERN ENVIRONMENT

The Lower Murray has seen much economic

development since European settlement (Clarke

1994; Fenner 1931; Griffin & McCaskill 1986;

Linn 1988; McCourt & Mincham 1987; Williams

1974), due to factors such as the favourable

climate of the region, the potential of the river for

For instance, there were Aboriginal camps on Narrung and Poltaloch (pronounced by Aboriginal people as ‘Portaluck’) stations from the late

nineteenth to early twentieth century. Aboriginal residents generally referred to the mission station as ‘Raukkan’ (or ‘Ralkon’), which became an

official settlement name in the early 1990s. Examples of fringe camps around towns were the Three Mile (from Tailem Bend) and One Mile (from

Meningie).

There are many entries in Taplin’s Journals concerning the establishment of the fishing industry. The important references are 21 September 1859,

18 October 1859, 25 November 1859, 22 December 1859, 11 January 1860, 7 February 1860, 15 February 1860, 1 March 1860. See also Jenkin

(1979: 97-98, 110-111).

no.8/1930), State Records, Adelaide.

Memoranda to the Commissioner of Public Works from the Superintendent of Point McLeay and the Chief Protector of Aborigines (GRG 52/1,

86 PA CLARKE

transport and irrigation, and the close proximity to

Adelaide and the sea. Major highways and railway

lines pass through the Lower Murray, connecting

South Australia to the eastern states. Crops and

pasture have largely replaced the indigenous

vegetation. Irrigation directly from the lake and

river system is common practice. It is difficult for

the contemporary observer to imagine how the

region appeared before European settlement. Only

in locations marginal to agricultural use, such as

the Younghusband Peninsula, do large tracts of

indigenous flora remain. Aboriginal reserves and

national parks on both sides of the Coorong

Lagoon contain most of what remains of the pre-

European landscape.

Many of the pre-European plants and animals

formerly found in the Lower Murray are now

either scarce or locally extinct (Tyler et al 1983).

Those organisms that formerly occurred in open

woodlands, grasslands and the river have suffered

most. Such habitats were not only the first

ecological zones exploited by European settlers,

but are also the areas most intensively transformed

by agriculture. In contrast, plants and animals

found in the mallee or heavily wooded areas have

generally fared much better.

Europeans have introduced many foreign plant

and animal species into the Lower Murray. Not all

of these were essential for farming. To create a

neo-European landscape, South Australian

colonists also introduced organisms as pets and

garden plants (Rix 1978: 1-7). Other species came

accidentally as weeds and pests. European-style

agriculture favours the economic exploitation of a

few species. Therefore, the biological diversity of

farming regions is generally far less than for

uncultivated land in the same area. European

colonisation has irreversibly changed the

ecosystem of the Lower Murray.

European intrusion into the Lower Murray has

affected the distribution and abundance of most

indigenous animal species, primarily due to the

clearance of pre-European vegetation, the

alteration of the water flow conditions and the

introduction of exotic fish species into the basin.

For instance, during the author’s fieldwork in the

1980s many middle-aged and older Aboriginal

people lamented the reduction in numbers of

favoured species of eating fish, such as silver

perch (Bidyanus bidyanus), golden perch

(Plectrophilus ambiguus) and Murray cod

(Maccullochella peeli). The once abundant

Murray lobster (Euastacus armatus) is also now

scarce in South Australia (Reschke 1985: 173-

174; Warneke 2000: 104, 226). Several species of

water and ground birds became locally extinct

(Eckert 2000b; Parker & Reid 1983). Mammals,

in particular, have suffered immensely from

European colonisation in the Lower Murray. For

instance, the toolache wallaby (Macropus greyii),

which featured in Lower Murray Aboriginal

cosmology (Clarke 1997: 128), became extinct in

the 1920s (Aitken 1983: 127; Robinson & Young

1983; Strahan 1983: 234).

The rural landscape of the Lower Murray

created by Europeans provides refuge for many

introduced species. A number of invertebrate pests

have proliferated in the Lower Murray (Gross

1983; Zeidler 1983; Fisher 1983); for example,

the introduced honey bee (Apis mellifera) is

commonly encountered in all types of vegetation

(Matthews 1976: 88), and has largely displaced

indigenous bees, such as Trigona species, which

were formerly a source of honey for southern

Aboriginal people (Eyre 1845: 2: 273-274).

Several foreign species of fish are established in

the river and lake systems. In particular, the

European carp (Cyprinus carpio), goldfish

(Carassius auratus) and redfin perch (Perca

fluviatilis) are replacing the pre-European fish

fauna (Glover 1983; Sim et al 2000). Introduced

birds, such as the house sparrow (Passer

domesticus), feral pigeon (Columba livia) and

starling (Sturnus vulgaris), predominate in the

farm areas of the Lower Murray (Eckert 2000b).

Foreign mammals, including the house mouse

(Mus musculus), black rat (Rattus rattus), rabbit

(Oryctolagus cuniculus), brown hare (Lepus

capensis), feral cat (Felis catus) and fox (Vulpes

vulpes), are living wild in the Lower Murray

(Eckert 2000a). Domestic stock in the paddocks

consists mainly of various breeds of cattle and

sheep.

Some species of pre-European fauna have

flourished under the altered ecological regime,

whereas others persist in the reduced niches

available to them. For instance, the stumpy-tailed

lizard (Tiliqua rugosa) and the brown snake

(Pseudonaja textiles) are favoured by the

transformation of indigenous vegetation into

pasture (Eckert 2000c: 92, 94; Thompson & Tyler

1983: 156). Field observations by the author

during the 1980s suggest that species doing

moderately well in certain areas are the echidna

(Tachyglosus aculeatus) and water rat (Hydromys

chrysogastor). Some animal species that became

locally extinct in the Lower Lakes area have

survived on the Younghusband Peninsula and in

the Coorong National Park. These include the grey

kangaroo (Macropus fuliginosus), brusher wallaby

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 87

(Macropus rufogriseus), emu (Dromaius

novaehollandiae), wombat (Vombatus ursinus)

and the mallee fowl (Leipoa ocellata). Wombats

became locally extinct in the Lake Albert to Lake

Alexandrina area by the late nineteenth century

(McCourt & Mincham 1987: 10). Aboriginal

sources in the 1980s claimed that the mallee fowl

(native pheasant, Leipoa ocellata) disappeared in

the Lower Lakes area during vegetation clearance

in the early twentieth century.

The survival of these animals in the southern

Coorong and parts of the adjacent South East of

South Australia is the result of better coverage of

pre-European vegetation. In the late twentieth

century, some animal species spread back into the

Lower Lakes area, presumably from surviving

populations in the South East. For instance, grey

kangaroos and emus reappeared on the Narrung

Peninsula during the 1980s. Aiding this recovery

was the existence of patches of indigenous mallee

and sheoak scrub surviving on Aboriginal-leased

land. Major causes of the loss of indigenous

mammals were over-shooting and habitat

destruction.

The plant species introduced by Europeans have

had an irreversible effect on the Lower Murray

landscape. In many areas weeds had reached

equilibrium with the local vegetation by the

1980s. For example, the open areas on the

sandhills of the Younghusband Peninsula were

covered with the Mediterranean sea spurge

(Euphorbia paralias) and marram grass

(Ammophila arenaria), a dune-binding species

from Europe.® The bridal creeper (Myrsiphyllum

asparagoides), a garden plant originally from

South Africa, had taken over pockets of remnant

scrub in the inland regions of limestone karst.

Weeds dominated the farmed areas, particularly

around Point McLeay. Nuisance species for

farmers included the boxthorn (Lycium

ferocissimum)’ from South Africa, evening

primrose (Oenothera stricta)* from America and

horehound (Marrubium vulgare)’ from Europe,

and many introduced grasses.

Rabbits have changed the structure of local

flora throughout southern Australia (Walker 1985:

84-5). Richard Penney introduced rabbits on some

of the islands in Encounter Bay in 1841

(Whitelock 1985: 65), followed by mainland

introductions of the rabbit in the 1870s (Rolls

1984). This has undoubtedly made some plant

species, formerly used by Aboriginal people as

food and medicine, locally extinct or rare. Rabbits

also may have caused the displacement of many

species of small mammal. A demonstration of the

environmental impact of rabbits occurred in the

1950s when, due to a crash in the rabbit

population through myxomatosis, there was

significant regrowth of vegetation on the sand

dunes of Younghusband Peninsula for a short

period (McCourt & Mincham 1987: 19). The

whole of the Lower Murray has become modified

into a European landscape.

TWENTIETH-CENTURY HUNTING AND GATHERING

PRACTICES

Although European settlement in the Lower

Murray region occurred early by South Australian

standards, some pre-European knowledge

concerning the environment persisted in the

Aboriginal community through the twentieth

century. From the 1930s to the 1960s, researchers

such as Harvey, Tindale and the Berndts recorded

aspects of hunting, fishing and gathering practices

from elderly people, such as Albert Karloan,

Pinkie Mack and Clarence Long, who had

maintained a ‘memory culture’ (Tonkinson 1993:

xix).'° By the late twentieth century there were

still some people in the Ngarrindjeri community

who knew the identity and method of use of

particular species of plants and animals, as well as

the associated Aboriginal words (see Table 1). For

example, in the 1980s an elderly Ngarrindjeri man

remembered the term yulinthun, which referred to

the actions of a hunter who swam out into a

lagoon underwater and pulled ducks under by

their feet.!' As stated elsewhere, fieldwork with

the Aboriginal population in the 1980s produced

Alcock & Symon (1977) give lists of Coorong plant species. Plant origins are given by Jessop & Toelken (1986).

7 Point McLeay Mission Station residents formerly ate the fruit (Wilson 1998: 42). In the 1980s some Aboriginal people would regularly shake

boxthorn bushes growing in hedges, so that their fowls could eat the fallen fruits. Photographs (c. 1920) of boxthorn hedges are in the Ramsay-

Smith collection, AA6, Anthropology Archives, S.A. Museum.

Farm’. Mission children ate the seeds (Wilson 1998: 28).

Primroses dominated the Lower Murray landscape to the extent that one of the Narrung farming properties near Point McLeay was called ‘Primrose

During the twentieth century Aboriginal people used horehound as a medicinal plant (Clarke 1987: 15).

Clarke (2002: 149-150) provides an overview of these ethnographic sources.

A related Ramindjeri word appears to be yorl-un, recorded as ‘descending’ or ‘coming down’ (Meyer 1843: 66).

TABLE 1. Fauna and flora terms used by Ngarrindjeri people in the 1980s

PA CLARKE

Species

Mammals

cat (Felis catus)

dog (Canis familiaris)

echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus)

fox (Vulpes vulpes)

horse (Equus caballus)

kangaroo, large (Macropus species)

mouse, house (Mus musculus)

possum (species?)

rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)

rat, water (Hydromys chrysogaster)

sheep (Ovis species)

wombat, southern hairy-nosed (Lasiorhinus latifrons)

Birds

bird (all species)

chat, white-faced; tin-tack bird (Ephthianura albifrons)

coot, Eurasian (Fulica atra)

currawong, grey (Strepera versicolor)

duck, black (Anas superciliosa)

duck, hardhead or white eyed (Aythya australis)

duck, mountain (Tadorna tadornoides)

duck, musk (Biziura lobata)

emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae)

flycatcher, restless (Myiagra inquieta)

goose, Cape Barren (Cereopsis novaehollandiae)

gull, silver (Larus novaehollandiae)

hawk, brown (Falco berigora)

hen, mallee (Leipoa ocellata)

heron, white-faced; crane, blue (Ardea novaehollandiae)

magpie, Australian (Gymnorhina tibicen)

mudlark; Murray magpie; piwi (Grallina cyanoleuca)

pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus)

plover, spur-winged (Vanellus miles)

raven (Corvus species)

shag, black; cormorant, black (Phalacrocorax carbo)

skylark (Alauda arvensis)

snipe, little grey (species?)

stilt, banded (Cladorhynchus leucocephalus)

swan, black (Cygnus atratus)

tern, caspian (Hydroprogne caspia)

wattlebird, red (Anthochaera carunculata)

willie wagtail (Rhipidura leucophrys)

wren, superb blue (Malurus cyaneus)

Reptiles

dragon, bearded (Pogona barbata)

bluetongue lizard (Tiliqua scincoides)

skink, drop-tail (order Scincidae)

sleepy lizard; stump-tailed lizard (Trachydosaurus rugosus)

snake (all species)

tadpole (all species)

tortoise

tortoise, turtle (all species)

Aboriginal term

malgu

booba, ke:li

porcupine

kanatji

porthi

primpari, marlu, wangami

punthi

punmathi

bappa

ra:wlkandi

tjambaki

watu

pulyeri

nankinduli

thuri

kilindi, kilinglin

mookari

pungkari

mounties

tilmarri

pamu

tjeri-tjeri

lawri

thrukeri

kiraki

lawan

krawli

multhari

thil-thil

nori

ratha-rathi

maragani

yoldi

thilbadi

kripari

nilkani

kungarri

tenetjeri

rungkan

ritjiruki

watji(-bird)

gunap, wirrakothi

pungkung

kindi

galta, kalta, manthari

krayi

nyikunthi

malanthaiperi

thukabi

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES

Species

Fish

bream, bony; pyberry fish; tukari fish (Fluvialosa richardsoni)

callop; golden perch; yellowbelly (Plectroplites ambiguus)

cod, Murray (Maccullochella peeli)

congolli fish (Pseudaphritis urvilli)

fish (all species)

mullet; yellow-eye (Aldrichetta forsteri)

mulloway; butterfish (Argyrosomus hololepidotus)

perch, silver; tcheri fish (Bidyanus bidyanus)

porcupine fish (Allomycterus pilatus)

tommy rough (Arripis georgiana)

Arthropods

ant (all species)

flea (order Siphonaptera)

lice, of the head (Pediculus humanus)

lice, of the pubic region (Phthirius pubis)

wood-grub (species?)

Plants

apples, native; monterry (Kunzea pomifera)

ballart, coastal (Exocarpos syrticolus)

box, white; Christmas-bush (Bursaria spinosa)

boxthorn (Lycium ferocissimum)

bulrush; reedmace; flag (Typha species)

cherry, wild (Exocarpos syrticolus)

cranberry, native (Astroloma humifusum)

currant, native (Leucopogon parviflorus)

date, wild (Billardiera scandens)

flax-lily, pale (Dianella longifolia)

fruit, edible sheoak (Casuarina stricta)

grass, basket making (unidentified species)

grasstree (Xanthorrhoea species)

grasstree flower stem when dried (Xanthorrhoea species)

gum, from wattle (Acacia pycnantha)

honeysuckle (Banksia ornata)

juniper tree (Myoporum insulare)

lignum bush (Muehlenbeckia cunninghamii)

old man’s beard (Clematis species)

pea, broom bitter (Daviesia genistifolia)

pigface (Carpobrotus rossi)

root, edible species of (unidentified species)

samphire (family Chenopodiaceae)

sedge, coastal sword (Lepidosperma gladiatum)

sedge, hoary rapier (Lepidosperma canescens)

sedge, spiny-headed (Cyperus gymncaulos)

sedge, sticky sword (Lepidosperma viscidum)

sedges used to make baskets & mats

sow-thistle (Sonchus oleraceus)

wattle, coastal (Acacia longifolia sophorae)

Aboriginal term

thukeri

callop, pilalki, pilaki

ponde

kungali

marmi

kanmeri

malawi

tert

danimudla

pukaratji

prildi

titjeri

gudlu, gudli, gooli, poti

mutharuk

waldaruk

manthri

doll’s eyes

palgi

katheri(-bush)

makuru, manangkeri, manakeri

waltjeri (= wild cherry)

milbakorthi

kalathami, ngooli

kundawi

peentuk

sheoak-apple

yalkeri

kinyeri

ngleyi

tangari

yelakut

boobialla, booalla, palberi

watji(-bush)

yalkuri

kuranthantha

nganingi, poyup

mrangganyi, pakanu(-potato)

parragoni

ngrakani, thyuk, wingi

pinki-moranyi

mangatu

kukandu

basket-rush

thalgi

boobialla, booalla, kalari(-bush)

90 PA CLARKE

information on the pre-European mode of

subsistence not previously recorded (Clarke

1986b). Many Ngarrindjeri people still used

Aboriginal terms for fish species in preference to

European names.

During 1980s fieldwork by the author,

Aboriginal people usually brought forth

information about plant and animal uses within

the context of narratives of their own life history.

For instance, many of the Aboriginal people

interviewed about bush resources recalled what

they, as children, had observed being collected

and used by older kinsmen many years ago. Some

remembered the types of food, such as fruits and

berries, they gathered and ate on the way to and

from school. Detailed accounts of the environment

were received from Aboriginal people who had

formerly relied on natural resources to supplement

their meagre family income. Such people trapped

water rats for their skins, fished, and caught

rabbits for food and for sale. A variety of methods

were employed. For water rats and rabbits,

Aboriginal hunters used steel traps and wire

snares. Opportunistic harvesting occurred too. For

instance, Jack Koolmatrie remembered that early

in the twentieth century, Lower Murray people

killed a beached 5.6 metre female whale near

Rabbit Island in the Coorong Lagoon (Ely 1980).

They dragged parts of it into their boat and later

cut it up, distributing the meat among their

neighbours at Point McLeay. On another occasion

at Mypolonga, Koolmatrie recalled that his father

killed a large Murray cod with a double-barrel

shotgun blast because he had no spear at hand.

The nature of Aboriginal lifestyles in the Lower

Murray preserved some pre-European knowledge

of environmental resources. At Point McLeay

local sources of wild food helped families who

were on rations. Ngarrindjeri woman Dulcie

Wilson recalled that in the 1940s and 1950s:

Living by the lake, our diet consisted mainly of

fish, bream, callup [golden perch], and cod.

Rabbits also supplemented our diet.

Sometimes, when father had shot a swan she

[mother] would mince up the breast, mix it with

herbs and onions and make delicious rissoles

(Wilson 1998: 24).

From the time of the establishment of the Point

McLeay Mission, Aboriginal family groups living

there followed the practice of camping away from

Point McLeay during the summer school break at

places such as the Goolwa Channel, Ngalang

(Gnurling Point), Mark Point and ‘The Landing’

near the Narrung Narrows.” All these summer

camps were near inland waterways and were to

some extent isolated from European settlements.

It is likely that the earlier camps were formed

around particular elderly family members who

wanted to visit important cultural sites, such as

seasonal camps and old burial grounds that were

linked to their descent group. For Aboriginal

people the camps served as a break from mission

life, whilst for the mission authorities it probably

eased the burden of providing food rations. Due

to such seasonal movements, the Aboriginal

population at Point McLeay during summer

consisted mainly of the old and sick.

According to Lower Murray people interviewed

in the 1980s, these annual trips continued until

the mid 1960s.'? The people used ‘wurley-sticks’

and hessian sacks to make shelters, and took

sugar, tea, flour for damper, jam and blankets."

The main method of transport was by horse and

buggy, although some people used dinghies too.'*

Wild food, such as berries, cockles, fish, emus,

echidnas, rabbits and kangaroos supplemented

their provisions once they arrived and a pelican or

swan wing served as a brush to sweep the floor of

the shelter (Wilson 1998: 40). Extended family

groups would stay away from the mission station

for several weeks. The summer trips by families

reportedly had the official support of the Point

McLeay authorities. The school did not require

the children during that time and the coastal

environment was pleasant for camping out during

the summer.

The Coorong as a destination was particularly

attractive for a number of reasons. Up until the

Second World War, non-Aboriginal farmers had

largely ignored the margin of the Coorong Lagoon

with its shallow soils and lack of water suitable

for irrigation. The Coorong has several declared

Aboriginal reserves along its mainland shore,

some of them with small houses and shacks. In

'2 There are many early references to Coorong summer trips in Taplin’s Journals (15 & 29 January 1862, 16 February 1862, 15 January 1863, 28

December 1864 — 3 January 1865).

98) and Wilson (1998: 39-40,'97).

Hemming (1994: 14) provides a photograph of a summer camp along the Coorong, in about 1900. More recent references are DETE (2001b: 81,

Temporary shelters made from bags were called ngauwanthi, shelter poles were called ‘wurley-sticks', sugar was pinyatawi and tea was termed

lingali, Elderly Ngarrindjeri people called damper pampi, although this term appears to be a Moandik word from the South East of South Australia

(Clarke 2001 ms).

Buggies were referred to as titjeri (flea), a reference to the reliance of a buggy when being drawn upon the body of a horse (Clarke 2001 ms).

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 91

the 1990s Lindsay Wilson, who was an elderly

Aboriginal man with ties to the Coorong and

South East of South Australia, stated that Jacob

Harris had taken him and other youths from Point

McLeay to the Younghusband Peninsula during

the 1930s.'° They took off all their clothes and

lived by hunting, fishing and gathering. This was

to ‘introduce us to our country’.

In spite of the landscape changes by the early

twentieth century, Aboriginal people in the Lower

Murray retained a distinctly Aboriginal view and

use of the physical environment, albeit in a

modified form. Up until the 1930s some

Aboriginal people, known in Aboriginal English

as ‘camp-blacks’, lived in ‘wurleys’ (traditional

shelters) on a hill overlooking the mission

settlement. Some early traditional harvesting

practices continued, particularly for people based

in the fringe camps and living on reserves away

from the mission. Some Ngarrindjeri people

moved to other parts of South Australia to live

and work. For example, the Giles family lived in

the Riverland during the 1940s and 1950s by

selling Murray cod when in season and water rat

skins for the rest of the time. They lived in

‘wurleys’ made from introduced wild tobacco

saplings and hessian bags, and by catching what

food they could from around the camp:

We ate ducks and swans, and their eggs, fish,

caught yabbies now and then, and there were

plenty of rabbits around, especially during flood

time, We would just grab them out of the lignum

bushes, where they sat trying to escape the rising

water (Grace 1990: 159).

Some of this wild food was traded with local

farmers for clothes, tobacco, flour and milk.

Bellchambers (1931: 120) reported that in the

1920s at Swan Reach in the Riverland,

descendants from the local Aboriginal groups

lived in fishing camps but suffered ‘certain

hardships from having no fishing facilities

reserved for them.’ This seemed strange to him,

considering that the camp was almost permanent.

Aboriginal people worked on the periphery of

many small-scale industries. For example,

Ngarrindjeri people remembered catching baby

long-necked tortoises (Chelodonia longicollis)

and parrots in the Riverland as youths in the

1950s for the Adelaide pet trade. Leeches were

collected and sold for use by Europeans to treat

‘© Also reported by Wilson (1998: 89, 115).

Australia.

various blood ailments (Clarke 1989: 3-4; Grace

1990: 171). Skinned and gutted rabbit carcases

were sold to cray fishermen for use as bait

(Wilson 1998: 118). Aboriginal people also boiled

sheep heads and lamb tails for food and collected

loose ‘dead wool’ from paddocks for sale

(Abdulla 1993).'’ Short-term employment was

gained from orchardists by fruit picking, from

fishermen by cleaning fish, and from the farmers

by stump and stone picking in the paddocks and

hessian bag sewing (DETE 2001b: 59, 61, 69, 71).

Non-Aboriginal people occasionally engaged in

similar pursuits, but Aboriginal people living

along the river relied on these activities to such as

extent that it became a part of their rural lifestyle.

During more restrictive periods in the early

twentieth century, such as when the ‘colour bar’

operated in the rural towns of the Lower Murray

(Berndt & Berndt 1951; Clarke 1994: section 6.4),

exclusion from many of the benefits gained

through access to towns helped maintain a high

level of interaction between Aboriginal people

and the physical environment. In particular, it was

apparent in the 1980s when interviewing

Ngarrindjeri people that former dwellers of fringe

camps had extensive knowledge of the medicines

and edible plants that were ‘used by the old

people’. This was simply because they had needed

these indigenous resources to survive. The

proximity of their dwellings to main roads and

settlements during the 1950s and 1960s did not

lessen their connection with the broader

environment. In the 1980s a few elderly people

from this background still collected wild plants,

such as sow thistle. The stems were eaten as food,

described as ‘blackfellow’s salad’, and the milky

sap was used for treating cuts and warts (Clarke

1986a: 10; 1987: 9). Sow thistle was in a category

referred to as ‘blood medicine’, because of its

invigorating property as a food and tonic. When

the ‘colour bar’ formally ceased to operate,

allowing Aboriginal people much greater access

to towns, the use of wild foods and building

materials decreased markedly, since the wild

resources of the landscape were no longer needed

as a buffer between rations and wages. This had a

detrimental impact upon the survival of

Aboriginal knowledge of the pre-European uses

of naturally occurring plants and animals.

The heavily regulated lifestyle of Aboriginai

Acrylic painting (S.A. Museum, A69498) by Ian Abdulla, 1990, features collecting dead wool in the Riverland agricultural district of South

92 PA CLARKE

people in the Lower Murray had helped to

maintain some knowledge of traditional resource

exploitation through hunting, fishing and

gathering. Nevertheless, many of the former

hunting and gathering places, particularly those in

agricultural areas, were inaccessible to

Ngarrindjeri people. By the mid 1960s, when

legislation restricting Aboriginal movements was

rescinded (McCorquodale 1987), visits by large

family groups to summer camping sites, such as

along the Coorong, declined in frequency. People

now had other places they could go for recreation.

The European-dominated landscape partially

opened up for Aboriginal people, resulting in

more movement into towns and the Adelaide

suburbs. The summer trips, although recreational,

had been important events that gave participants a

sense of belonging to the Lower Murray

landscape. Through the 1980s, the descendants of

families that had lived on the Aboriginal reserves

continued to maintain a connection with this area.

Although based in Adelaide, some of them leased

these reserves from the Aboriginal Lands Trust

and maintained small holiday shacks on them.

In the 1980s older members of Aboriginal

families that had taken up farming on various

Lower Murray reserves generally had some

knowledge about pre-European uses of plants and

animals. This was so because of their earlier

reliance on naturally occurring resources to

supplement supplies gained from local towns and

because they had an occupation that still involved

use of the land. Fringe camp dwellers and

Aboriginal farmers were marginal people in the

sense that their greater remoteness from direct

white control, in comparison to people ‘on the

mission’, meant that they were unable to rely on

outsiders for all their material requirements. These

people therefore needed to be more opportunistic

than those more directly supported by the state.

Some Aboriginal people were able to move

between the Aboriginal farms, the fringe camps

and the mission station.

FISHING

Fishing was a major activity of Aboriginal

people in the pre-European period (Clarke 2002),

and continued after European settlement, with the

involvement of Aboriginal people in the fishing

industry. The seasonality of European-controlled

fishing activities would have suited the

incorporation of indigenous labour, particularly

during the nineteenth century when Aboriginal

movements were less restricted. European fishers

in the Lower Murray adopted the use of many

Aboriginal fish names. The importation of these

words into Australian English, like those for other

faunal species with a restricted distribution, was

generally confined to the area of the source

language (Ramson 1966: 120-121; Turner 1972:

123). For example, the golden perch is also widely

known in Australian English, particularly in the

eastern states, as ‘yellow-belly’, based on its

appearance. In the South Australian section of the

Murray River, contemporary anglers call it

‘callop’, which is probably derived from an

Aboriginal term, kalapko, from the Ngaiawung

and Nganguruku languages of the Riverland

district (Clarke 2001ms). Nevertheless, many non-

indigenous fishers of the Lower Lakes still refer

to this species as tarki, based on one of the

associated Ngarrindjeri words (Clarke 2001ms;

Eckert & Robinson 1990: 18-19; Smith 1930:

229; Turner 1972: 123). During the author’s

1980s fieldwork, Lower Murray people

exclusively used another Ngarrindjeri word,

pilalki, for this fish.

In the 1860s involvement in the Lower Lakes

fish trade centred at Milang was a major part of

the economy of the Point McLeay Aboriginal

Mission. The creation of the Murray River

Barrages, completed in 1940, destroyed this

mission station enterprise (Clarke 1994: section

6.1). In particular, the mulloway (Argyrosomus

hololepidotus) and jumping mullet (Liza

argentea) fisheries around the Murray Mouth and

in the Coorong suffered (Olsen 1991: 2, 21-22;

Sim et al 2000: 103, 105). Ngarrindjeri people

also participated in the Murray River fishing

industry (Abdulla 1993; Grace 1990). Oscar

Kartinyeri recalled during an interview with the

author in 1988 that Aboriginal people in the

Lower Murray and upstream to the Riverland

agricultural district of South Australia in the early

twentieth century used handmade nets to catch

fish. These nets were made from split rushes,

scalded before knotting to strengthen them. The

fish would be driven up creeks leading into the

river and the net placed across the entrance. Fish

were then forced back downstream into the net.

Golden perch and silver perch were often caught

in this manner. Apparently the Mannum to

Renmark area of the Murray River had many such

creeks suitable for this purpose. According to Jack

Koolmatrie, nets and fish-traps were still being

utilised by Aboriginal people in the Coorong

during the same period (Ely 1980). Bellchambers

(1931: 21-22) claimed that along the Murray

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 93

River the Aboriginal fishing spear made from two

lengths of fencing wire mounted on a wooden

shaft was still commonly made in the 1880s and

was the last pre-European style weapon to

disappear from general use. The poorer examples

he saw being made in the 1920s were for sale to

European ‘relic hunters’.

During the author’s fieldwork, an Aboriginal

person gave an account of how Aboriginal people

living along the Murray River during the 1950s

stored surpluses of fish. A Ngarrindjeri man and

his family travelled to the Riverland to find

seasonal work, such as fruit picking. Fish from

the river, caught by the father, were a major

source of food. The man was eventually offered a

shearing job away from camp for a few days.

Nevertheless, he did not want to leave his family

without a means of getting food. Therefore, before

leaving he fished, catching seven or eight fish for

several meals. The surplus was kept in a nearby

small muddy pond. The fish remained alive for

several days, and were pulled out by his family as

required. This man apparently often put fish there.

This method of preserving food is similar to that

for the fish storage ponds described in the early

ethnographic literature (Clarke 2002). Near

Pelican Point, European fishers also kept their fish

alive by placing them in ‘pounds’ made of ti-tree

stakes, while they waited for favourable weather

to allow transportation to the Goolwa market

(Evans 1991: 40). It is not known who learned

this practice from whom.

Aboriginal people were opportunistic in some

of their economic activities. For instance, from

August to September a large number of bony

bream (Nematalosa erebi) die of natural causes in

Lake Alexandrina and Lake Albert, floating to the

surface. Local Aboriginal people were once in the

habit of going to the lakeshore or heading out in

small boats to collect them. According to

Ngarrindjeri sources, up until the 1930s and 1940s

old women at the mission station would organise

children into groups with hessian bags to collect

the dying fish from the lake shore. The only fish

taken were those with red gills, as this is a sign of

their freshness. This species of fish has sweet

flesh, although its numerous bones make it

commercially less valuable.'® Many younger

Aboriginal people refused to eat this fish, and still

do, precisely because it is so bony. In the 1980s a

few of the older Lower Murray people were still

able to cook the fish in such a way that the bones

came away in one piece.

As a result of a decline in the Lower Lakes

fishery, by the 1980s there were few Aboriginal

people living at Point McLeay or in other Lower

Murray towns who had any direct experience with

commercial fishing. Whereas many older

Aboriginal people could remember a time when

favourite indigenous fish were abundant, by this

time mainly European carp was caught. A few of

the local non-Aboriginal people with fishing

licences caught mainly estuarine fish, such as

yellow-eye mullet (Aldrichetta forsteri) in the

Coorong, and European carp (Cyprinus carpio),

redfin perch and some golden perch in the Lower

Lakes (Olsen 1990; Sim et al 2000). Aboriginal

people who were middle aged or older,

particularly women, were the main recreational

fishers at Point McLeay. During fieldwork it was

observed that several elderly women living there

enjoyed fishing for silver perch and golden perch.

A favourite location for them was at ‘The

Bulrushes’, near Wangarawar Point on the

northeastern edge of Point McLeay town reserve.

Groups of old women, no longer burdened by

child rearing, were in the habit of going fishing

for long hours on the lake shore. Carp was the

main fish species caught, but was generally left to

die on the bank. Only a few of the Point McLeay

residents would eat such coarse meat. Aboriginal

people sometimes used it as yabbie bait (DETE

1998: 105). Parents and grandparents would

occasionally take their younger children fishing

along the lake or river. Youths also went fishing

in the lagoons for carp with handmade thrusting

spears.

During the author’s Lower Murray fieldwork in

the 1980s, most of the fishing by Aboriginal

people was with hand-lines. Throughout southern

South Australia, Aboriginal people often stated

that they were reluctant to fish with rods. This is

probably, to some extent, due to the

inconvenience of carrying so much tackle."? It was

also said that the use of a fishing rod was ‘too

flash’. The hand-line tradition of fishing was an

expression of the modern southern Aboriginal

identity. Earlier in the twentieth century,

Ngarrindjeri fishers often made their own lines

from cord, with sinkers made from lead melted in

'* A version of the Ngurunderi story, told in schools, explains how this fish became bony (Education Department of South Australia 1988). In the

Ngurunderi mythology, bony bream is the fish that young women are forbidden to eat (Berndt 1940: 173).

94 PA CLARKE

a teaspoon (DETE 2001b: 82, 88). So strong was

the hand-line practice in the 1980s that Aboriginal

people consciously drew this distinction between

themselves and white fishers. A young Aboriginal

man explained that ‘Only whitefellas use rods.

Nungas [Aboriginal people] do it blackfella

way.’

SHELLFISH GATHERING

Lower Murray people formerly collected

shellfish in great numbers (Cann et al 1991;

Luebbers 1978, 1981, 1982; Pretty et al 1983:

117-118; Tindale 1930-52: 67). The middens of

mollusc shells frequently found along undisturbed

sections of banks of the river and lakes, and on

the shores of the Coorong and sea, provide

evidence of this. Some Aboriginal people were

employed by Europeans to collect cockles (pipi,

Plebidonax deltoides) from along the Coorong

beach in sugar bags (DETE 2001b: 88). By the

late twentieth century, Aboriginal people largely

ignored mussels (such as Velesunio ambiguus)

and cockles as a food source, possibly due to

environmental changes in the Lower Lakes

making them either scarce or not as easily

gathered. Up until the 1960s, when Aboriginal

families visited Younghusband Peninsula and the

Goolwa area during the summer, cockles and

periwinkles were eaten (DETE 2001b: 64, 69, 70,

98). By the 1980s Lower Murray people rarely

went there, apart from infrequent day visits. In

spite of the proximity of Point McLeay to the sea,

the modern landscape made it difficult for

Aboriginal people to get to the ocean. Few

Aboriginal people in the Lower Murray had access

to watercraft or to the off-road vehicles needed to

get to the beach via the Forty Two Mile and Ti-

Tree Crossings. The contrast between the riverine

and marine zones was made more apparent after

the construction of the Murray Mouth Barrages,

completed in 1940 (McCourt & Mincham 1987:

11).

During the 1930s and 1940s yabbies

(‘crawfish’, Cherax destructor) were caught by

Ngarrindjeri people in a small bay near

Wangarawar, east of Point McLeay. There were

two methods employed to catch yabbies: pumping

their mud holes with one’s foot, which forced the

occupant out of a connecting tunnel; or fishing

for them with meat on a string (Wilson 1998: 92).

Ngarrindjeri woman Jenny Grace recalled that as

a child in the Riverland during the 1950s:

We'd be in the water a lot getting yabbies too. In

the winter time we used to go and crawl in the

swamp for yabbies. We’d feel under the blanket

weed and we’d find them under there (Grace

1990: 166).

Yabbies were important, not just as food but

also as bait for Murray cod fishing (Abdulla

1993). In the 1980s Lower Murray people caught

yabbies, chiefly during visits to the Riverland, by

using nets and wire traps.

MamMAL HUNTING

By the early twentieth century, most of the

traditional material culture and skills associated

with Aboriginal hunting and fishing practices in

southern South Australia had disappeared

(Hemming 1991: 134; Sutton et al 1988: 186).

Duck nets and spears had previously typified

hunting and fishing in this region (Clarke 1994:

section 4.2; Hemming & Jones 1989). In the case

of Lower Murray clubs, a few types persisted.

Men kept the fighting stick, or kanarki, as a

weapon of defence in their wurleys and houses

(Wilson 1998: 110). This was the custom as late

as the 1940s, according to Aboriginal sources.

Also, until about the 1960s, male youths were in

the habit of using a short club, or wadi (waddy),

with a single or double bulbous head to throw at

rabbits (DETE 2001b: 82, 89; Wilson 1998: 39,

58). For them, the killing of rabbits was a game of

skill, the thrower having to gauge the distance

whilst aiming at the head. With the demise of

wurley camps and the introduction of firearm

restrictions, these ‘old’ style weapons have

become souvenirs or museum pieces.

In the 1980s Ngarrindjeri people hunted rabbits

and birds by shotgun or .22 rifle, chiefly as a

recreational activity for the warmer months of the

year. Lower Murray people could remember

eating other creatures such as wood grubs, snakes,

echidnas and a variety of lizards. Kangaroos were

eaten less than introduced red meat sources like

sheep, mainly due to their scarcity. In the decades

prior to the 1980s, most kangaroo meat came from

areas in the South East of South Australia, such as

Coonalpyn or Kingston, where they were still

20 Aboriginal people define Nungas (pronounced ‘Nargars’) as indigenous people from southern South Australian communities (Clarke 2001ms;

Mattingley & Hampton 1988).

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 95

relatively common. Aboriginal men had earlier

been involved in shooting kangaroos for their

hides in the South East (Wilson 1998: 96). During

the 1980s at Point McLeay, some people,

originally from the West Coast of South Australia,

would catch, cook and eat blue-tongue and sleepy

lizards, which are relatively common on the

Narrung Peninsula.

Ngarrindjeri family groups hunted water rats for

their skins, which were sold to European furriers.

During the early to mid twentieth century this

appears to have been more commonly practised

along the Murray River, from Tailem Bend to the

Riverland. Ngarrindjeri woman Jenny Grace

remembered how water rat hunting was a common

activity during her childhood in the Nildottie area

of the Murray River during the 1950s. On the

family boat:

Most of the room would have been taken up with

the boards, and I would have to sit on top of

them. These boards were used for pegging out

rat skins. ... We'd just travel around, maybe row

about seven miles, camp near where there was a

big swamp or something, where we thought it

was going to be good for rats. I think dad had

about 120 traps and they would have been the

most valuable possessions that we had. ... We'd

stay in one place for about three days usually,

until the skins dried, and if we ran out of boards

to peg them on we’d peg them onto the gumtrees

then roll them up ready to be sold (Grace 1990:

158).

The skins were destined for the fur market in

Adelaide. The families of Bluey Roberts and Jerry

Mason junior were also involved in catching water

rats in the Riverland (DETE 1998: 86; 2001b: 78).

Colin Cook said that at one time they sold the

water rat skins for about four shillings each

(DETE 2001b: 62). Ian Abdulla, who lived at

Cobdogla during the 1950s and 1960s, claimed

that:

There was another way of making an income

and that was catching rats and selling the skins

to a buyer at Renmark in the Riverland so the

skins could be used to make purses or handbags.

To get the rats we had to dive down to the

bottom of the creek or swamps to get mussels to

put on the traps. ... We set the traps on logs to

catch the rats overnight. ... The next morning

my father and brother would go out in the boat

to check the traps to see how many rats we

caught overnight, then they would take the rats

home to be skunt or skinned. Then the skins

were pegged out on the boards and put in the sun

to dry (Abdulla 1993).?!

In the 1980s Ngarrindjeri woman Laura

Kartinyeri said that her family had been heavily

involved in the water rat skin trade, particularly

when they were based in the Three Mile Camp at

Tailem Bend. Such activities fitted in with spells

working as farm labourers or in local factories.

During the author’s fieldwork, rabbits were the

most readily obtained wild mammals in the Point

McLeay region. Although most Aboriginal people

knew that the rabbit was an introduced species,

this did not diminish the cultural importance of

rabbit shooting. On many occasions hunting

parties were organised spontaneously, rather than

in advance. A visitor who was unfamiliar with the

region may have had one of these events arranged

for their benefit. This allowed the Lower Murray

people at Point McLeay to ‘show our land’ to the

newcomer. Even when a hunting party was

primarily a response to a desire for rabbit or duck

meat, the cultural significance remained. A senior

person in the community made arrangements for

obtaining guns and a car. The type of car preferred

was usually a large sedan with high clearance

from the ground. Generally, the time chosen to go

‘rabbiting’ was the early evening when it was

becoming dark. Hunting excursions were

generally to nearby Aboriginal-run land reserves

and farms, such as Block K, Gum Park, or in the

paddocks at the back of Big Hill.

Local hunting trips were almost entirely male

events. Women might be present when the

shooting was secondary to another activity, such

as getting firewood. On most trips experienced by

the author, a particular old ‘uncle’ at Raukkan

was consulted early during the arrangements. This

was to see if he would come along, or whether he

could lend some of his guns, or simply to tell him

that people were ‘going bush’. The driver was

usually the organiser, because he took control of

where the party went. The favoured areas for

shooting had driving hazards which were difficult

to see at night. Obstacles to avoid included fallen

trees, tree stumps, low patches of scrub, sand

drifts, rabbit warrens, piles of limestone,

soakages, rusting farm machinery, barbed wire

tangles and general rubbish. It was therefore

necessary for the driver to have a high degree of

localised geographic knowledge. Men who had

worked on the Point McLeay properties took pride

in identifying the landscape during the night’s

71 See Abdulla (1993), Clarke (2001b, pl. 92) and Hemming & Clarke (1991: 14) for paintings of water rat hunting activities.

96 PA CLARKE

activities and were delighted when outsiders lost

their sense of direction. Although the driver

usually did little shooting, the structure of the

event meant that his was a high prestige role.

Youths who took part generally either spotted

with the searchlight or acted as runners to collect

and finish off the shot rabbits.

There was some resistance to shooting at

animals other than rabbits, despite the fact that

hares, foxes, a small number of kangaroos and

deer were often seen.” The stated reason was

usually that they were either not common or

simply that they were not “doing the hunters any

harm’. In this context, Aboriginal people

articulated that feral animals were to some extent

like them, which is outside ‘white law’. The

shooting parties of local non-indigenous farmers

do not possess this sentiment. Although they

engage in rabbit shooting for recreation, the

structure of their activity generally reflects their

personal economic interests in getting rid of

pests.”?

For Aboriginal people the aim was to shoot

rabbits through the head, as this was a discarded

part of the carcass. A plastic garbage bag in the

boot of the car held the shot rabbits until the

conclusion of the shoot. The gutting took place in

the field in front of the car’s headlights, as this

was a messy job. The removal of the entrails made

this operation too dirty for home. Back at Point

McLeay, the heads and lower legs of the rabbits

were chopped off, using a hatchet or machete on a

block of wood. On a good night there would be as

many as 50 rabbits to skin and gut. If there were a

large number of rabbits killed, the processed

carcasses were held by the hide of their legs on a

clothesline until the whole job was over. This

prevented dogs from running off with them before

the end of the job. Hungry dogs at the settlement

quickly removed the refuse produced.

The rabbit meat was ready for cooking after it

had been soaked overnight in water to remove

some of the strong odour of the flesh peculiar to

rabbits. Next morning, various senior people at

Point McLeay received the carcasses that were

wrapped first in layers of newspaper and finally

plastic. Often, the biggest share went to the

provider of the guns or ammunition, or to the

owner of the vehicle. Although people in the

Point McLeay settlement would often hear about

a hunting trip the next day, the specific details

were generally not discussed outside the local

Aboriginal group. Hunting on Aboriginal land

occurred in an Aboriginal realm of activity that

Point McLeay people preferred to keep to

themselves.

BirD SHOOTING

The main species of duck hunted by Point

McLeay people in the late twentieth century were

the grey teal (Anas gibberifrons) and the

mountain duck (Tadorna_tadornoides).

According to Aboriginal sources, the hardhead

duck (Aythya australis) was common in the

Lower Lakes but seldom seen by the 1980s

(Wilson 1998: 90). Other species formerly

hunted for food by mission station residents

include the banded stilt (Cladorhynchus

leucocephalus), black swan (Cygnus atratus) and

Cape Barren goose (Cereopsis novaehollandiae).

In particular, cooked swan intestines were

regarded as a great delicacy** and the Cape

Barren goose was desired for Christmas roast.

The pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus) was often

hunted for its feathers, which were used in

making house ornaments (Clarke 1994: 290, 336;

1996a: 75; DETE 2001b: 70). The flesh of the

pelican was said to be like the shag (Leucocarbo

fuscescens), considered ‘too fishy to eat’ by most

Aboriginal people in the Lower Murray during

the 1980s. Nevertheless, a Ngarrindjeri man

claimed that the breast of the pelican was like

steak if properly prepared. The carcass needed

hanging for a few days ‘to get rid of the wild

taste’. Bait for fishing sometimes came from the

flesh of the silver gull (Larus novaehollandiae).

The bird was caught by baited hook on nylon

fishing line tied to a log or branch.

Duck shooting usually happened in the early

morning. It involved more stealth than for rabbits;

the shooters often crawled for some distance and

then hid. For this reason, bird-shooting groups

from Point McLeay were generally smaller than

those for rabbits. After travelling to the area in a

car, the hunters walked to the lagoon. Talking

outside the vehicle was minimal and in whispers.

Messages were by hand signals and single word

utterances in Ngarrindjeri language, such as nakan

The deer originally escaped in the 1980s from a stud near Narrung. The stud was then closed and the remaining stock removed.

23 Morton (1990) has investigated the cultural role of non-Aboriginal hunting in contemporary Australia.

4 Swan intestines were called kungari waltjeri.

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 97

(‘look’), kungen (‘listen’), tawul (‘stop’) and

lewin (‘lie down’). As for rabbit shooting,

knowledge of the landscape was crucial for duck

shooting, not just to avoid obstacles but also to

find a suitable place from which to shoot.

The main duck hunting sites near Point McLeay

were the lagoons at ‘The Bulrushes’ and on the

flats behind ‘Big Hill’ near Teringie. At the latter

site the lagoons were periodically flooded. Point

McLeay workers deliberately opened up the

entrance to the lake with a tractor to produce a

habitat to attract water birds. Bunkers were dug

out of the mud well in advance of the hunting trip

and the walls were covered with samphires

(Halosarcia species). These served as shooting

points next to lagoons, and were particularly

necessary near Teringie where the landscape is

open. Another spot at the Teringie lagoons from

which to shoot was next to some large boxthorns.

This area was ‘prildi place’ to some — a reference

to the numerous ants found there at night. By

crouching in front of the bushes, a shooter

wearing dark clothing remained hidden from the

birds. At “The Bulrushes’ there were plenty of

hiding places among the lignum (Muehlenbeckia

cunninghamii) and bulrushes (Typha species). The

remains of an old limestone-walled bunker on the

more open side of “The Bulrushes’ lagoon were

still visible during the 1980s.

From a good early morning hunt, a dozen ducks

might be shot. Birds were plucked on site before

returning home to avoid making a mess in the

township. Also, feathers lying about a person’s

yard may lead to unwanted questions from visitors

from outside their extended community. There

was some distrust of the authorities interfering

with their activities. Back at Point McLeay, as

with rabbits, senior people in the community

tended to be given most of the catch.

COLLECTING Birp EccGs

The practice of collecting swan eggs, known in

Aboriginal English as ‘swan-egging’, was a major

activity for Aboriginal people in the Lower Lakes

and Murray River districts up until the late

twentieth century (Abdulla 1993; DETE 2001b:

69; Ely 1980). Swan eggs (kungari ngatjeri) are

large and greenish white; they are equivalent in

volume to five average fowl eggs. Although they

taste much the same as fowl eggs, those of the

swan are richer. The eating of a whole egg by a

single person has been known to cause diarrhoea.

The persistence of bird egg collecting as a

seasonal activity had continuity with pre-European

harvesting practices. Aboriginal informants

described how they would carefully observe swan

behaviour from late winter. Although the swan-

breeding season is broad and variable, Aboriginal

people claimed that in the Lower Murray it

occurred when the water levels in the lagoons

were high. The men first tried to determine the

general area where floating nests made from reeds

were being built. To find the exact location, the

collectors searched for swan tracks pushed

through the bulrush beds. Collectors generally

obtained the eggs by wading out into the lagoons,

although occasionally small boats were used.

Putting eggs in water tested their freshness — the

ones that sank were considered good for eating. A

few older Lower Murray people preferred to cook

and eat eggs that had ‘turned’, meaning that they

had chicks in them about to hatch. Swan-egging

occurred mainly in spring, before tiger snakes

(Notechis ater) become a major hazard in the

warmer months.

Aboriginal people travelled long distances to

obtain swan eggs. In the early twentieth century,

men from the Point McLeay Mission Station used

blanket sails on their dinghies to travel across the

lake to Point Sturt, returning with hundreds of

swan eggs (Wilson 1998: 44). As late as the

1950s, two women from Point McLeay rowed

across Lake Alexandrina to Mulgundawa to obtain

swan eggs in early spring (Padman 1987: 24).

They returned with their dinghy so heavily laden

with swan eggs that it was reported that only

about 75 millimetres of the boat was above water.

Certain Europeans in the Narrung area reportedly

received some of the booty as a gift. Other

Ngarrindjeri people used to row up Currency

Creek in the southern Fleurieu Peninsula to collect

swan eggs (DETE 2001b: 87).

European naturalists did not look favourably

upon the taking of swan eggs. Inspector McIntosh

of the Fisheries Department, before the First

World War, recorded that at Tanunda Bay along

the Coorong ‘two half-castes had arrived with a

boatload of swans’ eggs, which system of

wholesale robbery in the closed season the

inspector understands is a common practice

around the lakes’.** The ornithologist Captain SA

White recorded his views in his account of a bird

*S Register newspaper, 2 November [year not recorded] (Cutting Book, Anthropology Archives, S.A, Museum),

98 PA CLARKE

watching party he led to Dodd Creek on the

western side of Lake Albert. He reports:

We intended to continue our observations among

the water birds here, but to our disgust, we found

a party of natives encamped. They trade under

the name of aborigine, but most of them have

very fair skins - in fact, quite white, as I

remarked before. These men destroy a fearful

number of swans, by rifling the nests. This

outrageous slaughter should be stopped (White

1913: 57).

The scientific concerns of White and his

colleagues were not compatible with the needs of

local Aboriginal people.

Aboriginal people had to collect swan eggs by

stealth. A farmer living near the Point McLeay

settlement provided one account of a swan

expedition from Point McLeay. She said:

Only a few years ago, the alarm was sounded all

along the lake edge that four ‘boys’ from Point

McLeay were missing. They had gambled that

they could get some swan eggs although they

knew that it was illegal. Those of us who lived

along the waterway switched on lights in case

the missing boys needed land marks. Some of

the men were in the act of rigging up spotlights

on four wheel drive vehicles when the call came

that they were safe. Actually they’d been sitting

behind some reeds for some considerable time,

afraid to land, as they could see a police patrol

vehicle at the ferry. Eventually they threw their

forty odd eggs overboard, wrongly thinking that

the officer was waiting to catch them (Padman

1987, p.25).

Since the 1980s Aboriginal people were legally

able to remove the eggs in a restricted number of

places, as long as it was not part of a commercial

venture (Wilson et al 1992: 91-2). Nevertheless,

as with rabbit and duck hunting, they tended to

keep secret the details of these activities.

During the 1980s Lower Murray people

generally ignored the eggs of birds other than the

swan. Nevertheless, Ngarrindjeri informants say

that in the 1940s and 1950s eggs of the silver gull

were often obtained for eating. Collecting took

place from islands in the Coorong. In particular,

people living on nearby Aboriginal reserves on

the mainland side had access to these resources.

Other species whose eggs were eaten include the

coot (Fulica atra), water hen (Porphyrio

porphyrio), teal (Anas gracilis) and black duck

(Anas superciliosa) (DETE 2001b: 62, 64, 78-79,

94). Aboriginal people in South Australia had the

right to take wildfowl eggs until this right was

repealed under the National Parks and Wildlife

Act 1972.7° Under the Fauna Conservation Act

1964 that it replaced, Aboriginal people had the

right to hunt out of season, on crown land and on

private property. In the latter case, hunting was

allowed only if the landowner gave permission. In

the 1972 Act no consideration was given to

Aboriginal land use. Most Ngarrindjeri people

spoken to in the 1980s asserted that they had the

moral and cultural right to take a few swan eggs,

as long as at least one egg per nest was left

untouched. Aboriginal people claimed that swans

would generally only rear one chick, and they

therefore thought it was reasonable to leave only a

single egg to become an adult. In the Lower

Murray region Aboriginal gatherers stated that

there are generally four eggs in each clutch.”’

ARTEFACT MANUFACTURE AND ART

Aboriginal people in the Lower Murray during

the 1980s considered that the knowledge of how

to make ‘old time’ artefacts, and of where in the

landscape to obtain the necessary raw materials,

helped to reinforce their Ngarrindjeri identity.

After a long period, when Aboriginal

woodcarving and art practices had largely

vanished from the Lower Murray, these traditions

were revived in the early 1980s. Some artefacts,

described as ‘old time’ examples, were made for

Aboriginal use as home decorations (Clarke

1996a). Some were also sold to non-Aboriginal

collectors and museums. In these cases the objects

were essentially statements of the artists’

connections with the pre-European past. Artefacts

such as baskets and mats were utility articles in

the pre-European period, but from the 1980s they

had the added status of icons, particularly for local

Aboriginal people.*® The interest in and

consumption of Aboriginal culture by such non-

Aboriginal agencies as contemporary art and

artefact collectors, museums (Hemming & Jones

1989), and education departments (Education

Department of South Australia 1988, 1990, 1991)

has helped increase the significance of these items

as symbols of a hunter-gatherer past.

26 McCorquodale (1987) discussed the impact of legislation on Aboriginal issues.

Breeding time is dependent upon water level.

Omithologists state the number of eggs in one clutch is between four and seven, although over ten has been recorded (Beruldsen 1980: 161).

This trend grew through the 1990s, providing a medium for some indigenous people to express their cultural identity (see Bell 1998: 78-89).

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 99

FIGURE 2. Lindsay Wilson at the Coorong making a wadi club from eucalyptus wood, using a broken plate as a

scraper.

100

Since the 1980s and early 1990s, Lower Murray

artists and crafts people have had prominence in

the local Aboriginal art and craft market in

Adelaide (Hemming & Clarke 1991: 12-14;

Sutton et al 1988: 188-190). Aboriginal people

such as Paul Kropinyeri and Bluey Roberts

specialised in carving. For example, Paul

Kropinyeri experimented with making bark spear-

deflecting shields, some of which the South

Australian Museum purchased (Hemming 1991:

135-6; Sutton et al 1988: Fig. 230). One of his

last projects was discovering how to make bark

canoes. Bluey Roberts carved mainly emu eggs

and boomerangs for sale as art pieces, developing

a unique style that incorporated figural elements

from both the West Coast side of his family, such

as emus and goannas, and the Lower Murray side,

usually a Murray cod (DETE 1998: 86-7;

Hemming & Clarke 1991: 14; Sutton et al 1988:

Fig. 234). As with Paul Kropinyeri, Lindsay

Wilson used museum collections as a source of

information for reproducing the old style weapons

from the Lower Murray. Nevertheless, he was also

able to draw upon his own memories of early

boomerang and club types (Fig. 2). In the 1930s

Lindsay Wilson had assisted Clarence Long in

making clubs for sale to Europeans.” From the

1980s there was a small market in making realistic

representations of pre-European harvesting and

fighting implements.

Some artists expressed a close relationship to

the landscape, not through making pre-European

style objects, but by producing images in Western

style art media. For example, Harvey Karpany

produced water colour paintings and ink drawings

that focused on various Lower Murray spirits and

their associated environments (Hemming &

Clarke 1991: 14; Sutton et al 1988: Fig. 236).

Many Aboriginal people found that his work had

a supernatural quality, being ‘like gupas’ (or

ghosts). Jack Stengle concentrated on acrylic

paintings on board and canvas. He tended to use

Lower Murray mythology and history as subjects

(Clarke 2001b: pl. 93; DETE 1998: 90-91, 2001a;

Sutton 1988: Fig. 237). Older Aboriginal people

in the Lower Murray community have played a

major role as sources of the cultural and social

data depicted in the work of these artists.

people of the Coorong (see Tindale 1986: 498-499).

PA CLARKE

The local market for baskets was strong early in

the twentieth century when similar ‘third world’

goods from India and Indonesia were not widely

available. In 1909 the Royal Institute for the Blind

attempted to get Aboriginal people at Point

McLeay to make particular styles of basket to

replace the rattan imports from Asia (Jenkin 1979:

214). The reluctance of Aboriginal people to

change craft styles is reported to have led to the

failure of this initiative. The Point McLeay

Mission Station supported the basket-making

tradition by placing it on the school curriculum in

1904 (Jenkin 1979: 227). The skill was taught to

girls as part of their domestic duties (Wilson

1998: 23). Up until 1951 tourists on paddle

steamers came across the lake to visit the mission.

Dulcie Wilson recalled that ‘Near to the jetty,

women from the Mission would display their

craft-work, mainly baskets and mats, made from

rushes or grasses grown by the lake shore’

(Wilson 1998: 25).*° Basket and mat makers also

sold their product to local non-Aboriginal people,

before foreign imports from the 1960s priced them

out of the market for cheap domestic items. The

persistence of indigenous basket-making practices

in the Lower Murray was primarily due to

continued household use of these items by both

Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.

In the early 1980s Lower Murray people revived

their basketry traditions as part of the building of

a local indigenous identity (Fig. 3). Due to the

small but steady craft market that developed, this

aspect of pre-European material culture has

survived in a modified form to the present.

Through the 1980s and 1990s the main Aboriginal

people making mats and baskets were Ellen

Trevorrow and Yvonne Koolmatrie, both of whom

were taught the techniques by Dorothy Kartinyeri

in 1982 (Clarke 2001b: 111-112; DETE 1998:

104-105, 110-111; Hemming 1989: 48; Sutton et

al 1988: 187-188). Museums and art galleries

have acquired examples of their work.

The making of flower ornaments from pelican

feathers was another distinctive Lower Murray

craft of the late twentieth century, although

originally introduced from Victoria (Inglis

1961).31 Women chiefly made these to sell to

visitors to the mission station, local farmers and

Clarence Long, also known as Milerum, was considered by Tindale to be the last of the Coorong people with traditional knowledge of the Tangani

Aboriginal informants remembered, as children, jumping into the lake for coins thrown from the paddle steamers. Trips from Goolwa ended in 1951

when the local steamer was destroyed in a fire (F. Tuckwell, pers. comm.).

Annie (‘Fof-fon’) Rankine was reputed to have been the first maker of feather flowers in the Lower Murray (J. Chilman, pers. comm.). She

experimented with feathers from a number of species before concentrating on pelicans.

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 101

FIGURE 3. A selection of Lower Murray / South East ‘sister’ baskets. From top left: maker unknown, Mannum,

c.1932 (A17530); Ethel Watson, Kingston South East, c.1931 (A15950); Yvonne Koolmatrie, Berri, 1989

(A69209). From bottom left: maker unknown, Manunka, c.1932 (A17524); Ellen Trevorrow, Meningie, 1987

(A65184); maker unknown, Manunka, c.1932 (A16638), maker unknown, Encounter Bay, c.1900 (A2519).

town dwellers (Wilson 1998: 25). In the 1980s the

National Parks and Wildlife Service would give

permission for Aboriginal people to kill a pelican

for its feathers. However, this was only in order to

keep the tradition going because, legally, the

finished artefacts could not be sold (Wilson et al

1992: 91-2). Aboriginal people occasionally used

feathers from a pelican found dead, perhaps killed

by the power lines. Alternatively, some people

made their flowers from the feathers of bantams

and other bird species.

As with other regions of Australia, the sale of

artefacts supplemented the income of some

extended Aboriginal families. Aboriginal people

often earned money by demonstrating their unique

craft and art styles to school children and special

interest groups. In the 1980s the work of many

southern Aboriginal artefact-makers and artists

was being promoted through exhibitions and

workshops organised by the South Australian

Museum and the National Aboriginal Cultural

Institute at Tandanya in Adelaide. In the case of

the craft people, the knowledge of where to find

the raw material in the landscape and the

possession of the appropriate ‘traditional’ artefact-

making skills, was considered by them to be an

integral part of their Lower Murray culture.

CULTURAL IMPORTANCE OF MODERN HUNTING AND

GATHERING

Hunting and gathering wild food seasonally

added to the food supply of many Aboriginal

households in the Lower Murray, although its

significance diminished in the closing decades of

the twentieth century. As demonstrated by Sackett

(1979) in the Western Desert, in assessing the

importance of foraging activities to the

contemporary community, it is wrong to assume

that they were simply food-producing activities

conducted solely in response to economic and

recreational needs. For many Aboriginal people in

the Lower Murray, foraging is an expression of

their local identity. Hunting and gathering

practices have important cultural values, not only

102

‘proving’ Aboriginal abilities in obtaining a living

from the land, but demonstrating that people have

an affinity with and knowledge of the landscape,

however altered it is by non-Aboriginal activities.

In the 1980s some Ngarrindjeri people associated

their families with the totemic symbols (ngatji) of

the pre-European clans.” Most of these are birds,

such as the musk duck (Biziura lobata), Cape

Barren goose, pelican and black swan (Clarke

2001ms). Although these symbols no longer have

a role in determining kinship relationships, the

knowledge of them serves to reinforce

Ngarrindjeri identity. Birds can have a modern

symbolic significance as well. In the 1980s

Aboriginal people in the Lower Murray adopted

the black swan as the Ngarrindjeri emblem, as

used, for example, on sporting uniforms.

Modern harvesting practices reinforce an

Aboriginal view of the landscape, albeit a

recently developed one. An analysis confined to

the technology used, often steel traps and shot

guns, would not adequately demonstrate the

distinctiveness of Aboriginal use of the

environment. The cultural importance of

harvesting to Lower Murray people is

particularly evident in the case of rabbit

shooting. One of the advantages of this particular

type of hunting is that it is a group activity. The

use of a vehicle facilitates much conversation

amongst the hunting party. Discussions concern

the location of particular geographical features

on the reserves, such as water tanks, ruins, old

wells, trees, tracks and fences. The dialogue

often touches upon past events associated with

the scrub and the connecting farmland. Stories

are told featuring the past residents of Point

McLeay, as well as drawing upon the psychic

realm of ghosts, spirit beings and sorcerers.**

Although, to a lesser extent, this occurs during

duck shooting and swan egging, the high level of

interaction among the hunters in vehicles is not

possible when stalking or ambushing. Sometimes

the most in-depth look at the land came when

the group, or a part of it, later reflected upon the

hunting trip. In their Aboriginal view of the

landscape, the harvesting areas are

topographically and culturally important sites.

Aboriginal participants in shooting parties and

PA CLARKE

swan egging expeditions not only forage for

food; they are taking part in occasions for

interpreting and experiencing their landscape.

Legislation in the twentieth century, restricting

the killing of indigenous birds and prohibiting the

taking of their eggs, severely affected Aboriginal

bird harvesting practices in the Lower Murray.

Although most Aboriginal people interviewed in

the 1980s stated that hunters must leave certain

species alone due to their scarcity, they perceived

the wildlife protection acts as yet another

encumbrance placed upon them by white

authorities. Added to this were the restrictions

placed on vehicular access to the Younghusband

Peninsula. When speaking about land use, Lower

Murray people stressed that they must be given

the rights to continue pre-European-style

harvesting practices. Aboriginal people saw no

problem with national parks as long as they had

access to their resources. During the 1980s local

park and wildlife protection authorities allowed

some degree of use of the parks for gathering raw

plant materials for artefacts and for the shooting

of protected faunal species. Some Negarrindjeri

men were employed as park rangers, which

facilitated an improved relationship between the

local Aboriginal community and the authorities.

Nevertheless, the constant monitoring demanded

by these activities, such as the individual permits

required to shoot a certain number of animals,

means that much tends to occur outside the law.

Aboriginal people prefer to be discreet about their

activities to avoid non-Aboriginal interference.*

For this reason, Aboriginal people in the Lower

Murray often appear to outsiders to be

unnecessarily secretive about their hunting,

fishing and gathering expeditions.

A number of studies have urged Australian

governments to give more formal recognition to

indigenous hunting, fishing and gathering rights

over both marine and inland resources (Altman et

al 1995; Peterson & Rigsby 1998; Resource

Assessment Commission 1993: 166-189; Smyth

1993: 211-225). Other reports have considered

the role of Aboriginal people in managing wild

animal resources (Altman et al 1997; Bomford &

Caughley 1996; Parliament of the Commonwealth

of Australia 1998; Wilson et al 1992), and the

2 For a description of the pre-European role of ngatji, see Berndt & Berndt (1993: 249-251, 470-473, 417-419).

See Clarke (2002ms) for an explanation of ‘gupa’ and ‘kuratji yarns’. Such pre-European style spirits, as distinct from the ghosts of known people,

are often associated with areas of old vegetation, such as Block K (Clarke 1999a: 153-155, 160).

Aboriginal hunters and gatherers.

Brody (1983) gives a detailed description of the plight of Indian hunters in Northwest Canada, which has some similarities to that of modern

TWENTIETH-CENTURY ABORIGINAL HARVESTING PRACTICES 103

complexity of hybrid economies operating in

many Aboriginal communities (Altman 2001). To

many Aboriginal people in the Lower Murray,

access to the environment and its resources was

considered important in spite of landscape

changes. From the 1980s this has drawn them into

greater involvement in environmental issues.** The

use of the landscape by non-Aboriginal people is

usually not complementary to indigenous

harvesting practices.

In the Lower Murray during the 1980s many

older Aboriginal people recognised that, in spite

of poor social conditions, a few aspects of their

own earlier restricted lifestyle were, in hindsight,

desirable. The eating of wild foods, in particular,

was considered by them to have made their people

‘feel stronger’ than they do now. Many elderly

Aboriginal people expressed great sorrow that the

land they knew in their youth no longer exists.

These people spoke of the contemporary

landscape as being ‘sick’. Many of the Aboriginal

medicine and food plants and animals were no

longer to be found and the waters were now turbid

and prone to algal blooms. The reserves where

hunting, fishing and gathering could take place

were few and small, and generally restricted to the

Point McLeay—Coorong area. Nevertheless, some

Lower Murray people were able to maintain links

with their hunter-gatherer past. Such people, from

various backgrounds, stressed the importance of

their knowledge and use of local foods for the

maintenance of their regional Aboriginal identity.

Artefact making, in the style of the ‘old people’,

was important in a similar way. A distinct

Aboriginal perception of the physical landscape in

the Lower Murray persists, though it is radically

different from that which prevailed before

Europeans arrived.

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1991. ‘Caring for Country. Aborigines and Land

Management’. Australian National Parks and

Wildlife Service: Canberra.

Zeidler, W. 1983. Freshwater and some terrestrial

invertebrates. In MJ Tyler, CR Twidale, JK Ling &

JW Holmes (eds) ‘Natural History of the South East’,

pp. 187-204. Royal Society of South Australia:

Adelaide.

INECOIRIDS

OJF

TB0E

SOUTH

AUSTRALIAN

MUSEUM

VOLUME 36 PART 1

DECEMBER 2003

ISSN 0376-2750

CONTENTS:

ARTICLES

] E MAKOVICKY

Ornamental diamond patterns in Aboriginal bark paintings from N.E. Arnhem Land,

Australia.

P| U MUHLENHARDT-SIEGEL

Shallow-water cumacean Crustacea from Australia and Lombok (Indonesia): families

Bodotriidae and Leuconidae.

ae) LR SMALES

An annotated checklist of the Australian Acanthocephala from mammalian and bird

hosts.

83 PA CLARKE

Twentieth-century Aboriginal harvesting practices in the rural landscape of the Lower

Murray, South Australia.

Published by the South Australian Museum,

North Terrace, Adelaide, South Australia 5000.

IN O@@INIDS

©)

AUSTRALIAN

MUSEUM

VOLUME 36 PART 2

DECEMBER 2003

A NEW GENUS OF WATER BEETLE GENTILINA GEN. NOV. FROM

AUSTRALIA (COLEOPTERA : HYDROPHILIDAE)

FRANZ HEBAUER

Summary

Gentilina gen. nov. is described and illustrated from Queensland. It comprises one species

previously described by Gentili (1993) as Paranacaena nitens after a female. The new genus belongs

to the subfamily Hydrophilinae, tribe Laccobiini, and comes close to Hydrophilomima Hansen &

Schédl, 1997 in its external appearance. The aedagophore of a recent specimen is figured and a

revised key to the genera of Laccobiini is given.

A NEW GENUS OF WATER BEETLE GENTILINA GEN. NOV.

FROM AUSTRALIA (COLEOPTERA: HYDROPHILIDAE)

FRANZ HEBAUER

HEBAUER, F. 2003. A new genus of water beetle Gentilina gen. nov. from Australia

(Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae). Records of the South Australian Museum 36(2): 109-114.

Gentilina gen. nov. is described and illustrated from Queensland. It comprises one species

previously described by Gentili (1993) as Paranacaena nitens after a female. The new genus

belongs to the subfamily Hydrophilinae, tribe Laccobiini, and comes close to Hydrophilomima

Hansen & Schédl, 1997 in its external appearance. The aedeagophore of a recent specimen is

figured and a revised key to the genera of Laccobiini is given.

F. Hebauer, Ulrichsberg 7, D-94539 Grafling, Germany. Revised manuscript received

30 November 2001.

It is not at all surprising to continue to discover

new genera of insects from Australia. Many areas

of this continent are still undercollected for water

beetles. In particular, the Northern Territory was

found to support new species of Hydrophiloidea

such as Spercheus wattsi (Hebauer 1999),

Helochares spp. (Hebauer & Hendrich 1999),

some Berosus spp. (Watts 1987) and Hydrochus

spp. (Watts 1999), as well as Anacaenini and

Laccobiini (Gentili 1980, 2000) and a large

number of new genera and species of

Sphaeridiinae (Hansen 1990). At present there are

45 genera and over 200 species of Hydrophiloidea

described from Australia (or 55 genera and over

250 species from the Australian region).

The Hydrophilidae tribe Laccobiini is poorly

represented in Australia, until now with the sole

genus Laccobius. A second genus of this tribe is

described in this paper represented by a single

species, found at two localities (North Queensland

near the Cape Tribulation National Park; and

Buderim Mountain). New material is deposited with

the following institutions and individuals: Australian

National Insect Collection, CSIRO, Canberra

(ANIC); Collection of Elio Gentili, Rasa-Varese,

Coll. Lars Hendrich, Berlin (CHB); Collection of

Franz Hebauer, Grafling, Germany (CHG); Museo

di Storia Naturale, Verona (MSNV);

Naturhistorisches Museum Wien, (NMW); and the

South Australian Museum, Adelaide (SAMA).

Gentilina gen. nov.

(Figs 14)

Type species

Paranacaena nitens Gentili, 1993, fixed by

designation here. The gender is female.

Diagnosis

Body elongate, widest behind pronotal—elytral

junction, contour not interrupted between

pronotum and elytra, evenly attenuated

posteriorly, weakly convex (Fig. 1). Dorsal face

FIGURE 1. Gentilina nitens (Gentili), (ANIC), body

shape.

110

FIGURE 2. Gentilina nitens (Gentili), (ANIC),

maxillary palp.

glabrous. Clypeus not demarcated from frons by a

suture, forming a shelf above antennal base,

reaching almost to outer edge of eyes; anterior

margin convex, anterior corners rounded. Eyes

rather large, separated by about 3x the width of

one eye, very slightly protruding from outline of

head; anterior margin hardly emarginate. Head

slightly narrowed behind eyes. Maxillary palpi

half as long as width of head; second segment

swollen, apical portion thicker than basal portion;

third segment much shorter than second; fourth

segment almost twice as long as _ third,

asymmetrical with inner face straightened (Fig. 2).

Mentum rectangular, about 1.5x as wide as long,

slightly concave, anterior margin almost straight.

Labial palpi about as long as width of mentum,

slender, cylindrical; second segment without

subapical wreath of setae; third segment about as

long as second, almost symmetrical. Gula well

developed, almost parallel-sided. Antennae 9-

segmented, half as long as width of head; first

segment of moderate length; second about half as

long as first; third to fifth segments very small,

subequal; cupule rather small, well differentiated;

segments 7 to 9 forming a somewhat compact,

pubescent club, which is 3.5x as long as wide

(Fig. 3). Pronotum widest at base, sides weakly

rounded and strongly narrowed anteriorly; surface

evenly convex, without transverse series of

punctures at hind margin, but with distinct coarser

setiferous punctures forming a short oblique

transverse group on each side. Prosternum short,

without antennal grooves, not conspicuously

elevated medially and without a longitudinal

F HEBAUER

carina; middle portion defined from lateral

portions by a pair of very fine oblique ridges;

without spines. Mesosternum not fused to

metepisterna, only reaching anterior mesothoracic

margin at a single point; middle portion rather

flat, without a lamina or projection. Metasternum

with weakly raised middle portion, not projecting

anteriorly between mesocoxae; with hydrofuge

pubescence except for a narrow glabrous area on

raised drop-shaped middle portion; without

femoral lines. Metepisterna parallel-sided, about

6x as long as wide. Abdomen with 5 visible

sternites; first and second of about same length,

not longitudinally carinate; posterior margin of

fifth ventrite subtruncate as in Laccobius, not

emarginate medially; all ventrites covered with

fine pubescence. Epipleura and pseudepipleura

well defined from each other, oblique. Elytra

slightly convex, evenly attenuated from shoulder

to rounded apex, without punctural series, but

with sharply impressed sutural stria in posterior

two-thirds; rows of coarser systematic punctures

hardly traceable. Scutellum of moderate size,

triangular, about as long as wide. Coxae with

sparse pubescence; anterior and posterior coxae

almost contiguous; middle coxae narrowly

separated; all trochanters with dense pubescence.

Femora slightly flattened, with sharply defined

tibial grooves on inner face. Anterior and middle

femora covered with dense pubescence except

apical portion; hind femora pubescent on basal

half and along anterior margin. Middle and hind

FIGURE 3. Gentilina nitens (Gentili), (ANIC), antenna.

NEW GENUS OF WATER BEETLE GENTILINA GEN. NOV.

111

FIGURE 4. Gentilina nitens (Gentili), (ANIC), hind wing.

femora completely contacting the trochanter

basally. Tibiae slender, cylindrical and straight,

with moderately long and moderately strong

spines on inner face. Tarsi 5-segmented, long and

slender, together surpassing length of tibiae;

posterior tibiae with a fringe of long and fine

swimming-hairs on outer face. The first segment

of middle and hind tarsi short; second segment

very long; claws rather small, slightly and evenly

curved; without sexual dimorphism. Hind wing

almost twice as long as elytra; radial cross vein r4

rising from about middle of radial cell (pigmented

area at anterior wing margin); medial (cubital)

spur rising from apex of medial loop, reaching a

little less than halfway towards posterior wing

margin; media distinct and united with cubitus to

form a M-Cu loop; wedge cell much smaller than

basal cell; anal lobe well developed, demarcated

from remainder wing by a sharp excision at

posterior wing margin (Fig. 4).

Etymology

The generic name refers to my dear friend Dr.

Elio Gentili, specialist in the genus Laccobius and

discoverer of the type species.

Discussion

This new genus has the following diagnostic

features of Laccobiini (Oocyclini), as given by

Hansen (1991):

- the presence of systematic punctures on head,

pronotum and elytra (sometimes not detectable

on all three parts; if completely absent then

the pseudepipleuron is at least as wide as the

true epipleuron anteriorly or is sharply defined

from it by a fine ridge

- the apical segment of maxillary palpi longer

than the penultimate.

Anacaenini genera of similar size and colour

differ from Gentilina in the following characters:

- Paracymus has the midprosternum sharply

carinate and the maxillary palpi shorter than

half as long as the width of the head.

- Anacaena has no traces of systematic

punctures on head, pronotum or elytra; the

pseudepipleuron is narrow throughout, much

narrower than the true epipleuron anteriorly.

- Paranacaena has, in addition, detectable rows

of serial punctures on the elytra.

Gentilina comes close to Hydrophilomima

Hansen & Schédl and, apart from Scoliopsis

Orchymont and Tritonus Mulsant, it is the only

genus of Laccobiini with 9-segmented antennae.

Besides Pseudopelthydrus Jia, it is the only genus

of the tribe with the middle and hind femora

extensively pubescent. The present known species

ranks with the smallest members of the tribe.

Gentilina differs from the genus Laccobius

mainly in the 5-segmented abdomen, the 9-

segmented antennae and the pubescent femora.

From Pelthydrus it is distinguished by the 9-

segmented antennae, the presence of a sutural

Stria, and the pubescent femora. From

Pseudopelthydrus, which also has pubescent

femora, Gentilina is separated by the 9-segmented

antennae and the non-keeled first ventrite. In

contrast to Gentilina, Arabhydrus Hebauer has 8-

segmented antennae, its maxillary palpi are

distinctly longer (two-thirds as long as width of

head) and the second segment is not thickened

apically. From the similarly shaped

Hydrophilomima, the new genus can be

distinguished by the middle portion of the

mesosternum lacking an elevated portion, the 9-

segmented antennae, the swollen second segment

of the maxillary palpi being not more than half as

112

long as the width of the head (about two-thirds in

Hydrophilomima), the first ventrite being

unkeeled, and the extensively pubescent femora

(entirely glabrous in Hydrophilomima). The

genera Tritonus Mulsant, Scoliopsis Orchymont,

Oocyclus Sharp and Beralitra Orchymont are

much larger in size and less easily confused with

the above genera because of their striking

characters, for example spines, explanate elytra,

reniform eyes, acutely pointed hind angles of

pronotum.

Gentilina nitens (GENTILI, 1993)

(Fig. 5)

Type material

Holotype (female): Australia: Queensland,

Buderim Mtn., Mooloolah, C. J. W. Dec-89

[=1889! C. J. W. = not Watts! The locality is just

north of Brisbane] (SAMA).

Paratypes: 4 females as for holotype (SAMA,

MSNV).

Additional material: 97 examples: Australia.

North-Queensland/Cape Tribulation, Daintree

National Park, Turpentine Road, 120 m,

8.xii.1996, Hendrich leg./Loc. 18. (ANIC, CHB,

CHG, NMW, SAMA).

Because there is now available a large number

of new specimens, including males, a

redescription of the species is given here.

Redescription

Length: 1.8-2.0 mm; width: 0.9-1.0 mm.

Elongate oval, widest behind shoulders,

attenuated behind, moderately convex, black with

sides and angles of pronotum widely pale. Head

entirely black; clypeus weakly punctate and

shagreened, frons rather coarsely and densely

irregularly punctate. Maxillary palpi rather long,

reaching back to posterior margin of eyes; second

segment distinctly dilated on anterior portion,

ultimate segment much longer than third,

asymmetrical, darkened apically. Antennae 9-

segmented. Pronotum widest at base, narrowed

anteriorly, shining black with sides and angles

broadly yellow; rather coarsely and irregularly

punctate; punctured interstices shining. Elytra

entirely black, shining, about 1.2x as long as their

combined width; coarsely and densely punctate,

subseriate; sutural stria sharply impressed in more

than posterior half. Irregular rows of coarser

punctures hardly traceable. Epipleura oblique.

Legs testaceo-brunneous; femora basally

darkened; tarsi long and slender, middle and hind

tarsi longer than tibiae; with long and fine

F HEBAUER

swimming-hairs. Underside piceous; abdomen 5-

segmented, entirely pubescent, first ventrite not

carinate medially, fifth segment subtruncate,

without apical excision. Mentum rectangular,

slightly concave, rugosely reticulated. Prosternum

without median carina and without apical notch.

Mesosternum only bluntly bulging medially,

without a distinct elevation or projection. Anterior

and middle femora pubescent except apical

portion; posterior femora pubescent in basal half

and anterior margin. Aedeagophore with basal

piece rather narrow and slender; median lobe

filiform, a little shorter than parameres, bifurcate

basally. Parameres broad, strongly convex on

outer face and straight on inner face, apices

pointed (Fig. 5).

FIGURE 5.

aedeagophore.

Gentilina nitens (Gentili), (CHG),

NEW GENUS OF WATER BEETLE GENTILINA GEN. NOV. 113

Distribution

Known only from Queensland. Lars Hendrich

(pers. comm.) collected numerous specimens in a

small waterfilled rockhole (20 sq cm) in front of a

waterfall. The puddle was enriched with some

plant debris. The beetles have the habit of flying

away immediately when taken out of the water (as

in Agraphydrus and many Laccobius). The small,

permanent and almost shaded stream is situated in

primary lowland rainforest on private property

near the Cape Tribulation National Park.

REVISED KEY To THE GENERA OF THE TRIBE

LACCOBIINI

1 — Maxillary palpi at least two-thirds as long

as width of head. Mesosternum broadly

reaching anterior mesothoracic margin.

First ventrite with median carina, at least

basally. emacs Fa he aa eeeseesenss 2

— Maxillary palpi less than half as long as

width of head. Mesosternum only reaching

anterior mesothoracic margin at a single

point. First ventrite without a keel......... 5

2 — Anterior and middle femora densely

pubescent except at apex, posterior femora

pubescentin basal half and/or along anterior

and posterior margin. Prosternum almost

flat, without median carina—southern

China .......... Pseudopelthydrus Jia, 1998

— All femora glabrous or pubescent in less

than basal half. Prosternum more or less

tectiform, with median carina at least

anteriorly jyt6Alschindesass tech aneraanils 3

3 — Abdomen with 6 distinct ventrites.

Mesosternum only bluntly bulging

posteromedially—Arabian Peninsula

(Oman)......... Arabhydrus Hebauer, 1997

— Abdomen with 5 distinct ventrites.

Mesosternum abruptly raised

posteromedially, forming a strongly

margined, elevated portion ................ 4

4 — Metasternum with narrow, somewhat

flattened, glabrous median ridge which is

connected with median ridge of mesosternal

elevation to form a continuous sternal keel.

Femora with well-developed tibial grooves

on inner face—Oriental region ...............

Hydrophilomima Hansen & Schédl, 1997

— Metasternum simply convex, often more

shiny in middle portion, but without median

ridge, anteriorly well demarcated from

mesosternum. Femora without well-defined

tibial grooves on inner face—Oriental and

eastern Palaearctic regions ...........::ceceeee

vibe dyin thes Pelthydrus Orchymont, 1919

Abdomen with 6 distinct ventrites.

Trochanters of posterior legs very large,

not completely abutting femora, but with

bluntly projecting apices. Posterior tibiae

usually curved—worldwide (except South

America) ....... Laccobius Erichson, 1837

Abdomen with 5 distinct ventrites.

Trochanters of posterior legs of moderate

size, not freely projecting apically. Posterior

tiblae-straighit=, 1 nce DB ehiasdiet ihe 6

Elytra with distinct sutural stria in about

posterior half. Antennae 9-segmented .. 7

Elytra without distinct sutural stria, but

sometimes with the sutures a little elevated

posteriorly. Ventrites uniformly pubescent

and punctate. Antennae 8-segmented ... 9

Second to fifth ventrites with large well-

defined, glabrous and almost impunctate

areas Medially oo... eeeeeseesesseseeeeees 8

All ventrites pubescent—Australia .........

fewrinshaviaparyvanienpreetatt Gentilina gen. nov.

Posterior corners of pronotum angulate,

not produced into a long acute spine. Pro-

and mesosternum without spines. Eyes

hardly oblique in dorsal view—Mauritius

meats devas cactoasspeasagal Tritonus Mulsant, 1844

Posterior corners of pronotum produced

into a long acute spine. Pro- and

mesosternum with some strong spines

medially. Eyes obliquely shaped in dorsal

View—Sri Lanka «00... eececeeseeeeeeeeseeees

Elytra a little explanate towards margin,

the suture distinctly raised posteriorly. Body

weakly convex—South America ............

deetdacisbesltetiee Beralitra Orchymont, 1919

Elytra not explanate towards margin, the

suture not raised. Body often more

convex—Oriental and Neotropical regions

Pr revert eevee Oocyclus Sharp, 1882

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My sincere thanks to Dr Chris Watts for his very

important suggestions regarding the new genus, and to

the Diplom-Biologist Lars Hendrich from the Freie

Universitat, Berlin for donating specimens. Special

thanks are due to Prof. Garth N. Foster, Scotland for

critically reading the manuscript.

114

F HEBAUER

REFERENCES

Erichson, WF. 1837 (1837-1839). Die Kafer der Mark

Brandenburg. Vol. I. viii + 740 pp. (only pp. 1-384

issued in 1837). F. H. Morin: Berlin.

Gentili, E. 1980. The genera Laccobius and Nothydrus

(Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae) in Australia and New

Zealand. Records of the South Australian Museum

18(7): 143-154.

Gentili, E. 1993. Paranacaena Blackburn, 1889: a valid

genus (Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae). Results of the

German hydroentomological mission No. 4 [in part].

Giornale italiano di Entomologia 6: 285-296.

Gentili, E. 2000. The Paracymus of Australia

(Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae). Records of the South

Australian Museum 33(2): 101-122.

Hansen, M. 1990. Australian Sphaeridiinae (Coleoptera:

Hydrophilidae): A taxonomic outline with

descriptions of new genera and species. Invertebrate

Taxonomy 4: 317-395.

Hansen, M. 1991. The Hydrophiloid beetles. Phylogeny,

classification and a revision of the genera

(Coleoptera, Hydrophiloidea). Biologiske Skrifter.

Det Kongelige Danske Videnskaberners Selskab 40:

1-367.

Hansen, M & Schédl S. 1997: Description of

Hydrophilomima gen. n. from Southeast Asia

(Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae). Koleopterologische

Rundschau, 67: 187-194.

Hebauer, F. 1997. Annotated checklist of the

Hydrophilidae and Helophoridae (Insecta:

Coleoptera) of the Arabian Peninsula with a

description of a new genus and species. Fauna of

Saudi Arabia 16: 255-275.

Hebauer, F & Hendrich, L. 1999: Two new species of

Helochares from Northern Australia (Coleoptera:

Hydrophilidae). Entomological Problems 30(1): 47-

51.

Hebauer, F. 1999. Spercheus wattsi sp. n. — a second

Australian species of the genus (Coleoptera,

Hydrophiloidea). Acta Coleopterologica 15(2): 5-6.

Jia, F. 1998. A new genus Pseudopelthydrus gen. n.

from Hainan Island, China (Coleoptera:

Hydrophilidae: Hydrophilinae). Chinese Journal of

Entomology 18: 225-230.

Mulsant, E. 1844. Description de quelques Palpicornes

inédits. Annales de la Société d‘Agriculture de Lyon

7: 372-382.

Orchymont, A d’. 1919. Contribution a 1“étude des sous-

familles des Sphaeridiinae et des Hydrophilinae (Col.

Hydrophilidae). Annales de la Société

Entomologique de France 88: 105-168.

Sharp, D. 1882. Insecta. Coleoptera. Vol. I, part 2

(Haliplidae, Dytiscidae, Gyrinidae, Hydrophilidae,

Heteroceridae, Parnidae, Georissidae, Cyathoceridae,

Staphylinidae). Jn FD Godman & O Salvin ‘Biologia

Centrali-Americana (16)’. xv + 824 pp. Taylor and

Francis: London (only pp. 1-144 issued in 1882).

Watts, CHS. 1987. Revision of Australian Berosus

Leach (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae). Records of the

South Australian Museum 21(1): 1-28.

Watts, CHS. 1999. Revision of Australian Hydrochus

(Coleoptera: Hydrochidae). Records of the South

Australian Museum 32(1): 143.

REPAINT THE DRUM

B. CRAIG

Summary

A large slit-drum from Ambrym in Vanuatu was presented to the South Australian Museum in June

1996. This drum became the catalyst for a review of the museum’s collections originating in New

Hebrides (Vanuatu) and for an Adelaide Arts Festival event in March 1998. In order to organise the

Festival event, the author went to Vanuatu for three weeks, also visiting several locations in central

Vanuatu to document items in the museum’s collections and to purchase contemporary objects for

an exhibition, Spirits of Vanuatu.

REPAINT THE DRUM

B CRAIG

CRAIG, B. 2003. Repaint the drum. Records of the South Australian Museum 36(2): 115-133.

A large slit-drum from Ambrym in Vanuatu was presented to the South Australian Museum

in June 1996. This drum became the catalyst for a review of the museum’s collections

originating in New Hebrides (Vanuatu) and for an Adelaide Arts Festival event in March 1998.

In order to organise the Festival event, the author went to Vanuatu for three weeks, also

visiting several locations in central Vanuatu to document items in the museum’s collections

and to purchase contemporary objects for an exhibition, Spirits of Vanuatu.

B Craig, Curator of Foreign Ethnology, South Australian Museum, North Terrace, Adelaide,

South Australia 5000. Manuscript received 2 December 2002.

THE PROJECT

In June 1996 Mrs Claire Murray of Adelaide

donated to the South Australian Museum a

2.8 metre high slit-drum (A.74765, Fig. 1) from

Vanuatu in memory of her late husband and his

deep interest in the music of the Pacific Islands.

Claire and Bryan Murray had bought the drum

from a shop in Port Vila in 1974. The drum had

lost its colours and the Murrays were unable to

determine its exact origin and who had carved it.

The receipt of this drum became a catalyst for

research on the extensive collections from

Vanuatu! held by the South Australian Museum.

By comparing the style of the carving on the drum

with published information (Bonnemaison et al

1996, Fig. 333, second from left; Clausen 1960,

Figs 18-21; Speiser 1990, Plate 105, Nr 6), it

became clear that the drum was from the island of

Ambrym in central Vanuatu.

I read that the slit-drum is likened to the

voyaging canoe. The people of Vanuatu are

believed to have arrived in their present lands by

way of the outrigger canoe some 3200 years ago

(Spriggs 1997: 40). They have maintained contact

among their many islands since then using large

trading vessels.”

Clausen believes it was the dugout that

provided the model for the slit-drum. The same

kind of tree, and the same carving and hollowing

techniques, are used, and the forms are similar.

He wrote (1960: 19):

some residents.

. . . just as the canoes transport man over the

ocean and are thus the means by which the ocean

can be used, to the benefit of man, for purposes

of trade (mainly in boars, sows and small

piglets); so also, the slit-drums are like canoes

on the ocean of the spirit world, connecting

mankind with the otherwise unknown world of

the ancestral ghosts whose voices they represent

and who live on - literally feed on — the psychic

essence of the boars that are sacrificed to them.

Slit-drums thus constitute a psychic medium of

communication with the spirit world

corresponding to the trading voyages of the

canoes in external life.

The French ethnographer Joél Bonnemaison

(1994) suggests that the voyaging canoe and the

networks it creates are metaphorically central to

Melanesian concepts of space and time.

Among the northern and central islands of

Vanuatu a wide range of goods were traded

(Huffman in Bonnemaison et al. 1996: 182-185).

These included shell ornaments from the Banks

Islands; pottery from the west coast of Santo; red

dye from south Santo; green paint from Malekula;

woven mats, aprons, belts and baskets from

Malekula, Ambae, Maewo and Pentecost; and

everywhere pigs were an enthusiastically accepted

trade item. Canoes were obtained from northeast

Malekula, Lamen, north Ambrym and south

Pentecost, because not all the islands had trees

large enough to provide suitable hulls. Trade in

pigs, foodstuffs, bows and arrows, and shells also

took place between inland tribes and coastal

Called New Hebrides until, in 1980, independence was gained from the British-French Condominium, sardonically termed the ‘Pandemonium’ by

? For an illustration of one of these vessels, see Bonnemaison et al 1996, Fig. 214.

116 B CRAIG

FIGURE 1. Slit-drum (a-tin-tin) (A.74765);

commissioned by Taimal and carved from breadfruit

tree (pita) by Tin Mweleun (Golele), of Fanla village,

north Ambrym in 1968. Purchased at Port Vila in 1974

by Bryan and Claire Murray, Adelaide. Donated to the

South Australian Museum 8 June 1996 by Claire

Murray in memory of her late husband, Bryan.

Repainted and ritually named ‘Fanla’ by James Taimal

of Fanla and Billy Bong of Ranon, north Ambrym,

12 March 1998, Photo: Trevor Peters, SA Museum.

peoples on the larger islands, facilitated by

strategic intermarriage.

Not only objects and materials, but rituals, ritual

objects, masks, myths, songs and dances, were

traded through a system which respected copyright

and required appropriate payments to be made.

The more complicated economic transactions

involved notions of credit and loans and

compound interest. The basic item of value was

the pig, the most valuable being those bred with

curving tusks, particularly tusks in the form of a

double circle. The Swiss ethnographer Speiser

said (1990: 246), ‘the pig is the standard of value

and all other values are related to the pig’.

Thus, in Vanuatu the slit-drum links ritual with

canoes and trading voyages; and also masked

ceremonies and grade figures with the production

and exchange of trade goods (eg pigs and their

spiral tusks, shell valuables, and woven mats, pots

and pigments),

It occurred to me that the slit-drum donated by

Claire Murray could act as a catalyst for the

revival of the relationship between South

Australia and Vanuatu implicit in the collections

held by the Museum. Up until now, South

Australians (eg Reverend William Gray, a

Presbyterian missionary who served on Tanna,

1882-1895) had gone to Vanuatu and brought

back material embodiments of their encounters

with the people and cultures of that tropical

archipelago. Perhaps now we could invite a ni-

Vanuatu man to come to Adelaide to restore the

pigments on the drum and ritually install it in the

foyer of the Museum.

This would be in accordance with the

Museum’s current practice of having people from

cultures represented by its collections come to the

Museum and present aspects of their culture

directly to the public. It has happened many times

in relation to Aboriginal Australian cultures but

only once before in relation to Melanesian

cultures — when masked dancers came from New

Ireland and East New Britain for the Sth

International Pacific Arts Symposium hosted by

the South Australian Museum in April 1993

(Chance & Zepplin 1993; Craig 1993, 1994,

1995; Zepplin 1993).

I approached the Friends of the South

Australian Museum for a grant to fund the project

and this was successful. Enquiries through

Dr Darrell Tryon, a linguist at the Research

School of Pacific and Asian Studies at the

Australian National University in Canberra,

provided me with the understanding that the drum

could be refurbished and beaten only by a man of

REPAINT THE DRUM 117

the correct chiefly lineage. In due course I was

provided with the name of an Ambrym man

working for AustAid at Port Vila who was of the

correct lineage. Over the next few months I

attempted to arrange for him to come to Adelaide

to repaint the drum, but his work commitments

led to deferral of the project.

In the meantime, I had urged the Museum to

consider supporting exhibition projects consistent

with the theme of the 1998 Adelaide Festival of

Arts, which was ‘Sacred and Profane’. Around

the middle of 1997 I was asked if I could organise

the repainting of the Ambrym slit-drum as an

official Museum event for the Festival. I had

realised by then that the only way that such a

project could become a scheduled event would be

by going to Vanuatu to identify who could come

for that particular date, make all the

accommodation and travel arrangements, and find

out what needed to be provided to make it a

successful presentation of Vanuatu culture. I

proposed a modest budget to supplement the

funds committed by the Friends and this was

accepted.

THE OBJECTIVES

The opportunity to seek out the correct man or

men? for this work would enable me to do other

things as well. My fieldtrip proposal therefore had

four objectives:

* To establish a working relationship with the

Vanuatua Cultural Centre at Vila by providing

for its archives a set of photographs and a

computer print-out of around 580 of the South

Australian Museum’s Vanuatuan objects.‘

¢ To add to the documentation of the South

Australian Museum’s Vanuatuan collections

by using these photographs to obtain further

cultural information.

* To purchase, and document with notes,

photographs and audio tape recordings, and

contemporary ethnographic material in

Vanuatu to supplement the present collections

in the South Australian Museum, and to use

these objects in the redevelopment of the

Vanuatu exhibits in the Museum’s Pacific

Gallery.

¢ To identify, and arrange for, one or two ni-

Vanuatu men to travel to Adelaide for the

Adelaide Festival of Arts in March 1998 to

repaint the Vanuatu slit-drum and perform the

relevant rituals prior to its installation in the

main foyer of the South Australian Museum.

I also thought it might be possible to find out

more about this particular drum by showing a

photograph of it to Ambrym men. It happened

that in late October 1997 the volunteer

fieldworkers of the Vanuatu Cultural Centre

would be attending a workshop run by Darrell

Tryon and Ralph Regenvanu, the Director of the

Cultural Centre. For many years these workshops

have been held annually, each year having a

different theme.° The volunteer fieldworkers meet

for two weeks in Vila, bringing videotapes, audio

tapes, photographs and information on each year’s

particular theme gathered from the knowledgable

people in their areas. This information and

supporting materials are then archived for future

reference and research.

There would be men from Ambrym at the

workshop; I would be able to show them the

photograph of the drum for identification and they

would be able to suggest the appropriate persons

to come to Adelaide. The fieldworkers also would

be able to suggest an itinerary for two weeks of

travel through the islands of central Vanuatu for

the purpose of gathering information and

purchasing contemporary objects for the

Museum’s collection. Darrell Tryon assured me

that my facility in New Guinea Pidgin English

would enable me to be understood quite well;

Bislama, the Vanuatuan creole, is quite similar to

PNG Pidgin. As well, in many of the islands,

Vanuatuans have a serviceable ability in English.

In preparation for the trip, Scott Bradley was

contracted to photograph the entire collection

from Vanuatu. Maria Troiano was engaged as a

research assistant for a short time to bring together

all the documentation relating to the collections,

develop a working bibliography of the history and

ethnography of Vanuatu, and identify the main

collectors (Table 1). It was clear that a three-week

fieldtrip and a modest budget would not be

sufficient to visit all the places from which the

collections had come (see map, Fig. 2). I decided,

therefore, that I should visit:

Although the repainting could probably be done by one man, it is my experience that village-based Melanesians generally feel uncomfortable

travelling in foreign countries, or anywhere outside their own daily sphere of interaction, by themselves.

The actual total appears to be around 670 items.

See Sam, and Huffman, in Bonnemaison et al 1996: 288-293; Fig. 366 shows fieldworkers gathered for such a workshop in 1994.

118 B CRAIG

TABLE 1. Main South Australian Museum collections from Vanuatu.

Collector Year(s) Number of items

‘Old Collection’ Mostly late 19th century 159

Rev. W. Gray Collected 1882-1895 about 90

Bishop Cecil Wilson Early 20th century 66

J.H. Johnson (ex-Young Collection) Probably late 19th century 49

R.J. Etheridge Early 20th century 46

Rev. J. Palmer Late 19th century 35

G.L. Pretty 1971 25

Douglas Mawson 1903 at least 23

Stacey Collection Late 19th century 22

Dr R.J. Roach (ex-Theodore Thomas, an ‘early planter’) Probably late 19th century 18

A. Adamson Early 20th century 15

M.I. Savage Early 20th century 14

Australian Board of Missions (Rev. A.S. Webb collection) Probably early 20th century 11

Other sources Late 19th—20th centuries about 100

TOTAL at least 670

the tiny islands of Wala and Vao (Layard

1942) off the northeast coast of Malekula,

which were once thriving bases for canoe

trading voyages throughout central Vanuatu;

Wuss (nowadays called Wusi), a village on

the west coast of Santo from where Douglas

Mawson purchased three clay pots and other

objects in 1903 (Mawson 1957) and where the

skills persist to this day (Galipaud in

Bonnemaison et al 1996: 97-99);

* Lolowai on east Ambae, where there was an

industrious community of women mat-

weavers and basket makers (Bolton in

Bonnemaison et al 1996: 112-119);

« Ambrym, to see the village from which the

Museum’s slit-drum came and make

arrangements for the repainting event in

Adelaide.

THE JOURNEY

We® spent four days in Vila. I attended the

fieldworkers’ workshop and recorded information

about objects in the South Australian Museum’s

collections on the basis of the photographs I had

brought with me. I was informed that the slit-drum

had come from Fanla, a village on the north coast

of Ambrym, not far from Ranon. James Taimal

told me that his father, Chief Taimal, had

I was accompanied by my eight-year-old son, Sai, at my own expense.

commissioned the carving of the drum by Golele

in 1968. James and Billy Bong volunteered to

come to Adelaide to do the repainting of the

drum. This was agreed to by all concerned. So

that I could visit the place where the drum was

carved, I made arrangements for a launch to pick

me up at Craig Cove to take me to Ranon. Billy

and James would have returned to Ambrym by

that time. Arrangements also were concluded for

the visits to the other places on the itinerary.

Malekula

The first stop was northeast Malekula (Norsup)

then by road and launch to Wala Island. There I

saw a canoe with a carved prow attached,

featuring a bird (soliip) and flying-fish

(nuwawalades) motif (cf. Bonnemaison et al

1996, Fig. 51). Although I sought to purchase this,

the owner did not want to sell and I later bought a

newly-carved one (A.74721) from Malili Kami, a

Wala Island Guest House guide (Fig. 3). There

were no canoe prows in the collections of the

South Australian Museum so this was a

significant acquisition, particularly as Malili told

me that the soliip bird is featured on the prow

because it is this bird which navigators use as a

guide to land if they get lost out at sea.

The Museum also has two identical masks

(A.7430, A.7431, obtained from Reverend Gray,

1895) each topped with a model of a white bird

with long narrow wings, a long forked tail and a

REPAINT THE DRUM 119

Faget Banke Is.

ESPIRITU SANTO

MALEKULA

EPI

y TONGOA

SMAKURA

vias, Y EFATE

ERROMANGA|

ANIWA

‘

Weasisi

TANNA o

FUTUNA

FIGURE 2. Map of Vanuatu. SAMO2.03 kilometres ANEITYAM ()

FIGURE 3. Canoe prow (A.74721) featuring bird (soliip) and flying fish (nwwawalades). Purchased by B. Craig

from Malili Kami of Wala Island, northeast Malekula, 1997. Photo: B. Craig.

120 B CRAIG

FIGURE 4. Mask (A.7430) with tern (soliip) on top;

obtained from Rev. W. Gray 1895. Northeast Malekula.

Photo: B. Craig.

black mark on its head (Fig. 4). I asked about this

type of mask and was told it was from northeast

Malekula, it is called bang-lulu and the bird is

soliip, the same species as on the canoe prow. On

return to Adelaide, on the basis of the colour,

markings and other characteristics of the bird on

the masks, I identified it as most likely the

Roseate Tern (Sterna dougalli) (Bregulla 1992:

162-163; duPont 1976: 60, Plate 12, E). This

information is contrary to Kaufmann’s hypothesis

(in Bonnemaison et al 1996: 33) and Tilley’s

conviction (1999: 109-111) that the carved bird

on the canoe prow represents the frigate bird. I,

too, had suggested this to my informants but they

assured me that this was not so.

At the ‘Small Nambas kastom village’ on

Malekula just opposite Wala Island, the people

put on a two-hour spectacle of dances, explaining

the arrangement of the dance ground (namel).

There was a spirit guardian figure at the west end

(Fig. 5) and a row of ten family shrines (Fig. 6),

each featuring a carved post and a carved bird

(nmbel)'’ with outstretched wings at the peak of

FIGURE 5. Spirit guardian figure at dance ground

(namel) of Small Nambas Kastom Village, northeast

Malekula. Photo: B. Craig.

Coiffier in Bonnemaison et al 1996: 222 (see also Fig. 41) identifies this bird as the sparrow-hawk.

REPAINT THE DRUM 121

FIGURE 6. Part of a row of family shrines at dance ground of Small Nambas Kastom Village, northeast Malekula.

Photo: B. Craig.

the gable (also a feature of men’s cult houses on

the middle Sepik River in Papua New Guinea —

see Craig 1987: Plate 30).

There were several large standing slit-drums,

which are beaten with coconuts, and small

horizontal slit-drums, which are beaten with short,

thick wooden sticks. Several drums were played

as an ensemble and the rhythms were quite

complex, which surprised me as I am accustomed

to the relatively monotonous rhythms of the New

Guinea hand-drum.

Some of the dances referred to the planting of

yams and of other protective plants around the

yam mound. One dance featured the men holding

carved and painted paddles, commemorating the

first crossing of the people from the Malekula

mainland to the offshore islands of Wala, Atchin

and Vao. Another dance reminded me of

Australian Aboriginal dances as it entailed bird-

like movements and gestures, and the kicking-

back steps, which raised a lot of dust. The dancers

emphasised the rhythm by stomping short bamboo

tubes vertically on the ground, Yet another

performance featured a pantomime, with one man

chasing and beating another who was covered

with black ash and hobbling ‘painfully’ with the

aid of a stick, causing men, women and children

to shriek with laughter. The women and girls

danced in a group separate from the men and boys

but it was noticeable that children, even toddlers,

were encouraged to join in with the adults.

Although the dances were put on for us as

tourists, everyone had a good time and of course

they were paid, via a charge levied through the

Wala Guest House. A few artefacts were offered

for sale, which also provided a source of income.

I was assured that the dance ground was used also

for traditional grade-taking ceremonies and was

therefore not just a tourist attraction.’

The next day, on Vao Island I saw partly over-

grown nasara, ancient ceremonial dance grounds

with huge stones set up. Some were still being

used for ceremonies, with several large slit-drums

in place (Fig. 7).

An interesting cultural feature I noted was the

presentation of yams tied to a row of leaning

poles, set up for a circumcision ceremony. The

likeness to yam presentations among the Abelam

his visit a few years before mine.

Christopher Tilley (1990; 239-259) provides an extended description and analysis of the ‘Small Nambas’ dance ground and performances, based on

122

FIGURE 7. Slit-drums at dance ground of Vao Island, northeast Malekula. Photo: B. Craig.

of the East Sepik Province of Papua New Guinea

immediately sprang to mind (cf. Hauser-Schaublin

1989, Abb. 141).

After photographing the yam displays I was

taken to a nearby village house, and Paul Malep

showed me a range of carved wooden hand-held

masks for sale. These were reminiscent of a mask

in the South Australian Museum (A.7760, Fig. 8)

mistakenly attributed to Santa Cruz.’ According to

Huffman (in Bonnemaison et al 1996: 23-24), this

type of mask from Vao is called narut (generic

term) and is ‘used in tragicomedy mime sketches

interspersing stages in the extensive grade rituals’.

I was told that some of these masks are named

melo’ombuli and were used by men to enforce

presentation of food by the women during

ceremonies. This reminded me of the function of

certain vanis masks on the Tabar Islands of New

Ireland Province, and of the Sulka keipa masks of

East New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea.

Back on Wala I purchased a stone janus head

(A.74723), recently carved by Franco Siptiley,

complementing a similar object (A.74720) I had

bought at the ‘Small Nambas kastom village’.

Both are called dimetsmiel and represent a spirit

that can be induced to make rain, or other desired

outcomes, depending on the owner’s rights to, and

knowledge of, particular spells. Some stone heads

are used for pig magic, according to Rodman (in

Bonnemaison et al 1996, Figs 195-199).

In the late afternoon I joined a group for a tour

of ancient dance grounds on Wala. They have not

been used for many years and are overgrown but

our guide informed us that there are plans to clear

the saplings and bushes that have sprung up,

restore the sites and use them for ceremonial

9 It is almost identical to the one illustrated in Meyer 1995, Plate 18 (L.4103, Linden-Museum, Stuttgart), and similar to the masks in Speiser 1990,

colour plate xlviii (Vb 4757, Museum fiir Volkerkunde, Basel), and in Bonnemaison et al 1996, Fig. 32 (20933, Musée d’Ethnographie, Genéve).

REPAINT THE DRUM 123

FIGURE 8. Hand-held mask (A.7760), ‘Old Collection’;

probably Vao Island, northeast Malekula. Photo: B.

Craig.

occasions. The old trees and stones lining one side

of each dance ground were impressively large,

creating an atmosphere of ancient ancestral power.

If they revive ritual activities in such places, not

only would visitors be impressed, but also the

initiates themselves.

Espiritu Santo

The next flight was from Norsup to Luganville

on the island of Espiritu Santo. Luganville is the

only town in Vanuatu other than the capital, Port

Vila. From there we travelled west by road to

Tasiriki and by launch up the west coast to Wusi.

The west coast of Santo is steep and rocky, with

few places to go ashore. Wusi is located on a

broad flat area formed by alluvium from a large

stream that has cut a valley deep into the

mountains. This is one of the few places in the

volcanic islands of Vanuatu where clay suitable

for making pots could be found. Pots made here

therefore were traded widely throughout central

Vanuatu.

In 1903 Douglas Mawson spent six months on

a geological field trip in Vanuatu. His original

field note books and some photographs he took

are part of the Mawson Collection, now located in

the South Australian Museum. I found that he

recorded information of cultural relevance only

when he was on the west coast of the island of

Espiritu Santo. These references, under the date

16 July 1903, include detailed notes on pot-

making (which he later published, see Mawson

1957), a story about a skull he collected (which I

have not yet tracked down), and a brief note

recording the purchase of a few ethnographic

objects: ‘Curios: 2 conches, 1 bow & 10 arrows —

bone pointed, 1 mat, 1 piece of turtle shell, 3 pots,

1 plate (broke)’.

In the diary it is implied these items were

purchased at Wuss (Wusi) as the pot-making was

observed there and the note is followed by the

comment, ‘Had a bad passage down to Tasiriki,

landing at 9.55.’ However, the 25 Vanuatu items

Mawson gave to the South Australian Museum in

1955 only partly correspond to the note quoted

above. His donation consisted of the following

items:

One mask (no specific location); one basket

(Santo); one apron, ‘worn behind to sit upon’

(Efate); two spears (no data); one bow (no data);

two bows and fourteen arrows (only seven bone-

pointed) from Banks Is, obtained from Dr

Bowie" of the chief mission station on Espiritu

Santo who collected them ‘long before 1903’;

two pots (Wuss village, Santo); one rat trap

(Aoba).

A donation of 86 objects by Lady Mawson after

Sir Douglas Mawson’s death in 1958 included

‘© Reverend F.G. Bowie of the Presbyterian mission, based at Tasiriki.

124 B CRAIG

around 50 pieces from Vanuatu. While many of

Mawson’s pieces have labels attached, with

collection details in his handwriting, others appear

to have lost their labels; further research will be

necessary to identify all the material from

Vanuatu.

Although he does not mention it in his field

diaries, the labels confirm that Mawson collected

material from locations other than on the west

coast of Santo and, to further confuse matters,

some pieces may have been lost or given away.

For example, there are two Santo pots from

Mawson in the Museum (A.48082, -3) and a

similar pot (A.29997) from Howchin, a friend and

respected senior colleague of Mawson. Perhaps

Mawson gave a Wusi pot to Howchin. It is

therefore quite possible that these three pots are

the three referred to in Mawson’s diary.

During the next two days at Wusi, I purchased

21 pots from five women (A.74724-38, 74740—5),

nine of which were made by Vera Mei-u (Fig. 9)

who is illustrated making pots in Bonnemaison et

al 1996, Figs 106-107. I recorded six pot types. I

showed Vera Mei-u photographs of Santo pots in

the South Australian Museum (from Mawson,

Howchin, Gray and Macmillan) and obtained

information on what the pots are called, what the

designs are called, and what types of food are

cooked in them. Information on contemporary

FIGURE 9. Vera Mei-u, potter of Wusi, Espiritu Santo.

Photo: B. Craig.

[a B85 ey

+ 95 cem—>*—105 SSE: LE a Ld 60 cme+—1 05 cm—>

Pea AUC UCU UI RTE

fen

Aureee acta

FIGURE 10. Plan of typical outrigger canoe, Wusi, Espiritu Santo. a. outrigger attachment; b. attachment of boom

to gunwale.

REPAINT THE DRUM 125

pottery has been published by Galipaud (in

Bonnemaison et al 1996: 97-99).

There are no longer any of the large trading

canoes to be found in Vanuatu but plenty of small

outrigger fishing canoes can be seen. Eight were

pulled up on the beach at Wusi so I photographed

and measured them all. I used the average of these

measurements to draw a plan of the ‘typical’

outrigger canoe of west Santo (Fig. 10). It is

interesting that, based on his observations during

1910-12, Speiser wrote (1990: 224), ‘In northern

Santo...boats are very rare...[and people] on the

west and southwest coast of Santo hardly ever

venture onto the water’.

Ambae (Aoba)

Returning to Luganville, we flew to Longana

on east Ambae and were driven to Lolowai where

accommodation had been arranged. Several

women gathered to demonstrate their basket-

making and mat-weaving skills. We were invited

to Lolovoli village to see a drum and dance

performance the next day.

This performance perfectly illustrated Crowe’s

description in Bonnemaison et al (1996: 157):

In east Ambae slit-gong ensembles, the largest

gga

gong is called ratahigi, the middle gong simbegi

and the small gong valagi. The ensemble is

likened to a voyaging canoe, where the gongs

are ‘captain’, ‘helmsman’ and ‘crew’

respectively — the ‘crew’ may be several small

gongs — and on the dance ground the ratahigi

controls the ritual sequencing (items, stops and

starts), the simbegi directs the speed of the items

in sync with the dancers and the valagi provides

rhythmic embellishment.

The dance we witnessed at Lolovoli, called

tikor, was accompanied by five slit-drums — a

large ratahigi over 2 metres in length; a simbegi

just over a metre and a half in length; two valogi

about a metre in length and a small valogi just

over half a metre long. They were arranged in a

horizontal position in an open-sided hut next to

the dance ground and were undecorated (Fig. 11).

The ‘captain’, Joseph Maori, was an old man,

strong and steady, laying down the basic rhythms.

The ‘helmsman’ was Edward Garai, wiry, full of

vigour, flashing his teeth, his whole upper body

animated with the complex beats by which he

directed the tempo of the dozen dancers led by

Aaron Ang’ga. The three ‘crew’ — David Boi,

Moses Tafoa and another man — ornamented the

progress of the work.

FIGURE 11. Drum ensemble performing at Lolovoli, west Ambae. Photo: B. Craig.

FIGURE 12. Women weaving mats, Lolowai, west

Ambae. Photo: B. Craig.

The drummers’ and dance leader’s names

reflect the history of Christian missionary activity

in these islands but ‘kastom’ persists alongside

the new ways, and there is no conflict in their

minds between the notion of respect for the

ancestors and respect for the Christian God.

The next day I was presented with a written

program of activities demonstrating the processes

of weaving and dyeing mats.'' Apart from pigs

and pig tusks, perhaps the most important trade

items in central Vanuatu were the mats woven by

women (Fig. 12) from strips of pandanus leaf

(Pandanus tectorius), often with abundant fringes

and using designs dyed a brownish-red. This dye

used to be obtained from the bark of Ventilago

neocaledonica, but the women said that this plant

B CRAIG

is increasingly difficult to find so nowadays they

buy imported red, purple and blue dyes from the

trade store. They still use a yellow dye from the

grated rhizome of a plant called ang’or

(turmeric?). In the southern half of Vanuatu it

would appear that tapa cloth performed some of

the same functions as mats in the northern half,

but tapa is rarely made today.

To prepare a mat for dyeing, it is first tied

around a log of suitable circumference. Linear

geometric designs are produced by binding short

strips cut from the stems of Heliconia indica over

the mat using a rope that is permeable to the dye

to produce white motifs on a coloured ground;

this type of mat is called singo on east Ambae.

More complex, curvilinear motifs are achieved by

binding on stencils cut from layers of the trunk of

a banana plant; this type of design is used on mats

called gwana. Long mats, either uncoloured or

dyed in a single block of colour, are called

maraha.

When the mat has been prepared it is then laid

in a galvanised iron trough of hot dye which

simmers over the flames for 15 to 30 minutes.

The mat is then taken out of the trough, the

stencils are removed and the mat is dried in the

sun.

The gwana mats may be worn by women as

clothing or may function as blankets and floor

mats; maraha may be used to wrap the dead;

singo are worn by men and indicate status in the

grade system. Gwana, and especially maraha, are

used as items of exchange, functioning as

traditional ‘money’. They are most important as

marriage gifts from bride’s family to bridegroom’s

family (Bonnemaison et al 1996, Figs 122, 123,

129), symbolising the fertility of women in

opposition to the curved pigs’ teeth which

represents men’s reproductive substance (Walter

in Bonnemaison et al 1996: 108).

Baskets of all shapes and sizes, some with

intricate coloured designs — including names —

woven into them, are also of great importance as

containers and carry-alls, there being no tradition

here of looped string net bags as in Papua New

Guinea.

Following the demonstration of weaving and

dyeing, dozens of mats and baskets were laid out

for me, from which I chose seven mats (A.74748,

74750-55) and four baskets (A.74746, -47, -49,

-56) of different types for the Museum.

"For a brief description of the social significance of mats and of mat-making and dyeing on Ambae, see Bolton in Bonnemaison et al 1996: 112-119;

and for an extended study, see Bolton 1993. Eleanor Williams (1928) reported mat-making on Pentecost Island.

REPAINT THE DRUM 127

FIGURE 13. Dance ground at Fanla, north Ambrym, showing slit-drums, grade figures and men’s house. Photo: B.

Craig.

Ambrym

We flew back to Luganville and caught the

plane to Craig Cove, west Ambrym, for the final

stage of the fieldtrip. An outboard-powered

launch took us to Ranon on the north coast, where

we were met by Billy Bong and shown to a little

Church-run guest house. I noticed a carvers’

workshop on the beach with several unfinished

slit-drums and grade figures inside. I arranged

with Billy to visit Fanla, a village up on a ridge a

few kilometres east of Ranon, the next day. This

was where the slit-drum bought by Claire and

Bryan Murray had come from. That night we slept

with the sulphurous fumes of Mt Benbow drifting

through the village.

The next day we walked up to Fanla and found

James Taimal, and I obtained further information

about the slit-drum (a-tin-tin) at the South

Australian Museum. It had been carved by Golele

(also known as Tin Mweleun) under commission

from Chief Taimal (James’s father) around 1968

from a breadfruit tree log (pita). I photographed

the dance ground with its slit-drums, grade figures

and men’s house (Fig. 13), and purchased for the

Museum one of the unpainted grade figures

(mage) carved from tree-fern (palang) by Alili

Molkaun about 1990 (A.74757).

The sacrifice of pigs is essential for all ritual

occasions, especially when men seek to move

upwards in the competitive grading systems. A

visible marker of grade-taking is the tree-fern or

wood figure carved by the grade-taker and erected

on the dance ground. Bonnemaison says of grade-

takers in south Malekula (Bonnemaison et al

1996: 209),

As he rises, the man of high grade becomes a

supernatural being, hedged about with numerous

tabus and kept carefully apart from the world of

the ‘living’...the man of high grade here is a man

who has joined the community of his ancestors.

FIGURE 14. Chief Pong Randi of Ranon, north

Ambrym, playing mouth-bow. Photo: B. Craig.

128 B CRAIG

We returned to Ranon and arrangements were

concluded with Billy and James for their travel to

Adelaide in March to repaint the slit-drum. They

were to bring red, white and black pigments, a

mallet and chisel for demonstration carving, and

powdered kava for the feast to follow the

installation of the drum. I agreed to supply a pig,

taro, yam and sweet potato for the feast.

Before returning to Craig Cove the next day,

we were invited to hear Chief Pong Randi

demonstrate his musical skills using a mouth-bow

(yutoto) and a long, end-blown bamboo flute

(liblabo). 1 photographed the Chief playing a few

songs on each instrument (Fig. 14) and was able

to purchase them for the Museum (A.74759 and

A.74758 respectively). These instruments were

virtually identical to those obtained by the

Museum from Reverend Gray in 1895 (A.29998

and A.8387 respectively).

At Craig Cove I was handed a letter by Ramel

Bong for the Director of the South Australian

Museum regarding the concerns of the men of

west Ambrym about a rom mask in the

Museum’s collections (cf. Bonnemaison et al

1996: 327-329, Fig. 18). This mask (A.7433 —

see the cover of Ling 1982) was collected by

Douglas Mawson in 1903. It is not currently on

display although it used to be, at least from 1949

until around 1992. The men of west Ambrym

stated categorically it should not be placed on

public display and must not be seen by anyone

not of the proper grade, although they had no

concern about the display of photographs of it.

However, the letter proposed that we could pay

50,000 vatu (approx. Aust. $600) to obtain the

right to exhibit the mask.

The rom mask’s specific name is bati pasel

and it is normally destroyed after the ceremony

in which it is used. I took the opportunity to

explain the SA Museum’s policy, and facilities,

for dealing with Aboriginal secret—sacred

material and suggested that we could do the

same sort of thing for this rom mask if the

Director decided not to purchase the right to

display it.

In Vila I spent the next two days packing

the collection, getting it fumigated by

Quarantine and obtaining export permits from

the Vanuatu Cultural Centre. Arrangements

were made with Ralph Regenvanu, the

Director of the Cultural Centre, for ensuring

that the trip to Adelaide by Billy Bong and

James Taimal would proceed smoothly. I

reflected with surprise that the whole trip had

gone like clockwork.

THE RESULTS

Establish a Working Relationship between SA

Museum and the Vanuatu Cultural Centre

Before departing for Vanuatu, almost the entire

collection of around 580 Vanuatuan objects, both

on display and in storage, was photographed and

the prints placed in two photo albums. Reference

numbers and collection registration numbers were

written beside each photograph and a computer

print-out was included.

The album provides an understanding for the

Vanuatu Cultural Centre of what types of objects

we have in our collections in Adelaide. This may

be of assistance for planning exhibitions in

Vanuatu of material not held in the Centre’s own

collections but which could be sent on loan for

that purpose. It may also be useful for identifying

material for repatriation should that become an

issue. Reference to individual photographs may

also be of assistance in gaining further

information, by email and correspondence, about

the objects depicted in them.

Documentation of SA Museum pieces on the

basis of photographs

The photograph albums were circulated among

the Cultural Centre fieldworkers during the last

few days of their workshop, which I attended. The

photographs excited a great deal of interest and

several people provided information about the

objects depicted. This has added considerably to

knowledge of the origins and significance of the

pieces in the collections.

There wasn’t sufficient time during the

workshop to go through all the photographs to

document all of the 580 pieces in the collections.

However, I did manage to check all of the woven

mats and baskets with Mrs Jean Tarisese of the

Vanuatu Cultural Centre. She explained the

apparently incorrect provenances of some of the

mats; for example, two mats collected in

Erromango (A.63021, -2) were most likely made

by an Ambae woman whose family was relocated

to Erromango by Europeans, and a mat collected

in Malekula (A.42469) was almost certainly

traded from Ambae.

The tapa cloths were checked with a

fieldworker from Erromango, who also corrected

provenances. For example, three cloths (A.60480-2)

recorded to be from Banks Islands, collected by

Archdeacon E.A. Codd and donated in 1970, are

definitely not Vanuatuan, as blue-dyed tapas are

unique to the Solomon Islands (cf. Neich and

REPAINT THE DRUM 129

Pendergrast 1997: 128).'* Codd ran a Melanesian

Mission boarding school on Banks Islands but

was also for a time Warden of the Teachers’

Training College at Seota on Florida Island so he

could have obtained the tapas from a Solomon

Islands student attending either of those

institutions. Three other cloths are definitely not

Vanuatuan. Two stencilled tapas (A.37472,

37504), obtained from F. Whitby in 1900 and

recorded to be from Havannah Harbour, Efate, are

Samoan or early Tongan in type (cf. Neich &

Pendergrast 1997: 35, 40) and a third (A.37473)

is clearly Tongan (cf. Neich & Pendergrast 1997:

48 bottom). Neich and Pendergrast (1997: 22-23,

155) have noted that tapa cloths often were

collected in places far from their geographical or

cultural origin, for example when items were

moved by trade or when Polynesian mission

families were posted to Melanesia.

Five tapas were recognised to be from

Erromango in southern Vanuatu — two from the

northwest coast (A.56589a, 63020) and three from

the southeast coast (A.56589b, 63018, -19). A

repeated lozenge design (nirom) on the tapas from

the northwest was associated with warfare. The

designs on the other three were said to represent

certain birds (unkil and menuk roya) and flowers

(niyor), but the significance of these motifs was

not stated.

These tapa cloths from Erromanga, called

nemas-itse, were used ‘as women’s clothing and

for local barter as well as for carrying babies’

(Lawson 1994: 64). Huffman in Bonnemaison et

al (1996: 129-140) provides further information

about bark cloth in Vanuatu, how it was made and

used, and its sociocultural importance.

The photographs of the clay pots were shown to

women at the village of Wusi on Santo, who

provided additional information. These included

the two pots (A.48082, -3 — uro-turi and uro-vela

respectively) collected and described by Douglas

Mawson (Mawson 1957), the one (A.29997)

donated to the Museum by Howchin and probably

collected by Mawson, one from Rev. William

Gray (A.8351) and six from Rev. T. Macmillan

(A.8349, 8350, 8352-5), who took over on Tanna

when Gray left.

Some information was recorded regarding the

circular ‘stone money’ of Erromango (A.8452)

and the crescent-shaped lumps of clam-shell

(A.8453-—5). I was informed by James Atnelo that

the rings of stone were called navela, and were

cut from soft limestone then buried for a few years

until they hardened up to resemble marble. Speiser

(1990: 244-245), who records them as navilah,

reports that they were not quite like ‘money’ in

that they had no fixed value and were not used in

daily trading. I was told they could be used for

bridewealth, to pay blood debts and funerary

debts, and to make peace. The round ones

(navela) represent the full moon; the crescent-

shaped clam-shell and stone equivalents (navelong

kone) represent the crescent moon; the former are

used only by chiefs and the latter by lower ranks.

A navela is known by the names of the important

women it has been used to ‘pay for’.

A canoe model (A.8037) was identified by a

workshop participant as coming from Makura in

the Shepherd Islands. After I returned to Adelaide,

I came across a handwritten list of the collection

bought in 1895 from Rev. William Gray. This list

includes a model canoe from Tongoa, which is in

the Shepherd Islands only 25 kilometres from

Makura. This data had not been transferred to the

Collection list is from ‘Aneiva’, which is

undoubtedly Aniwa. This must be A.8039, which

appears in the Museum’s register as ‘Old

Collection, New Hebrides’. A photograph of this

canoe model was not available for inspection by

Cultural Centre fieldworkers to confirm the Aniwa

provenance (and by implication that it is part of

the Gray Collection), but comparison with

Haddon and Hornell’s sketch of a canoe from

nearby Futuna (1937, Fig. 9) supports this

identification.

Photographs of six of the masks in the

Museum’s collection were shown to a number of

men to elicit information about them. Two masks

(only one photographed) with the white bird on

top (A.7430, 7431) from Rev. Gray in 1895 have

been mentioned above. A similar mask, but

without a bird, from Rev. F. Whitby in 1900

(A.7429) has been on display for at least 50 years.

Although documented as from ‘Vote Island’

(presumably Vaté, ie Efate), it is from ‘Small

Nambas’ (northeast Malekula) according to

informants, and is called ben’gelo. It seems to

be the same type of mask as that described by

Huffman (in Bonnemaison et al 1996: 21, Fig. 20)

as the ‘round head’ (botmolmoli) type.

Two masks from Malekula — A.7432 from Rev.

The SA Museum has a similar blue-dyed tapa (A.8270) from Santa Isabel in the Solomons collected by Bishop Cecil Wilson.

This could be the same as the term I heard, slightly differently, for A.7430- bang lulu.

130

F. Whitby, 1900, and A.7758 from the ‘Old

Collection’, 19th century — may be compared to

Speiser 1990, Plate 99, Nr 2 and Plate 94, Nr 6

respectively. The only information I could gather

was that they were from southern Malekula.

Concern was expressed about the rom mask,

A.7433, as noted above (but not about A.52465

that appears also to be an Ambrym rom mask,

nineteenth century, transferred to the South

Australian Museum from the Port Adelaide

Institute). When I returned to Adelaide I

discovered that the former had been given to the

Museum around 1906 by Douglas Mawson after

he took up a position teaching geology at the

University of Adelaide. I read through Mawson’s

New Hebrides field diaries, which indicate that he

travelled through the archipelago by boat and on

12 August 1903 made a few observations, from

the deck, at Dip Point (West Ambrym) but there is

no mention of going ashore or of collecting the

mask there. In one notebook there is a list of

things for him to do and on the list is ‘Obtain a

mask’. It is likely, therefore, that he obtained one

in Port Vila from another collector or a trader. In

the Mawson archives there is a photograph of him

wearing the mask in front of the southeastern

corner of the Quadrangle at the University of

Sydney during a graduation day charade. Standing

on a horse-drawn wagon, his skin blackened,

Mawson wears the mask and a grass skirt, and a

‘missionary’ stands beside a large cooking pot

(Pharaoh & Craig 2001).

The South Australian Museum has 17

overmodelled and painted skulls from southern

Malekula (A.9756, 11461-75, 12165). Speiser

says of northern Vanuatu, ‘the head was regarded

as the seat of life and the soul, and consequently,

after death, the skull was treated with very special

reverence’ (1990: 319). When a high-ranking man

died, his skull was cleaned and overmodelled with

a mixture of coconut fibre, clay and fig tree sap to

produce a portrait; the head was then painted with

the pattern representing the man’s rank in the

grade system (Speiser 1990: 275). These

memorials of the dead were placed on a pole

carved with anthropomorphic features (Speiser

1990: Plate 81, Nr 13; Plate 82, Nr 2); or, in the

case of the highest-ranking men, the whole body

was modelled in plant materials, with the portrait

skull set on its neck, and kept in the men’s house

(Bonnemaison et al 1996, Fig. 243; Speiser 1990:

349, Plate 80, Nr 3). These memorial effigies are

called rambaramp.

Because of the concerns of Australian

Aboriginal people about museums holding

B CRAIG

Aboriginal remains, I asked the Director of the

Vanuatu Cultural Centre whether the display of

portrait skulls was a problem for Vanuatuans and

he replied that he had never heard such concern

expressed. Consistent with this was the response

from the Vanuatu Cultural Centre’s previous

Director when Michael Quinnell of the

Queensland Museum asked about whether there

would be any objections to displaying the

Malekulan rambaramp figure in that museum’s

FIGURE 15. Grade figure (A.7448), New Hebrides,

‘Old Collection’; collected by Rev. T.W. Leggatt from

Barabitam Asing of Sah Sun Bay, south of Aulua,

southeast Malekula, and passed on to Rev. W. Gray.

Photo: Scott Bradley.

REPAINT THE DRUM 13]

collections (Hamlyn-Harris 1915) and only

encouragement was given (M. Quinnell, pers.

comm. 25 June 1998).

These results confirm the value of returning to

places where artefacts have come from, even a

century ago, to recover more information about

the objects from the memories of people living

today and to check whether exhibition of certain

material continues to be permissible.

Acquisitions for future exhibits

I visited specific locations in Vanuatu to

purchase objects equivalent to certain pieces in

the South Australian Museum’s collections. I

obtained 21 clay pots from the village of Wusi on

Espiritu Santo which are smaller than, but in other

ways comparable to, those from around a century

ago. I also purchased seven mats and four baskets

from Lolowai on the island of Ambae, to compare

with the excellent old pieces we have from that

island and from Pentecost and Maewo.

Previously we did not have an example of a

carved canoe prow and I was able to obtain one.

The flute (cf. Bonnemaison et al 1996: 150-153)

and mouth-bow from Chief Pong Randi of Ranon,

Ambrym, are comparable to the mouth-bow from

Ambrym" and the end-blown flute from Malekula

mentioned above.

Of considerable interest too is the carved

‘black-palm’ (tree-fern) grade figure (cf.

Bonnemaison et al 1996, Figs 325, 335)

purchased from the dance ground at Fanla from

which the slit-drum came. It complements the late

19th century grade figure (A.7448, Fig. 15) of

carved and painted wood which almost certainly

was collected by Rev. T.W. Leggatt in southeast

Malekula and is part of the Gray Collection (see

Craig, in press).

These comparative materials formed the basis

for a special exhibition, ‘Spirits of Vanuatu’, in

the South Australian Museum’s Pacific Gallery

commencing March 1998. This exhibition brings

FIGURE 16. James Taimal repainting the slit-drum. at the South Australian Museum on the occasion of the

Adelaide Festival of Arts, 1998. Photo: Andrew Hughes.

The old handwritten list of items obtained from Rev. William Gray includes ‘1 Malecula flute’ and ‘1 Harp (Ambriam)’. This list apparently was

not seen by the person who registered the mouth-bow in 1941, as the provenance is given as ‘Espiritu Santo’ and a reference to Edge-Partington,

Series III, p.60 is provided in the Remarks column. This reference is to a British Museum specimen from Espiritu Santo, Speiser (1990) illustrates

one, which he calls a Jew's Harp, from Ambrym in Plate 102, Nr 5.

132

to the attention of the Museum visitor the

continuity of tradition in a context of change."

Repaint the Drum - the Festival event

James Taimal and Billy Bong had nominated

themselves to go to Adelaide to repaint the drum.

James had the rights to carve and paint and Billy

could assist. The fieldworkers at the workshop

had agreed with this proposition.

The cost of passports and visas for the two men,

boat travel, meals and accommodation, and an

honorarium for each man were met from the

project budget. Free air travel was provided for

them by Vanair, Airvanuatu and Ansett Airlines.

The repainting event was scheduled for

Thursday 12th March. Billy and James arrived in

Adelaide Tuesday morning, 10th March. This

provided two days to inspect the slit-drum, to look

through the Pacific Gallery — especially the

Vanuatu exhibits — and become familiar with the

venue, to ensure all the necessary equipment and

materials were available, to cut a 1.5 metre length

of pine for James to demonstrate the carving of a

grade figure, and to provide advice about the

cooking of the pig and vegetables in a ‘ground

oven’ and the preparation of kava drink from the

powdered form they had brought with them from

Vanuatu. We were also assisted in the preparation

of the food and drink by a number of Melanesian

volunteers living in Adelaide.

The carving, painting (Fig. 16) and ground oven

were of considerable interest to school students,

staff of the Museum and curious passers-by, and

elicited many spontaneous and favourable

comments. One example was the family from

Adelaide’s northern suburbs who had come in to

the city to see what was happening and stumbled

on the event by chance. They commented that it

was a pleasant surprise to come across an event

which belied the commonly held belief that

museums are storehouses of dead things.

A couple of youths with colourful tattoos on

their arms and on their shaved heads attracted the

favourable interest of James and Billy, who fell

into conversation with them. As a result of being

treated with respect by people whose culture

accepts tattoos as a sign of high status, these

B CRAIG

youths offered their help in clearing up the

grounds afterwards.

A special guest at the repainting event was

Xavier Minniecon, a well-known Adelaide

television identity. Minniecon’s great grandfather

had been ‘blackbirded’ from Craig Cove to work

on the Queensland sugar plantations and had not

returned home. Instead he had married a European

woman and settled in Australia. Minniecon spoke

of his childhood ‘on the wrong side of the tracks’

and of his determination to make a go of it. He

succeeded but felt a gap in his knowledge and

experience regarding Vanuatu, as he had never

been there. The invitation to be associated with

the ‘Repainting the Drum’ event was for him an

opportunity to explore his cultural and genetic

roots and he spoke eloquently on behalf of racial

and cultural tolerance.

The tables had turned. Previously it was the

white people who went among the Melanesians to

convince them to live in harmony; now it was the

turn of the Melanesians to take that message to

the white people.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This project happened because Claire Murray

generously donated the slit-drum to the South Australian

Museum; and because the Friends of the South

Australian Museum provided funding and the then-

Director of the South Australian Museum, Dr

Christopher Anderson, supported the project as a

Festival event. Dr Darrell Tryon (Australian National

University) and Ralph Regenvanu and his staff at the

Vanuatu Cultural Centre provided information, practical

advice and encouragement for the fieldwork component

of the project. Several ni-Vanuatu volunteer

fieldworkers helped with the logistics and hospitality in

the islands. James Taimal and Billy Bong made the

Festival event a resounding success. Maria Troiano’s

research was invaluable and Scott Bradley’s

photography was crucial to the project. Xavier

Minniecon generously gave of his valuable time to help

with the feast and dedication of the drum at the Festival.

Vanair, AirVanuatu and Ansett Airlines provided fares

for James Taimal and Billy Bong, and Helen and Paul

Dennet looked after them in Sydney. Several Pacific

islanders living in Adelaide volunteered to help cook

the pig and vegetables in the ground with hot stones.

'S The information sheet which accompanies this exhibition may be viewed on the South Australian Museum’s website, at <www.samuseum.sa.gov.au/

info_sheets.htm>, and click on ‘Vanuatu’.

REPAINT THE DRUM 133

REFERENCES

Bolton, L. 1993. ‘Dancing with Mats: Extending

Kastom to Women in Vanuatu’. PhD thesis,

Department of Anthropology, Manchester University:

UK.

Bonnemaison, J. 1994. ‘The Tree and the Canoe’.

University of Hawai’i Press: Honolulu.

Bonnemaison, J, Huffman, K, Kaufmann, C & Tryon, D

(eds). 1996. ‘Arts of Vanuatu’. Crawford House

Publishing: Bathurst, NSW.

Bregulla, HL. 1992. ‘Birds of Vanuatu’. Anthony

Nelson: Oswestry, Shropshire.

Chance, I & Zepplin, P. 1993. Cannibal cultures: The

(un)making of the modern museum. Broadsheet

22(2): 12-13.

Clausen, R. 1960. Slit-drums and ritual in Malekula,

New Hebrides. Jn ‘Three Regions of Melanesian

Art’, pp. 16-22. Museum of Primitive Art: New

York.

Craig, B. 1987. ‘The Sepik’. Robert Brown &

Associates: Bathurst, NSW.

Craig, B. 1993. Sulka Danced Sculpture. Artlink

13(1&2): 46-49.

Craig, B. 1994. Masta bilong faiawud. Paradise 103:

29-31.

Craig, B. 1995. Following the tracks of Edgar Waite in

New Guinea for the Pacific Arts Symposium in

Adelaide. Records of the South Australian Museum

28(1): 33-52.

Craig, B. in press. ‘To ‘paddle our own canoe’: The

Reverend William Gray collection in the South

Australian Museum’. [Papers from the Sixth Pacific

Arts Symposium in Noumea in July 2001.] Crawford

House Publishing: Australia.

duPont, E. 1976. ‘South Pacific Birds’. Delaware

Museum of Natural History: Greenville, Delaware.

Haddon, AC & Hornell, J. 1937. ‘Canoes of Oceania’.

Vol. II. Bernice P. Bishop Museum: Honolulu.

Hamlyn-Harris, R. 1915. Malekula Effigy. Memoirs of

the Queensland Museum 3: 14-15.

Hauser-Schaublin, B. 1989. ‘Leben in Linie Muster und

Farbe’. Birkhauser: Basel.

Lawson, B. 1994. ‘Collected Curios. Missionary Tales

from the South Seas’. McGill University Libraries:

Montreal.

Layard, J. 1942. ‘Stone Men of Malekula. Vao’. Chatto

and Windus: London.

Ling, JK. 1982. ‘Collections in the South Australian

Museum’. Government Printer: Adelaide, South

Australia.

Mawson, D. 1957. Knee moulded pots from the New

Hebrides. Records of the South Australian Museum

13: 83-86.

Meyer, AJP. 1995. ‘Oceanic Art’. 2 vols. K6nemann:

Koln.

Neich, R & Pendergrast, M. 1997. ‘Traditional Tapa

Textiles of the Pacific’. Thames & Hudson: London.

Pharaoh, M & Craig, B. 2001. Douglas Mawson, the

cannibal. [The University of Sydney] Gazette 29(2):

Speiser, F. 1990. ‘Ethnology of Vanuatu: An Early

Twentieth Century Study’. (Translation of 1923

German edition.) Crawford House Press: Bathurst,

NSW.

Spriggs, M. 1997. ‘The Island Melanesians’. Blackwell

Publishers: Oxford.

Tilley, C. 1990. ‘Metaphor and Material Culture’.

Blackwell Publishers: Oxford.

Williams, ES. 1928. Textile work on Pentecost Island,

New Hebrides. The Australian Museum Magazine 3:

278-281.

Zepplin, P. 1993. Pacific Arts Symposium. Art and Asia

Pacific 1(1): 15-18.

TWENTY-FIVE NEW DYTISCIDAE (COLEOPTERA) OF THE GENERA

TJIRTUDESSUS WATTS & HUMPHREYS, NIRRIPIRTI WATTS &

HUMPHREYS AND BIDESSODES REGIMBART FROM UNDERGOUND

WATERS IN AUSTRALIA

C. H. S. WATTS & W. F. HUMPHREYS

Summary

Twenty-five new species of stygobitic Dytiscidae from inland Western Australia and Central

Australia are described: Tyirtudessus bialveus sp. nov., T. cunyuensis sp. nov., T. jundeeensis sp.

nov., T. karalundiensis sp. nov., T. macrotarsus sp. nov., T silus sp. nov., T. sweetwatersensis sp.

nov., T. wilunaensis sp. nov., T. yuinmeryensis sp. nov., Bidessodes limestoneensis sp. nov., B.

gutteridgei sp. nov., Nirripirti darlotensis sp. nov., N. fortisspina sp. nov., N. hamoni sp. nov., N.

killaraensis sp. nov., N. macrocephalus sp. nov., N. melroseensis sp. nov., N. milgunensis sp. nov.,

N. napperbyensis sp. nov., N. newhavenensis sp. nov., N. pentameres sp. nov., N. plutonicensis sp.

nov., N. stegastos sp. nov., N. skaphites sp. nov. and N. wedgeensis sp. nov. The genus Nirridessus

Watts & Humphreys 1999 is synonomised with Tjirtudessus Watts & Humphreys 1999.

TWENTY-FIVE NEW DYTISCIDAE (COLEOPTERA) OF THE GENERA TJIRTUDESSUS

WATTS & HUMPHREYS, NIRRIPIRTI WATTS & HUMPHREYS AND BIDESSODES

REGIMBART FROM UNDERGROUND WATERS IN AUSTRALIA

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

WATTS, CHS & HUMPHREYS, WF. 2003. Twenty-five new Dytiscidae (Coleoptera) of the

genera Tjirtudessus Watts & Humphreys, Nirripirti Watts & Humphreys and Bidessodes

Regimbart from underground waters in Australia. Records of the South Australian Museum

36(2): 135-187.

Twenty-five new species of stygobitic Dytiscidae from inland Western Australia and Central

Australia are described: Tjirtudessus bialveus sp. nov., T. cunyuensis sp. nov., T. jundeeensis

sp. nov., T. karalundiensis sp. nov., T. macrotarsus sp. nov., T. silus sp. nov., T.

sweetwatersensis sp. nov., T. wilunaensis sp. nov., T. yuinmeryensis sp. nov., Bidessodes

limestoneensis sp. nov., B. gutteridgei sp. nov., Nirripirti darlotensis sp. nov., N. fortisspina

sp. nov., N. hamoni sp. nov., N. killaraensis sp. nov., N. macrocephalus sp. nov., N.

melroseensis sp. nov., N. milgunensis sp. nov., N. napperbyensis sp. nov., N. newhavenensis

sp. nov., N. pentameres sp. nov., N. plutonicensis sp. nov., N. stegastos sp. nov., N. skaphites

sp. nov. and N. wedgeensis sp. nov. The genus Nirridessus Watts & Humphreys 1999 is

synonomised with Tjirtudessus Watts & Humphreys 1999.

This brings the total of stygobitic Dytiscidae described from Australia to 42 species in three

genera. Two of the new species are placed in the genus Bidessodes Regimbart, representing the

first stygobitic members of the genus. Geographically the new species greatly extend the range

of stygobitic Dytiscidae in Australia to include Central Australia. As before (see Watts &

Humphreys 2001) the stygofauna was found together with a rich stygobitic fauna in those

portions of shallow aquifers that ran through areas of calcrete formation.

CHS Watts. South Australian Museum, North Terrace, Adelaide, South Australia 5000.

WF Humphreys, Western Australian Museum, Francis Street, Perth, Western Australia 6000.

Manuscript received 2 September 2002.

This is the fourth paper in what has become a

series of papers describing the stygobitic

Dytiscidae of Australia (Watts & Humphreys

1999, 2000, 2001). In it we describe the new

species found during fieldwork in Western

Australia and in the Northern Territory in winter

2001 and discuss the associated stygofauna and

chemical profiles of some of the aquifers in which

the species were found.

Twenty-five new species are described, which

significantly extends both the geographic and

taxonomic range of the fauna. A rich fauna has

been discovered in aquifers in the Ngalia Basin

northwest of Alice Springs in central Australia;

and stygobitic members of the genera Bidessodes

Regimbart (Bidessini) and Copelatus Erichson

(Copelatinae) have been discovered as well as

numerous new species of the Hydroporine genus

Nirripirti Watts & Humphreys, previously known

from only one species. The Copelatus is the

subject of a separate paper that also includes

preliminary results of a study of the phylogenetic

relationships between it and other Australian

Copelatus using DNA sequence data (Balke et al

2003). A similar but separate study has been

undertaken on the relationships of the

Hydroporine stygobites and potential above-

ground relatives (Cooper et al 2002). This study

confirms the close relationship between the

stygobitic bidessine genera Nirridessus Watts &

Humphreys and Tjirtudessus Watts & Humphreys

and the surface genera Limbodessus Guignot and

Boongurrus Larson, as well as the Australian

species of Liodessus Guignot. The study also

suggests that the Hydroporine Nirripirti is close to

Paroster Sharp as we previously suggested (Watts

& Humphreys 2001). This latter placement has

been confirmed by Ignacio Ribera (pers. comm.),

who included Nirripirti hinzeae Watts &

Humphreys in a worldwide study of relationships

within the Dytiscidae using sequence data from

the mitochondrial genome.

Based on sequence data, two of the new

Bidessine species showed little genetic

136

relationship with either Tjirtudessus or

Nirridessus but grouped somewhat distantly with

Australian species of Bidessodes Regimbart.

Mainly on this evidence they are described here as

members of that genus, pending further study and

additional specimens and possibly species.

The sequence data is unequivocal in saying

what was becoming increasingly apparent

morphologically: that any distinction between

Tjirtudessus and Nirridessus is artificial and

appears to be based primarily on size. Equally

unequivocal is the paraphyletic nature of both

these genera together with the Australian

Liodessus species. The sequence data also

includes the genera Boongurrus and Limbodessus

in a very bushy phylogenetic tree. Allodessus

Guignot is only a little more distant. It is clear that

the current taxonomy of this group of genera is

untenable. To sort it out will require considerable

study, beyond the scope of this paper. We have,

however, decided that the existing evidence is too

strong not to synonymise the genera Tjirtudessus

and Nirridessus, which we formally do here,

Tjirtudessus having page priority. We do this in

the knowledge that in all probability they will be

further synonymised with some or all of the

above-ground genera mentioned previously (M.

Balke & I. Ribera, pers. comm.).

The bulk of the new species are evenly split

numerically between the Bidessine Tjirtudessus

and the Hydroporine Nirripirti. Geographically

the two genera appear to have generally different

distributions: Tjirtudessus more southern and

Nirripirti more northern. The two Bidessodes

species are known only from the northern

Gascoyne region and will probably also prove to

have a northern distribution, as do their above-

ground congeners.

As in previous years, the collection includes

additional species, known only from either female

specimens or partial specimens, and larval

specimens of both Tjirtudessus and Nirripirt.

However, these are not reported on at this time,

primarily due to lack of suitable material or, in the

case of larvae, no firm association with adults.

The latter is currently under way utilising genetic

typing.

As for the aquifer systems reported in our

earlier papers, numerous specimens of Crustacea

(bathynellids, harpacticoid and cyclopoid

copepods, ostracods and oniscid isopods) and

some Oligochaeta and Hydracarina were collected.

In addition, some sites in the Northern Territory

yielded a diversity of strongly stygomorphic

Hydrobiidae (Gastropoda). As before, the beetles

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

and larger stygofauna were restricted to aquifers

in areas of calcrete, as the stygofauna is largely

found in the northern parts of the western shield

(Poore & Humphreys 1998, submitted;

Humphreys 1999a, 2001). As reported in our

previous paper (Watts & Humphreys 2001),

stygofauna were present both in narrow bore-holes

drilled for geological purposes, water pumping or

aquifer assessment, and in wide hand-dug wells

established for pastoral purposes. The watertable

in calcrete is often only 2-3 m below the surface;

it is frequently exposed by calcrete quarries used

for the purpose of road making or mineral

processing, which, being left unfenced, are readily

grossly contaminated by stock.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The collection methods and measurements of

physicochemical parameters in the water largely

follow those used previously (Watts & Humphreys

2000). However, the use of a Horiba U22

multiparameter instrument in conjunction with

previous methods permitted vertical profiles of the

physicochemical conditions down some

boreholes. Nitrate and Fe** were recorded using

test strips in the field (Merck: respectively

Merckoquant Nitrate Test 1.0020.001 and

Merckoquant Iron Test 1.10004.0001). On

analysis, mid-point values were used if a range

had been recorded. Hydrogen sulphide was

measured, when its odour indicated its presence,

using a test kit (Chemetrics: CHEMets sulphide

R-9510, range 0-1 and 1-10 ppm).

Abbreviations used:

BES Prefix for field numbers, WAM

Biospeleology.

SAMA South Australian Museum, Adelaide.

WAM _ Western Australian Museum, Perth.

RN Prefix of water bore and well numbers,

Water Resources Division, Department

of Lands Planning and Environment in

the Northern Territory.

NTM _ Northern Territory Museum, Darwin.

SYSTEMATICS

Key to Australian species of stygobitic

Dytiscidae

1. — Body length approximately 1.0 mm;

legs stout, without swimming-hairs on

fore- and mid-legs............ Kintingka

kurutjutu. Watts and Humphreys

2(1)

3 (2)

4 (3)

5 (4)

6 (5)

7 (6)

8 (7)

9 (8)

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 137

Body length > 1.0 mm; legs normal,

all with swimming-hairs ................ 2

Parameres one-segmented; metatibia

approximately the same width

throughout; without pronotal plicae;

(Hydroporini). .......eeeceeeeeeeeeeeee 28

Parameres two-segmented; metatibia

narrow at base then strongly expanding

towards apex; usually with pronotal

Plicde: ..friiiieBiscees (Bidessini) 2

Mesofemur with spines on hind edge

approximately the same strength as

those on mesotrochanter; length >

BO IM. hier titted atiatease 23

Mesofemur with spines on hind edge

much more robust than those on

mesotrochanter; length 1.4-3.6 mm

Lacking sutural line between

abdominal sternites 1 and 2; length

BeQ=—S.OUMMN si essessseswssssonenengiesdocaa cto rtes

Tjirtudessus sweetwatersensis sp.nov.

Abdominal sternites 1 and 2 separated

by sutural line, at leastin inner portion;

length 1.3 —3.2 mM.......... eee 5

Pronotal plicae strong, well marked,

excavated on inside............0....0000. 6

Pronotal plicae weak, difficult to trace,

may be absent, not excavated on inside

shad sch h wspecewueiedeange hdvageedeazesusaaes 10

Mesosternum with posterior portion

triangular in midline ...............6 7

Mesosternum with posterior portion

rounded in midline... eee 8

Prosternal process rounded at tip; tip

of metatrochanter pointed; lobe on

apical segment of paramere short ....

sputter Ar dket Tul iutas dntenateneetess Tjirtudessus

morgani (Watts and Humphreys)

Prosternal process pointed at tip; apex

of metatrochanter rounded (Fig. 5);

lobe on apical portion of paramere

omg’ (E183) asset cesecenta-ceZapetgpveriedenotaiee

re ae Tjirtudessus bialveus sp. nov.

Head broad, deflexed; metatrochanter

round (Fig. 35); setae on mesofemur

long: (Pig 34) sien a ndeaelei

Saetstiae deepest Tjirtudessus silus sp. nov.

With none of above characters ...... 9

Metatarsi with combined length of

segments 1 and 2 > combined length

10 (5)

11 (10)

12 (11)

13 (12)

14 (13)

15 (12)

of segments 3 to 5; eye remnant present;

paramere with long apical lobe........

sheea dasle evs sabiagee Mazalgzcalsanglade es Tjirtudessus

pulpa (Watts and Humphreys)

Metatarsi with combined length of

segments | and 2 approximately equal

to combined length of segments 3 to 5

(Fig. 6); eye remnant reduced to single

short suture; paramere with small apical

lobe (Pig: 9): Sa siceeatthatacsepedttaveetae.

a, Tjirtudessus cunyuensis sp. nov.

Elytron with row of large punctures

adjacent to SUtUTE «0.0... eeeeeeeeeeee 22

Elytron without sutural punctures,

other than a few weak ones near base

sacaas'sveusalsyedansnanatgssncag tenga senadestanagone 11

Eye remnant reduced to a small oval or

triangular structure... 19

Eye remnant reduced to single short

SUTULE soiree sd eigis eon es aseae seated poezege les 12

Mesofemur with six to seven spines on

hind edge in basal half ..........0...0.. 13

Mesofemur with two to four spines on

hind edge in basal half................. 15

Protibia thick; protarsi moderately

expanded, mesotarsi less so; mesotibia

slightly angular oo... eee

Le Bidessodes gutteridgei sp. nov.

Protibia thin; protarsi and mesotarsi

approximately the same size; mesotibia

NOt ANPUTAL-. 2.4425 s5554cesveresereeevarecceees 14

Lobe of paramere as wide as rest of

apical segment, flat on top, expanded

slightly at tip 0... Tjirtudessus

masonensis (Watts and Humphreys)

Lobe of paramere shorter than rest of

apical segment, rounded on top, tip

pointed (Fig. 51) .....ececeeeeeeeeteeeee

Tjirtudessus yuinmeryensis sp. nov.

Mesofemur with four spines near base;

segments 2 and 3 of antenna similar in

length, segment 1 1 approximately 1.5x

segment 10 in length; length>2.0 mm

Shssrdapcssiatt.tontas socenstpe tees Tjirtudessus

cueensis (Watts and Humphreys)

Mesofemur with two to three strong

spines on hind edge near base; segment

2 of antenna large and oval, segment 3

much smaller and thinner than segment

2, segment 11 approaching 2x length

of segment 10; length <2 mm..... 16

138

16 (15)

17 (16)

18 (17)

19 (11)

20 (19)

21 (20)

22 (10)

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

Mesofemur with two strong spines on

hind edge near base; apical segment of

paramere with two finger-like

Projections oe Tjirtudessus

pinnaclesensis (Watts and Humphreys)

Mesofemur with three strong spines

on hind edge near base; apical segment

of paramere with one finger-like

PFOJCCHON:.....50..5s cident 17

Metafemur with three spines grouped

together near base ..........ceceeeeeeeeees

ee Tjirtudessus fridaywellensis

(Watts and Humphreys)

Metafemur with two spines near base

and one more distant...............000. 18

Pro- and mesotibia club-shaped;

antenna with middle segments enlarged

a little on inside ........... Tjirtudessus

hinkleri (Watts and Humphreys)

Pro- and mesotibia elongate/triangular

in shape; middle segments of antenna

virtually symmetrical ..... eee

Tjirtudessus karalundiensis sp. nov.

Pronotum not constricted at base (Fig.

48); prosternal process reaching or

almost reaching mesosternum; 1.4 mm

1 (0) 1 seg ee PU aE Ie OR

.... Tjirtudessus wilunaensis sp. nov.

Pronotum moderately constricted at

base (Fig. 18); pronotal process not

reaching mesosternum; >1.8 mm long

canes stmeste eeraessaesstertacn staat: 20

Mesofemur with six spines close to

base on hind edge ........ Tjirtudessus

bigbellensis (Watts and Humphreys)

Mesofemur with three to six spines

spread out along basal half of hind

edge (Figs 16)).sclesstPssseevecds tees 21

Suture line between sternites 1 and 2

well marked; medial lobe of aedeagus

parallel-sided, apex not upturned.....

satya Segtiesseateeeev a ae tisea Tjirtudessus

challaensis (Watts and Humphreys)

Suture lines between ventrites 1 and 2

weak, usually obsolete in lateral half;

medial lobe of aedeagus distinctly

narrower in middle, apex upturned

ETS isexe ce csettss Massacre, MeeScsistesse hosts

.... Tjirtudessus jundeeensis sp. nov.

Distinct oval eye remnant present ....

AEB PN tO Ma see rh Tjirtudessus

windarraensis (Watts and Humphreys)

23:(3)

24 (23)

25 (24)

26 (25)

27 (26)

28 (27)

29 (28)

30 (29)

Eye remnant reduced to single short

SUUUL Cs sist tates ca vidieiees Tjirtudessus

lapostaae (Watts and Humphreys)

Mesofemur with spines on hind edge

arranged in two comb-like rows along

hind edge from base to apex; mesotibia

thin, curved ..............ccccccceeeeeeeeeseeeee

tetas deus B. limestoneensis sp. nov.

Mesofemur spines on hind edge spaced

out, not dense and comb-like;

mesotibia straight... 24

Pro- and mesotarsi with segment 1

much more expanded than other

SC DINCMISs, oise.4 thee h s:5: sts Mec 2

Pro- and mesotarsi with segment 1

only moderately expanded compared

to other segments ..... cee 26

Antenna with segments 8 to 11

noticeably thinner than others, segment

3 longer than segment 2...

ac eh Tere ome a foarte ea, eat Tjirtudessus

magnificus Watts and Humphreys

Antenna with segments 8 to 11 not

noticeably thinner than others, segment

3 same length as segment 2 (Fig. 30)

.. Tjirtudessus macrotarsus. sp. nov.

Pronotum a little narrower than elytra;

length 3.54.8 mM uu... eee 27

Pronotum wider than elytra; length

3.2-3.5 MM... eee Tjirtudessus

eberhardi Watts and Humphreys

Metatrochanters rounded at tip; central

lobe of aedeagus straight, tip pointed;

with smalleye remnant.... Tjirtudessus

raesideensis Watts and Humphreys

Metatrochanters pointed at tip; central

lobe of aedeagus twisted, tip knobbed;

without eye remnant .... Tjirtudessus

hahni Watts and Humphreys

From the Northern Territory ........ 29

From Western Australia ............... 33

Head short, very broad, strongly

deflexed (Fig. 96); pronotum strongly

narrowed at base (Fig. 96); pronotal

process anvil-shaped «0.0.0... cee

... Nirripirti macrocephalus sp. nov.

Head variably shaped, not deflexed,

base of pronotum variable, pronotal

process ‘normally’ shaped ........... 30

Protarsi with segment 3 not bilobed;

pronotum not constricted at base (Fig.

126); antenna thin, segments 1 and 2

31 (30)

32 (31)

33 (28)

34 (33)

35 (34)

36 (35)

37 (36)

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 139

SUBEQUAL .sssiscersscnecceiseuts dguadsssgenggedeees

ta tavters Nirripirti pentameres sp. nov.

Protarsi with segment 3 bilobed;

pronotum weakly to moderately

constricted at base; antenna thick,

segment 2 much broader than segment

1.8 mm long; body well chitinised ..

saat Nirripirti napperbyensis sp. nov.

1.2-1.6 mm long; body weakly

ChHIMINISCE a wera saudi wceisgerssetescte 32

1.2 mm long; body only slightly

constricted at junction of pronotum

and elytra (Fig. 150) oo... eee

Tin cocerere nese N. wedgeensis sp. nov.

1.5 mm long; body quite strongly

constricted at junction of pronotum

and elytra (Fig. 120)... cece

.... Nirripirti newhavenensis sp. nov.

Antenna with segment 2 larger and

more oval than segment 1; < 2.5 mm

TOMB. jusrsesstesuversepasseciesestaygenades ante 38

Antenna with segment 2 more or less

the same shape as segment | or smaller;

D> DED MM LONG ajc csp cescscaszeesecas eee 34

Elytron in ventral aspect, with visible

portion broad except close to apex ..

ee ecede ry Nirripirti stegastos sp. nov.

Elytron in ventral aspect, with visible

portion narrow except in basal quarter

gieahestat ieobnalinda fhibenlad spaced tin, colts 35

Metasternal plate parallel-sided; eight

toten metafemur spines, closely placed,

very strong (Fig. 76); metatrochanter

long and thin about 4x as long as wide

CE TD) asics tous ecedennnsttnceeeaageReseses nds

Metasternal plate narrowing towards

rear; four to eight metafemur spines,

weak to moderately strong;

metatrochanter moderately elongate 2

to 2.5x as long as wide ................ 36

Metasternal plate without wings ......

wrteed Nirripirti plutonicensis sp. nov.

Metasternal wings obvious but short

Ssgtacsssqc0egsVogedan tary drenhecgiaptacsepaesbasncey 37

Metafemur with moderately strong

spines; metacoxal plate nearly reaching

MESOCOXAE ....seesceeseeseeeees Nirripirti

hinzeae Watts and Humphreys

— Metafemur with thin spines (Fig. 70);

metacoxal plate at least the width of

metafemur from mesocoxae.............

38 (33) — Elytron with shoulder flared outwards

(Fig. 84); tip of metatrochanter pointed

(Fig. 83).....Nirripirti hamoni sp. nov.

— Elytron with shoulder not flared;

metatrochanter squat, tip rounded

(Fig Oi Nic ect fostscat satin dtesreceettat. 39

39 (38) — Eye remnant absent; metatrochanters

large, squat (Fig. 107); hind legs stout;

metasternal plate V-shaped; 1.2 mm

LOMPR.Sielededseranlssdancersaannencagdeteveregegiiass

alee Nirridessus milgunensis sp. nov.

— Eye remnant represented by a short

suture at side of head; metatrochanters

elongate; hind legs elongate;

metasternal plate U-shaped; 1.5-

P1100 (6) 1a en 40

40 (39) — Head narrower than base of pronotum,

body boat-shaped (Fig. 138) ........ 41

— Head broader than base of pronotum,

body not boat-shaped (Fig. 102) ......

spines Nirripirti melroseensis sp. nov.

41 (40) — 2.1-2.3 mmlong; metatrochanter with

tip sharply pointed (Fig. 137) ..........

stgpasatades Nirripirti skaphites sp. nov.

— 1.5—1.9 mmlong; metatrochanter with

tip rounded (Fig. 89) ........ cece

yal Nirripirti killaraensis sp. nov.

The following species descriptions are grouped

in alphabetical order under genus, which are

placed in the order Tjirtudessus, Bidessodes,

Nirripirti.

Tjirtudessus Watts & Humphreys, 1999

Tjirtudessus bialveus sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8118, Cunyu Station, Site

289, mineral exploration bore, 25°46'51"S

120°06'27"E, 24/8/2001, coll. W.F. Humphreys,

T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, WAM. 32866.

Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 17; 9, as for holotype, 6 WAM

32867-32872, 3 SAMA; 3, as for holotype

except ‘BES 8115’, SAMA; 2, as for holotype

except ‘BES 8601, site 288’, WAM 32873-

32874; 3, as for holotype except ‘BES 8602, site

288’, SAMA.

140

Description (number examined, 18) Figs 1-7

Habitus. Length 1.4-1.9 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, weakly constricted at junction of

pronotum/elytra; uniformly light testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, about one-quarter length of

elytron.

Head. A little narrower than elytra; smooth,

reticulation strong, punctures sparse, very small;

subparallel in posterior half, widest just behind

eye remnant; eye remnant reduced to short dark

suture. Antenna stout, basal segment cylindrical,

segment 2 oval, segment 3 shorter and narrower

and narrowing towards base, segments 4 to 10

subequal, segment 11 about twice as long as

segment 10. Maxillary palpus relatively stout,

segment 4 about as long as segments 1 to 3

combined, oblique row of long setae on outer

side, tip truncated.

Pronotum. Almost as wide as elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

‘Se

SSE

4 HAR

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

base quite strongly narrowed, posterolateral angles

acute; smooth, with sparse, very weak punctures

and a row of stronger punctures along front

margin; basal plicae strongly marked, curved,

reaching to about halfway along pronotum, deeply

excavated inwards; with row of long setae

laterally, denser towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest behind middle,

smooth, strongly reticulate, evenly but sparsely

covered with small punctures each with a small

seta, row of widely spaced larger punctures close

to inner edge; row of long setae near lateral edge,

a few additional larger punctures with long setae,

more frequent towards sides; underside of elytron

with a few setiferous micropunctures towards

apex and sides. Epipleuron undifferentiated, that

part of elytron visible ventrally broad in anterior

fifth, then rapidly narrowing to be virtually absent

along rest of elytron.

()

FIGURES 1-6. Tjirtudessus bialveus: 1, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 2, ditto dorsal view; 3, paramere;

4, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 5 metatrochanter and metafemur; 6, dorsal view. Scale bar represents 1 mm

(habitus only).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 14]

Ventral surface. Prosternal process relatively

broad, strongly narrowed between coxae, almost

reaching mesothorax, apical half narrow, almost

parallel-sided, tip with long elongate point,

strongly arched in lateral view with highest point

(viewed ventrally) between coxae. Mesocoxae

almost in contact at midline. Metasternum sharply

triangular in front in midline; wings short, narrow;

triangular in midline behind not reaching halfway

to metacoxae. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines weak, moderately widely spaced, reaching to

about halfway to metasternum, evenly diverging;

a few small setae-bearing punctures towards

midline; closely adpressed to first abdominal

ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused, sutural lines

distinct, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, sparsely covered

with small seta-bearing punctures, ventrites 3 and

4 with a long central seta or bunch of long setae;

strongly reticulate.

Legs. Protibia relatively broad, inner edge

straight, outer edge bowed, widest near apex

where it is about four times its basal width;

protarsi moderately expanded, segment 1 round,

segment 2 shorter, segment 3 as long as 1 but a

bit narrower and deeply bifid, segment 4 very

small and hidden within lobes of segment 3,

segment 5 narrow, cylindrical, about 1.5 times

length of segment 3, segments 1 to 3 with

covering of adhesive setae; claws short and

simple. Mesotrochanter elongate with row of setae

on inner edge; mesofemur with two spines close

together at base and one more distant along hind

edge in basal half (Fig. 4); mesotarsi much less

expanded than protarsi. Metatrochanter elongate,

tip rounded, well separated from femur (Fig. 5);

metafemur elongate, lacking spines; metatibia

curved, widening towards apex; metatarsi

elongate, segment 1 longest, segment 5 longer

than 4, segments 1 and 2 in combination about as

long as segments 3 to 5; claws weak.

Male. Pro- and mesotarsi slightly stouter.

Median lobe of aedeagus narrow, tip bluntly

pointed; paramere broad, apical segment with

long, narrow, apical portion well separated from

rest of segment (Figs 1-3).

Etymology

Latin. ‘Bi’ — two, ‘alveus’ — pit, excavation;

alluding to the two very strongly excavated areas

on the pronotum.

Remarks

A relatively small species with strong reticulation

and deep excavations inwards from the pronotal

plicae. These pits partially undercut the plicae and

on their inner edge are ridged for a short distance.

The purpose of these structures—which are much

deeper than we have seen on any other Dytiscid—

are unknown. They do not seem to have any

sensory structures associated with them. They are

often partially filled with a gritty material.

Tjirtudessus cunyuensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m. ‘BES 8156, Cunyu Station,

Sweetwaters Well, 25°35'28"S 120°22'21"E, 23/

8/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic &

J.M. Waldock’, WAM 32875.

Paratypes 3: 1, as for holotype, WAM 32876;

2, as for holotype except ‘8107’, SAMA.

Description (number examined, 4) Figs 7-12

Habitus. Length 1.3 mm; narrowly oval,

relatively flat, weakly constricted at junction of

pronotum/elytra; uniformly light testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, about one-half length of

elytron.

Head. Much narrower than elytra; smooth,

reticulation strong, punctures sparse, very small;

subparallel in posterior half, widest just behind

eye remnant; eye remnant reduced to a short

suture. Antenna stout, basal segment cylindrical,

segment 2 oval, segment 3 smaller and narrower,

segment 4 slightly smaller than 3, segments 5 to

10 subequal, segment 11 about 1.5 times length of

segment 10. Maxillary palpus stout, segment 4

about as long as segments 1 to 3 combined,

oblique row of long setae on outer side, tip

truncated.

Pronotum. As wide as elytra; anteriolateral

angles projecting strongly forward; base

moderately narrowed, posterolateral angles

obtuse; smooth, with sparse, very weak punctures

each with a short seta and a row of stronger

punctures along front margin; basal plicae

moderately marked, slightly curved, reaching to

about halfway along pronotum, quite strongly

excavated inwards; with row of long setae

laterally, denser towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest behind middle,

smooth, moderately covered with small punctures

each with a short setae, a short row of larger

punctures close to inner edge on disc; a few

additional larger punctures with long setae, more

frequent towards sides; underside of elytron with

numerous setiferous micropunctures towards apex

and near suture. Epipleuron undifferentiated, that

142 CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

part of elytron visible ventrally narrow except

close to base.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process relatively

broad, strongly narrowed between coxae, not

reaching mesothorax, apical half narrow, almost

parallel-sided, weakly pointed at apex, strongly

arched in lateral view with highest point (viewed

ventrally) between coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at

midline. Metasternum sharply triangular in front

in midline; wings very narrow; broadly rounded

in midline behind; not quite reaching halfway to

metacoxae. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines weak, widely spaced, almost parallel,

reaching nearly to metasternum; a few small setae-

bearing punctures towards midline; reticulation

moderate, meshes uneven; closely adpressed to

first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused,

sutural lines distinct, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile,

sparsely covered with small seta-bearing

punctures, ventrites 3 and 4 with a long central

seta or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia relatively broad, inner and outer

edges straight, widest past apex where it is about

four times its basal width; protarsi expanded,

segment | broad, segment 2 as broad as and about

one-third length of segment 1, segment 3 as long

as 1 and as broad, very deeply bifid, segment 4

very small and hidden within lobes of segment 3,

segment 5 narrow, cylindrical, about length of

segment 3, segments 1 to 3 with covering of

adhesive setae; claws short and simple.

Mesotrochanter elongate with row of setae on

inner edge; mesofemur with row of four to five

relatively weak spines unevenly spaced along hind

edge in basal half (Fig. 10); mesotarsi less

expanded than protarsi. Metatrochanter tip

pointed, weakly separated from femur at tip (Fig.

11); metafemur relatively broad, lacking spines;

metatibia strongly curved, widening towards apex;

metatarsi elongate, segment 1 longest, segment 5

longer than segment 4, segments 1 and 2 in

combination about as long as others; claws weak.

Male. Median lobe of aedeagus relatively broad,

tip sharply pointed; paramere broad, apical

segment narrow, apical portion well separated

from rest of segment (Figs 7-9).

4. Hanon

—_

FIGURES 7-12. Tjirtudessus cunyuensis: 7, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 8, ditto dorsal view; 9,

paramere; 10, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 11 metatrochanter and metafemur; 12, dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 143

Etymology

Named after the pastoral station on which it was

collected.

Remarks

A relatively small species with stout antennae

and legs and well-marked pronotal plicae.

Resembles 7. pulpa, from which it differs in lack

of oval eye remnant and short apical lobe to the

paramere.

Tjirtudessus jundeeensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m. “BES 6475, Jundee Station, bore

at Jundee Homestead, 26°21'12"S; 120°38'31"E,

11/5/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys, C.H.S. Watts &

S. Cooper’, WAM 32877. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 27; 1, as for holotype, WAM 32878;

17, ‘BES 6581, Jundee Station. bore JSP 6, South

Hill Well BF, Jundee Mine, 26°16'58"S

120°40'37"E, 11/5/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys,

C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’, 2 WAM 32879-

32880, 15 SAMA; 1, as for holotype except ‘BES

6582’ and ‘JE149’, WAM 32881; 1, as for

holotype except ‘BES 6590’ and ‘JE124’, WAM

32882; 3, as for holotype except ‘BES 6594’ and

‘JE112’, 3 WAM 32883-32885; 3, as for holotype

except ‘BES 6597’ and ‘JE150’, 2 WAM 32886-

32887, 1 SAMA; 2, as for holotype except “BES

6603’ and ‘JE125’, WAM 32888-32889.

Description (number examined, 28) Figs 13-18

Habitus. Length 2.3-2.6 mm; relatively flat,

moderately constricted at base of pronotum;

uniformly very light testaceous; hindwing

reduced, about three-quarters length of elytron.

Head. Narrower than elytra; smooth,

reticulation very weak, punctures sparse, very

small; subparallel in posterior half, widest just

behind eye remnant; eye remnant reduced to

narrowly oval structure. Antenna relatively stout,

segments 1 and 2 cylindrical, segment 3 slightly

shorter than segment 2 narrowing towards base,

segments 4 to 10 subequal but becoming

progressively slightly broader, segment 11 1.5

times longer and slightly thinner than segment 10.

Maxillary palpus moderately elongate, segment 4

a little shorter than segments 1 to 3 combined,

oblique row of long setae on outer side, tip

truncated.

Pronotum. As wide as elytra; anteriolateral

angles projecting strongly forward; base quite

strongly narrowed, posterolateral angles acute;

smooth with sparse, very weak punctures and a

row of stronger punctures along front margin;

basal plicae weakly marked, converging slightly

towards front, reaching to about halfway along

pronotum; with row of long setae laterally, denser

towards front.

Elytra. Not fused, lacking inner ridges;

elongate, almost parallel-sided, smooth, sparsely

covered with very small punctures; row of long

setae near lateral edge, a few additional larger

punctures with long setae, more frequent towards

sides; underside with a few scattered setiferous

micropunctures towards apex. Epipleuron weakly

differentiated, that part of elytron visible ventrally

moderately broad in anterior fifth, thin over rest

of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half relatively broad, almost

parallel-sided, strongly arched in lateral view with

highest point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum

bluntly triangular in front in midline; wings very

narrow; broadly rounded in midline behind.

Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal lines obsolete;

a few small setae-bearing punctures towards

midline; closely adpressed to first abdominal

ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused, sutural lines

distinct towards midline, becoming indistinct

laterally, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, sparsely covered

with small seta-bearing punctures, ventrites 3 and

4 with a long central seta or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia relatively narrow, triangular,

widest at apex where it is about 2.5 times its basal

width; protarsi moderately expanded, segment 1

as wide as long, segment 2 about as wide and

about one-half length of segment 1, segment 3 as

long and wide as first, very deeply bifid, segment

4 very small and hidden within lobes of segment

3, segment 5 narrow, cylindrical, about length of

segment 3, segments 1 to 3 with very dense

covering of adhesive setae; claws one-half length

of segment 5. Mesotrochanter elongate with a few

fine setae on inner edge; mesofemur with row of

five to six moderately strong setae along hind

edge in basal half (Fig. 16); mesotarsi similar to

protarsi. Metatrochanter tip rounded, well

separated from metafemur (Fig. 17); metafemur

thin, elongate, lacking spines; metatibia thin,

strongly curved, widening towards apex; metatarsi

elongate, segment 1 longest, segment 5 longer

than segment 4, in combination segments | and 2

about as long as others; claws equal, weak.

Male. Little external difference between median

144 CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

FIGURES 13-18. Tjirtudessus jundeeensis: 13, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 14, ditto dorsal view; 15,

paramere; 16, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 17 metatrochanter and metafemur; 18, dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

lobe of aedeagus varying slightly in width along

shaft, narrowing towards apex, bluntly pointed;

parameres broad, apical segment relatively broad,

short, with long, narrow, apical lobe well

separated from rest of segment (Figs 13-15).

Etymology

Named after the pastoral station on which it

was collected.

Remarks

A moderate sized, narrowly elongate, weakly

chitinised species with the tip of the

metatrochanter well separated from the femur, and

weak pronotal plicae. Morphologically close to T.

challaensis but with the suture line between first

and second ventrites much less obvious and the

apical lobe of the paramere well separated from

the rest of the segment.

Tjirtudessus karalundiensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘Karalundi, unlined well, 26°08'S

118°41'E, 28/5/2001. Col. C.H.S.& G.A Watts’.

Field number 339-1. WAM 32890. Slide

mounted.

Paratypes: 14, as for holotype 5, WAM 32891-

32895, 9 SAMA.

Description (number examined, 15) Figs 19-

24.

Habitus. Length 1.3-1.4 mm; relatively flat,

moderately constricted at junction of pronotum/

elytra; elytra relatively broad, uniformly light

testaceous; hindwing reduced, about length of

elytron.

Head. Narrower than elytra; smooth,

reticulation moderate, punctures sparse, very

small; subparallel in posterior half, widest just

behind eye remnant; eye remnant reduced to short

suture. Antenna relatively stout, segment 1

cylindrical, segment 2 oval, segment 3 about one-

half length segment 2 and two-thirds width,

narrowing towards base, segment 4 bit shorter and

narrower than segment 3, segments 5 to 10

subequal and a little wider than 3 and 4, segment

11 about twice length of segment 10. Maxillary

palpus elongate, segment 4 a little shorter than

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 145

segments 1 to 3 combined, oblique row of long

setae on outer side, tip truncated.

Pronotum. Narrower than elytra; anteriolateral

angles projecting strongly forward; base

moderately constricted, posterolateral angles

acute; smooth, moderately reticulate, with sparse,

very weak punctures and a row of stronger

punctures along front margin, sparse covering of

short setae; basal plicae absent, straight; with row

of long setae laterally, denser towards front.

Elytra. Not fused, lacking inner ridges; oval,

widest in middle, smooth, moderately reticulate,

moderately densely covered with short setae,

sparsely covered with very small punctures, row

of widely spaced larger punctures close to inner

edge; row of long setae near lateral edge, a few

additional larger punctures with long setae, more

frequent towards sides; underside of elytron with

numerous setiferous micropunctures towards

apex. Epipleuron only weakly differentiated; that

portion of elytron visible ventrally narrow in

anterior fifth, virtually absent along rest of

elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half relatively broad, almost

23 SD

parallel-sided, strongly arched in lateral view with

highest point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum

bluntly triangular in front in midline; wings very

narrow; posterior portion relatively narrow,

rounded at apex. Metacoxal plates large, heart-

shaped in combination, metacoxal lines absent,

surface reticulate, a few small setae-bearing

punctures towards midline; closely adpressed to

abdominal ventrite 1. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused,

sutural lines distinct, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile,

moderately rugose, sparsely covered with small

seta-bearing punctures, ventrites 3 and 4 with a

long central seta or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia triangular, widest at apex where

it is about three times its basal width; protarsi

moderately expanded, segment 1 about twice as

long as wide, segment 2 a little broader and about

one-half length of segment 1, segment 3 as long

as first slightly broader, very deeply bifid, segment

4 very small and hidden within lobes of segment

3, segment 5 narrow, cylindrical, about twice

length of segment 3, segments 1 to 3 with

adhesive setae; claws short and simple.

Mesotrochanter elongate with a few setae on inner

edge; mesofemur with row of three relatively

i> SS

ps _/ Wa

Fy CR

| |

IN \*

NN ZeaN

K F\

24 IR ZA

FIGURES 19-24. Tjirtudessus karalundiensis: 19, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 20, ditto dorsal view;

21, paramere; 22, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 23 metatrochanter and metafemur; 24, dorsal view. Scale bar

represents | mm (habitus only).

146

strong setae along hind edge in basal half (Fig.

22); mesotarsi about one-half breadth of protarsi.

Metatrochanter tip pointed, (Fig. 23); metafemur

elongate, lacking spines; metatibia moderately

curved, widening towards apex; metatarsi

elongate, segment 1 longest, other segments

approximately equal in length, in combination

segments 1 and 2 about as long as others; claws

weak.

Male. No external differences between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus parallel-sided

narrowing towards apex, tip bluntly pointed;

paramere broad, apical segment relatively long,

with narrow apical lobe moderately separated

from rest of segment, about one-half width of

segment (Figs 19-21).

Etymology

Named after type locality.

Remarks

A small elongate/oval species moderately

constricted at the base of the pronotum and with

three stout spines on the mesofemur. It most

closely resembles T. hinkleri, from which it is

most easily separated by the smaller apical lobe

on the paramere and the symmetrical rather than

slightly asymmetrical middle antennal segments.

Tjirtudessus macrotarsus sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8118, Cunyu Station, Site

289, mineral exploration bore, 25°46'51"S

120°06'27"E, 24/8/2001 col. W.F. Humphreys, T.

Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, WAM 32896. Slide

mounted.

Paratypes: 7: 5, as for holotype, 3 WAM

32897-32899, 2 SAMA; 2, as for holytype except

‘BES 8115’ SAMA.

Description (number examined, 8) Figs 25-30

Habitus. Length 4.2-4.4 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, slightly depressed in midline,

moderately constricted at junction of pronotum/

elytra; uniformly light testaceous; hindwing

vestigial, about one-half length of elytron.

Head. A little narrower than elytra; slightly

deflexed; smooth, reticulation weak, punctures

sparse, very small; subparallel in posterior half,

widest just behind eye remnant; eye remnant

reduced to a short suture. Antenna thin, segments

1 and 2 cylindrical, segments 3 and 4 as long as

segment 2 but narrower and slightly narrowing

towards base, segments 5 to 9 subequal but

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

becoming progressively shorter, each weakly

expanded inwards near apex, segment 10

cylindrical, segment 11 about 1.5 times as long as

segment 10. Maxillary palpus elongate, segment 4

a little shorter than segments 1 to 3 combined,

oblique row of long setae on outer side, tip

truncated.

Pronotum. Short, almost as wide as elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

base quite strongly narrowed, posterolateral angles

acute, overlapping elytra; smooth, with sparse,

very weak punctures and a row of stronger

punctures along front margin, reticulation weak;

basal plicae moderately marked, straight, short,

reaching to about one-third way along pronotum,

slightly excavated inwards; with row of long setae

laterally, denser towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest behind middle,

smooth, sparsely covered with very small

punctures, a loose row of larger punctures with

long setae near centre of each elytron, a moderate

number of additional large punctures with long

setae, more frequent towards sides. Underside of

elytron with a few setiferous micropunctures near

base and some on epipleuron near base.

Epipleuron very weakly differentiated, that part of

elytron visible ventrally broad in anterior fifth,

then rapidly narrowing to be virtually absent along

rest of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process relatively

broad, strongly narrowed between coxae, not

reaching mesothorax, apical half broad, triangular,

strongly arched in lateral view with highest point

(viewed ventrally) between coxae. Mesocoxae in

contact at midline. Metasternum triangular in front

in midline; wings very narrow; broadly rounded

in midline behind; reaching well past halfway to

metacoxae. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines very weak, relatively close, reaching to about

halfway to metasternum, evenly diverging; a few

small setae-bearing punctures towards midline;

closely adpressed to first abdominal ventrite.

Ventrites 1 and 2 fused, sutural lines distinct

towards midline, becoming indistinct laterally,

ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, sparsely covered with

small seta-bearing punctures, ventrites 3 and 4

with a long central seta or bunch of long setae;

reticulation very weak.

Legs. Protibia relatively narrow, inner edge

straight, outer edge bowed, widest past middle

where it is about three times its basal width;

protarsi expanded, segment 1 large broadly

rounded, segment 2 much narrower, about one-

third length of segment 1, segment 3 about half

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 147

25 26

FIGURES 25-30. Tjirtudessus macrotarsus: 25, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 26, ditto dorsal view; 27,

paramere; 28, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 29 metatrochanter and metafemur; 30, dorsal view. Scale bar

represents | mm (habitus only).

as long as segment 1, narrower than segment 2,

very deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and

hidden within lobes of segment 3, segment 5

narrow, cylindrical, about length of segment 3,

segments 1 to 3 with dense covering of adhesive

setae; claws short, relatively robust.

Mesotrochanter elongate with row of setae on

inner edge; mesofemur with row of 10 to 15

weak spines along hind edge in basal half only

slightly stronger than the setae on

mesotrochanter (Fig. 28); mesotarsi a little less

expanded than protarsi. Metatrochanter relatively

small, broadly oval, tip rounded (Fig. 29);

metafemur thin, lacking spines; metatibia

strongly curved, widening towards apex;

metatarsi elongate, segment 1 longest, segment 5

much longer than segment 4, segments 1 and 2

in combination about as long as others; claws

weak.

Male. No external differences between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus variable in width

along shaft, tip bluntly pointed; paramere broad,

apical segment relatively large with long, narrow,

apical lobe moderately separated from rest of

segment (Figs 25—27).

Etymology

Alluding to the large basal tarsal segment of the

pro- and mesotarsi.

Remarks

A large narrow species recognised by the large

basal segment of the pro- and mesotarsi, thin

antenna and broadly oval metatrochanters.

Tjirtudessus silus sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8107, Cunyu Station,

Sweetwaters Well, 25°35'38"S 120°22'21"E, 23/

8/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic &

J.M. Waldock’, WAM 32900. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 25; 10, ‘BES 8107, Cunyu Station,

Sweetwaters Well, 25°35'38"S 120°22'21"E, 23/

8/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic &

148 CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

J.M. Waldock’, 5 WAM 32901-32905, 5

SAMA; 4, ditto except ‘BES 8156’, WAM

32906-32909; 11, ditto except ‘BES 8589’, 5

WAM 32910-32914, 6 SAMA.

Description (number examined, 26) Figs 31-36

Habitus. Length 1.7-2.1 mm; relatively flat,

head somewhat deflexed, weakly constricted at

junction of pronotum/elytra; uniformly very light

testaceous; hindwing vestigial, about one-third

length of elytron.

Head. Short, about as wide as elytra, bulbous in

lateral view; smooth, reticulation moderate,

punctures sparse, very small; subparallel in

posterior half, widest just behind eye remnant; eye

remnant reduced to small triangular or oval

structure on ventral surface near edge. Antenna

relatively stout, segments 1 and 2 cylindrical,

segment 3 shorter than segment 2, segments 4 to

10 subequal, slightly expanded at their apexes on

inside, more so on middle segments, segment 11 a

SMamond

oOo

bit longer and narrower than segment 10.

Maxillary palpus elongate, segment 4 longer than

segments 1 to 3 combined, oblique row of long

setae on outer side.

Pronotum. Short, as wide as or a bit wider than

elytra; anteriolateral angles projecting strongly

forward; base weakly constricted, posterolateral

angles obtuse; smooth, with sparse, very weak

punctures and a row of stronger punctures along

front margin; reticulation very weak; basal plicae

well marked, slightly sinuate, reaching to about

halfway along pronotum, very strongly excavated

inwards; with row of long setae laterally, denser

towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest behind middle,

smooth, sparsely covered with very small

punctures; row of long setae near lateral edge, a

few additional larger punctures with long setae,

more frequent towards sides, underside of elytron

with a few setiferous micropunctures towards

FIGURES 31-36. Tjirtudessus silus: 31, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 32, ditto dorsal view; 33,

paramere; 34, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 35, metatrochanter and metafemur; 36, dorsal view. Scale bar

represents | mm (habitus only).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS

apex and on epipleuron near base. Reticulation

weak. Epipleuron undifferentiated, that portion of

elytron visible ventrally broad in anterior fifth,

then rapidly narrowing to be virtually absent along

rest of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process relatively

broad, strongly narrowed between coxae, not

reaching mesothorax, apical half narrow, weakly

triangular, tip rounded, strongly arched in lateral

view with highest point (viewed ventrally)

between coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at midline.

Metasternum bluntly triangular in front in midline;

wings very narrow; broadly rounded in midline

behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal lines

weak, moderately widely spaced, reaching about

halfway to metasternum, subparallel; a few small

setae-bearing punctures towards midline; closely

adpressed to first abdominal ventrite. First and

second ventrites fused, sutural lines indistinct

towards midline, absent laterally, ventrites 3 to 5

mobile, sparsely covered with small seta-bearing

punctures, ventrites 3 and 4 with a long central

seta or bunch of long setae; weakly reticulate.

Legs. Protibia elongate, narrow, inner edge

straight, outer edge weakly bowed, widest near

apex where it is about three times its basal width;

protarsi moderately expanded, segment 1 rounded,

segment 2 about one-half length of segment 1,

segment 3 as long as segment 1 and very deeply

bifid, segment 4 very small and hidden within

lobes of segment 3, segment 5 narrow, cylindrical,

about length of segment 3, segments | to 3 with

dense covering of adhesive setae; claws short and

simple. Mesotrochanter elongate with row of setae

on inner edge; mesofemur with row of five to six

relatively long spines along hind edge in basal

half (Fig. 34); mesotarsi much less expanded than

protarsi. Metatrochanter short (Fig. 35);

metafemur thin, lacking spines; metatibia strongly

curved, widening towards apex; metatarsi

elongate, relatively robust, segment 1 longest,

segment 5 a little longer than segment 4, segments

1 and 2 in combination about as long as others;

claws weak.

Male. Little external difference between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus variable in width

along shaft, tip bluntly pointed; paramere broad,

apical segment with long, narrow, apical portion

well separated from rest of segment (Figs 31-33).

Etymology

Latin. ‘Silus’ — pug-nosed.

Remarks

A medium sized species easily recognised by its

149

broad pug-nosed head as well as thin legs, round

metatrochanters, strong pronotal plicae and long

spines on the mesofemurs.

Tjirtudessus sweetwatersensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8107, Cunyu Station,

Sweetwaters Well, 25°35'38"S 120°22'21"E, 23/

8/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic and

J.M. Waldock’, WAM 32915. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 11; 6, as for holotype, SAMA; 2, as

for holotype except ‘BES 8156’, WAM 32916-

32917; 3, as for holotype except ‘BES 8589’,

WAM 32918-32920.

Description (number examined, 12) Figs 37-42

Habitus. Length 3.2-3.6 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, moderately constricted at junction

of pronotum/elytra; uniformly light testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, about one-half length of

elytron.

Head. About as wide as elytra; smooth,

reticulation moderate, punctures sparse, very

small; subparallel in posterior half, widest just

behind eye remnant; eye remnant reduced to

narrowly oval structure on underside of head

behind antennal bases. Antenna relatively stout,

segments 1 and 2 cylindrical, segments 3 and 4

similar, a little shorter than segment 2, segments 5

to 10 subequal, narrower at their bases, segment

11 a bit longer and narrower than segment 10.

Maxillary palpus elongate, segment 4 a little

shorter than segments 1 to 3 combined, oblique

row of long setae on outer side, tip truncated.

Pronotum. As wide as elytra; anteriolateral

angles projecting strongly forward: base quite

strongly narrowed, posterolateral angles acute,

slightly overlapping elytra; smooth, with sparse,

very weak punctures and a row of stronger

punctures along front margin; basal plicae

moderately marked, slanted inwards, reaching to

about halfway along pronotum, with row of long

setae laterally, denser towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest behind middle,

smooth, sparsely covered with very small

punctures, row of widely spaced larger punctures

close to inner edge; row of long setae near lateral

edge, a few additional larger punctures with long

setae, more frequent towards sides; underside of

elytron with numerous setiferous micropunctures

towards apex and near suture. Epipleuron

undifferentiated, that part of elytron visible

150

4 Mama,

37 38 39

ae:

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

mie

GR | =

O|\a

FIGURES 37-42. Tjirtudessus sweetwatersensis: 37, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 38, ditto dorsal view;

39, paramere; 40, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 41, metatrochanter and metafemur; 42, dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

ventrally quite broad in anterior quarter, virtually

absent along rest of elytra.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process rather

narrow, strongly narrowed between coxae, not

reaching mesothorax, apical half almost parallel-

sided, strongly arched in lateral view with highest

point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum

triangular in front in midline; wings very narrow;

broadly rounded in midline behind. Metacoxal

plates large, metacoxal lines weak, moderately

widely spaced, reaching to about halfway to

metasternum, almost parallel; a few small setae-

bearing punctures towards midline; closely

adpressed to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1

and 2 fused, sutural lines absent, ventrites 3 to 5

mobile, sparsely covered with small seta-bearing

punctures, ventrites 3 and 4 with a long central

seta or bunch of long setae; moderately reticulate.

Legs. Protibia relatively elongate, inner edge

straight, outer edge bowed, widest past middle

where it is about three times its basal width;

protarsi weakly expanded, segment 1 broad,

segment 2 about one-third length of segment 1,

segment 3 a little longer than segment 2 and

deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and hidden

within lobes of segment 3, segment 5 narrow,

cylindrical, about twice length of segment 3,

segments 1 to 3 with covering of adhesive setae;

claws short and simple. Mesotrochanter elongate

with row of setae on inner edge; mesofemur with

row of seven to nine relatively weak spines along

hind edge in basal half (Fig. 40); mesotarsi a little

less expanded than protarsi. Metatrochanter tip

bluntly pointed (Fig. 41); metafemur elongate,

lacking spines; metatibia strongly curved,

widening towards apex; metatarsi elongate,

segment 1 longest, segment 5 a little longer than

segment 4, segments 1 and 2 in combination about

as long as others; claws weak.

Male. No external differences between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus a little variable in

width along shaft, tip bluntly pointed; paramere

broad, apical segment relatively short, with long,

narrow, apical portion close to rest of segment

(Figs 37-39).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 151

Etymology

Named after the type locality.

Remarks

A relatively large species recognised by the lack

of a sutural line between the first and second

ventrites, the similarity of the basal two antennal

segments and a relatively large oval eye remnant.

Tjirtudessus wilunaensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 6433, Wiluna Gold, Lake

Violet Borefield bore XPIOB, 26°40'30"S

120°13'S5"E, 9/5/200, col. W.F. Humphreys,

C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’. WAM 32921. Slide

mounted.

Paratype: 1, ‘BES 5640, Millbillillie Pastoral

station. Bore nr. Bubble Well, 26°33'39"S

120°02'27"E, 8/5/2001 coll. W.F. Humphreys,

C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’, SAMA. There is

some doubt regarding this locality: the field notes

suggest that it could have come from the same

locality as the holotype.

Description (number examined, 2) Figs 43-48

Habitus. Length 1.4 mm; relatively flat, very

weakly constricted at junction of pronotum/elytra;

uniformly light testaceous; hindwing reduced,

about three-quarters length of elytron.

Head. Slightly narrower than elytra; smooth,

reticulation weak, punctures sparse, very small;

subparallel in posterior half, bulging just behind

eye remnant; eye remnant reduced to a small

triangular structure. Antenna stout, segment 1

large, cylindrical, segment 2 larger, barrel-shaped,

segment 3 a bit shorter, about one-half as wide as

long narrowing towards base, segment 4 bit

narrower and one-half the length of segment 3,

segments 5 to 10 subequal, segment 11 twice

length of segment 10, thinner. Maxillary palpus

stout, segment 4 a little shorter than segments 1 to

3 combined, oblique row of long setae on outer

side, tip truncated.

Pronotum. About as wide as_ elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

base very slightly narrowed, posterolateral angles

obtuse; smooth, with sparse, very weak punctures

and a row of stronger punctures along front

oO S

MLA

i |

1 2

INS

FIGURES 43-48. Tjirtudessus wilunaensis: 43, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 44, ditto dorsal view; 45,

paramere; 46, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 47, metatrochanter and metafemur; 48 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

152

margin; basal plicae if present not visible on the

two mounted specimens; with row of long setae

laterally, denser towards front.

Elytra. Possibly fused, lacking inner ridges;

elongate, widest in front of middle, smooth,

covered with very small punctures, sparse row of

large punctures near suture; row of long setae near

lateral edge, a few additional larger punctures

with long setae, more frequent towards sides.

Epipleuron undifferentiated, that portion of elytra

visible ventrally relatively broad in anterior fifth,

then rapidly narrowing to be virtually absent along

rest of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, almost reaching

mesothorax, apical half relatively broad, triangular

with blunt tip, strongly arched in lateral view with

highest point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae slightly separate. Metasternum sharply

triangular in front in midline; wings very narrow;

slightly pointed in midline behind. Metacoxal

plates large, metacoxal lines obsolete; a few small

setae-bearing punctures towards midline; closely

adpressed to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1

and 2 fused, sutural lines distinct, ventrites 3 to 5

mobile, sparsely covered with small seta-bearing

punctures, ventrites 3 and 4 with a long central

seta or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia triangular, widest at apex where

it is about three times its basal width; protarsi

expanded, segments 1 to 3 broad, segment 2

about one-half length of segment 1, segment 3 as

long as segment 1, very deeply bifid, segment 4

very small and hidden within lobes of segment 3,

segment 5 narrow, cylindrical, about twice length

of segment 3, segments | to 3 with a covering of

adhesive setae; claws short and simple.

Mesotrochanter elongate with a few setae on

inner edge; mesofemur elongate/oval with two

strong spines near base on hind edge (Fig. 46);

mesotarsi much less expanded than protarsi.

Metatrochanter tip elongate/oval (Fig. 47);

metafemur relatively broad, lacking spines;

metatibia moderately curved, widening towards

apex; metatarsi elongate, segment 1 longest,

segment 5 a little longer than segment 4,

segments 1 and 2 in combination about as long

as others; claws weak.

Male. No external differences between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus relatively broad,

sharply narrowing to apex, tip bluntly pointed;

paramere broad, apical segment moderately long,

with long, club-shaped apical lobe tending to

overlap rest of segment, slightly wider than

adjacent part of apical segment (Figs 43-45).

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

Etymology

Named after the type locality.

Remarks

A very small almost parallel-sided species with

almost no pronotal constriction and a short

fourth segment of the antenna which is only a

little more than one-half the length of the third.

So far unique among the Australian dytiscid

stygofauna in having the tip of the pronotal

process meeting, or almost meeting, the forward

extension of the mesosternum, slightly separating

the mesocoxae.

The eye remnant is littke more than a short

bifurcation of the more usual suture line on the

ventral surface. In the key it has been scored as

present. The species will run to 7. pinnaclesensis

if it is considered absent, from which the separate

mesocoxae and lack of pronotal constriction will

separate it.

Tjirtudessus yuinmeryensis sp. nov

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 6654, Yuinmery Station,

New Well, 28°32'62"S 119°05'28"E, 15/5/2001,

col. W.F. Humphreys, C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’,

WAM 32922. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 53; 7, as for holotype, WAM

32923-32929; 46, as for holotype except ‘BES

6653’, 20 WAM 32930-32949, 26 SAMA; 1,

‘BES 8063, Yuinmery Station, Nine Mile Well,

28°32'35"S_ 119°08'00"E, 15/5/2001, col. W.F.

Humphreys, C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’, WAM

32950.

Description (number examined, 54) Figs 49-54

Habitus. Length 1.6-2.0 mm; relatively flat,

narrow. Moderately constricted at junction of

pronotum/elytra; uniformly light testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, about one-half length of

elytron.

Head. Narrower than elytra; smooth,

reticulation very weak, punctures sparse, very

small; subparallel in posterior half, widest just

behind eye remnant; eye remnant reduced to

single suture tending to widen or thicken

ventrally. Antenna relatively stout, segment 1

cylindrical, segment 2 barrel-shaped, segment 3 a

little shorter and much narrower and narrowing

towards base, segment 4 shorter than segment 3,

segments 5 to 10 subequal, segment 11 about

twice length of segment 10. Maxillary palpus

elongate, segment 4 about length of segments 1 to

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 153

3 combined, oblique row of long setae on outer

side, tip truncated.

Pronotum. Almost as wide as elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

base quite strongly narrowed, posterolateral angles

acute; smooth, with sparse, very weak punctures;

basal plicae moderately marked, straight, reaching

to about halfway along pronotum, slightly

excavated inwards; with row of long setae

laterally, denser towards front.

Elytra. Not fused, lacking inner ridges;

elongate, widest behind middle, smooth, sparsely

covered with very small punctures; row of long

setae near lateral edge, a few additional larger

punctures with long setae, more frequent towards

sides; underside of elytron with a few setiferous

micropunctures near base and on epipleuron near

base. Epipleuron not differentiated, that part of

elytron visible ventrally broad in anterior fifth,

then rapidly narrowing to be virtually absent along

rest of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half moderately broad, almost

parallel-sided, strongly arched in lateral view with

highest point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum

49 50 51

52 Si >

53 a 5

sharply triangular in front in midline; wings very

narrow; rounded in midline behind. Metacoxal

plates large, metacoxal lines moderately widely

spaced, reaching to about halfway to metasternum,

diverging slightly towards front; a few small

setae-bearing punctures towards midline; closely

adpressed to first abdominal ventrite. First and

second ventrites fused, sutural lines distinct

towards midline, becoming indistinct laterally,

ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, sparsely covered with

small seta-bearing punctures, ventrites 3 and 4

with a long central seta or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia relatively broad, inner edge

straight, outer edge bowed, widest near apex

where it is about four times its basal width;

protarsi weakly expanded, segment 1

subrectangular, segment 2 as wide and about one-

half length of segment 1, segment 3 as long as

segment 1 but a little narrower and very deeply

bifid, segment 4 very small and hidden within

lobes of segment 3, segment 5 narrow, cylindrical,

about length of segment 3, segments 1 to 3 with

dense covering of adhesive setae; claws short and

simple. Mesotrochanter elongate/oval with a few

setae near apex; mesofemur with row of five to

six relatively strong spines along hind edge in

basal half (Fig. 52); mesotarsi similar to protarsi.

SI ELA

Ze aS

54 If i,

FIGURES 49-54. Tjirtudessus yuinmeryensis: 49, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 50, ditto dorsal view;

51, paramere; 52, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 53, metatrochanter and metafemur; 54 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

154

Metatrochanter tip rounded (Fig. 53); metafemur

elongate, widest beyond middle, lacking spines;

metatibia thin, strongly curved, widening towards

apex; metatarsi elongate, segment 1 longest,

segment 5 longer than segment 4, segments 1 and

2 in combination about as long as others; claws

weak.

Male. Little external difference between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus relatively narrow

and narrowing to blunt point; paramere broad,

apical segment with long, narrow, apical lobe well

separated from rest of segment except near tip

(Figs 49-51).

Etymology

Named after the station property on which the

species was collected.

Remarks

A relatively small, pale, narrowly elongate

species with five to six relatively strong

mesofemural spines. Closely resembles T.

masonensis, from which it can only be separated

by a slightly shorter apical lobe to the paramere

and by DNA sequencing.

Bidessodes Regimbart

Bidessodes gutteridgei sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m.: ‘BES 8651, Three Rivers Station,

Limestone Well, 25°16'59"S_ 119°10'33"E, 26/8/

2001, col. W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M.

Waldock’, WAM 32952. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 18; 2, ‘BES 8605, Three Rivers

Station, bore MB4 Plutonic Borefield, 25°16'43"S

119°11'00"E, 26/8/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys, T.

Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, 1 WAM 32953, 1

SAMA; 2, ‘BES 8613, Three Rivers Station, Site

312, Old production bore, Plutonic Borefield,

25.26745°S 119.16398°E, 26/8/2001, col. W.F.

Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’,

WAM 32954-32955; 1 (partial), ‘BES 8620,

Three Rivers Station, bore MBS, Plutonic

Borefield, 25.26730°S 119.16417°E, 26/8/2001,

col. W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M.

Waldock’, WAM 32956; 5, ‘BES 8625, Three

Rivers Station, Limestone Well, 25.28313°S

119.175773°E, 26/8/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys,

T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, 2 WAM 32957-—

32958, 3 SAMA; 3, Ditto except, ‘BES 8651’,

SAMA; 2 (1 partial), ‘BES 8633; Three Rivers

Station, bore MB3, Plutonic Borefield,

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

25.26943°S 119.17202°E, 26/8/2001, col. W.F.

Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’,

WAM 32959-32960; 3, ‘BES 8656/7, Three

Rivers Station, bore MB2, Plutonic Borefield,

25.27360°S 119.17200°E, 26/8/2001, col. W.F.

Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, 2

WAM 32961-32962, 1 SAMA.

Description (number examined, 19) Figs 55-60

Habitus. Length 1.3-1.5 mm; broadly oval,

relatively flat, weakly constricted at base of

pronotum; uniformly light testaceous; hindwing

vestigial, about one-quarter length of elytron.

Head. A little narrower than elytra; smooth,

reticulation strong, punctures sparse, very small;

subparallel in posterior half, widest just behind

eye remnant; eye remnant reduced to single suture.

Antenna relatively stout, segment 1 cylindrical,

segment 2 oval, segment 3 much smaller and

narrower, segments 4 to 10 equal in length

becoming progressively wider, segment 11 about

twice length of segment 10. Maxillary palpus

stout, segment 4 a little shorter than segments 1 to

3 combined, oblique row of long setae on outer

side, tip truncated.

Pronotum. Almost as wide as elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

base quite strongly narrowed, posterolateral angles

obtuse; smooth, with sparse, very weak punctures

and a row of stronger punctures along front

margin; strongly reticulate; basal plicae absent;

with row of long setae laterally, denser towards

front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest in middle, smooth,

sparsely covered with small punctures each with a

short seta; row of long setae near lateral edge, a

few additional larger punctures with long setae,

more frequent towards sides; underside of elytron

with a few setiferous micropunctures towards

apex and sides. Epipleuron undifferentiated;

portion of elytron visible ventrally thin except for

extreme shoulder.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process relatively

broad, strongly narrowed between coxae, not

reaching mesothorax, apical half almost parallel-

sided, tip with small point, strongly arched in

lateral view with highest point (viewed ventrally)

between coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at midline.

Metasternum sharply triangular in front in

midline; wings very narrow; broadly rounded in

midline behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines relatively well marked, quite widely spaced,

reaching nearly to metasternum, weakly diverging

towards front; a few small setae-bearing punctures

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 155

FIGURES 55-60. Bidessodes gutteridgei: 55, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 56, ditto dorsal view; 57,

paramere; 58, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 59, metatrochanter and metafemur; 60 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents | mm (habitus only).

towards midline; strongly reticulate; closely

adpressed to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1

and 2 fused, sutural lines distinct towards midline,

becoming indistinct laterally, ventrites 3 to 5

mobile, sparsely covered with small seta-bearing

punctures, ventrites 3 and 4 with a long central

seta or bunch of long setae; strongly reticulate.

Legs. Protibia broad, inner edge straight, outer

edge bowed, widest near apex where it is about

four times its basal width; protarsi quite strongly

expanded, segment 1 broad, narrowing at base,

segment 2 a little wider and a little shorter than

segment 1, segment 3 as long as first and a bit

wider, very deeply bifid, segment 4 very small

and hidden within lobes of segment 3, segment 5

narrow, cylindrical, about twice length of segment

3, segments | to 3 with quite dense covering of

adhesive setae; claws short and simple.

Mesotrochanter elongate with row of three to four

spines on inner edge; mesofemur with row of six

short spines along hind edge in basal half (Fig.

58); mesotibia broad, slightly angular; mesotarsi

narrower than protarsi. Metatrochanter tip

rounded, well separated from femur (Fig. 59);

metafemur stout, lacking spines; metatibia

strongly curved, widening towards apex; metatarsi

elongate, segment 1 longest, segment 5 a little

longer than segment 4, segments 1 and 2 in

combination about as long as others; claws weak.

Male. No external differences between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus variable in width

along shaft, tip bluntly pointed; paramere broad,

apical segment hook-shaped (Figs 55-57).

Etymology

Named after Rob Gutteridge, who has very ably

illustrated many of these beetles.

Remarks

A small species best recognised by the stout

antenna, slightly angular mesotibia and large

metatrochanter with its tip well separated from the

metafemur. Its placement in Bidessodes is based

primarily on evidence from DNA sequence data

which suggest a relationship with B.

limestoneensis and, more distantly, with B. bilita

156

Watts and B. mjobergi (Zimmermann.) (See also

under B. limestoneensis.). There are no

morphological characters that would negate its

placement in Bidessodes as currently defined.

Bidessodes limestoneensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8625, Three Rivers Station,

Limestone Well, 25°16'59"S_ 119°10'33"E, 26/8/

2001, W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M.

Waldock’, WAM 32951. In spirit.

Description (number examined, 1) Figs 61-66

Habitus. Length 4.2 mm; relatively flat,

strongly constricted at junction of pronotum/

elytra; uniformly light testaceous; hindwing

vestigial, about one-half length of elytron.

Head. About as wide as elytra; smooth,

moderately reticulate with small meshes,

punctures sparse, very small; subparallel in

posterior half, widest in middle behind eye

remnant; eye remnant reduced to two well-

separated short sutures at side of head. Antenna

very thin, segments subequal, apical segment a bit

longer than penultimate (Fig. 66). Maxillary

palpus thin, elongate, apical segment about same

length as segments 1 to 3 combined.

Pronotum. As wide as elytra; anteriolateral

angles projecting strongly forward; base quite

strongly narrowed, posterolateral angles obtuse;

smooth, moderately reticulate, meshes small;

punctures sparse, weak; basal plicae weak,

straight, reaching to about one-quarter way along

pronotum; with row of long setae laterally, denser

towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest behind middle,

smooth, sparsely covered with small shallow

punctures, row of long setae near lateral edge, a

few additional larger punctures with long setae,

more frequent towards sides. Epipleuron weakly

differentiated, that portion of elytron visible

ventrally broad in anterior fifth, then rapidly

narrowing to be virtually absent along rest of

elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process moderately

broad, strongly narrowed between coxae, not

reaching mesothorax, apical half almost parallel-

sided, tip rounded, strongly arched in lateral view

with highest point (viewed ventrally) between

coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at midline.

Metasternum bluntly triangular in front in midline;

wings short, very narrow; broadly rounded in

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

midline behind; reaching a little beyond midway

to metacoxae. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines weakly defined, relatively close, moderately

widely spaced, reaching nearly to metasternum,

evenly diverging; a few small setae-bearing

punctures towards midline; finely reticulate;

closely adpressed to first abdominal ventrite.

Ventrites 1 and 2 fused, sutural lines distinct

towards midline, becoming indistinct laterally,

ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, sparsely covered with

small seta-bearing punctures, weakly reticulate,

ventrites 3 and 4 with a long central seta or bunch

of long setae.

Legs. Protibia very narrow, slightly bowed,

widest past middle where it is about three times

its basal width; protarsi expanded, segment 1

round, segment 2 a little broader and a little

shorter, segment 3 about twice as long and as

broad as segment 1 and very deeply bifid, segment

4 very small and hidden within lobes of segment

3, segment 5 narrow, cylindrical, about length of

segment 3, segments 1 to 3 with very dense

covering of adhesive setae; claws short and

simple. Mesotrochanter elongate with row of setae

on inner edge; mesofemur with two comb-like

rows of spines along hind edge (Fig. 64);

mesotibia narrow, more strongly bowed than

protibia; mesotarsi narrower than protarsi.

Metatrochanter tip rounded (Fig. 65); metafemur

elongate, lacking spines; metatibia thin, curved,

widening towards apex; metatarsi elongate,

segment | longest, segment 5 a little longer than

segment 4, segments | and 2 in combination about

as long as others; claws weak.

Male. Female not known. Median lobe of

aedeagus progressively narrowing to near apex

where it rapidly narrows to blunt tip; paramere

narrow, apical portion without well separated

apical lobe, apical segment with inner half with

different surface texture to outer (Figs 61-63).

Etymology

Named after the type locality.

Remarks

A relatively large species with numerous

characters setting it apart from other Australian

stygobitic Bidessini. Most noticeably the long thin

antenna, bowed mesotibia and unusually thin legs.

The species will key to Bidessodes in Bistrom

(1988) and the male genitalia resemble B

flavosignatus (Zimmermann). DNA sequence data

(Cooper et al 2002) somewhat distantly groups it

with the previous species, B. gutteridgei sp. nov.,

and with B. bilita and B. mjobergi. Its large size

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 157

Hamat

66 |T!

FIGURES 61-66. Bidessodes limestoneensis: 61, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 62, ditto dorsal view; 63,

paramere; 64, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 65, metatrochanter and metafemur; 66 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents | mm (habitus only).

and thin prolegs readily separate it from B.

gutteridgei. Additional studies incorporating more

specimens of Australian Bidessodes (which DNA

sequence data strongly suggest are not closely

related to the South American Bidessodes) and

additional specimens are needed to confirm the

placement of B. limestoneensis with the

Australian Bidessodes.

Nirripirti Watts & Humphreys

Nirripirti darlotensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 6635, Melrose Station (Lake

Darlot), mineral exploration bore near Halfpenny

Well, 27°41'48"S 121°20'22"E, 13/5/2001, coll.

W.F. Humphreys, C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’,

WAM 32963. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 11, 7 (2 partial) as for holotype, 5 (2

partial) WAM 32964-32968, 2 SAMA; 2, as for

holotype except ‘BES 6636’, WAM 32969-—

32970; 2, as for holotype except ‘BES 6639’,

SAMA.

Description (number examined, 12) Figs 67-72

Habitus. Length 3.5-4.1 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, slightly pug-nosed, moderately

constricted at junction of pronotum/elytra;

uniformly light testaceous; hindwing reduced to

one-third length of elytron.

Head. Large, almost as wide as elytra; smooth,

very weakly reticulate, scattered small punctures

and dense band of setiferous punctures across

rear; sides subparallel in posterior half; eye

remnant reduced to a small suture in middle near

edge. Antenna thin, segments 1 and 2 cylindrical,

segments 3 to 10 subequal with segment 7 largest,

segment 11 a bit longer than segment 10.

Maxillary palpus thin, elongate, segment 4 a little

longer than segment 3.

Pronotum. About as wide as_ elytra;

anteriolateral angles thin, projecting strongly

forward; moderately narrowed before base, sides

slightly sinuate; posterolateral angles obtuse;

158 CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

virtually impunctate except for band of strong

punctures along front margin; long lateral setae

restricted to apical third.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate/oval, widest behind middle,

smooth, a few scattered very small punctures, a

row of punctures adjacent to suture; a few

additional larger punctures with long setae, more

frequent towards sides. Setiferous micropunctures

over most of underside, denser at base, apex and

along suture line. Epipleuron not differentiated

from rest of elytron, that part of elytron visible

ventrally relatively broad for almost the whole

length of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process very narrow

between coxae, not reaching mesothorax, apical

half narrowly spatulate, point rounded, strongly

arched in lateral view with highest point (viewed

ventrally) between coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at

midline. Metasternum triangularly pointed in front

in midline; wings very narrow, short; broadly

rounded in midline behind. Metacoxal plates

large, metacoxal lines absent; virtually

impunctate; closely adpressed to first abdominal

ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused, sutural lines

distinct in inner half indistinct towards sides,

ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, virtually impunctate

except for a few long central seta or bunch of

long setae.

Legs. Protibia narrow, widest a little past

middle where it is about four times its very narrow

basal width; protarsi moderately expanded,

segment 1 transversely oval, segment 2 about size

of segment 1, segment 3 about twice length of

segment 2, deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and

hidden within lobes of segment 3, segment 5

narrow, cylindrical, about length of segment 3,

segments | to 3 with dense covering of adhesive

setae; claws short and simple. Mesotrochanter

elongate with a few fine setae at apex; mesofemur

with row of seven to eight relatively long but

weak spines along hind edge in basal half;

mesotarsi less expanded than protarsi.

Metatrochanter elongate/oval, tip rounded;

metafemur thin, lacking spines; metatibia weakly

curved, widening slightly towards apex; metatarsi

elongate, segment 1 longest, segments 2 to 4

subequal, in combination segments | and 2 about

same length as others, segments 2 to 5 without

spines other than at apex; claws weak.

Male. Antennae of male slightly stouter than

female. Median lobe of aedeagus broad, flat,

widening at apex; paramere relatively narrow, apex

rounded with small flap of tissue (Figs 67-69).

Y id ¥. \ {

\ ys

72 ZN YN

; YN

FIGURES 67-72. Nirripirti darlotensis: 67, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 68, ditto dorsal view; 69,

paramere; 70, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 71, metatrochanter and metafemur; 72 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents | mm (habitus only).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS

Etymology

Named after the type locality.

Remarks

A large species with the elytra tending to wrap

around the abdomen, and with thin antennae with

segment 3 a bit longer than segment 2. The only

other species to have a broad band of small

setiferous punctures across the back of the head is

the much smaller N. melroseensis which was

collected from the same bore hole.

Nirripirti fortisspina sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 6645, Pinnacles Station,

Site 432, 28°15'27"S 120°07'37"E, 14/5/2001, col.

W.F. Humphreys, C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’,

WAM 32971. Slide mounted.

Paratypes. 15; 13, as for holotype, 7 WAM

32972-32978, 6 SAMA; 2, as for holotype except

‘BES 6646’, SAMA.

73 74 res)

LLLZ_-

76 SS

77 ac

159

Description (number examined, 16) Figs 73-78

Habitus. Length 2.5-3.0 mm. elongate,

relatively flat, weakly constricted at junction of

pronotum/elytra; uniformly light testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, reduced to small flap.

Head. Large, nearly as wide as elytra; smooth,

weakly reticulate with small even meshes, a few

small scattered punctures; sides subparallel in

posterior half; eye remnant reduced to a short

suture near edge. Antenna thin, segments 1 and 2

almost cylindrical, segments 3 to 10

approximately same length, widening slightly

towards their apexes, segments 3 and 4 narrowest,

segment 11 a bit longer and narrower than

segment 10. Maxillary palpus elongate, thin,

segment 4 a little longer than segment 3.

Pronotum. About as wide as _ elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

wider anteriorly, evenly narrowing towards rear,

posterolateral angles obtuse; very weakly

reticulate, virtually impunctate except towards

front margin, numerous long setae at side towards

front.

FIGURES 73-78. Nirripirti fortisspina: 73, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 74, ditto dorsal view; 75,

paramere; 76, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 77, metatrochanter and metafemur; 78 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

160

Elytra. Not fused but tightly locked, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest a bit anterior of

middle, smooth, covered with fine reticulation;

moderate number of relatively large punctures

laterally; underside with dense setiferous

micropunctures at apex and along suture line.

Epipleuron not differentiated from rest of elytron,

that part of elytron visible ventrally broad in

anterior quarter, then gradually narrowing, absent

near apex of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternum very narrow, not

much wider than procoxae; anterior half of

prosternal process almost perpendicular to body,

strongly narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half spatulate, strongly arched

in lateral view with highest point (viewed

ventrally) between coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at

midline. Metasternum only weakly extended

forward in midline; wings very short, narrow;

main portion almost parallel-sided; rounded in

midline behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines absent; weakly reticulate, impunctate; closely

adpressed to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1

and 2 fused, sutural lines distinct, ventrites 3 to 5

mobile, weakly reticulate, virtually impunctate

except for a few long central seta or bunch of

long setae.

Legs. Profemur with small peg-like seta on hind

edge adjacent to trochanter; protibia narrow,

widest past middle where it is about twice its

basal width; protarsi quite strongly expanded,

segment 1 broadly elongate not symmetric, basal

half expanded backwards, apical half more

expanded forwards, segment 2 about one-half

length of segment 1, outer lobe more expanded;

segment 3 as long as segment 1, deeply bifid,

lobes slightly asymmetric; segment 4 very small

and hidden within lobes of segment 3; segment 5

narrow, cylindrical, about length of segment 3,

segments 1 to 3 with dense covering of adhesive

setae; claws short and simple. Mesotrochanter

elongate with a few fine setae at apex; mesofemur

with row of eight to nine very strong spines

closely spaced along hind edge in basal half;

mesotarsi symmetric, less expanded than protarsi.

Metatrochanter narrowly elongate, apical half well

separated from femur; metafemur thin, elongate,

lacking spines; metatibia thin, weakly curved,

approximately the same width throughout;

metatarsi thin, elongate, segment 1 and others

subequal in length, in combination segments 1 and

2 much shorter than others, segments 2 to 5

without spines other than at apex; claws weak.

Male. Little external difference from female.

Median lobe of aedeagus narrowing rapidly in

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

apical quarter; paramere broadest in middle, apical

quarter thin, apex with a bunch of short stout setae

(Figs. 73-75).

Etymology

Latin. ‘Forte spina’ — strong spines.

Remarks

A relatively large distinctive species easily

recognised by the row of strong spines on the

mesofemur and the peculiarly asymmetric protarsi,

as well as the thin elongate metatrochanters and

thin elongate antenna. The prosternum is short

with little area in front of the mesocoxae, resulting

in a very perpendicular anterior portion to the

prosternal process.

Nirripirti hamoni sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8662, Milgun Station,

Earrie Well, 25°07'22"S 118°05'44"E, 28/8/2001,

col. W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M.

Waldock’, WAM 32979. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 3; 2, as for holotype, SAMA; 1, as

for holotype except ‘BES 8661, 27/8/2001’,

WAM 32980.

Description (number examined, 4) Figs 79-84

Habitus. Length 1.7 mm.; relatively broad, flat,

strongly constricted at base of pronotum; elytra

slightly flared at shoulders; uniformly light

testaceous; hindwing vestigial, reduced to tiny flap.

Head. Relatively small, less than width of

elytra; smooth, moderately strong reticulation with

small even meshes, virtually impunctate except a

few near antennae bases; subparallel in posterior

half; eye remnant reduced to a dark suture in

middle near edge. Apical half of antenna relatively

thick, segment 1 cylindrical, segment 2 oval,

segments 3 to 4 much thinner than rest, segments

6 to 7 subequal, broader than segment 5, apical

segment a bit longer and narrower than

penultimate. Maxillary palpus elongate, segment 4

a little longer than segment 3.

Pronotum. A little narrower than elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward

to sharp point, sides strongly curved outwards;

base strongly narrowed, posterolateral angles

acute; strongly reticulate, virtually impunctate

except towards front margin and laterally.

Numerous long setae at sides towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but strongly locked, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest in front of middle,

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS

slightly constricted behind shoulders, smooth,

covered with strong reticulation; moderately and

evenly covered with small punctures; underside of

elytron with a few additional larger punctures with

long setae, more frequent towards sides; with

numerous setiferous micropunctures densest

towards apex and along suture line. Epipleuron

not differentiated from rest of elytron, broad in

anterior fifth, then rapidly narrowing to middle,

virtually absent along rest of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process broad,

strongly narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half oval, strongly arched in

lateral view with highest point (viewed ventrally)

between coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at midline.

Metasternum sharply pointed in front in midline;

wings short, very narrow; narrowly rounded in

midline behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines absent; virtually impunctate, strongly

reticulate with large meshes; closely adpressed to

first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused,

sutural lines distinct except close to sides, ventrites

3 to 5 mobile, virtually impunctate except for a few

long central setae or bunch of long setae.

ee eS

H thm

161

Legs. Profemur noticeably grooved in apical

half to accept protibia; protibia narrow, widest

past middle where it is about three times its basal

width; protarsi expanded, segment 1 broad,

segment 2 about one-half length of segment 1,

segment 3 relatively narrow, as long as segment 1,

deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and hidden

within lobes of segment 3, segment 5 narrow,

cylindrical, about length of segment 3, segments 1

to 3 with dense covering of adhesive setae; claws

short and simple. Mesotrochanter elongate with a

few fine setae at apex; mesofemur with row of

four to five strong spines along hind edge in basal

half; mesotarsi a little less expanded than protarsi.

Metatrochanter relatively small, tip pointed;

metafemur thin, lacking spines; metatibia

relatively stout, very weakly curved,

approximately the same width throughout;

metatarsi relatively stout, segment 1 longest,

segment 5 a little longer than segment 4, segments

1 and 2 in combination much shorter than others,

segments 2 to 5 without spines other than at apex;

claws weak.

Male. Male appendages not known. Median

| HAmoal

FIGURES 79-84. Nirripirti hamoni: 79, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 80, ditto dorsal view; 81,

paramere; 82, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 83, metatrochanter and metafemur; 84 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents | mm (habitus only).

162

lobe of aedeagus narrowing rapidly in apical

quarter; paramere broad at base, apical half thin,

tip with a bunch of long setae (Figs. 79-81).

Etymology

Named after Harold Hamon, the illustrator of

many of these beetles.

Remarks

A relatively small, strongly chitinised species

easily recognised by its flared shoulders and

strongly constricted pronotum and pointed

metatrochanters.

Nirripirti killaraensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 5561, Killara Station, Two

Mile Bore, 26°21'11"S; 118°59'34"E, 5/5/2001,

col. W.F. Humphreys, C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’,

WAM 32981. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 19; 1, as for holotype, SAMA; 1,

‘BES 5597, Killara Station, uncased mineral

exploration bore, Site 130, 26.34194°S;

118.96071°E, 6/5/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys,

C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’, SAMA; 8, ‘BES

8125, Killara Station, Site 130, 26°20'31"S,

118°57'39"E, 21/8/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys, T.

Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, WAM 32928-

32989; 9, ditto, except ‘BES 8128’, SAMA.

Description (number examined, 20) Figs 85-90

Habitus. Length 1.5-1.9 mm; boat-shaped,

relatively flat, weakly constricted at junction of

pronotum/elytra; uniformly light testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, reduced to tiny flap.

Head, Narrower than elytra; smooth,

moderately strong reticulation with small even

meshes, virtually impunctate except a few near

antennae bases arranged in lines; sides slightly

curved; eye remnant reduced to a short suture in

middle near edge. Antenna relatively thick,

segment 1 narrow, cylindrical, segment 2 much

larger, rounded, narrower at base, segments 3 and

4 narrow, segments 6 to 8 a bit wider that others,

segment 11 is 1.5 times longer than penultimate.

Maxillary palpus elongate, apical segment about

as long as other segments combined.

Pronotum. Narrower than elytra; anteriolateral

angles projecting strongly forward; sides weakly

sinuate, posterolateral angles obtuse; quite

strongly reticulate, a few small scattered

punctures. Long setae at sides

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

inner ridges; elongate, widest behind middle,

smooth, covered with fine reticulation; a few

scattered small punctures, a few additional larger

punctures with long setae, more frequent towards

sides, underside with setiferous micropunctures at

base, apex and along suture line. Epipleuron not

differentiated; that portion of elytra visible

ventrally, broad except near tip.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, tip pointed, nearly

reaching mesothorax, apical half parallel with

plane of body, anterior section perpendicular to

plane of body, prosternum short and not much

wider than procoxae. Mesocoxae in contact at

midline. Metasternum bluntly pointed in front in

midline; wings very narrow; broadly rounded in

midline behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines absent; virtually impunctate, reticulate;

closely adpressed to first abdominal ventrite.

Ventrites 1 and 2 fused, sutural lines distinct in

inner three-quarters and indistinct laterally,

ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, virtually impunctate

except for a few long central seta or bunch of

long setae, strongly reticulate, meshes small.

Legs. Protibia narrow, widest past middle where

it is about twice its basal width; protarsi weakly

expanded, segment 1 broadly triangular, segment

2 about one-half length of segment 1, segment 3

as long as segment 1, deeply bifid, segment 4 very

small and hidden within lobes of segment 3,

segment 5 narrow, cylindrical, a little longer than

segment 3, segments | to 3 with dense covering

of adhesive setae; claws short and simple.

Mesotrochanter elongate with a few fine setae at

apex; mesofemur with row of four to five spines

along hind edge in basal half; mesotarsi much

narrower than protarsi. Metatrochanter elongate/

oval, apex bluntly pointed; metafemur elongate,

lacking spines; metatibia almost straight,

approximately the same width throughout;

metatarsi elongate, segment 1 longest, segments 2

to 4 subequal, segments 1 and 2 in combination

about same length as others, segments 2 to 5

without spines other than at apex; claws weak.

Male. Little difference from female. Median

lobe of aedeagus narrowing rapidly in apical

quarter; paramere broad at base, apical half thin,

tip with a bunch of long setae (Figs. 85-87).

Etymology

Named after the pastoral station on which it

was found.

Remarks

A moderately sized, boat-shaped species with

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 163

Wired

85 6

FIGURES 85-90. Nirripirti killaraensis: 85, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 86, ditto dorsal view; 87,

paramere; 88, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 89, metatrochanter and metafemur; 90 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

wrap-around elytra, and a pronotal process with a

long point which nearly reaches the extension of

the metasternum. A little smaller than the other

boat-shaped Western Australian species, N.

skaphites, and with the apex of the

metatrochanters more rounded.

Nirripirti macrocephalus sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: male: ‘BES 8089 NT: Napperby

Station; bore RN 1561@ Herbert Well;

22°54'32"S 132°43'45"E; 18/6/2001. Col. W.F.

Humphreys & R. Read.’, NTM, I 001174. Slide

mounted.

Paratype: 1, as for holotype, SAMA.

Description (number examined, 2) Figs 91-96

Habitus. Length 1.9-2.0 mm.; oval, relatively

flat, strongly constricted at junction of pronotum/

elytra; light testaceous, head a little darker;

hindwing vestigial, reduced to tiny flap.

Head. Large, short, broad, deflexed downwards,

as wide as elytra; smooth, weakly reticulate,

virtually impunctate except a few small ones near

antennae bases; sides subparallel in posterior half;

eye remnant reduced to a short suture in middle.

Antenna thin, segments 1 and 2 cylindrical,

segments 3 and 4 much thinner, 5 to 10 triangular,

broader middle segments slightly larger, segment

11 twice length of segment 10. Maxillary palpus

thin, elongate, segment 4 much longer than

segment 5, some long setae towards apex of

segments.

Pronotum. A little wider than elytra, much

broader then long; anteriolateral angles projecting

strongly forward, anterior edge sinuate; strongly

constricted just before base, posterolateral angles

acute; a few scattered very small punctures;

numerous long setae at sides particularly towards

front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; broad, widest at shoulders, smooth;

weakly reticulate; a few scattered small

punctures, some arranged in rows; a few

additional larger punctures with long setae, more

frequent towards sides; underside of elytron with

numerous, evenly spaced, _ setiferous

micropunctures denser towards apex. Epipleuron

not differentiated, that part of elytron visible

ventrally broad in anterior fifth, rapidly

164

narrowing to be virtually absent along rest of

elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternum short, no longer

than postcoxae, anterior portion of prosternal

process rising perpendicularly with both a forward

and a backward projection, anterior projection

broad, rounded, posterior projection (process)

broad, triangular; not reaching mesothorax.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum

bluntly pointed in front in midline; wings absent;

broadly rounded in midline behind. Metacoxal

plates large, reaching episternum, metacoxal lines

absent; virtually impunctate; closely adpressed to

first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused,

sutural lines distinct in inner half indistinct

laterally, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, virtually

impunctate except for a few long central seta or

bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia very narrow, widest near apex

where it is about twice its basal width; protarsi

moderately expanded, segment 1 broadly

triangular, segment 2 a little shorter, segment 3

longer than segment 1, deeply bifid, segment 4

very small and hidden within lobes of segment 3,

segment 5 narrow, cylindrical, about length of

segment 3, segments | to 3 with long adhesive

91 92 wi)

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

setae; claws short and simple. Mesotrochanter

elongate/ oval, with a few fine setae at apex;

mesofemur with row of four strong spines along

hind edge in basal half; mesotibia curved,

moderately flanged on inside near apex, mesotarsi

simple, not expanded. Metatrochanter oval;

metafemur elongate, lacking spines; metatibia

stout, curved, moderately widening towards apex;

metatarsi elongate, segment 1 longest, segment 4

shortest, in combination segments 1 and 2 a little

shorter than others, all segments without spines

other than at apex; claws weak.

Male. Little difference from female. Median

lobe of aedeagus broad, narrowing rapidly in

apical quarter to sharp point, apical portion of

paramere twisted, apex rounded (Figs 91-93).

Etymology

Latin. ‘Macrocephalus’— big head; a reference

to its unusually large deflexed head.

Remarks

A distinctive, moderate sized, well chitinised

species, easily recognised by its very broad

deflexed head as well as its thin legs and strongly

constricted pronotum.

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FIGURES 91-96. Nirripirti macrocephalus: 91, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 92, ditto dorsal view; 93,

paramere; 94, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 95, metatrochanter and metafemur; 96 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS

Nirripirti melroseensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 6635, Melrose Station (Lake

Darlot), mineral exploration bore near Halfpenny

Well, 27°41'48"S; 121°20'22"E, 13/5/2001, coll.

W.F. Humphreys, C.H.S. Watts & S. Cooper’,

WAM 32990. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 23; 10, as for holotype, SAMA; 2,

as for holotype except ‘BES 6639’, WAM 32991 -

32992; 11, as for holotype except ‘BES 6636’,

WAM 33927-33937.

Description (number examined, 24) Figs 97-102

Habitus. Length 1.8-2.0 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, weakly constricted at junction of

pronotum/elytra; uniformly light testaceous;

hindwing reduced to one-third length of elytron.

Head. Much narrower than elytra; smooth,

strongly reticulate with small even meshes,

moderately dense band of setiferous punctures

across rear; sides subparallel in posterior half;

eye remnant reduced to a suture in middle at

side. Antenna relatively thick, segment 1 robust,

(vy

peed

TT \

GoD

165

cylindrical, segment 2 a little wider and more

oval, segments 3 to 10 narrow and shorter,

subequal, segment 11 about as wide and a bit

longer than segment 10. Maxillary palpus

elongate, apical segment about twice as long as

segment 10.

Pronotum. Much narrower than elytra, about

same width as head; anteriolateral angles

projecting strongly forward; sides narrowing

slightly posteriorly, posterolateral angles obtuse;

strongly reticulate, virtually impunctate except

towards front margin and rear corners. Long setae

at sides, more extensive towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, almost parallel-sided,

smooth, covered with fine reticulation; a few

scattered small punctures, several rows of widely

spaced small punctures; a sparse row of large

shallow punctures adjacent to suture; a few

additional larger punctures with long setae, more

frequent towards sides; underside of elytron with

quite dense setiferous micropunctures at apex and

narrowly along suture line. Epipleuron not

differentiated, that part of elytron visible ventrally

Al \—=

102

FIGURES 97-102. Nirripirti melroseensis: 97, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 98, ditto dorsal view; 99,

paramere; 100, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 101, metatrochanter and metafemur; 102 dorsal view. Scale bar

represents | mm (habitus only).

166

moderately broad in anterior quarter, then

gradually narrowing to apex.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half relatively narrow, parallel-

sided, tip pointed, strongly arched in lateral view

with highest point (viewed ventrally) between

coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at midline.

Metasternum bluntly pointed in front in midline;

wings short, very narrow; broadly rounded in

midline behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines absent; strongly reticulate, virtually

impunctate; closely adpressed to first abdominal

ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 possibly fused, sutural

lines distinct, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, moderately

reticulate, virtually impunctate except for a few

long central setae or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia elongate, relatively broad, widest

near apex where it is about three times its basal

width; protarsi weakly expanded, segment 1

cylindrical, segment 2 about one-half length of

segment 1, segment 3 as long as segment 1,

deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and hidden

within lobes of segment 3, segment 5 narrow,

cylindrical, about one-half length of segment 3,

segments 1 to 3 with covering of adhesive setae;

claws short and simple. Mesotrochanter elongate

with a few fine setae at apex; mesofemur with

row of four to five strong spines along hind edge

in basal half; mesotarsi a little less expanded than

protarsi. Metatrochanter elongate/oval, apex

somewhat truncated; metafemur thin, lacking

spines; metatibia moderately curved, widening

somewhat towards apex; metatarsi elongate,

segment 1 longest, segment 4 shortest, in

combination segments 1 and 2 slightly shorter

than others, segments 2 to 5 without spines other

than at apex; claws weak.

Male. Little external difference between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus broad, widening

slightly at apex; paramere broad, narrowing

towards apex, apex bent over (Figs 97-99).

Etymology

Named after the pastoral station on which it

was found.

Remarks

A moderate sized, elongate species, with head

and pronotum about the same width and much

narrower than elytra, rather squat metatrochanters

and thin metafemurs and metatibia which are

strongly curved in Bidessine fashion. Across the

rear of the head is a relatively wide band of small

setiferous punctures which are otherwise only

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

present in the much larger N. darlotensis, which

was found in the same bore hole.

Nirripirti milgunensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8661 Milgun Station, Earrie

Well, 25°07'22"S; 118°05'44"E, 27/8/2001, col.

W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’,

WAM 32993. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 4; 1, as for holotype, SAMA; 3 (1

partial), as for holotype except ‘BES 8662, 28/8/

2001’, 2 (1 partial) WAM 32994-32995, 1

SAMA.

Description (number examined, 5) Figs 103-108

Habitus. Length 1.2-1.3 mm; elongate, almost

parallel-sided, relatively flat, very weakly

constricted at junction of pronotum/elytra;

uniformly light testaceous; hindwing vestigial,

reduced to tiny flap.

Head. Large, nearly as wide as elytra; smooth,

moderate reticulation with small even meshes,

virtually impunctate except a few near antennae

bases; subparallel in posterior half; eye remnant

absent. Antenna stout, segment 1 cylindrical,

segment 2 large oval, segments 3 to 5 thinner than

rest, segment 11 about 1.5 times as long as

segment 10. Maxillary palpus stout, segment 4

much longer than segment 3.

Pronotum. About as wide as elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward,

sides straight, base not constricted, posterolateral

angles obtuse; quite strongly reticulate, virtually

impunctate except towards front margin; some

long setae at side towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, parallel-sided, smooth,

covered with strong reticulation; a few scattered

small punctures; additional larger punctures with

long setae, more frequent towards sides; setiferous

micropunctures over most of underside denser

near base, at apex and along suture line.

Epipleuron not differentiated, that part of elytron

visible ventrally broad in anterior fifth, then

progressively narrowing to near apex.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process relatively

narrow, strongly narrowed between coxae, not

reaching mesothorax, apical half spatulate, tip

pointed, strongly arched in lateral view with

highest point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum

broadly pointed in front in midline; wings short,

narrow; bluntly triangular in midline behind.

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 167

Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal lines absent;

virtually impunctate; moderately reticulate; closely

adpressed to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1

and 2 fused, sutural lines distinct in inner half

indistinct laterally, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile,

virtually impunctate except for a few long central

seta or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Profemur relatively stout; protibia narrow,

widest at apex where it is about three times its

basal width; protarsi quite strongly expanded,

segment | broadly triangular, segment 2 not much

shorter that segment 1, segment 3 as long as

segment 1, deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and

hidden within lobes of segment 3, segment 5

narrow, broadening towards apex, a little curved,

about length of segment 3; segments | to 3 a little

asymmetric with the outer lobe larger than inner,

with dense covering of adhesive setae; claws short

and simple. Mesotrochanter elongate/oval with a

few fine setae at apex; mesofemur with row of

four to five strong spines along hind edge in basal

half; mesotarsi much less expanded than protarsi.

Metatrochanter large, oval, tip separated from

H. harea eh

metafemur; metafemur stout, lacking spines;

swimming-hairs sparse; metatibia weakly curved,

widening slightly towards apex; metatarsi stout,

elongate, impunctate, segment 1 longest, segment

5 twice the length of segment 4, segments 2 and 3

subequal, segments 1 and 2 in combination about

as long as others, segments 2 to 5 without spines

other than at apex; claws weak.

Male. Little difference from female. Median

lobe of aedeagus narrowing rapidly in apical

quarter; paramere broad at base, apical half thin,

tip with a bunch of long setae (Figs. 103-105).

Etymology

Named after the pastoral station on which it

was found.

Remarks

A very small species, virtually lacking any trace

of an eye remnant, pronotum not constricted,

strong spines on the mesofemur, large

metatrochanters, and metatarsal segment 4 only

about one-half the length of segment 3.

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FIGURES 103-108. Nirripirti milgunensis: 103, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 104, ditto dorsal view;

105, paramere; 106, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 107, metatrochanter and metafemur; 108 dorsal view. Scale

bar represents | mm (habitus only).

168

Nirripirti napperbyensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8091. NT: Napperby

Station., Bore RN 1561 at Herbert Well,

22°54'32"S 132°43'45"E, 17/6/2001, Col. W.F.

Humphreys & R. Read’, NTM I 001175. Slide

mounted.

Paratypes: 7; 5, as for holotype, 2 WAM

32996-32997, 3 SAMA; 2, as for holotype except

‘BES 8090’, WAM 32998-32999.

Description (number examined, 8) Figs 109-114

Habitus. Length 1.7-1.8 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, weakly constricted at junction of

pronotum/elytra; light testaceous, head a little

darker; hindwing vestigial, reduced to tiny flap.

Head. Large, broad, a little narrower than

elytra; smooth, very weakly reticulate, a few very

small scattered punctures; sides slightly

converging towards rear; eye remnant reduced to

a very short suture Antenna relatively thick,

109

110

112

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

segment | cylindrical, segment 2 enlarged towards

apex, segments 3 and 4 much shorter and thinner,

segments 5 to 10 similar in shape, middle ones

slightly larger, segment 11 about twice as long as

segment 10. Maxillary palpus stout, elongate,

segment 4 twice as long as segment 3, some long

setae towards apex of segments.

Pronotum. Almost same width as elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

sides weakly curved, weakly constricted before

base; posterolateral angles acute; weakly

reticulate, sparse small punctures, larger punctures

laterally, denser towards front; long setae at sides

in anterior half.

Elytra. Not fused, lacking inner ridges;

elongate, widest behind middle, smooth, very

weakly reticulate, a few scattered small punctures,

several loose rows of widely spaced small

punctures, a few additional larger punctures with

long setae; underside of elytron with numerous

evenly spaced setiferous micropunctures more

frequent towards sides and denser towards apex.

C| [S

7 A

- ®

N 4

KER Sew,

LEB

SSS

Uta orc,

114

FIGURES 109-114. Nirripirti napperbyensis: 109, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 110, ditto dorsal view;

111, paramere; 112, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 113, metatrochanter and metafemur; 114 dorsal view. Scale

bar represents 1 mm (habitus only).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS

Epipleuron not differentiated, that part of elytron

visible ventrally present only at extreme base.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half broad, diamond shaped,

tip sharply pointed, strongly arched in lateral view

with highest point (viewed ventrally) between

coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at midline.

Metasternal plate bluntly pointed in front in

midline; wings short, narrow; broadly rounded in

midline behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines weak, well separated, diverging in anterior

half, not reaching metasternum; virtually

impunctate, weakly reticulate; closely adpressed

to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites fused, sutural

lines distinct in inner half absent laterally,

ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, virtually impunctate

except for a few long central seta or bunch of

long setae.

Legs. Protibia narrow, widest near apex

where it is about twice its basal width; protarsi

moderately expanded, segment 1 broadly

triangular, segment 2 about one-half length of

segment 1, segment 3 as long as segment 1,

deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and hidden

within lobes of segment 3, segment 5 narrow,

cylindrical, about 1.5 times length of segment

3, segments 1 to 3 with adhesive setae; claws

short and simple. Mesotrochanter elongate

with a few fine setae at apex; mesofemur with

row of four strong setae/spines along hind

edge in basal half; mesotarsi narrower and

longer than protarsi. Metatrochanter relatively

large, oval, apex well separated from

metafemur; metafemur relatively stout, lacking

spines; metatibia weakly curved, widening

slightly towards apex; metatarsi with segment

1 longest, segment 4 shortest, in combination

segments 1 and 2 much shorter than others,

segments 2 to 5 without spines other than at

apex; claws weak.

Male. Little external difference between the

sexes. Median lobe of aedeagus short, flat,

narrowing rapidly to sharp tip; paramere broad,

apical half relatively broad, apex rounded (Figs

109-111).

Etymology

Named after the type locality.

Remarks

A moderately sized Northern Territory species

/with the ventrally visible parts of the elytra very

short, and a broad pronotal process with a relative

long sharp tip.

169

Nirripirti newhavenensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 6681: NT: Newhaven

Station, bore RN _ 12787; 22°43'41"S;

131°09'59"E; 15/6/2001. Col. W.F. Humphreys &

A. Russ’, NTM I 001176. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 9; 4, as for holotype, 2 WAM

33000-33001, 2 SAMA; 2, ditto except ‘BES

6665’ WAM 33002-33003; 3, as for holotype

except “BES 6680’, 1 WAM 33004, 2 SAMA.

Description (number examined, 10) Figs 115-120

Habitus. Length 1.5-1.7 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, moderately constricted at junction

of pronotum/elytra; uniformly very light

testaceous; hindwing vestigial, reduced to tiny

flap.

Head. Large, broader than long, nearly as wide

as elytra; smooth, a few scattered small punctures,

moderately reticulate; sides subparallel in

posterior half; eye remnant reduced to a short

broad suture in middle near side. Antenna stout,

segment 1 wide cylindrical, segment 2 large oval,

segments 3 and 4 much shorter and narrower,

segments 5 and 6 approximately the same shape

but narrower at base, segments 7 to 8 same shape

becoming progressively slightly narrower,

segment 11 nearly twice as long and about same

width as segment 10. Maxillary palpus elongate,

segment 4 longer than segment 3, some long setae

towards apex of segments.

Pronotum. About as wide as elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

base moderately narrowed, posterolateral angles

obtuse; moderately reticulate, virtually impunctate

except for some relatively strong punctures

towards sides and front margin. Long setae at

sides particularly towards the front.

Elytra. Not fused, lacking inner ridges;

elongate, sides narrowing slightly towards apex,

smooth, moderately reticulate, disc covered with

moderately sized punctures, absent at sides; a few

additional larger punctures with long setae, more

frequent towards sides; setiferous micropunctures

over much of underside of elytron except towards

sides. Epipleuron not differentiated, that portion

of elytron visible ventrally relatively broad for all

but apical portion of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half spatulate, strongly arched

in lateral view with highest point (viewed

ventrally) between coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at

midline. Metasternum bluntly pointed in front in

170

midline; wings very short; broadly rounded in

midline behind. Metacoxal plates large, reaching

episternum, metacoxal lines absent; moderately

reticulate, virtually impunctate; closely adpressed

to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2

fused, sutural lines distinct, ventrites 3 to 5

mobile, virtually impunctate except for a few long

central setae or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia narrow, widest at apex where it is

about twice its basal width; protarsi quite strongly

expanded, segment | broadly oval, segment 2 about

one-half length of segment 1, segment 3 as long as

segment 1, deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and

hidden within lobes of segment 3, segment 5

narrow, cylindrical, about 1.5 times length of

segment 3, segments 1 to 3 with dense covering of

adhesive setae; claws short and simple.

Mesotrochanter narrowly oval with a few fine setae

at apex; mesofemur with row of four to five strong

spines along hind edge in basal half; mesotarsi not

expanded, much narrower and longer than protarsi.

Metatrochanter large, bluntly pointed, apex well

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

separated from metafemur; metafemur relatively

broad, lacking spines; metatibia weakly curved,

widening slightly towards apex; metatarsi relatively

stout, segment 1 longest, segment 4 shortest, in

combination segments 1 and 2 much shorter than

others, segments 2 to 5 without spines other than at

apex; claws weak.

Male. Little difference from female. Median

lobe of aedeagus narrowing rapidly in apical

quarter; paramere relatively broad, apex blunt

(Figs 115-117).

Etymology

Named after the type locality.

Remarks

A relatively small, lightly chitinised species

with a large second antennal segment and the

sides of the elytra wrapping over the abdomen for

most of their length. Separated from the relatively

similar N. wedgeensis by its larger size and quite

strongly constricted base of the pronotum.

115 116 =

O iS

118 IG Ss!

KA |

f RO yj;

ae Wat

119 120 | ‘

LN H

FIGURES 115-120. Nirripirti newhavenensis: 115, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 116, ditto dorsal view;

117, paramere; 118, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 119, metatrochanter and metafemur; 120, dorsal view. Scale

bar represents 1 mm (habitus only).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 171

Nirripirti pentameres sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 6687: NT: Newhaven

Station, Camel Well RN 15494, 22°22'56"S

131°11'23"E, 15/6/2001, col. W.F. Humphreys &

A. Russ’, NTM I 001177. Slide mounted.

Description (number examined, 1) Figs 121-126

Habitus. Length 2.2 mm; elongate, relatively

flat, slightly depressed in sutural region, not

constricted at junction of pronotum/elytra;

uniformly light testaceous; hindwing vestigial,

reduced to tiny flap.

Head. Large, narrower than elytra; smooth, very

weakly reticulate, scattered small punctures; sides

slightly converging in posterior half; eye remnant

reduced to a short suture in middle near edge.

Antenna relatively thin, segment 1 stout

cylindrical, segment 2 slightly oval, segments 3

and 4 much thinner and shorter, segments 5 to 10

triangular, middle segments slightly larger,

segment 11 nearly twice length of segment 10.

Maxillary palpus elongate, segment 4 longer than

segment 3.

eee

Pronotum. About as wide as_ elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

sides weakly diverging posteriorly, not narrowed

at base, posterolateral angles acute; scattered small

punctures denser at sides; some long setae at sides

in anterior half.

Elytra. Not fused, lacking inner ridges;

elongate, widest in middle, smooth, a few

scattered small punctures; a few additional larger

punctures with long setae, more frequent towards

sides; underside with scattered setiferous

micropunctures over most of surface, denser

towards apex and along suture line. Epipleuron

weakly differentiated from rest of elytron, that

part of elytron visible ventrally broad in anterior

quarter, then gradually narrowing to middle,

virtually absent along rest of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process damaged in

specimen, Mesocoxae in contact at midline.

Metasternum sharply pointed in front in midline;

wings very narrow; broadly rounded in midline

behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal lines

absent; with sparse uniform covering of small

punctures; closely adpressed to first abdominal

ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused, sutural lines

126

FIGURES 121-126. Nirripirti pentameres: 121, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 122, ditto dorsal view;

123, paramere; 124, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 125, metatrochanter and metafemur; 126, dorsal view. Scale

bar represents | mm (habitus only).

172

distinct, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, moderate number

of small punctures and a few long setae or small

bunch of long setae in the middle of each

segment.

Legs. Protibia narrow, widest near apex where

it is about twice its basal width; protarsi not

expanded, segments 1 to 3 relatively small,

subequal, segment 3 weakly bilobed, segment 4

about one-third length of segment 3, not hidden in

lobes of segment 3, segment 5 robust, cylindrical,

about twice the length of segment 3, segments 1

to 3 without adhesive setae; claws relatively

strong. Mesotrochanter elongate with a few fine

setae at apex; mesofemur with row of five to six

strong spines along hind edge in basal half;

mesotarsi similar to protarsi. Metatrochanter

elongate/oval; metafemur elongate, lacking spines;

metatibia weakly curved, approximately the same

width throughout; metatarsi elongate, segment 1

longest, segment 4 shortest, in combination

segments 1 and 2 a little shorter than others,

segments 2 to 5 without spines other than at apex;

claws weak.

Male. Female unknown. Median lobe of

aedeagus short, broad, flat with sharp tip;

paramere with relatively broad apical half, apex

rounded (Figs 121-123).

Etymology

Latin. ‘Penta meres’ — five segments; based on

its obviously five-segmented protarsus.

Remarks

A moderate sized, distinctive species, with

narrow protibia, small head and no constriction at

the junction of pronotum and elytra. The pro- and

mesotarsi are elongate, cylindrical, with the third

segment only weakly bifid, exposing the relatively

large fourth segment. This trend is also apparent

in other Northern Territory Nirripirti but is more

pronounced in this species.

Nirripirti plutonicensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8606; Three Rivers Station,

bore MB4 Plutonic Borefield; 25°16'43"S

119°11'00"E; 26/8/2001. coll. W.F. Humphreys,

T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, WAM 33005.

Slide mounted.

Paratypes 97; 11, as for holotype, 4 WAM

33006-33009, 5 SAMA; 8, ‘BES 8651, Three

Rivers Station, Limestone Well, 25°16'43"S

119°11'00"E, 26/8/2001, coll. W.F. Humphreys,

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, 7 WAM 33010—

33016, 1 SAMA; 7 ditto except ‘BES 8625’, 3

WAM 33017-33019, 4 SAMA; 9, ‘BES 8620,

Three Rivers Station, MB5, Plutonic Borefield,

25°16'43"S 119°11'00"E, 26/8/2001, coll. W.F.

Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, 5

WAM 33020-33024, 4 SAMA; 41, ‘BES 8611/2,

Three Rivers Station, Site 312, disused production

bore, Plutonic’ Borefield, 25.26745°S

119.16398°E, 26/8/2001, coll. W.F. Humphreys,

T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, 10 WAM 33793-

33802, 31 SAMA; 2, ‘BES 8639, Three Rivers

Station, bore MB1, Plutonic Borefield,

25.29213°S 119.18107°E, 26/8/2001, coll. W.F.

Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’,

SAMA; 16, ‘BES 8656/7, Three Rivers Station,

bore MB2, Plutonic Borefield, 25.27360°S

119.17200°E, 26/8/2001, coll. W.F. Humphreys,

T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’, 10 WAM 33803-—

33812, 6 SAMA; 3 (1 partial), ‘BES 8642, Three

Rivers Station, new unused bore next to Gascoyne

River; 25.11780°S 119.15115°E, 27/8/2001, coll.

W.F. Humphreys, T. Karanovic & J.M. Waldock’,

SAMA.

Description (number examined, 98) Figs 127-132

Habitus. Length 3.0-3.5 mm; elongate oval,

relatively flat, moderately constricted at junction

of pronotum/elytra; uniformly testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, reduced to tiny flap.

Head. Large about same width as pronotum;

smooth, moderately strong reticulation with small

even meshes, virtually impunctate except a few

near antennae bases; subparallel in posterior half;

eye remnant reduced to short faint suture, not

always visible. Antenna relatively thin, segments

3 to 4 thinner than rest, segment 11 a bit longer

and narrower than segment 10. Maxillary palpus

elongate, segment 4 a little longer than segment 3.

Pronotum. A little narrower than elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

base weakly narrowed, posterolateral angles

obtuse; quite strongly reticulate, moderate number

of scattered punctures and row along front margin.

Sides with numerous long setae particularly

towards front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking inner

ridges; elongate, nearly parallel-sided, smooth,

covered with moderately strong reticulation;

sparsely covered with small punctures, several

indistinct rows of widely spaced small punctures; a

few additional larger punctures with long setae,

more frequent towards sides, underside covered

with setiferous micropunctures, denser towards

apex and along suture line. Epipleuron not

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 173

differentiated from rest of elytron, that part of

elytron visible ventrally broad in anterior fifth, then

rapidly narrowing to middle.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process quite

narrow, strongly narrowed between coxae, not

reaching mesothorax, apical half spatulate, tip

rounded; strongly arched in lateral view with

highest point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum

bluntly pointed in front in midline; wings absent;

broadly rounded in midline behind. Metacoxal

plates large, metacoxal lines absent; virtually

impunctate; strongly reticulate; closely adpressed

to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2

fused, sutural lines distinct in inner half indistinct

laterally, ventrites 3 to 5 mobile, virtually

impunctate except for a few long central seta or

bunch of long setae.

Legs. Profemur with weak peg-like seta on hind

edge adjacent to trochanter; protibia narrow,

almost parallel-sided in apical half; protarsi

expanded, segment 1 broad, segment 2 about one-

half length of segment 1, segment 3 as long as

4. WAReg

segment 1, deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and

hidden within lobes of segment 3, segment 5

narrow, cylindrical, about length of segment 3,

segments | to 3 with dense covering of adhesive

setae; claws short and simple. Mesotrochanter

elongate with a few fine setae at apex; mesofemur

with row of six to eight strong spines along hind

edge in basal half; mesotarsi a little less expanded

than protarsi. Metatrochanter elongate/oval;

metafemur thin, elongate, lacking spines;

metatibia very weakly curved, approximately the

same width throughout; metatarsi elongate,

segment 1 much longer than others, segment 5

about 1.5 times length of segment 4, segments 2

and 3 subequal in length, segments 1 and 2 in

combination a little longer than others, segments

2 to 5 without spines other than at apex; claws

weak.

Male. Little external difference between sexes.

Median lobe of aedeagus sinuate in lateral view,

narrowing to sharp point in apical half; paramere

broad at base, apical half thin, tip with a bunch of

long setae (Figs 127-129).

H.W Amon,

1327 \

FIGURES 127-132. Nirripirti plutonicensis: 127, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 128, ditto dorsal view;

129, paramere; 130, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 131, metatrochanter and metafemur; 132, dorsal view. Scale

bar represents | mm (habitus only).

174

Etymology

Named after the borefield in which it was

found.

Remarks

A large strongly chitinised species with elytra

not wrapping around abdomen, without

metasternal wings, long thin hind legs and

narrowly oval metatrochanters.

Nirripirti skaphites sp. nov

Types

Holotype: m: ‘Karalundi, unlined well, 26°08'S;

118°41'E, 28/5/2001, coll.# 339-2 C.H.S. & G.A.

Watts’, WAM 33813. Slide mounted.

Paratypes: 3, as for holotype, 2 SAMA, 1

WAM 33814.

Description (number examined, 4) Figs 133-138

Habitus. Length 2.1-2.3 mm; elongate, boat-

shaped, relatively flat, not constricted at junction

of pronotum/elytra; uniformly light testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, reduced to tiny flap.

0 =S—>

137

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

Head. Small, about half width of elytra;

smooth, moderately strong reticulation with small

even meshes, virtually impunctate except a few

near antennae bases and on disc; sides slightly

curved in posterior half; eye remnant reduced to a

short suture in middle near anterior edge. Antenna

moderately thick, segment 1 cylindrical, segment

2 widening towards apex, segments 3 to 10

approximately equal in length, widening

progressively to segment 5, segment 11 about

twice length of segment 10. Maxillary palpus

elongate, segment 4 about twice length of segment

Pronotum. Narrower than elytra; anteriolateral

angles projecting strongly forward; sides slightly

diverging towards rear; posterolateral angles

obtuse; strongly reticulate, a few small scattered

punctures; numerous long setae at sides towards

front.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest in middle, smooth,

covered with fine reticulation; a few scattered

small punctures, underside with a few setiferous

micropunctures at apex, a few additional larger

punctures with long setae, more frequent towards

FIGURES 133-138. Nirripirti skaphites: 133, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 134, ditto dorsal view; 135,

paramere; 136, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 137, metatrochanter and metafemur; 138, dorsal view. Scale bar

represents 1 mm (habitus only).

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 175

sides. Epipleuron not differentiated, that part of

elytron visible ventrally very broad until close to

apex of elytron.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half broadly spatulate, weakly

pointed, strongly arched in lateral view with

highest point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum

pointed in front in midline; wings short; broadly

rounded in midline behind. Metacoxal plates

large, metacoxal lines absent; a few small

scattered very small punctures; closely adpressed

to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2

fused, sutural lines distinct in inner two-thirds but

absent laterally, ventrites 3 to 5 possibly

immobile, virtually impunctate except for a few

long central seta or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Protibia narrow, widest near apex

where it is about twice its basal width; protarsi

weakly expanded, segment 1 rectangular,

segment 2 about one-half length of segment 1,

segment 3 about as long as segment 1, deeply

bifid, segment 4 very small and hidden within

lobes of segment 3, segment 5 narrow,

cylindrical, about twice length of segment 3,

segments 1 to 3 with covering of adhesive

setae; claws short and simple. Mesotrochanter

elongate, rather angular, with a few fine setae

at apex; mesofemur with row of five to six

strong spines along hind edge in basal half;

mesotarsi slightly less expanded than protarsi.

Metatrochanter relatively broad, sharply

pointed; metafemur elongate, lacking spines;

metatibia weakly curved, widening a little

towards apex; metatarsi elongate, segment 1

longest, segment 4 shortest, in combination

segments 1 and 2 same length as others,

segments 2 to 5 without spines other than at

apex; claws weak.

Male. Antenna a little stouter. Median lobe of

the aedeagus narrow, narrowing in apical quarter;

paramere broad at base, apical half thin, tip with a

long setae (Figs 133-135).

Etymology

Latin. “Skaphites’ — boat-like.

Remarks

A moderate sized species with small head and

no pronotal constriction, which give it a

pronounced boat-like shape. The sharply pointed

metatrochanters are also distinctive and separate it

from the rather similarly shaped but smaller N.

killaraensis.

Nirripirti stegastos sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘Karalundi, un-lined well; 6°08'S;

118°41'E, 28/5/2001, coll. C.H.S. & G.A. Watts’,

WAM 33815.

Paratypes: 2, as for holotype, 1 WAM 33816, 1

SAMA.

Description (number examined, 3) Figs 139-144

Habitus. Length 3.6-3.8 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, slightly depressed in sutural region,

weakly constricted at junction of pronotum/elytra;

uniformly light testaceous; hindwing vestigial,

reduced to tiny flap.

Head. A little narrower than elytra; smooth,

moderate reticulation with very small even

meshes, a few scattered small punctures; sides

subparallel in posterior half; eye remnant reduced

to a small suture in middle near anterior edge.

Antenna thin, segments 1 and 2 cylindrical,

segment 3 about same length as segment 2 but

much narrower, segment 4 a little shorter,

segments 5 to 9 broader with narrow bases,

segment 6 widest, segment 11 1.5 times length of

segment 10. Maxillary palpus elongate, segment 4

a little longer than segment 3.

Pronotum. A little narrower than elytra;

anteriolateral angles projecting strongly forward;

sides slightly converging towards rear, weakly

constricted just before base, posterolateral angles

obtuse; weakly reticulate, virtually impunctate

except for a row of strong punctures along front

margin; long setae at sides in anterior third;

moderately strongly reticulate with very small

even meshes.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, almost parallel-sided,

smooth, covered with fine reticulation; virtually

impunctate except for a few moderate sized

punctures with long setae, more frequent towards

sides; underside of elytron with dense setiferous

micropunctures towards apex. Epipleuron very

weakly differentiated from rest of elytron, that

part of elytra visible ventrally very broad along

almost the entire length of elytron, tightly

enclosing body.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

mesothorax, apical half narrowly triangular, tip

rounded, strongly arched in lateral view with

highest point (viewed ventrally) between coxae.

Mesocoxae in contact at midline. Metasternum not

produced forward in midline; wings relatively

short, very narrow; broadly rounded in midline

176

H. Hamors.

139 140 1

143 >

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

KIKIDIOO

9299900.

—

= |]

7 S

\ y J

—\ \ SS |)

AW. Hamoek. //

144

FIGURES 139-144. Nirridessus stegastos: 139, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 140, ditto dorsal view;

141, paramere; 142, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 143, metatrochanter and metafemur; 144, dorsal view. Scale

bar represents 1 mm (habitus only).

behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal lines

absent; virtually impunctate; closely adpressed to

first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1 and 2 fused,

sutural lines distinct in inner half, indistinct

laterally, ventrites 2 and 3 possibly fused, ventrites

4 to 5 mobile, virtually impunctate except for a

few long central seta or bunch of long setae; finely

reticulate with small even meshes.

Legs. Protibia very narrow, widest just past

middle where it is about twice its basal width;

protarsi expanded, segment 1 short, broadly

triangular, segment 2 about one-half length of

segment 1, segment 3 about as long as segment 1

but narrower, deeply bifid, segment 4 very small

and hidden within lobes of segment 3, segment 5

narrow, cylindrical, relatively stout, about length

of segment 3, segments 1 to 3 with dense covering

of adhesive setae; claws short and simple.

Mesotrochanter elongate, bluntly pointed, with a

few fine setae at apex; mesofemur with row of

nine strong spines along hind edge in basal two-

thirds; mesotarsi a little narrower and more

elongate than protarsi. Metatrochanter moderately

large, elongate/oval apex rounded; metafemur

elongate, lacking spines; metatibia weakly curved,

widening slightly towards apex; metatarsi

elongate, segment 1 longest, segment 4 shortest,

in combination segments 1 and 2 slightly shorter

than others, segments 2 to 5 without spines other

than at apex; claws weak.

Male. Middle segments of antenna a little more

expanded than in the female. Median lobe of

aedeagus narrow, narrowing in apical quarter;

paramere narrowing in apical half, apex rounded

(Figs 139-141).

Etymology

Latin. ‘Stegastos’ — enclosed; a reference to the

enclosing elytra.

Remarks

A relatively large well chitinised species with

the elytra wrapping around the abdomen for most

of its length.

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS

Nirripirti wedgeensis sp. nov.

Types

Holotype: m: ‘BES 8066, NT: Central Mt

Wedge Station, bore RN 15504 at Coppocks Bore,

22°46'24"S_ 132°06'50"E, 17/6/2001, coll. W.F.

Humphreys & R. Read’, NT I 001178. Slide

mounted.

Paratypes: 5, as for holotype, 2 WAM 33817-

33818, 3 SAMA.

Description (number examined, 6) Figs 145-150

Habitus. Length 1.2-1.4 mm; elongate,

relatively flat, slightly constricted at junction of

pronotum/elytra; uniformly very light testaceous;

hindwing vestigial, reduced to tiny flap.

Head. Short, broad, narrower than elytra;

smooth, moderate reticulation with small even

meshes, virtually impunctate except a few near

antennae bases; slightly wider behind; eye

remnant reduced to a dark suture in middle near

anterior edge. Antenna relatively thick, segment 1

cylindrical, segment 2 broader towards apex,

segment 3 much shorter and narrower, segment 4

145 147

149

177

shorter, segment 5 about same length as segment

3 but wider, segments 6 to 10 subequal, becoming

progressively a little narrower, segment 11 about

twice length of segment 10. Maxillary palpus

stout, segment 4 about twice as long as segment

10.

Pronotum. As wide as elytra; anteriolateral

angles projecting strongly forward; base weakly

constricted, posterolateral angles acute;

moderately reticulate, virtually impunctate except

towards front margin.

Elytra. Not fused but tightly closed, lacking

inner ridges; elongate, widest near shoulders,

smooth, reticulation weak; numerous scattered

small punctures; a few additional larger punctures

with long setae, more frequent towards sides;

underside with numerous _ setiferous

micropunctures at base, apex and along suture

line. Epipleuron not differentiated from rest of

elytron, that part of elytron visible ventrally broad

in anterior quarter, then gradually narrowing to

near apex.

Ventral surface. Prosternal process strongly

narrowed between coxae, not reaching

H Wrhmeet

“ir.

150

FIGURES 145-150. Nirridessus wedgeensis: 145, lateral view of central lobe of aedeagus; 146, ditto dorsal view;

147, paramere; 148, mesotrochanter and mesofemur; 149, metatrochanter and metafemur; 150, dorsal view. Scale

bar represents 1 mm (habitus only).

178 CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

mesothorax, apical half broad, spatulate, strongly

arched in lateral view with highest point (viewed

ventrally) between coxae. Mesocoxae in contact at

midline. Metasternum sharply pointed in front in

midline; wings absent; broadly triangular in

midline behind. Metacoxal plates large, metacoxal

lines absent; virtually impunctate; closely

adpressed to first abdominal ventrite. Ventrites 1

and 2 fused, sutural lines distinct, ventrites 3 to 5

mobile, virtually impunctate except for a few long

central setae or bunch of long setae.

Legs. Profemur broad; protibia narrow, widest

near apex where it is about three times its basal

width; protarsi expanded, segment 1 broadly

triangular, segment 2 about one-half length of

segment 1, segment 3 as long as segment 1,

deeply bifid, segment 4 very small and hidden

within lobes of segment 3, segment 5 narrow,

cylindrical, about length of segment 3, segments |

to 3 with covering of adhesive setae; claws short

and simple. Mesotrochanter elongate with a few

fine setae at apex; mesofemur with row of four to

five strong spines along hind edge in basal half;

mesotarsi a little less expanded than protarsi.

Metatrochanter relatively large, tip well separated

from metafemur, bluntly pointed; metafemur

elongate, lacking spines; metatibia curved,

approximately the same width throughout;

metatarsi elongate, segments 1 and 5 longest,

subequal, segments | and 2 in combination much

shorter than others, segments 2 to 5 without spines

other than at apex; claws weak.

TABLE 1. The distribution of stygal species of dytiscids amongst discrete calcrete bodies in the Yilgarn district of

Western Australia and the Ngalia Basin in the Northern Territory. The separate palaeodrainage systems (Fig. 151)

and the Indian Ocean (Western) and inland drainages are indicated.

Calcrete Palaeovalley Species 1

WESTERN DRAINAGES

1, Cue Murchison Tjirtudessus magnificus

2, Austin Downs Murchison Tjirtudessus challaensis

3, Challa North Murchison Tjirtudessus challaensis

4, Killara Murchison Nirripirti killaraensis sp nov.

5, Windimurra Murchison Tjirtudessus sp. 1

6, Karalundi Murchison Tjirtudessus karalundiensis sp. nov.

7, Three Rivers Station Gascoyne Bidessodes gutteridgei sp. nov.

8, Milgun Station Gascoyne Nirripirti hamoni sp. nov.

9, Landor Station Gascoyne

INLAND DRAINAGES

10, Paroo Carey Tjirtudessus eberhardi

11, Lake Violet Carey Tjirtudessus wilunaensis sp. nov

12, Uramurdah Lake Carey Tjirtudessus hahni

13, Hinkler Well Carey Tjirtudessus hinkleri

14, Mount Windarra Carey Tjirtudessus windarraensis

15, Melrose Station (Lake Darlot) Carey Nirripirti darlotensis sp. nov.

16, Depot Springs Raeside Tjirtudessus fridaywellensis

17, Pinnacles Stn Raeside Tjirtudessus pinnaclesensis

18, Lake Mason Raeside Tjirtudessus raesideensis

19, Yuinmery Raeside Tjirtudessus yuinmeryensis sp. nov.

20, Jundee Carnegie Tjirtudessus jundeeensis sp. nov.

21, Cunyu: Sweetwaters Nabberu Tjirtudessus cunyuensis sp. nov

22, Cunyu: SBF Nabberu Tjirtudessus bialveus sp. nov.

23, Napperby

24, Newhaven

25, Central Mount Wedge

Ngalia Basin: NT

Nirripirti macrocephalus sp nov.

Nirripirti newhavenensis sp. nov.

Nirripirti wedgeensis sp nov.

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 179

Male. Little external difference from female.

Median lobe of aedeagus broad, bluntly pointed;

paramere triangular (Figs 145-147).

Etymology

Named after Central Mount Wedge pastoral

station where it was collected.

Remarks

A very small almost parallel-sided species with

the base of the elytra noticeably wider than the

pronotum, which is only slightly constricted.

Separated from the slightly larger N.

newhavenensis from an adjacent calcrete by the

weakly constricted pronotum.

DISCUSSION

Associated fauna

The faunas associated with the Dytiscidae are

largely unworked at this stage with only the

Copepods having been studied in detail. Hence,

only an indication of the associated fauna is given

here. As is typical of stygofaunas, the associated

fauna is predominantly Crustacean including

Bathynellacea (Syncarida), Crangonyctoidea,

Ceinidae and Bogidiellidae (Amphipoda),

Oniscidea (Isopoda, including Haloniscus spp.),

Cyclopoida: Cyclopidae; Harpacticoida:

Diosacchidae, Ameiridae, Canthocamptidae

Species 2 Species 3

Tjirtudessus cueensis

Tjirtudessus sp. 2

Nirripirti skaphites sp. nov.

Bidessodes limestoneensis sp. nov.

Nirripirti milgunensis sp. nov.

Tjirtudessus pulpa

Tjirtudessus morgani

Undescribed

Tjirtudessus lapostaae

Nirripirti melroseensis sp. nov.

Nirripirti hinzeae

Nirripirti fortisspina sp nov

Tjirtudessus masonensis

Tjirtudessus silus sp nov.

Tjirtudessus macrotarsus sp nov.

Nirripirti napperbyensis sp nov.

Tjirtudessus pentameres sp nov.

Tjirtudessus bigbellensis

Nirripirti. Undescribed sp.

Species 4

Tjirtudessus sp. 3

Nirripirti stegastos sp. nov.

Nirripirti hamoni sp nov.

Nirripirti plutonicensis sp. nov.

Kintingka kurutjutu

? Nirripirti larvae

Tjirtudessus sweetwatersensis sp nov.

180

CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

TABLE 2. Physicochemical environment recorded for various species of stygal Dytiscidae in the genera Bidessodes,

Nirripirti and Tjirtudessus. A single value or a range of values given. Note that the environment of all sites has not

been recorded.

Species Conductivity Temp. pH DO Depth to/ Calcrete

(mS cm") (°C) (mg L") of water

B. gutteridgei 2.38-3.54 25.1-26.6 7.18-7.96 —- 5-6/7-40 Three Rivers

B. limestoneensis 2.38 25.1 a s)s) - - Three Rivers

N. darlotensis 13.2 25.8 7.70 5.05 - Melrose

N. fortisspina 13.37 23.6 7.43 2.67 ~ Pinnacles

N. hamoni 1.66 25.1 7.78 110.5 Three Rivers

N. killaraensis 3.24 19.6 ~ - ~ Killara calcrete

N. macrocephalus — - - - - - Napperby, NT

N. melroseensis 13:2. 25.8 7.70 5.05 110.5 Melrose

N. milgunensis 1.66 25.1 7.78 - 110.5 Three Rivers

N. napperbyensis - - - - - Napperby, NT

N. newhavenensis 1.98 25.1 2.67/? Newhaven, NT

N. pentameres - — - - - Newhaven, NT

N. plutonicensis 1.82-11.49 25.0-26.6 7.14-7.96 -—- 3.5-5/11-40 Cunyu SBF

N. wedgeensis TAL 24.7 - - 2.5/10 Central Mount

Wedge, NT

T. bialveus 6.63-11.49 25.2-26.4 7.32-7.50 - 3.5/10 Cunyu SBF

T. cunyuensis 8.55 £72 8.30 - 8/0.5 Cunyu Sweetwater

T. jundeeensis - - - - 710.3 Jundee

T. macrotarsus 6.63 25.2 7.32 - 3.5/9.5 Cunyu SBF

T. silus 8.55 17.2 8.30 - 8/0.5 Cunyu Sweetwater

T. sweetwatersensis 8.55 17.2 8.30 - 8/0.5 Cunyu Sweetwater

T. wilunaensis 2.88 18.7 7.30 - - Millbillillie

T. yuinmeryensis 9.39-15.4 21.9-22.2 7.27-7.63 5.22-5.44 2.5/1 Yuinmery

Parastenocaridae (Copepoda) and Ostracoda.

Hydrobiidae (Gastropoda) are important

associates in the Ngalia Basin of the Northern

Territory (Table 3); however, in the Western

Fortescue Plains aquifer in the Pilbara, they occur

with Spelaeogriphacea but no Dytiscidae are

present (Poore & Humphreys 1998). Karanovic

(2003) recently described four new genera and

eight species in five families of Copepoda from

the Yilgarn region of Western Australia collected

as part of this study. Those indicated in Table 3

were directly associated with the dytiscids

collected here. Several species of Haloniscus

occur in some aquifers (Taiti & Humphreys 2001).

Site characteristics and water quality

As in previously reported work on Australian

stygal Dytiscidae, samples were collected from a

range of types of access into the groundwater

calcrete aquifers (Table 1, Fig. 151), including:

monitoring wells in working water borefields,

sometimes within metres of functioning pumps;

piezometers; aquifer exploration bores; uncased

mineral exploration bores; pastoral bores; and

hand dug pastoral wells, some of which would

have been enlarged traditional watering places

(Table 2).

Some of the sites containing stygal dytiscid are

quite saline (22 g L" or greater) (Watts &

Humphreys 2000) whereas others meet salinity

standards for drinking water. Groundwaters in the

Australian arid zone typically have high

concentrations of nitrates (Jacobson 1993); those

recorded in this study had a mean value of

80 mg L" nitrate (range 0-250 mg L”: Fig. 154).

Profiling various groundwaters in the Yilgarn

has not only exposed a great variety of waters but

has also shown that closely adjacent sites are often

quite different, revealing considerable

heterogeneity of groundwater (Table 4; Fig. 153).

Hydrogen sulphide is sometimes encountered in

the water (or disturbed from the sediments). At

Alice Well in the Austin Downs calcrete, greater

than 10 ppm H,S was recorded, far higher even

than that recorded in anchialine systems

containing profuse sulphur bacteria colonies

(Humphreys 1999a,b).

The distribution of the groundwater fauna and

181

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS

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NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 183

Pinnacles 432

Depth m

7.1

7.2

M@ pH

0 20 40

60 80

O Conductivity S/cm

ee ee ee ee ee ee ee eee

0) 1 2

3 4 5 6

@ DOgL-1

foe ge Ng ee oe Ne ht Ne me ee ee ee Nl a ge ee rn ne ee ee ee”

25 25.2

25.4

LC Temperature °C

FIGURE 152. Distribution of physicochemical profiles at the Pinnacles, the type locality of Nirripirti fortisspina

sp. nov.

the physicochemical environment within the

calcrete aquifers appear to be quite heterogeneous,

both within the groundwater profile and between

areas (Figs 152, 153). For example, closely

adjacent bores may yield consistently different

faunas and have different water quality and

profiles (Table 4; Fig. 153). Conversely, waters

with different DO profiles may have rather similar

faunas and provide no clear relationship between

DO concentration and stygofauna (Table 5; Fig.

155). Interpretation of such trends requires a more

detailed knowledge of water quality and

particularly of the section(s) of the profiles

inhabited by the various stygobites. It is possible

that attributes other than water quality, in a

physicochemical sense, are the determinants of

suitability for stygofauna; microbiological

characteristics appear to be important

determinants of the presence of stygofauna in

some German aquifers (H.J. Hahn, pers. comm.,

2002).

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We appreciate assistance in the field from J.

Waldock, R. Read, A. Russ, T. Karanovic, S. Cooper

and G. Watts. Numerous pastoralists and mining

companies and their staff provided invaluable

information and access. Field work in the Northern

Territory was enabled by P. Jolly, and material support

was received from the Water Resources Division,

Department of Lands Planning and Environment,

Northern Territory. R. Read provided planning and

logistical support and he and A. Russ accompanied the

fieldwork. K. Mc Phail is thanked for cleaning up late

drafts of the manuscript.

We would particularly like to thank H. Hamon for the

illustrations and for help in setting out the figures.

This work was supported by funds from the

Australian Biological Resources Study.

184 CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

-10

Depth m

72)

-20

DO gL-1

Depth m

7.6 7.7 7.8 7.9

-20

-24

2.8 2.9 3 3.1

Conductivity S/cm

FIGURE 153. Profiles of physicochemical parameters through the water column of bores in the Hinkler calcrete

(Table 4). The two bores, denoted N (north) and S (south), were drilled for the Main Roads Department at the same

time to supply water and are less than 30 m apart. They have consistently yielded different fauna, even before they

were used for water abstraction.

NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 185

TABLE 4. The distribution of taxa between the two TABLES. The distribution of taxa between bores in the

adjacent bores depicted in Fig. 153 Lake Violet area, depicted in Fig. 155

Taxon North South Taxon Pumpl1 OB3 OB4 OBS OBI

Amphipoda 4 3 Ostracoda 255 - - 9 66

Bathynellacea 98 431 Amphipoda 16 - 15 - 12

Dytiscidae 99 5 Bathynellacea 2 1 1 2 3

Copepoda 20 0 Dytiscidae 8 - 1 - 13

Copepoda 9 3 4 27 47

Count

0 100 200 300

NO3

FIGURE 154. Distribution of iron (II) and nitrate in water samples from the Yilgarn groundwater calcrete samples.

Upper: iron (II) (mg L" Fe**) and lower: nitrate (mg L” nitrate)

186 CHS WATTS & WF HUMPHREYS

Depth m

FIGURE 155. The vertical distribution of oxygen in the Lake Violet borefield area, an area of major water

abstraction and the type area for Tjirtudessus wilunaensis sp. nov. The profiles are all from monitoring bores

closely adjacent to an actively pumping well-field. P1 is the observation bore (OB1) for Pump | as denoted in

Table 5.

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(Coleoptera, Dytiscidae). Acta Zoologica Fennica

184: 1-541.

Balke M, Watts CHS, Cooper SJB, Humphreys WF &

Vogler AP. 2003 A highly modified stygobiont

diving beetle of the genus Copelatus (Coleoptera,

Dytiscidae): taxonomy and cladistic analysis based

on mitochondrial DNAsequences. Systematic

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Cooper, S, Hinze, S, Leys, R, Watts, CHS &

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molecular systematics and evolutionary origins of

stygobitic water beetles (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae)

from central Western Australia. Invertebrate

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Humphreys, WF. 1999a. Relict stygofaunas living in

sea salt, karst and calcrete habitats in arid

northwestern Australia contain many ancient

lineages. In W Ponder and D Lunney (eds) ‘The

Other 99%. The Conservation and Biodiversity of

Invertebrates’, pp. 219-227. Transactions of the

Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales,

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Humphreys, WF. 1999b. Physico-chemical profile and

energy fixation in Bundera Sinkhole, an anchialine

remiped habitat in Northwestern Australia. Journal

of the Royal Society of Western Australia 82: 89-98.

Humphreys, WF. 2001. Groundwater calcrete aquifers

in the Australian arid zone: the context to an

unfolding plethora of stygal biodiversity. Jn WF

Humphreys & MS Harvey (eds) ‘Subterranean

Biology in Australia 2000’, pp. 63-83. Records of

the Western Australian Museum, Supplement No. 64.

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Australian arid zone: origin of the nitrate and

possible denitrification technology. Australian

Geological Survey Organisation, Research

Newsletter 16: November 1993.

Karanovic, T. 2003. Subterranean copepods (Crustacea:

Copepoda) from arid Western Australia.

Crustaceana Supplement, in press.

Poore, GCB & Humphreys, WF. 1998. First record of

Spelaeogriphacea from Australasia: a new genus and

species from an aquifer in the arid Pilbara of Western

Australia. Crustaceana 71: 721-742.

Spangler, PJ. 1986. Insecta: Coleoptera. Jn L

Botosaneau (ed) ‘Stygofauna. A Faunistic,

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NEW DYTISCIDAE FROM AUSTRALIAN UNDERGOUND WATERS 187

Taiti, S & Humphreys, WF. 2001. New aquatic Watts, CHS & Humphreys, WF. 2000. Six new species

Oniscidea (Crustacea, Isopoda) from groundwater of Nirridessus and Tyirtudessus (Dytiscidae;

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Supplement No. 64: 133-151. Watts, CHS & Humphreys, WF. 2001. A new genus

Watts, CHS & Humphreys, WF. 1999. Three new and six new species of Dytiscidae (Coleoptera) from

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121-142.

PROVISIONAL CHECKLIST OF THE ASILIDAE (INSECTA : DIPTERA)

OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA, UTILISING AN UPDATED SUBFAMILY

CLASSIFICATION

ROBERT J. LAVIGNE

Summary

A provisional checklist of the Asilidae (robber flies) of South Australia is provided. Distribution

notes for individual species are provided, where available. The higher classification of the Asilidae,

as found in South Australia, is updated.

PROVISIONAL CHECKLIST OF THE ASILIDAE (INSECTA: DIPTERA) OF SOUTH

AUSTRALIA, UTILISING AN UPDATED SUBFAMILY CLASSIFICATION

ROBERT J LAVIGNE

LAVIGNE, RJ. 2003. Provisional checklist of the Asilidae (Insecta: Diptera) of South

Australia, utilising an updated subfamily classification. Records of the South Australian

Museum 36(2): 189-194

A provisional checklist of the Asilidae (robber flies) of South Australia is provided.

Distribution notes for individual species are provided, where available. The higher

classification of the Asilidae, as found in South Australia, is updated.

Robert J. Lavigne [lavigne.robert@saugov.sa.gov.au]. Honorary Research Associate.

*Entomology, South Australia Museum, North Terrace, Adelaide, South Australia 5000; and

Professor Emeritus, Entomology, Department of Renewable Resources, College of Agriculture,

University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82070, USA; *address for correspondence. Revised

manuscript received 9 January 2003.

The purpose of this paper is threefold: a) to

provide currently known distributions of South

Australian robber flies (Insecta: Diptera:

Asilidae), as recorded in the published literature,

and to add to distributions of these predatory flies;

b) to provide citations for biological/behavioural

information for these same robber flies, where

available; and c) to update the classification of

South Australian Asilidae in line with recent

changes in subfamily classification.

Little is known of the distribution of South

Australian robber flies. The first published

reference dealing with species from South

Australia (SA) appeared in the second volume of

the Transactions and Proceedings and Report of

the Philosophical Society of Adelaide, South

Australia for 1878-9. In that volume Otto Tepper

(1879) wrote as follows: “The Asilidae and their

near allies comprise nineteen species, including

the giants of the order, which inhabit Yorke’s

Peninsula and adjacent parts, and measure one and

three quarter inches in length. All are

carnivorous.” Undoubtedly, he was referring to

members of the genus Phellus, which are the

largest known asilids. Unfortunately, no

individual species were listed.

During the 1950s Frank M Hull, author of the

two volume definitive work on the asilid genera

of the world, visited the SA Museum (SAM). As

a result of his visit, he described several species

of Bathypogon (Hull 1958a, b, c, d, 1959), with

the types of the following species being deposited

in the SA Museum: bidentatus (Holotype), calabyi

(Holotype), douglassi (Holotype), flavifemoratus

(Holotype), ichthyurus (Holotype), macrodonturus

(Holotype), nigrotibiatus (Holotype), ochraceus

(Holotype, Allotype, Paratype), ophiurus

(Holotype), robustus (Paratype), rubidapex

(Paratype), rufitarsus (Holotype, Allotype).

However, only five of these species were

described from South Australian specimens:

calabyi, ichthyurus, ochraceus, ophiurus and

rufitarsus.

In his extensive taxonomic revision of the

widespread Australian tribe Chrysopogonini,

Clements (1985) was only able to record seven

species (out of 49, representing four genera) as

occurring in South Australia. Clements (pers.

comm.), however, did not access the SA Museum

collection. Similarly, Daniels (1987), in his

revision of Neoaratus Ricardo with descriptions

of six allied new genera (58 species), recorded

only four species from South Australia.

In 1989 Daniels published the Family Asilidae,

as part of the Catalog of the Diptera of Australasia

and Oceanic Regions, a version of which may be

accessed on the internet (<http//

:hbs.bishopmuseum.org/aocat/asilidae.html>). In

it he recorded 36 species from South Australia,

without, however, providing data on their

distribution or indicating the basis for noting their

occurrence in SA. A search of the SA Museum

collection in July-August 2002 failed to reveal

any specimens other than types which had been

identified by Daniels. Subsequently, in September

2002, a visit was made to Melbourne to examine

Daniels’s extensive personal asilid collection to

see if it contained specimens from South

190

Australia, other than the collection made by RJ

Lavigne in 1978-79 which is contained therein.

During the visit, it was determined that much of

the material noted as occurring in South Australia

had been loaned to Daniels by the SA Museum.

Specimens had been identified, data recorded and

the specimens returned without identity labels.

This has now been rectified. Daniels kindly

provided access to his ledger and database so that

I might obtain SA records. It should be noted

however that, because of the infant state of

Australian asilid taxonomy, many of the SA

specimens in his collection were only identified to

genus. Consequently, only data dealing with

identified species has been incorporated into this

preliminary checklist.

Little has been accomplished in enumerating the

biology/behaviour of South Australian Asilids. A

start was made by Lavigne (1982a,b, 1984, 1992)

in which the behaviour of three species of

Cerdistus, a species of Neoscleropogon, a species

of Neocerdistus, two species of Colepia and a

species of Mauropteron were described, but

nothing more has since been published.

The classification of asilid subfamilies used in

this paper is an interim one based upon the recent

published works of Papavero (1973), Artigas &

Papavero (1988), and Lehr (2001). As pointed out

by Fisher and Wilcox (unpublished), such a

classification scheme provides a more uniform

system and appears to be a distinct improvement

over previous classification schemes. It is obvious

to many systematists that all available

classifications of Asilidae are flawed (principally

by a general lack of rigorous phylogenetic

analysis): and that it is to be expected that many

changes will be made as a result of future studies.

In 1878-79 only four subfamilies were

recognised: Asilinae, Dasypogoninae, Laphriinae

and Leptogastrinae (Tillyard 1926). Daniels

(1989) still only recognised the same four

subfamilies as occurring in the Australasian and

Oceanic region. Over the years the higher

taxonomy of the Asilidae has evolved

considerably, with new families being established

or tribes (as used by Daniels 1989) being elevated

to the status of subfamily, representatives of ten

of which are known to occur in Australia:

Apocleinae (Papavero 1973), Atomosiini to

Atomosiinae (Lehr 1977), Dioctriini to Dioctriinae

(Lehr 2001), Laphystini to Laphystinae (Papavero

1973), Ommatiini to Ommatiinae (Ricardo 1929),

Stenopogonini to Stenopogoninae (Paramonov

1966) and Stichopogonini to Stichopogoninae

(Artigas & Papavero 1988).

RJ LAVIGNE

Worldwide, 13 subfamilies are now considered

valid by many authors: Apocleinae, Asilinae,

Atomosiinae, Dasypogoninae, Dioctriinae,

Laphriinae, Laphystinae, Leptogastrinae,

Megapodinae, Ommatiinae, Stenopogoninae,

Stichopogoninae and Trigonominae.

The following checklist contains data on 52

species, representing 6 subfamilies and 21

genera, the names of which have appeared in the

published literature over the last 123 years. On

the basis of this census, there has been an

increase of, at least, 33 named species in South

Australia since Tepper’s original paper; however,

it is unclear how many species Tepper

considered to be robber flies and how many to

be carnivorous allies of the Asilidae. This listing

by no means represents the total number of asilid

species to be found in South Australia, but

stands as a base for an enlarged checklist that

will be based on material being currently

identified and stored in the SAM insect

collection, as well as material that is being

acquired by survey teams. Daniels (pers. comm.

2002) has suggested that, based on his studies,

there are well over 100 undescribed species of

Bathypogon alone, Australia-wide.

Within the checklist are included notations of

SA specimens identified by Daniels but which are

deposited in other museums. These abbreviations

used are as follows: AM — Australian Museum,

Sydney; ANIC —- Australian National Insect

Collection, Canberra, BMNH — British Museum

of Natural History; GDC - Greg Daniels

Collection; OX — Oxford University (Hope

Collections); WARI — Waite Agricultural

Research Institute, Adelaide.

CHECKLIST

Apocleinae

Blepharotes coriarius Wiedemann, 1830 [Daniels

1989] [Daniels, pers. comm.: Adelaide

(WARD). 25 Jan]

Blepharotes flavus Ricardo, 1913b [Daniels 1989]

[Daniels, pers. comm.: Adelaide; Parakalyia

Bore, Everard Pk. Stn., Port Lincoln. 2 Nov]

Asilinae

Asiola lemniscata Daniels, 1977 [Daniels 1989]

[Daniels 1977: 48. Paratypes: Immarna;

Kimba; Nundroo (Homestead), 5 mi W. 20-28

Oct] [Daniels, pers. comm.: Maya, 2 mi S.]

Cerdistus armatus (Macquart, 1846) [Lavigne

1982a (ethology, as Neoitamus armatus)}

CHECKLIST OF SOUTH AUSTRALIAN ASILIDAE 191

{Lavigne 1982a: 625. Aldinga Beach; Ferries-

McDonald Conservation Park, S of Monarto.

11 Dec — 31 Jan]

Cerdistus exilis (Macquart, 1838) [Hardy 1935b

(as Asilus exilis): 415. Kangaroo Isl. (South

Australia)] [Daniels 1989]

Cerdistus margitis (Walker, 1849) [Lavigne

1982a (ethology, as Neoitamus margites)]

{Lavigne 1982a: 625. Ferries-McDonald

Conservation Park, S of Monarto; Mortlock

Exp. Stn., Auburn; 3.3 km S of Echunga; 8 km

ENE of Callington. 11 Dec — 1 Mar. Lavigne

1982a]

Cerdistus neoclaripes Hardy, 1921 [Hardy 1935b

(as Neoitamus neoclaripes): 415. “South

Australia”, no date] [Daniels 1989]

Cerdistus rufometatarsus (Macquart, 1855)

{Hardy 1935b (as Asilus rufometatarsus); 416.

Adelaide (South Aust.), no date] [Daniels

1989]

Cerdistus rusticanoides Hardy, 1926 [Hardy

1935b: 410. “South Australia”, no date]

{Daniels 1989]

Cerdistus setifemoratus (Macquart, 1855)

[Daniels 1989]

Cerdistus vittipes (Macquart, 1847) [Lavigne

1982a (ethology, as Neoitamus vittipes)]

[Lavigne 1982a: 617-18. Adelaide; Keyneton,

4.5 km E; Kapunda, 2.7 km S, bank of Light

River; Kingston, 16 km N; Milang, 12 km SE,

3 & 8 km E, 10 km S; Morgan, 11.6 km NW;

Port Gawler; Port Wakefield. 23 Nov — 27

Mar] [Daniels, pers. comm.: Adelaide (GDC);

Virginia, ca. 6 km SW. 25 Nov — 1 Feb]

Colepia abludo Daniels, 1983 [Daniels 1983 (as

Neoaratus abludo): 233. Aldinga, 8.2 km S;

Aldinga Beach; Elizabeth; Hammond;

Lyndoch; Mortlock Exp. Station, Auburn. 30

Dec — 24 Jan] [Lavigne 1992 (ethology, as

Neoaratus abludo); Lawson & Lavigne 1984

(description of eggs)] [Daniels 1989 (as

Colepia)]

Colepia ingloria (Macleay, 1826) [Hardy 1935a

(as Neoaratus ingloria): 182. “South

Australia”, no date] [Daniels 1987 (biology,

pupal description)]

Colepia rufiventris (Macquart, 1838) [Hardy

1935a (as Neoaratus rufiventris): 185. “South

Australia”, no date] [Daniels 1987 (biology,

pupal description); Daniels 1989; Lavigne

1992 (ethology, as Neoaratus rufiventris)]

[Daniels 1987: 500. Belair; Blackwood;

Bridgewater; Engelbrook Reserve; Ferries-

McDonald Conservation Park; Hawthorndene;

Lobethal; Paracombe; Tailem Bend;

Tooborang, nr. Adelaide; Victory; Waitpinga,

no dates] [Lavigne 1992: 261. Kingston,

16km N, opp. Coorong Game Reserve; Mt

Barker. 18 Dec — 2 Mar] [Daniels, pers.

comm.: 1 Jan —7 Mar]

Mauropteron pelago Daniels, 1987 [Ricardo

1913b (as Asilus pelago): 443. Adelaide, no

date] [Hardy 1935a (as Neoaratus pelago):

186. “South Australia”, no date] [Daniels

1987 (biology): 510. Adelaide; Balgowan,

4km NE, nr. Maitland; Benif Station,

Coorong; Ferries-McDonald Conservation

Park; Flinders Isl.; Iron Baron; Kingston,

South-East; Lowan Station, 4 mi S of

Sherlock; Port Lincoln; Purnong, nr. Murray

Bridge; Seal Bay, Kangaroo Isl.; Sedan, 5 km

W; Sleaford Bay; Whyalla; Winceby Isl., no

dates] [Daniels 1989] [Lavigne 1992

(ethology, as Neoaratus pelago): 261. Ferries-

McDonald Conservation Park; Sedan, 5 km

W. 4 Dec — 5 Feb] [Daniels, pers. comm.:

Kimba, 32 km E; Nullarbor. 4 Dec — 4 Apr]

Neoaratus hercules (Wiedemann, 1828) [Daniels

1987 (biology, pupal description) : 513 [Castle

Hill, Kangaroo Isl.; Fleurieu Peninsula;

Kingscote, Kangaroo Isl.; Mt Lofty; Reedy

Creek, SE South Aust.; Tanunda, Upper Sturt;

Adelaide, no dates] [Daniels 1989] [Daniels,

pers. comm.: Norton Summit, nr Ashton;

Westridge (ANIC). 18 Nov — 21 Jan]

Neocerdistus acutangulatus (Macquart, 1847)

[Lavigne 1984: 422. One Tree Hill, E of

Elizabeth, nr. Para Wirra National Park. 5 — 30

Apr] [Lavigne 1984 (ethology); Daniels 1989]

Neoitamus mistipes (Macquart, 1850) [Ricardo

1913b: 433. Mt. Gambier, S. Australia, no

date] [Daniels, pers. comm.: Mt Compass,

Cox’s Scrub Nat. Pk., 12 km SE. 20 Jan]

Dasypogoninae

Apothechyla carbo (Walker, 1851) [Hardy 1934b

(as Rachiopogon carbo): 23. “South

Australia’, no date]

Brachyrhopala (Brachyrhopala) quadricincta

Bigot, 1879 [Clements 2000: 87. Horrocks

Pass, SE of Port Augusta, no date]

Chryseutria amphibola Clements, 1985 [Clements

1985: 82. Holotype 2, Paratype 2, Emu

Field, 300 mi NW of Woomera. Sept — Oct

1953] [Daniels 1989]

Chrysopogon agilis Clements, 1985 [Clements

1985: 8. “S Australia”] [Daniels 1989]

192

Chrysopogon albosetosus Clements, 1985

[Clements 1985: 21. Mt Serle, Flinders

Ranges, no date] [Daniels 1989]

Chrysopogon castaneus Clements, 1985

(Clements 1985: 29. “S. Aust.”, no date]

[Daniels 1989]

Chrysopogon pellos Clements, 1985 [Clements

1985: 58. Holotype ¢, Marla Bore, 30 mi W

of Melbourne Hills Homestead. 23 Mar]

[Daniels 1989]

Chrysopogon pilosifacies Clements, 1985

[Clements 1985: 60. Koonalda, 14 mi E. 17

Oct] [Daniels, pers. comm.: Fisher E-W Line

(AM); Port Augusta, SE of Horrocks Pass. 21

Nov] [Daniels 1989]

Chrysopogon rubidipennis White, 1918 [Clements

1985: 65 [SA “no locality”] [Daniels 1989]

Chrysopogon trianguliferus Clements, 1985

[Clements 1985: 72. Curnamona Station,

Yunta Highway, 7 mi N turn to Erudina

Woolshed, Wirrealpa Station, 1 km N

Marshals Corner Bore. 17 — 19 Feb] [Daniels

1989]

Dakinomyia froggattii Dakin & Fordham, 1922

(Daniels, pers. comm.: Nullarbor roadhouse,

183 km W. 23 Jan] [Daniels 1989]

Questopogon affinis Daniels, 1976 [Daniels,

1976: 229. Kimba, no date, E. Broomhead,

Paratype 2 [Daniels 1989]

Thereutria amaraca (Walker, 1849) [Daniels

1989] [Daniels, pers. comm.: Wilpena Pound,

Flinders Range. 19 — 20 Jan]

Thereutria tessellata (Hardy, 1930) [Daniels

1989] [Daniels, pers. comm.: Milang; Wilpena

Pound, Flinders Range. 8 — 19 Jan]

Laphriinae

Laphria rufifemorata Macquart, 1846 [Ricardo

1913a: 155. Bakewell, “S. Australia’, no date]

[Hardy 1934a: 520. “South Australia”, no

date]

Laphria telecles Walker, 1849 [Daniels, pers.

comm.: Ravine des Cas., Kangaroo Isl. 30

Nov]

Ommatiinae

Ommatius distinctus Ricardo, 1918 [Daniels, pers.

comm.: Flinders Isl., northern Arkaroola. 22

Jan]

Ommatius pilosus White, 1916 [Daniels 1989]

[Daniels, pers. comm.: Mortlock Exp. Stn.,

Auburn; Mt Lofty Botanical Gardens. 17 - 31

Jan]

RJ LAVIGNE

Ommatius queenslandi Ricardo, 1913 [Daniels,

pers. comm.: Wilpena Pound, Flinders Range.

19 Jan]

Stenopogoninae

Amphisbetetus trinotatus Paramonov, 1966

[Daniels 1989] [Daniels, pers. comm.:

Kalabity H.S., Birthday Rd, 5.6 km N. 15 Feb]

Bathypogon aoris (Walker, 1849) [Ricardo 1912:

153. Adelaide (Ent Club) (type female), no

date] [Hardy 1934b: 9. “South Australia”, no

date. (after Ricardo 1912)] [Daniels 1989]

[Daniels, pers. comm.: Adelaide (BMNH)]

Bathypogon calabyi Hull, 1958 [Hull 1958a: 199.

Owieandana, N. Flinders Range. Holotype 3]

[Daniels 1989]

Bathypogon chionthrix Hull, 1958 [Hull 1958c :

161. Kalamunda, no. date. Holotype 6,

Allotype 2] [Daniels 1989] [Daniels, pers.

comm.: Kimba, 32 km E. 21 Jan.]

Bathypogon ichthyurus Hull, 1958 [Hull 1958d:

187. L. Callabonna, no date. Holotype ¢]

[Daniels 1989] [Daniels, Pers. Comm.: Lk.

Callabonna, no date]

Bathypogon microdonturus Hull, 1958 [Hull

1958d: 190. Owieandana, N. Flinders Range,

no date. Holotype ¢] [Daniels 1989]

Bathypogon ochraceus Hull, 1959 [Hull 1959: 18:

Owieandana, N. Flinders R, no date. Holotype

3, Allotype 2, 4 Paratypes]; Daniels 1989]

Bathypogon ophiurus Hull, 1958 [Hull 1958b: 62.

Flinders Isl., no date. Holotype 6] [Daniels

1989] [Daniels, pers. comm.: Flinders Isl., no

date]

Bathypogon rufitarsus Hull, 1958 [Hull 1958b:

64.] Mt Serle, N. Flinders Range. Holotype ¢,

Allotype 2] (Daniels 1989] [Daniels, pers.

comm.: Keyneton, 6.4km E; Monarto; Mt

Serle, Flinders Range; Port Wakefield;

Virginia, ca. 6 km SW. 23 Nov — 11 Dec]

Bathypogon testaceovittatus (Macquart, 1855)

[Hardy 1934b: 8. Adelaide, South Australia]

[Daniels 1989] [Daniels, pers. comm.:

Adelaide (OX)]

Neoscleropogon agave (Walker, 1849) [Hardy

1928 (as Stenopogon agave), Hardy 1934b (as

Stenopogon agave): 15. “South Australia”

Neoscleropogon durvillei (Macquart, 1838)

[Daniels, pers. comm.: Port MacDonnell. 6 Jan]

Neoscleropogon lanatus (Walker, 1849) [Hardy

1928 (as Stenopogon lanatus), Hardy 1934b

(as Stenopogon lanatus): 14. “South

Australia’’}

CHECKLIST OF SOUTH AUSTRALIAN ASILIDAE

Neoscleropogon macquarti Daniels, 1989

[Ricardo 1912 (as Neoscleropogon elongatus):

156. “S. Australia”] [Lavigne 1982b, as

Neoscleropogon elongatus (ethology)]

[Lavigne 1982b: 742-43. Aldinga Beach;

Ferries-McDonald Conservation Park, south of

193

Monarto; Sandy Creek, nr Gawler. 28 Nov —

22 Jan]

Phellus piliferus Dakin & Fordham, 1922 [Barker

& Inns 1976 (ethology); Daniels 1989]

[Daniels, pers. comm.: Hambridge Consv. Pk.,

western boundary; Renmark, 30 mi NNW;

Sleaford Bay, Port Lincoln. 23 Jan — 1 Mar]

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