Eubrachyuran crabs (Brachyura, Decapoda) from the early Eocene coral reef mounds of the Serraduy Formation (Southern Pyrenees, Huesca, Spain)

Abstract

A highly diversified fauna of brachyurans is described from the lower Eocene Serraduy Formation of Huesca, northeastern Spain. Fifteen new and first-reported taxa of brachyurans are described including three new genera, ten new species, and five taxa in open nomenclature. New taxa include: Carpilius feldmanni n. sp., Ceronnectes rugosus n. sp., Eohexapus simplex n. sp., Galenopsis ossoi n. sp., Matutsalen rotundus n. gen. n. sp., Microboschettia elegans n. gen. n. sp., Parhalimede antiqua n. sp., Locomius parthenopimimus n. gen. n. sp., Liocarcinus tridentatus n. sp., and Xanthilites robustus n. sp. Five additional genera have been recognized from fragmented material only including Alponella sp., Lovaroides sp., Paromola sp., ?Rhinolambrus sp., and ?Spinirostrimaia sp. Moreover, based on new specimens, we provide new data on Ilerdapatiscus guardiae and Aragolambrus collinsi. New information supports previous considerations about reef settings that are comparable to modern reef ecosystems as environments of diversified decapod crustaceans in the early Eocene.