A NEW SPECIES OF FRESHWATER PRAWN OF THE GENUS MACROBRACHIUM (DECAPODA, PALAEMONIDAE) FROM GUATEMALA

There are three main drainage slopes in Guatemala; from these around eight Macrobrachium species with extended larval development have been reported. In this paper, we describe the first species with abbreviated larval development for Guatemala, Macrobrachium cemai nov. sp. This is a freshwater prawn of medium size, with large second pereiopods in relation to body size, compared to related species in Mexico and South America. Macrobrachium vicconi Roman, Ortega & Mejia, 2000, reported from Chiapas, Mexico, is the closest species geographically. However, M. vicconi is different from Macrobrachium cemai nov. sp. in the scaphocerite proportion, length of the first pereiopods and in the proportions of the second pereiopod, i.e., ratios of carpus/merus, carpus/propodus, palm/dactylus, propodus/dactylus and the rostrum ornamentation.