Paramicippa spinosa Stimpson.
(Paramicippa spinosa var. affinis Miers.)

Paramicippa spinosa Stimpson, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, p. 217. 1857.

Paramicippa affinis Miers, Cat. Crust. N.Z., p. 9. 1876.

Paramicippa spinosa Haswell, Cat. Crust. Austr., p. 26. 1882.

— Miers, Zool. H.M.S. “Alert,” p. 199. 1884.

— Filhol, Mission de l'Ile Campbell, p. 367. 1885.

Paramicippa spinosa var. affinis Miers, Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., ser. 5, vol. 15, p. 8. 1885.

— Miers, Challenger Reports, Zool., vol. 17, p. 70, Pl. 8, Fig. 3. 1886.

— Fulton and Grant, Proc. Roy. Soc. Victoria, vol. 19, p. 17. 1906.

Paramicippa spinosa Whitelegge, Mem. Austr. Mus, 4, vol. 2, Crust., pt. 1, p. 149. 1900.

— Stimpson, Smiths. Miscell. Public., vol. 49, p. 14. 1907.

— Hale, Crust. S. Austr., p. 140. 1927.

Opinions have vacillated concerning the distinctness or otherwise of the variety. Miers, for example, described P. affinis as new (1876), and eight years later stated that the British Museum, contained specimens of P. spinosa from New Zealand, these being presumably the same as those previously described as new. In 1886 he stated that the form affinis was distinct, and ranked it as a variety. Our non-committal attitude allows us to include references to the species s.str. as well as to the supposed variety, and does not imply a denial of the distinctness of the latter; it has, for example, been recognized in Australia.

Hutton doubted the occurrence of this species or variety in New Zealand (1882), but it is included in the Index under the name Micippa spinosa (p? 248). He has no MS. comment. We have seen no specimens, and can only state that both the species and the variety have been recorded from Australia and from New Zealand, but that the New Zealand records are doubtful.