First Occurrence Record of Grandidierella halophilus (Amphipoda, Aoridae) from Indian Coast

The present study claims the first occurrence report of Grandidierella halophilus Wongkamhaeng, Pholpunthin & Azman, 2012 from Indian waters. The species was identified as Grandidierella halophilus by carpochelate gnathopod 1, ventral margin of coxa of male gnathopod 2 posteriorly produced into a triangular expansion and having long plumose setae on the posterior margin of the basis of pereopod 7. The species was previously reported only from Thailand. The species was collected from Haripur creek, east coast of India and the salinity of the region was found to be 15 PSU. Based on the previous reports and as observed during the present study, it is concluded that the species is truly euryhaline. The present report increased the number of species in the genus from seven to eight in Indian waters.