On the presence of Thorella cobourgi Bruce, 1982 (Decapoda, Hippolytidae) in the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea

The hippolytid genus Thorella Bruce, 1982 was described from specimens collected from Port Essington on the Cobourg Peninsula and a further location in Darwin, both in the Northern Territory (Australia), with Thorella cobourgi Bruce, 1982 as the only species in the genus. Although various authors have referred to the genus in compilations (e.g. Chace, 1997; Davie, 2002) or in generic level keys (e.g. Holthuis, 1993), the only specimens reported upon since the type description, are those in Bruce (1987) from East Point in Darwin Harbour, close to the type locality. Here we report on a single ovigerous female discovered during a biodiversity survey of the reefal environments in Eilat, Gulf of Aqaba, northern Red Sea. The specimen is deposited in the Zoological Collection of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, as OUMNH.ZC.2011-04-001