On a collection of Polychelidae from Papua New Guinea (Crustacea, Decapoda, Polychelida)

The collection of deep-sea blind lobsters (Polychelidae), comprising eight species in three genera: Pentacheles Spence Bate, 1878, Polycheles Heller, 1862, and Stereomastis Spence Bate, 1888, is significant for although these species had been recorded in adjacent regions, prior to the BIOPAPUA expedition they have not been recorded from the Bismarck and western Solomon seas. The feasibility of seabed ore mining adds a sense of urgency to the exploration and analysis of the benthic biodiversity of a unique, barely explored region up for destructive exploitation.