The littoral paranthurid isopod crustacean Paranthura nigropunctata(Lucas,1846)is recorded for the first time from the littoral of El Jadida located on the Atlantic northwest coast of Morocco.Specimens were obtained from the invasive brown seaweed Sargassum muticum and the natives Bifurcaria bifurcata and Cystoseira tamariscifolia in January 2015.This new record further confirms a significant southward distribution of P.nigropunctata and contributes to the knowledge of the biogeography of this isopod.Heretofore,the species was only known from the western and eastern Mediterranean and some Atlantic coasts.The present finding is the first of the species from Moroccan Atlantic shores,and suggests that the species may also be present in other coastal localities from Morocco and Africa.Some data on morphology,ecology and spatial distribution of the species are provided.
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