DECAPODS

Crustacean decapods at present include about 8.000 species, for the most part marine, a minority live in continental fresh waters, fewer species are terrestrial, and a remarkable number of taxa are reported from ground waters.

Among the subterranean species, some live in inland cave or phreatic waters, other ones are anchialine waters dwellers, but a considerable number of them are stygophiles or stygoxenes, in some cases being difficult to establish the differences between stygobitic and stygophilic species.

From a biogeographical point of view, subterranean decapods are widespread over the Planet, but they concentrate in Africa, North and Central America and Philippines. The scarceness of groundwater taxa in the Mediterranean basin could be related to its partial drying up pending the Messinian, as well as to the homothermic conditions chich characterizes the bathyal bottom of this sea.

As regard Italy, in fact, only two true stygobitic decapods are known, viz. Troglocaris anophtalmus anophtalmus (Kollar, 1848) and Typhlocaris salentina Caroli, 1924, from coastal cave waters of North-East and South Italy (Zinzulusa, L'Abisso and Buco dei Diavoli caves, a well near Ostuni) respectively.

Recently, the latter species, once considered endemic to the Salentine Peninsula, has been collected in coastal brachisk wells along the Adriatic sea, south of Bari, and in cave waters of Gargano during speleological research in the ground waters of this area, carried out by E. Rossi and S. Inguscio (Gruppo Speleologico Martinese), with the collaboration of the "Gruppo Speleologico Dauno" and the "Speleo Club Sperone", confirming once more the biogeographical affinities of the underground aquatic fauna of the Murge-Salento karstic complex (unpubl.).

Distribution of Typhlocaris salentina (1:unpublished)

A selected World bibliography on subterranean decapods can be found in: Holthuis L.B. (1984). Decapods. Stygofauna Mundi: 589-615; Guinot D.(1994). Decapoda Brachiura Encyclopaedia Biospeologica. Societè de Biospéologie, Moulis, Bucarest: 165-179. See also the Bibliography of the Italian Groundwater Fauna and Falciai L. & R. Minervini. 1992. Guida dei Crostacei Decapodi d'Europa, pp.282. F. Muzzio ed. Padova (Italy).

Other URLS with Decapods Information

Decapods Phylogeny

Shrimps of Southern Australia

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