Merozoon vestigatum g. n., sp. n., a new freshwater subterranean isopod (Isopoda: Sphaeromatidae) from a cave in Croatia.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14720/abs.55.2.15538Keywords:
Sphaeromatidae, Isopoda, taxonomy, subterranean, CroatiaAbstract
A pleon of a new fresh water isopod, provisionally attributed to the family Sphaeromatidae (Monolistrini sensu Racovitza, 1910)was found in a cave in Dalmacija (Croatia). Although known from such a small part of the body, Merozoon vestigatum g. n., sp. n. is easily recognizable. It is doubtlessly a new species which can only be attributed to a new genus in agreement with the criteria up to now used for this genera-group. All pleonites are fused with the pleotelson, the free epimera of the anterior pleonites are very poorly developed, not reaching the pleotelson lateral borders; uropods are strongly reduced, uniarticulate, inserted in the middle of the pleotelson lateral sides. It could be shown that its inclusion into Sphaeromatidae can hardly be challenged, and that its only alternative, Cirolanidae, is very unlikely.References
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