A New Genus and Two New Species of Subterranean Amphipod Crustaceans (Hadziidae) from the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands

Abstract

Bahadzia, new genus, and two new species of amphipod crustaceans are described from anchialine caves in the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands. One of the species is recorded from three caves on Grand Bahama Island and one cave on Great Abaco Island, whereas the other species is recorded from two caves on the island of Providenciales. The new genus is apparently more closely related to Metaniphargus and Saliweckelia than other hadziid genera in the peri-Caribbean region, but it also shares some important characters with Mayaweckelia.

Mayaweckelia troglomorpha, a new subterranean amphipod species from Yucatán state, México (Amphipoda, Hadziidae)

“…To date, eleven species of amphipods have been recorded from subterranean habitats of the Yucatán Peninsula, belonging to five families (Ampithoidae, Hadziidae, Hyalidae, Hyalellidae, and Melitidae) (e.g., Holsinger 1977, 1990, 1992, Alvarez and Iliffe 2008, Marrón-Becerra et al 2014, Ortiz and Winifield 2015, Trujillo-Pisanty et al 2010). Among them, six species are classified as stygobionts; they bind solely to aquatic subterranean habitats, exhibiting various degrees of morphological, physiological and behavioural adaptations to life in the hypogean environment (Notenboom 1991).…”

Two new amphipod crustaceans of the genusBahadziafrom ‘blue holes’ in the Bahamas and some remarks on the origin of the insular stygofaunas of the Atlantic

“…This genus presently contains three species: B. williamsi Holsinger, 1985, from Great Abaco and Grand Bahama (two islands on the Little Bahama Bank), B. stocki Holsinger, 1985, from Providenciales (in the Turks and Caicos Islands), and B. latipalpus Stock, 1985, from Haiti. The last is a species from flesh groundwaters, whereas the others, including the presently examined specimens, are all from anchihaline cave waters of high salinity.…”

Systematics of the subterranean amphipod genus Bahadzia (Hadziidae), with description of a new species, redescription of B. yagerae, and analysis of phylogeny and biogeography

“…Bahadzia latipalpus was collected from fresh and oligohaline well water (Stock, 1985) and B. jaraguensis was taken from weakly brackish water on the cave floor in mats of filamentous green algae (Jaume and Wagner, 1998). It is perhaps significant that Mayaweckelia and Tuluweckelia also occur in either fresh or weakly brackish water (Holsinger, 1977(Holsinger, , 1990 and that an earlier cladistic analysis by Holsinger (1992) of 'weckeliid group' genera and the genus Bahadzia suggested that Mayaweckelia and Tuluweckelia are sister genera to Bahadzia. Our present analysis offers further support of this hypothesis.…”

“…Family HADZIIDAE Karaman, 1943 Genus Bahadzia Holsinger, 1985 (in Holsinger andYager, 1985) Bahadzia caymanensis n. sp. Diagnosis.…”

“…The genus Bahadzia, first described by Holsinger (in Holsinger and Yager, 1985), is of stygomorphic facies and occurs primarily in anchialine caves. Exploration of caves throughout the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands, Hispaniola, Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico has resulted in the description of 10 species of Bahadzia.…”