“…In spite of that, the analysis of patterns and processes of biological diversity and diversification in subterranean environments is very incomplete for a number of reasons. Foremost, compared with epigean habitats, caves and other subterranean habitats constitute challenging working environments, making it difficult to assemble a suitable amount of data (Christman et al, 2016;Culver et al, 2006Culver et al, , 2013Mammola & Leroy, 2017;Zagmajster, Culver, Christman, & Sket, 2010). Secondly, in most regions, the vast majority of troglobionts are invertebrates, fungi or bacteria, invariably underrepresented in ecology and conservation studies (Cardoso, Erwin, Borges, & New, 2011); on the other hand, the paucity of species, compared with epigean communities, can make it simpler to understand how subterranean communities assemble and function.…”