A new species of Tetragoniceps Brady, 1880 (Copepoda, Harpacticoida, Tetragonicipitidae) from an anchialine cave in Bermuda, with an updated key to the species of the genus
<i>Tetragonicepsbermudensis</i> <b>sp. nov.</b> (Copepoda, Harpacticoida, Tetragonicipitidae) is described based on an ovigerous female collected from Roadside Cave, a tidally influenced anchialine cavern in Bermuda. The new taxon represents the 16<sup>th</sup> recorded species of <i>Tetragoniceps</i> Brady, 1880. It can be distinguished from congeneric species by the length:width ratio of the caudal rami (approximately 10 times longer than wide), its cephalothorax with a smooth dorsal surface, and the diagnostic setal formula of its pereiopods 1-5. <i>Tetragonicepsbermudensis</i> <b>sp. nov.</b> is the first record of <i>Tetragoniceps</i> from Bermuda and the first known anchialine species in the genus globally. Based on our description of the new species, we provide a revised key to the species of <i>Tetragoniceps</i>. In addition, we include an updated table of salient morphological characters for the females of the genus, providing grounds for a preliminary analysis of the phylogenetic relationships of its constituent species.
Authors
- Pedro Martínez Arbizu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0891-1154)
- Leocadio Blanco‐Bercial (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0658-7183)
- Sahar Khodami (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7944-4004)
- Giovanni Mussini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-1093-5865)
- Terue C. Kihara (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7292-251X)
- Yuuki J. Niimi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-0936-1471)
Institutions
- Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BM)
- University of Cambridge (GB)
- Senckenberg am Meer (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- ZooKeys
- Published
- 2025-05-20
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1239.144436
- Primary Topic
- Subterranean biodiversity and taxonomy
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Natural Environment Research Council