Bathynellinae

Subfamily Bathynellinae Diagnosis (translated from Serban et al. 1972) Mandibular palp always three-segmented; masticatory part of mandible with four teeth on pars molaris [molar process], two teeth on pars incisiva [incisor process], and accessory incisor process (processus incisivus accesorius [accessory incisor process]) formed by one tooth and sometimes small denticles. Endopod of thoracopods four-segmented. Penial region of male ThVIII composed of several lobes forming the penial complex, a frontal projection, inner and outer lobes which can sometimes be merged into a fourth, parapenean lobe (papilla); basipod well developed and merged to the penial complex on anterior side of the proximal region, with main axis parallel to penial lobes; endopod and exopod present and one-segmented. Two-segmented protopod (coxa and basipod) in female ThVIII, with precoxa and coxal epipod; endopod formed by a single short segment; one-segmented exopod well developed and similar to the exopod of other thoracopods. Type genus: Bathynella Vejdovsky, 1882. Remarks The subfamily Bathynellinae includes 11 genera and an undetermined number of species, ~65, 45 of which have been identified as members of the ‘catch-all’ genus Bathynella. However, in many species assigned to this genus, the male ThVIII is unknown or poorly described, making a comparison very hard. For a more exhaustive explanation of the ‘ Bathynella issue’, see Camacho et al. (2018b) and Perina et al. (2018). A thorough morphological and molecular revision is needed to resolve the taxonomic problems within Bathynellinae, which is beyond the scope of this study. The confirmed distribution of the genus Bathynella includes the areas between Transcaucasia and the North of France (Serban 1975, 2000).