Caecidotea nickajackensis

Last updated

Caecidotea nickajackensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Phylum:
Subphylum:
Class:
Order:
Family:
Genus:
Species:
C. nickajackensis
Binomial name
Caecidotea nickajackensis
Packard, 1881

Caecidotea nickajackensis is a species of isopod crustacean in the family Asellidae. It was believed to be endemic to a single cave in Tennessee, and was thought to have been exterminated when that cave was flooded in 1967 by the building of the Nickajack Dam, however, in 2013 the species was discovered within Horseskull Cave and Raccoon Mountain Caverns.

Contents

Distribution

Caecidotea nickajackensis was first recorded in Nickajack Cave, Tennessee, before the building of the Nickajack Dam by the Tennessee Valley Authority in 1967. [2] Two other obligate stygobionts were exterminated in the same action – the pseudoscorpion Microcreagris nickajackensis and the ground beetle Pseudanophthalmus nickajackensis . [2] In 2013 Caecidotea nickajackensis was discovered within Horseskull Cave and Raccoon Mountain Caverns.

Conservation

C. nickajackensis was listed as a vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List, [1] and as a "species of concern" under the Endangered Species Act. [3] It was extirpated from Nickajack Cave in 1967, and was now thought to be extinct. [2]

Taxonomy

Caecidotea nickajackensis was first described by Alpheus Spring Packard, in an 1881 publication by Edward Drinker Cope and himself, titled The Fauna of Nickajack Cave. [2] [4] A second species, C. richardsonae , was described from the same cave by William Perry Hay in 1901, and was thought to be a junior synonym of C. nickajackensis for a long time. [2] It was now recognised as a separate species distributed from Alabama to Virginia. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raccoon Mountain Caverns</span>

Raccoon Mountain Caverns is a cave located in Chattanooga, Tennessee in a band of Mississippian Period limestone, part of the Cumberland Plateau.

<i>Allocrangonyx</i> Genus of crustaceans

Allocrangonyx is a genus of troglobitic amphipod crustaceans from the South Central United States. The two species are both listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. The animals are blind and unpigmented. During the male's development, the outer ramus of the third uropod differentiates into secondary segments and grows to a length greater than the animal's body length.

<i>Antrolana</i> Genus of crustaceans

The Madison Cave isopod, Antrolana lira, is a freshwater, cave-dwelling crustacean species. It is in the family Cirolanidae and it is the only species of its genus Antrolana. This isopod can be found in flooded limestone caves and karst aquifers throughout the Great Appalachian Valley of Virginia and West Virginia. The Madison Cave isopod has been listed as a vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List since 1983 and as a threatened species under the United States Endangered Species Act since 1982. The species was named after the cave in which it was first discovered, Madison Saltpetre Cave. Very little is known about the life history and behavior of the Madison Cave isopod.

Caecidotea barri, commonly known as the Clifton Cave isopod, is a species of crustacean in the family Asellidae. It is endemic to the United States.

Caecidotea is a genus of crustacean in the family Asellidae. It contains the following species:

Caecidotea macropropoda is a species of crustacean in the family Asellidae. It is endemic to the United States.

Echinodillo is a genus of woodlice in the family Armadillidae. It contains two species.

Lirceus culveri, the Rye Cove cave isopod, is a species of isopod in the family Asellidae. It is found in North America.

<i>Lirceus</i> Genus of crustaceans

Lirceus is a genus of isopod crustaceans in the family Asellidae that live in southern Canada and the eastern United States as far west as the Great Plains. Of the 15 species in the genus, two are listed as either endangered (EN) or vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List.

Lirceus usdagalun is a rare species of crustacean known by the common name Lee County cave isopod. It is endemic to Virginia in the United States, where it is known from a single network of karst cave systems in Lee County. It is threatened by a number of processes. It is a federally listed endangered species of the United States, and is assessed as "endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Mexistenasellus is a genus of isopod crustaceans in the family Stenasellidae.

Monolistra is a genus of isopod crustaceans in the family Sphaeromatidae. Its members are restricted to countries of the former Yugoslavia, Italy and Switzerland. It contains the following subgenera and species, four of which are listed as vulnerable (VU) or endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List:

Onchotelson is a genus of isopod crustaceans in the family Phreatoicidae, which is endemic to Tasmania. It contains two species, both of which are listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List:

Sphaerolana is a genus of isopod crustaceans in the family Cirolanidae, all of which are endemic to Mexico.

<i>Stygobromus</i> Genus of crustaceans

Stygobromus is a genus of amphipod crustaceans that live in subterranean habitats. The majority of the listed species are endemic to North America, a smaller number of species are also known from Eurasia. Most of the North American species live in areas which were not covered by the Laurentide Ice Sheet, although a few species seem to have survived under the ice. A number of species are on the IUCN Red List as endangered species (EN) or vulnerable species (VU); one species, S. lucifugus, is extinct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asellidae</span> Family of crustaceans

The Asellidae are a family of isopod crustaceans, one of the largest families of freshwater isopods, living in both epigean and hypogean habitats in North America and Europe. The family includes these genera:

The Tennessee River Blueway is a 50-mile (80 km) section of the Tennessee River that flows between the Chickamauga Dam and the Nickajack Dam and through downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee and the Tennessee River Gorge. The City of Chattanooga, the Tennessee River Gorge Trust, and other agencies have designated the section of river as a blueway for canoe and kayak paddler. The Blueway has camping areas next to the river, as well as museums, restaurants, activities, entertainment, and natural attractions. From there, the Blueway meanders its way to quieter places like Williams Island State Archaeological Park. Williams Island divides the river channel with a 450-acre (1.8 km2) tract of land inhabited only by wildlife. From about 1000 to 1650, this area was home to several Native American tribes. It is now managed by the Tennessee River Gorge Trust. Then next of course is the 26-mile (42 km) stretch of the Tennessee River Gorge, a steep canyon formed by the Tennessee River. The land provides habitats for more than a thousand varieties of plants, ferns, trees, grasses and flowers as well as a wildlife population. Many of these are rare or endangered species such as the mountain skullcap. Dozens of archaeological sites bear evidence of man's presence in the Gorge for at least 10,000 years. There is a secluded spot where you can see Nickajack Cave from the water. Tennessee Valley Authority biologists monitor its bat population and encourage the public to "bat watch." There is no cave access, but canoeists and kayakers can observe the bats from the river.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Caverns at Natural Bridge</span> Caves in Virginia (US)

The Caverns at Natural Bridge are a series of commercial show caves in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, close in proximity to both the Natural Bridge and Natural Bridge State Park. Discovered in the 1890s, it was opened to the public in 1978.

References

  1. 1 2 Inland Water Crustacean Specialist Group (1996). "Caecidotea nickajackensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 1996: e.T3448A9865322. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.1996.RLTS.T3448A9865322.en . Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Julian J. Lewis (2009). "On the identity of Caecidotea nickajackensis (Crustacea: Isopoda: Asellidae)". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington . 122 (2): 215–224. doi:10.2988/08-47.1. S2CID   85857145.
  3. "Nickajack Cave isopod (Caecidotea nickajackensis) species profile". Environmental Conservation Online System. United States Fish and Wildlife Service. March 28, 2011.
  4. E. D. Cope & A. S. Packard Jr. (1881). "The fauna of the Nickajack Cave". The American Naturalist . 15 (11): 877–882. doi: 10.1086/272948 . JSTOR   2448794.