Abstract
The order Amphipoda is one of the most diverse within Peracarids, and comprises 6950 described marine species. Amphipod research in the Caribbean Sea began in the late 1800s, but has increased significantly since 1980. In this study, we analized the amphipod biodiversity (Caprellidea, Gammaridea, Hyperiidea, and Ingolfiellidea) of the Caribbean Sea. For this, we compiled available data on species diversity of marine amphipods (data bases: WoRMS and OBIS and published species lists) into a comprehensive taxonomic list by country for the ecoregions of the Caribbean. Additionally, we analized the relative contribution of each country to regional diversity and the rate of discovery of new species. The Caribbean amphipod fauna is composed of 535 species within 236 genera and 73 families for the higher taxon. The Western Caribbean ecoregion holds the largest diversity (282 species), while the Eastern Caribbean recorded the lowest one (73). Mexico and Venezuela recorded the largest number of species with 266 and 206, respectively. Twelve countries had less than 50 species. The richest suborder is the Gammaridea with 381 species followed by the suborder Hyperiidea with 116. From the total of 535 amphipod species reported for the Caribbean region, 218 have the Caribbean as the holotype locality, and 132 are endemic (about 25% of the total). Areas of higher diversity seem to be concentrated along the Mexican Caribbean, Cuba and the Northern coast of South America (Venezuela-Colombia); however, such pattern is most likely reflecting local collection efforts and taxonomic expertise rather than actual distribution. Knowledge of amphipod species is mostly limited to shallow, near-shore waters, with little infonnation available on the deep sea fauna. Regional research priorities for this group should be focused on completing shallow water coastal inventories of species in Central America and the Greater and Lesser Antilles. In addition, sampling the deep sea ecosystems should follow along with other particular habitats such as anchialine cave systems. It is also neccessary to increase ecological research efforts, mainly in some speciose suborders, including the Caprellidea and Hyperiidea, known to exhibit high diversity in other tropical localities.
Highlights
The Amphipoda were divided into four suborders: the Gammaridea Latreille, 1802; the Caprellidea Leach, 1814; the Hyperiidea Milne-Edwards, 1830; and the Ingolfiellidea Hansen, 1903 (Barnard, 1969; Bousfield, 1973, 2001; Lincoln, 1979; Martin & Davis, 2001)
Diversity and distribution: There are 535 species identified within 236 genera and 73 families that have been reported for the Caribbean Sea
The species number of the three countries combined accounted for 49.72% of the total amphipod species reported for the Caribbean
Summary
The Amphipoda were divided into four suborders: the Gammaridea Latreille, 1802; the Caprellidea Leach, 1814; the Hyperiidea Milne-Edwards, 1830; and the Ingolfiellidea Hansen, 1903 (Barnard, 1969; Bousfield, 1973, 2001; Lincoln, 1979; Martin & Davis, 2001). Other expeditions to the Caribbean, to Puerto Rico and Cuba, provided new amphipod descriptions (Shoemaker, 1933a,b, 1934, 1935, 1948). Since the late 1960s, several authors have provided important publications on Caribbean amphipods, including descriptions of new species, re-descriptions or additional information, taxonomic lists and inventories, biogeographical and ecological data, and illustrated keys for specific taxa (see Table 1 for a comprehensive reference list by major topics). We analyzed the amphipod biodiversity (Caprellidea, Gammaridea, Hyperiidea, and Ingolfiellidea) of the Caribbean Sea. Our goal was to carry out a spatial analysis of the data that allowed us to determine gaps in knowledge and to test if differences/similarities in composition between ecoregions are due to ecological and biogeographic factors or to geographic inequality in sampling efforts. We hope that this paper will contribute to raise awareness about the value of taxonomic inventories and to indicate how much and where scientific sampling is needed, for a better understanding of the Caribbean amphipod biodiversity
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