Abstract
The remoteness of the Trindade and Martin Vaz young volcanic archipelago (TMV) raises questions about the source of its marine benthic fauna and levels of endemism. Addressing these questions requires a comprehensive knowledge of the taxonomic composition of the marine fauna of the islands. A five-year survey in the shallow marine waters (up to 30 m) and a literature review on the data published for TMV have been conducted to document the biodiversity of the benthic fauna. Here we report on ten new records of decapod crustaceans from TMV: Gnathophyllum americanum and Thor amboinensis are circumtropical in distribution, whereas Stenopus hispidus, Gnathophylloides mineri and Parribacus antarcticus are disjunct circumtropical species as their distribution in the Atlantic Ocean is limited eastwardly to TMV or Ascension Island (S. hispidus), therefore, do not extending into the eastern Atlantic. Gnathophyllum circellum and Thor manningi are western Atlantic species, with G. circellum previously known only from the Caribbean Sea. Pontonia manningi, Tuleariocaris neglecta and Enoplometopus antillensis are amphi-Atlantic in distribution. Two of the above species are recorded from the southwestern Atlantic for the first time: Gnathophyllum circellum and Tuleariocaris neglecta. These new records corroborate that the marine benthic invertebrate fauna of the TMV archipelago is actually a mosaic of amphi-Atlantic, eastern Atlantic, central Atlantic (insular), endemic and circumtropical species, with a strong western Atlantic component.
Highlights
The remote oceanic islands Trindade and Martin Vaz (TMV) are the aerial parts of the Vitória-Trindade submarine volcanic chain (Marques et al, 1999; Santos et al, 2002)
In the present study we report on ten new records of decapod crustaceans from Trindade and Martin Vaz as part of an ongoing taxonomic study of the decapod fauna of TMV
Only 36 species of decapod crustaceans were known from the remote oceanic archipelago of Trindade and Martin Vaz (TMV), 31 of which were recorded only from Trindade, five from both Trindade and Martin Vaz and one known from Martin Vaz but not from Trindade
Summary
The remote oceanic islands Trindade and Martin Vaz (TMV) are the aerial parts (aged of about 3‐3.5 and 1‐1.5 my, respectively) of the Vitória-Trindade submarine volcanic chain (Marques et al, 1999; Santos et al, 2002). Trindade (20°30’S/29°20’W) and Martin Vaz (20°30’S/28°51’W) are only 49 km away from each other, but distant some 1200 km from the Brazilian shore and about 4200 km away from the Tavares, M. et al: Decapod Crustacea from Trindade and Martin Vaz. African coast (Fig. 1A‐F). Their closest oceanic islands are Fernando de Noronha (1884 km), Atol das Rocas (1915 km), Ascension (2134 km), St. Peter and St. Paul Rocks (2387 km) and St Helena (2546 km). The isolation of TMV raises questions about the source of its marine, benthic fauna and levels of endemism. Underpinning these questions is the need for an in-depth understanding of the faunal composition of TMV based on solid taxonomic foundations
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