Revealing European cave shrimp diversity : a new species of Spelaeocaris (Decapoda, Atyidae) named through public participation

Jugovic, Jure (author), Fišer, Cene (author), Zagmajster, Maja (author), Delić, Teo (author), Zakšek, Valerija (author)

The family Atyidae, the world’s largest family of freshwater shrimps, is represented in Europe almost exclusively by subterranean species. The Dinaric Karst of the northwestern Balkans is among the most species-rich regions for atyids, hosting two genera, Troglocaris and Spelaeocaris. Recent speleobiological surveys in the southern Dinaric Karst of Bosnia and Herzegovina revealed a new cave shrimp species, described here as Spelaeocaris electa Jugovic & Zakšek, sp. nov. based on specimens collected during several field campaigns during 2013 and 2021. The epithet “electa” was chosen by a public vote, with the aim of involving local communities in the species naming process and raising awareness of subterranean biodiversity. Phylogenetic analyses, including species of the three European subterranean atyid genera (Spelaeocaris, Troglocaris and Xiphocaridinella) revealed its close relationship with S. hercegovinensis. Morphologically, S. electa Jugovic & Zakšek, sp. nov. is characterized by a weakly bilobed distal end of the telson, which is slightly concave in the centre, by a long rostrum, and the interchange of long and short spines on the appendix masculina. The discovery of S. electa Jugovic & Zakšek, sp. nov. highlights the exceptional subterranean biodiversity and high endemism of the Dinaric Karst, and emphasizes the need for continued taxonomic research and strengthened conservation efforts in this area.

• Language: English
• Keywords: cave fauna, conservation, Dinaric Karst, endemism, public naming, subterranean
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2026
• Number of pages: Str. 51-76
• Numbering: Iss. 1267
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-183226
• UDC: 551.44
• ISSN on article: 1313-2970
• DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1267.176622
• COBISS.SI-ID: 265850883
• Publication date in RUL: 09.06.2026

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: ZooKeys
• Shortened title: ZooKeys
• Publisher: Pensoft
• ISSN: 1313-2970
• COBISS.SI-ID: 521627929

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: podzemna favna, varstvo narave, dinarski kras, endemizem, jamske kozice

Projects

• Funder: ARIS - Slovenian Research and Innovation Agency
• Project number: P1-0184
• Name: Integrativna zoologija in speleobiologija

• Funder: CEPF - Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund
• Acronym: SubBIOCODE