Metadata

Lucifuga lucayana

Moller, Schwarzhans, Iliffe and Nielsen 2006

ORDERSUB-ORDERFAMILY
OphidiiformesBythitoideiBythitidae

Synonyms

Lucifuga spelaeotes  Cohen and Robins 1970 (in part)

Country

Bahamas

Types

ANSP 146475 ♀ 99mm SL. Paratypes: ANSP 148497 ♂ 44mm SL, BMNH 1984.12.1.20 ♀ 80mm SL, ZMH 9517 ♀ 85mm SL, ZMH 9522 ♂ 110mm SL, ZMH 9566 ♂ 125mm SL.

Distribution

Type locality: Lucayan Caverns, Grand Bahama Island, Little Bahamas Bank, Bahamas. Known only from locations on the Little Bahama Bank (cf. Lucifuga spelaeotes which is known only from the Grand Bahama Bank). Recorded from: Lucayan Caverns and Zodiac Caverns, Grand Bahama (Yager 1981, Yager and Williams 1988, Cunliffe 1985:106,108), and unnamed locations on Abaco (specimen ANSP 148497 (paratype), Anonymous 1979).  

Systematics

Until the review by Moller, Schwarzhans, Iliffe and Nielsen (2006) all species of Lucifuga from the Bahamian islands were placed in Lucifuga spelaeotes Cohen and Robins 1970. It was always likely that populations on the two major Bahamian landforms, the Great Bahama Bank (to the south) and the Little Bahama Bank (to the north), were separate taxa, since the Providence Channel (or Great Bahama Canyon) which separates them is 5000m deep. When 50 specimens from seven island on both Banks were examined carefully it was obvious that each Bank has a separate species.

Conservation Status

MuG [EN B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii):3.1:2015]

(Dooley, J., Collette, B., Aiken, K.A., Marechal, J. & Pina Amargos, F. 2015. Lucifuga lucayana. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T16467724A16510047.en. Downloaded on 10 July 2017).

Museum Holdings

As above only.

Key References

Yager, J. Journal Article 1981 Remipedia, a new class of crustacea from a marine cave in the Bahamas
Burgess, G.H. Book Section 1983 Lucifuga
Cunliffe, S. Journal Article 1985 The flora and fauna of Sagittarius, an anchialine cave and lake in Grand Bahama
Palmer, R.J. Journal Article 1985 The Blue Holes of eastern Grand Bahama
Palmer, R.J. Book 1985 The Blue Holes of the Bahamas
Hart, C.W., Manning, R.B. and Iliffe, T.M. Journal Article 1985 The fauna of Atlantic marine caves: evidence of dispersal by sea floor spreading while maintaining ties to deep waters
Burgess, G.H. and Franz, R. Book Section 1987 Zoogeography of the Antillean freshwater fish fauna
Yager, J. and Williams, D. Journal Article 1988 Predation by grey snapper on cave bats in the Bahamas
Wilkens, H., Strecker, U. and Yager, J. Journal Article 1989 Eye reduction and phylogenetic age of ophidiiform cave fishes
Smith-Vaniz, W.F. and Bohlke, E.B. Journal Article 1991 Additions to the ichthyofauna of the Bahama Islands, with comments on endemic species
Yager, J. and Spokane, R.B. Book Section 1997 The biodiversity and water chemistry of an anchialine cave in the Bahamas
Hutchinson, J.M.C. Journal Article 1998 Factors influencing the surface fauna of inland Blue Holes on South Andros, Bahamas
Cocking, S. Journal Article 1999 Can Blue Holes be protected. Pollution and development are their natural enemies
Koenemann, S., Iliffe, T.M. and Yager, J. Journal Article 2004 Kaloketos pilosus, a new genus and species of Remipedia (Crustacea) from the Turks and Caicos Islands
Hernández, D.A. Thesis 2005 Relaciones evolutivas de las especies del genéro Lucifuga (Ophidiiformes: Bythitidae) en Cuba
Garrido-Linares, M. and Acero, P.A. Journal Article 2006 Peces Ophidiiformes del Atlántico occidental tropical con especial énfasis en el mar Caribe colombiano
Moller, P.R., Schwarzhans, W., Iliffe, T.M. and Nielsen, J.G. Journal Article 2006 Revision of the Bahamian cave-fishes of the genus Lucifuga (Ophidiiformes, Bythitidae), with description of a new species from Islands on the Little Bahama bank
Daenekas, J., Iliffe, T.M., Yager, J. and Koenemann, S. Journal Article 2009 Speleonectes kakuki, a new species of Remipedia (Crustacea) from anchialine and sub-seafloor caves on Andros and Cat Island, Bahamas
Gonzalez, B.C., Iliffe, T.M., Macalady, J.L., Schaperdoth. I. and Kakuk, B. Journal Article 2011 Microbial hotspots in anchialine blueholes: initial discoveries from the Bahamas
Garcia-Machado, E., Hernandez, D., Moller, P.R., Bernatchez, L. and Casane, D. Conference Paper 2011 Phylogenetic relationships among Cuban and Bahamian species of the blind cave-fishes genus Lucifuga: A shared lineage among two isoloated archipelagoes
Gonzalez, B.C., Singpiel, A. and Schlagner, P. Journal Article 2013 Godzillius fuchsi, a new species of Remipedia (Godzilliidae) from Abaco Island, Bahamas
Knudsen, S.W., Møller, P.R., Schwarzhans, W. and Nielsen, J.G. Journal Article 2016 Molecular, morphological and fossil input data for inferring relationship among viviparous brotulas (Bythitidae) – Resulting in a family status change for Dinematichthyidae
Moller, P.R., Knudsen, S.W., Schwarzhans, W. and Nielsen, J.G. Journal Article 2016 A new classification of viviparous brotulas (Bythitidae) – with family status for Dinematichthyidae – based on molecular, morphological and fossil data
Gonzalez, B.C., Martínez, A., Borda, E., Iliffe, T.M., Fontaneto, D. and Worsaae, K. Journal Article 2017 Genetic spatial structure of an anchialine cave annelid indicates connectivity within - but not between - islands of the Great Bahama Bank
Ditter, R.E., Erdman, R.B., Goebel, A.M. and Bracken-Grissom, H.D. Journal Article 2019 Widespread phenotypic hypervariation in the enigmatic anchialine shrimp Barbouria cubensis (Decapoda: Barbouriidae)
Ditter, R.E., Snyder, A.P., Schulman, S.E. and Bracken-Grissom, H.D. Journal Article 2019 Notes on the behavior and first records of three enigmatic anchialine shrimps (Decapoda: Caridea: Barbouriidae, Palaemonidae) in the Bahamas
Gonzalez B.C., Martínez A., Olesen J., Truskey S.B., Ballou L., Allentoft-Larsen M., Daniels J., Heinerth P., Parrish M., Manco N., Ward J., Iliffe T.M., Osborn K.J. and Worsaae K., Journal Article 2020 Anchialine biodiversity in the Turks and Caicos Islands: New discoveries and current faunal composition
Ditter, R.E., Mejía-Ortíz, L.M. and Bracken-Grissom, H.D. Journal Article 2020 Anchialine adjustments: an updated phylogeny and classification for the family Barbouriidae Christoffersen 1987 (Decapoda: Caridea)
Carpenter, J.H. Journal Article 2021 Forty-year natural history study of Bahalana geracei Carpenter, 1981, an anchialine cave-dwelling isopod (Crustacea, Isopoda, Cirolanidae) from San Salvador Island, Bahamas: reproduction, growth, longevity, and population structure
Ballou, L., Iliffe, T.M., Kakuk, B., Gonzalez, B.C., Osborn, K.J., Worsaae, K., Meland, K., Broad, K., Bracken-Grissom, H. and Olesen, J. Journal Article 2021 Monsters in the dark: systematics and biogeography of the stygobitic genus Godzillius (Crustacea: Remipedia) from the Lucayan Archipelago