Bryocyclops


Bryocyclops is a genus of freshwater-dwelling cyclopoid copepods. The prefix Bryo- for Bryophyta refers to the fact that the first few species were described from mosses.

Distribution

Species belonging to this genus are distributed in all major biogeographic realms except Antarctica, although there are only a handful of species from the Nearctic and Neotropical realm .'' Researchers suspect that with increasing sampling efforts, more species will be discovered from these regions. Apart from continental habitats, some species occur on the oceanic islands of Guam, Fiji, Tonga, Samoa and Christmas Island. In recent years, five new species have been described from caves in Thailand.

Habitat

As its name suggests, the type species was found in damp mosses. Apart from other microcrustaceans such as cladocerans, ostracods and harpacticoid copepods, only a few genera of cyclopoid copepods have managed to access semiterrestrial habitats like mosses, leaf litter, tree holes, leaf axils, bromeliads and other phytotelmata, or even man-made microhabitats. These habitats pose serious challenges to fully aquatic organisms, especially since they rely on passive means of dispersal. Species of the genus Bryocyclops also inhabit cave pools, groundwater and other freshwater bodies.

Species

This genus currently contains 26 valid species:Bryocyclops jankowskajae Monchenko, 1972Bryocyclops absalomi Por, 1981Bryocyclops africanus Kiefer, 1932Bryocyclops ankaratranus Kiefer, 1954Bryocyclops anninae Bryocyclops apertus Kiefer, 1935Bryocyclops asetus Watiroyram, 2018Bryocyclops bogoriensis Bryocyclops campaneri Rocha & Bjornberg, 1987Bryocyclops caroli Bjornberg, 1985Bryocyclops chappuisi Kiefer, 1928Bryocyclops constrictus Lindberg, 1950Bryocyclops correctus Kiefer, 1960Bryocyclops difficilis Kiefer, 1935Bryocyclops elachistus Kiefer, 1935Bryocyclops fidjiensis Lindberg, 1954Bryocyclops jankowskajae Monchenko, 1972Bryocyclops maewaensis Watiroyram, Brancelj & Sanoamuang, 2012Bryocyclops maholarnensis Watiroyram, Brancelj & Sanoamuang, 2015Bryocyclops mandrakanus Kiefer, 1954Bryocyclops muscicola Bryocyclops muscicoloides Watiroyram, 2018Bryocyclops parvulus Kiefer, 1928Bryocyclops phyllopus Kiefer, 1935Bryocyclops trangensis Watiroyram, 2018Bryocyclops travancoricus Lindberg, 1947