MICRO-WHIPSCORPION - Palpigradi - Eukoeneniidae?
Class Arachnida
Order Palpigradi Family Eukoeneniidae? Undet. genus and sp. Size: Approximately 3 mm Group Guild Status Eutroglophile Predator Rare Palpigrades, also known as micro-whipscorpions, are global in distribution, with less than one hundred species described from the two families that make up this arachnid order. A large number are recorded from caves. Subterranean species are known primarily from the Mediterranean area, but there are a few records from other areas including northern India, Brazil, Cuba, Mexico, and Oregon and Arizona in the United States (Condé 1998; Souza and Ferreira 2011; RBP, unpublished record). This animal is known in the cave from a single immature specimen taken in the Big Room during the initial study (Welbourn 1999). We made a concerted effort to relocate this species during our recent study, searching in many areas of the cave, and particularly in habitat resembling that occupied by the only other known cave palpigrade population in Arizona (RBP, unpublished record). No palpigrades were found during the two years of the recent study, and we conclude that the species is apparently rare in the cave. A single palpigrade was observed and photographed in the Big Room by KCSP staff in 2020. A single search about a week later failed to reveal any of the animals, but additional searches of the area are planned. |
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