Cymodoce truncata (Leach, 1814), the type species of the genus, C. zanzibarensis (Stebbing, 1910) and C. richardsoniae (Nobili, 1906) are redescribed based on type specimens or topotypic material, and a neotype is designated for Cymodoce richardsoniae. A revised generic diagnosis and description is provided for the genus Cymodoce. Cymodoce delvarii sp. nov. is described from the subtidal zone o...

The paranthurid genus Curassanthura, represented to date by three species, has an intriguing distribution in anchialine and interstitial habitats on both sides of the North Atlantic. It has been suggested (Wagele, 1985) that the genus is a Tethyan relict, and that its present-day distribution is the result primarily of continental drift. The material reported here, from Cura<;ao, Jamaica, and B...

Biological introductions can alter the ecology of local assemblages and are an important driver of global environmental change. The first step towards understanding the impact of a non-indigenous species is to study its distribution and associations in the invaded area. In Sydney Harbour, the non-indigenous isopod Cirolana harfordi has been reported in densities up to 0.5 individuals per cm(2) ...

This paper describes the toxicity of organophosphorus pesticide diazinon in juvenile and adult terrestrial isopods Porcellio scaber (Isopoda, Crustacea). The woodlice were exposed to different concentrations of diazinon added to food (5, 10, 50, and 100 or 150 micrograms/g dry food). Weight change and food assimilation efficiency were determined two and four weeks after the exposure. The activi...

Several laboratory methods for studying sublethal effects of chemicals on organisms have been developed in recent years. One of the aims of such tests is to identify whether use in the field will result in unacceptable ecological damage to non-target species. Most tests have been developed for single species, but at present, very few are required by law before a product can be released onto the...

The Asellota are a highly variable group of Isopoda with many species in freshwater and marine shallow-water environments. However, in the deep sea, they show their most impressive radiation with a broad range of astonishing morphological adaptations and bizarre body forms. Nevertheless, the evolution and phylogeny of the deep-sea Asellota are poorly known because of difficulties in scoring mor...

Plants optimise their resistance to herbivores by regulating deterrent responses on demand. Induction of anti-herbivory defences can occur directly in grazed plants or from emission of risk cues to the environment, which modifies interactions of adjacent plants with, for instance, their consumers. This study confirmed the induction of anti-herbivory responses by water-borne risk cues between ad...

Introduced species dominate the terrestrial isopod fauna in most inland habitats of North America, including urban landscapes. These non-native species are often very abundant and thus potentially play a significant role in detritus processing. We monitored isopod assemblages in an urban forest for a year to examine the relationship between surface activity and abiotic environmental factors, an...

Phylogeographic studies of animals with low vagility and restricted to patchy habitats of the supralittoral zone, can uncover unknown diversity and shed light on processes that shaped evolution along a continent's edge. The Pacific coast between southern California and central Mexico, including the megadiverse Gulf of California, offers a remarkable setting to study biological diversification i...

Levantoniscus n. gen. is erected for two new species from Cyprus: Levantoniscus bicostulatus n. sp. and Levantoniscus makrisi n. sp. Levantoniscus wahrmani (Strouhal, 1968) n. comb. from Israel and southern Turkey is transferred from the genus Bathytropa Budde-Lund, 1885 and family Bathytropidae. The new genus is included in the family Trachelipodidae and is characterized by distinct dorsal orn...