Phreatipontia speluncae, (Cottarelli, Bruno & Venanzetti, 1994) (Cottarelli, Bruno & Venanzetti, 1994) Sak & Karaytuğ & Huys, 2024

Sak, Serdar, Karaytuğ, Süphan & Huys, Rony, 2024, Review of Neoleptastacus Nicholls, 1945 (Harpacticoida, Arenopontiidae), including an updated key to species and proposal of Phreatipontia gen. nov., Zootaxa 5525 (1), pp. 1-66 : 9

(5) speluncae -group

Diagnosis. Anal somite without paired dorsolateral processes. Anal operculum weakly developed, without rounded medial extension. P1 exp-1 with outer spine; exp-3 with 4 setae/spines. P1 enp-2 with two geniculate setae distally. P2 exp-2 with outer spine of normal length (not extending far beyond distal margin of exp-3). Endopod P2–P3 2- segmented; P2 enp-2 with inner seta but only one distal spine. P3 enp-2 with one distal spine. P4 enp-2 outer seta relatively short.

Species included. N. phreaticus ( Cottarelli, Bruno & Venanzetti, 1994) , N. speluncae ( Cottarelli, Bruno & Venanzetti, 1994) .

Members of this group are restricted to the Mediterranean and the Black Sea where they typically inhabit reduced salinity environments that are exposed to freshwater inflow. They also diverge morphologically from all species currently included in Neoleptastacus by the armature of the P1 endopod, displaying two geniculate setae on the distal segment instead of an outer spine and an inner geniculate seta. Another shared character is the reduced armature on P2–P3 enp-2, showing only one apical element (0.110 and 0.010, respectively). The speluncae -group cannot be accommodated in Neoleptastacus and is here attributed generic rank (see below— Phreatipontia gen. nov.).