Lucifuga subterranea Poey, 1858

Hernandez, Damir, Moller, Peter Rask, Casane, Didier & Garcia-Machado, Erik, 2020, A new species of the cave-fish genus Lucifuga (Ophidiiformes, Bythitidae), from eastern Cuba, ZooKeys 946, pp. 17-35 : 17

Lucifuga subterranea Poey, 1858

Material examined.

(38 specimens: 18 females, 20 males).

Holotype: ZMB 6314, 69 mm SL, female, Cueva de Cajio, potrero de Torres, dos leguas, Sur de Guira de Melena, Habana province, Cuba, collected by Felipe Poey (see discussion about type status in Proudlove (2019)).

Additional specimens.

ANSP 37111, 70 mm SL, female, Canas, Cuba, collected by C.H. Eigenmann, exact location unknown, 10 March 1903; FMNH 3934, 67 mm SL, male, Canas Cuba, exact location and date unknown; FMNH 33090-91, 67-74 mm SL, females, Cuba, exact location and date unknown; FMNH 52631, 77 mm SL, male, 80 mm SL, female, Cuba, exact location and date unknown; MFP 18.000199, 39.7 mm SL, male, Paredones cave, La Salud locality, Caimito municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 18 March 2004; MFP 18.000371 (7 specimens), 41.45-67.5 mm SL, Juanelo Piedra cave, Quibicán municipality, collected by A. Sosa, date unknown; MFP 18.000372, 80.2 mm SL, male, Juanelo Piedra cave, Quibicán municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 1 July 2005; MFP 18.000373, 76.2 mm SL female, Juanelo Piedra cave, Quibicán municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 1 July 2005; MFP 18.000374, 71.85 mm SL male, Juanelo Piedra cave, Quibicán municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 1 July 2005; MFP 18.000198, 74.55 mm SL, male, Juanelo Piedra cave, Quibicán municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 1 July 2005; MFP 18.000375 (10 specimens), 27.65-75.6 mm SL, Luis Piedra cave, Quibicán municipality, collected by Alfredo Garcia-Debrás, July 1993; MFP 18.000376 (2 specimens), 52.0-79.4 mm SL, Emilio cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Antonio Nuñez Jimenez, 7 November 1943; MFP 18.000377 (4 specimens), 70.5-89.55 mm SL, Emilio cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Armando Montoto and Gonzalo Abio, 5 May 1984; MFP 18.000378, 75.0 mm SL, male, Emilio cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier, Armando Montoto and Lisset Gómez, 25 October 2000; MFP 18.000379, 78.25 mm SL, female, Emilio cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Damir Hernández and Didier Casane, 15 December 2008; MFP 18.000380 (3 specimens), 47.3-78.1 mm SL, Baño II cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Gonzalo Abio, Erik García-Machado and Armando Montoto, 20 October 1984; MFP 18.000381, 60.25mm SL, female, Baño II cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 25 September 2005; MFP 18.000382, 62.3 mm SL, male, Baño II cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 25 September 2005; MFP 18.000383 68.7 mm SL, male, Baño II cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier, Armando Montoto and Lisset Gómez, 25 October 2000; MFP 18.000200, 69.3 mm SL, female, Lechuza cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 7 November 2002; MFP 18.000384, 62.0 mm SL, female, El Sitio cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by José Martínez and Gonzalo Abio, 20 October 1984; MFP 18.000385 (Holotype of Lucifuga teresinarum ) 71.9 mm SL, male, Lechuza cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado and Armando Montoto, 20 October 1986; MFP 18.000386 (Paratype of Lucifuga teresinarum ) 78.5 mm SL, male, Baño II cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado and Armando Montoto, 20 October 1986; MFP 18.000387, 77.3 mm SL, female, Baño II cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 7 November 2002; MFP 18.000388, 57.3 mm SL, female, Baño II cave, Ashton formation, Las Cañas locality, Artemisa municipality, collected by Erik García-Machado, Pedro Chevalier and Damir Hernández, 7 November 2002; UMMZ 157178 (5 specimens), 52-60 mm SL, Cuba, no further data.

Remarks.

Díaz-Pérez (1988) distinguished L. teresinarum from L. subterranea by the relationships among the dorsal, anal and caudal fins (i.e., independent in the first vs. broadly joined in the second), as well as by the shape of the hood of the male copulatory organ (i.e., broad distal lateral ends in L. teresinarum vs. conical in L. subterranea ); and pointed out that L. teresinarum shares both characters states with L. dentata . Evidence from molecular data ( García-Machado et al. 2011) and morphological considerations indicate that this species is invalid and will be regarded as a synonymy of L. subterranea . All measures from the four specimens examined were included within L. subterranea . Previous descriptions have indicated that L. subterranea has a caudal fin broadly joined to dorsal and anal fins ( Poey 1858; Cohen and Robins 1970; Nalbant 1981; Nielsen et al. 1999; Møller et al. 2006). However, as noticed previously by García-Machado et al. (2011) four individuals collected at Baño II cave have the caudal fin joined to the anal but free from the dorsal, a variant previously observed in L. simile ( Díaz-Pérez et al. 1987a; Díaz-Pérez 1988). The redefinition of L. teresinarum as a synonymy of L. subterranea increase the morphological variation in this species, only paralleled by L. simile ( Díaz-Pérez et al. 1987a).