Paradiaptomus peninsularis, P. hameri and P. warreni, three new species of Paradiaptomus (Calanoida: Diaptomidae) from South Africa

Three new species of Paradiaptomus from southern Africa are described, Paradiaptomus peninsularis, P. hameri and P. warreni. Paradiaptomus peninsularis occurs in temporary blackwater pools on the peninsula of the Western Cape province, P. hameri in saline pools in the Western Cape province and P. warreni in mountain tarns in the Drakensberg Range in Kwazulu Natal and Lesotho. The genus Paradiaptomus was first established by Sars (1895) for Paradiaptomus lamellatus. There are five described species of Paradiaptomus endemic to Africa ( lamellatus, schultzei, similis, natalensis and rex) and P. greeni from India and Sri Lanka. The three new species have highly-weighted morphological characters which set them apart from each other and from any of the described species of Paradiaptomus.