Biogeographic zonation of the Black Sea and Caspian Sea basin based on Mysid fauna (Crustacea: Mysidacea)

A biogeographic analysis of the Black Sea and Caspian Sea basin and adjacent Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara was conducted based on the distribution of 55 mysid species. The Black and Caspian Sea basin proper is inhabited by 35 mysid species belonging to 12 genera, among them 26 species and 3 genera are endemic to the region. Ponto-Caspian and Caspian species are predominant. The explored areas were included into two provinces of the Mediterranean subrealm of the East-Atlantic Subtropical realm and three provinces of the Ponto-Caspian realm.     

The taxonomic status of Western Pacific mysid species of Neomysis awatschensis (Brandt, 1851) group

The discussion of the taxonomic status of West Pacific mysid species Neomysis awatschensis (Brandt, 1851), N. intermedia (Czerniavsky, 1882) and N. nigra Nakazawa, 1910 has continued over the last century. Examination of a large taxonomic collection of the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, including syntypes of N. awatschensis and N. intermedia, revealed that N. intermedia is a junior synonym of N. awatschensis and N. nigra is a valid species, not a synonym of N. awatschensis. N. nigra was first recorded in Russian waters in the Possyet Bay (Sea of Japan).     

Leptostraca,Mysidacea, Isopoda,and Decapoda (Anomura) (Crustacea,Malacostraca) of the Chukchi Sea and Adjacent Waters: Biogeography and Fauna Formation

Data on the distribution of 72 species of Leptostraca, Decapoda: Reptantia: Anomura, Mysidacea, and Isopoda in the northern Bering Sea, the Chukchi and East Siberian seas, and the adjacent areas of the continental slope in the Arctic basin at depths less than 500 m were used for biogeographic analysis. According to distribution, these species can be united into 15 biogeographic groups. The hydrological regime, primarily, the distribution of waters of different origin in the investigated regions, governs the distribution of different biogeographic groups of crustaceans. Pacific boreal and subtropic-boreal species mostly inhabit the southern part of the Chukchi Sea, coastal waters off Alaska to Point Barrow, and the central region of this sea to the Herald Bank. For these taxa, the boundary between the Pacific and Arctic faunas is in the Chukchi Sea crossing from Cape Serdtse Kamen and Point Barrow to the area west of the Herald Bank. Possible pathways and the major stages of formation of the fauna of the investigated crustaceans for the last 18000 years are discussed.     

Biogeographical Division of the North Pacific Sublittoral and Upper Bathyal Zones by the Fauna of Mysidacea and Anomura (Crustacea)

A biogeographical analysis of the North Pacific temperate waters is made on the basis of the distribution of 88 species of Mysidacea (Crustacea) and 111 species of Anomura (Crustacea: Decapoda: Reptantia) inhabiting depths from 0 to 1000–12000 m. At depths from 0 to 180–200 m and from 180–200 to 1000–1200 m, division by mysid fauna is made separately; division according to anomurans is unified. Original schemes of faunistic zonation of the North Pacific are given. The influence of abiotic factors, primarily temperature, on the formation of distribution ranges of Pacific boreal species is examined.     

Biogeographical division of antarctic and subantarctic by mysid (Crustacea: Mysidacea) fauna

Based on the distribution of 66 species of Mysidacea (Crustacea), a biogeographical analysis of the cold and temperate waters of the Southern Hemisphere was carried out. The expediency of separate division by pelagic and benthopelagic mysid faunas was supported. The original patterns of the division of Antarctic and subantarctic faunas are given. One biogeographical province and two subprovinces were distinguished by the fauna of pelagic mysids in the areas studied. Two biogeographical provinces and five subprovinces were distinguished by the fauna of benthopelagic mysids in the Antarctic and subantarctic.     

Leptostraca,Mysidacea, Isopoda,and Decapoda (Anomura) (Crustacea,Malacostraca) of the Chukchi Sea and Adjacent Waters: Hydrological Regime and Species Composition

The hydrological regime of the region is briefly outlined. The distribution of waters of Arctic and Pacific origin is discussed. Based on the original and literature data, it has been found that 73 species of the investigated orders occur in the northern part of the Bering Sea, in the Chukchi and East Siberian seas, and in the adjoining areas of the continental slope of the Arctic basin at depths down to 500 m. These are 1 leptostracan species, 11 anomurans, 22 mysids, and 39 free-living isopods. The distribution of these species by depth and in relation to the thermal and salinity characteristics of waters is analyzed.