Scientific name Procambarus Rank Genus | ||
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Lower classifications Procambarus clarkii, Blue crayfish, Marmorkrebs, Phantom cave crayfish, Lonoke crayfish | ||
Procambarus spiculifer
Procambarus is a genus of crayfish in the family Cambaridae, all native to North and Central America. It includes a number of troglobitic species, and the parthenogenetic marmorkrebs. Originally described as a subgenus for four species, it now contains 160 species in 16 subgenera.
Contents
- Procambarus spiculifer
- One clawed crayfish procambarus species
- Biogeography
- Description
- Ecology
- Taxonomy
- References
One clawed crayfish procambarus species
Biogeography
The majority of the diversity is found in the southeastern United States, but the genus extends as far south as Belize and Guatemala, and as far east as Cuba. Subgenus Ortmannicus is the most widespread, with the range of Procambarus acutus extending as far north as the Great Lakes and New England, as well as south into northeastern Mexico; the subgenus Girardella also extends from the Great Lakes to Mexico, but is distributed further west than Ortmannicus. Scapulicambarus and Pennides are widespread in the southeastern United States, where Remoticambarus also lives, further west (Texas and Louisiana) than Leconticambarus which is centered on Florida and neighboring states. The subgenus Austrocambarus has the most southerly distribution, being found in Cuba and parts of Central America from Mexico to Belize. The other subgenera are more restricted in their distributions, including three endemic to central Mexico, and six endemic to small areas in the United States.
Many species of Procambarus have been introduced to other continents, where they are frequently categorized as invasive species.
Description
Procambarus can be distinguished from other genera of crayfish by the form of the first pleopod in males, which typically has three or more processes at the tip, compared to two or fewer in Orconectes and Cambarus.
Ecology
A number of Procambarus species are troglobitic, living in caves, particularly in karstic areas. These include both species in subgenus Lonnbergius (Procambarus acherontis and Procambarus morrisi) and the single species in the subgenus Remoticambarus, Procambarus pecki.
Taxonomy
Procambarus was originally described by Arnold Edward Ortmann in 1905 as a subgenus of a wider genus Cambarus, and originally contained only four species (P. williamsoni, P. diguieti, P. mexicanus and P. cubensis). The subgenus was elevated in 1942 to the taxonomic rank of genus by Horton H. Hobbs, Jr., who later erected most of the subgenera now recognised within the genus, in his 1972 monograph The subgenera of the crayfish genus Procambarus (Decapoda: Astacidae).