Acanthocyclops robustus (Sars, 1863)

Suárez-Morales, Eduardo, Mendoza, Fredy & Mercado-Salas, Nancy, 2010, A new Allocyclops (Crustacea, Copepoda, Cyclopoida) from bromeliads and records of freshwater copepods from Mexico, Zoosystema 32 (3), pp. 393-407 : 395

Acanthocyclops robustus (Sars, 1863)

MATERIAL EXAMINED. –– Mexico. El Castillo, Jalapa, Veracruz (19°32’45”N, 96°51’44”W), 18.IX.2007, Ruth Hernández Xoliot, 2 adult ♀♀, 3 ơơ, several copepodites (ECO-CHZ-05504).

REMARKS

This is a widespread species that has been taxonomically studied in detail because of its high morphological and genetic variability ( Dodson et al. 2003). Recently, Mercado-Salas et al. (2009) found two undescribed species from central Mexico that belong to the robustus-vernalis complex, thus supporting the notion that the diversity of the genus in Mexico is probably underestimated. Previous records of this species in Mexico include: Distrito Federal, Mexico, Nuevo León, Puebla, San Luis Potosí and Aguascalientes. Acanthocyclops robustus has been studied as an important and highly competent intermediate host of the fungus Coelomomyces infecting populations of mosquito larvae ( Apperson et al. 1992). The predatory potential of this species and of its closest congener A. vernalis (Fischer, 1853) appears to be lower than that observed for species of Mesocyclops ; they prey on mosquito larvae but not as consistently as expected in a biological control ( Marten et al. 1994).