Document of bibliographic reference 367356

BibliographicReference record

Type

Bibliographic resource

Type of document

Journal article

BibLvlCode

AS

Title

There and back again - The Igatu hotspot siliciclastic caves: expanding the data for subterranean fauna in Brazil, Chapada Diamantina Region

Abstract

The caves of Igatu, municipality of Andaraí, belonging to the region known as Chapada Diamantina represent a new hotspot of subterranean fauna. These caves are siliciclastic, which are sedimentary rocks where silica predominates, such as sandstones and (following metamorphism) quartzites, which makes them even more relevant from the point of view of subterranean diversity. For five caves, which we named Igatu Cave System (ICS), thirty-seven obligate cave species were found, of which thirty-five were troglobitic and two were stygobitic. The troglobitic taxa for ICS belong to three phyla, nine classes, 18 orders, and 32 families, representing a high phylogenetic diversity. Some taxa were, for the first time, reported as troglobitic in Brazil and even worldwide, such as Acari and scutigeromorphans (Chilopoda). We started the studies in 2009 and continue trough long-term monitoring projects. Some threats, severe in the past, such as “garimpo’’ (illegal small-scale artisanal mining) continue nowadays in an incipient way; however, the urban expansion due to the touristic appeal is also considered a threat. Our data ranked ICS as the Brazilian hotspot with the highest number of troglobitic/stygobitic species.

WebOfScience code

https://www.webofscience.com/wos/woscc/full-record/WOS:001077028900001

Bibliographic citation

Gallão, J.E.; Ribeiro, D.B.; Gallo, J.S.; Bichuette, M.E. (2023). There and back again - The Igatu hotspot siliciclastic caves: expanding the data for subterranean fauna in Brazil, Chapada Diamantina Region. Diversity 15(9): 991. https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/d15090991

Topic

Terrestrial

Is peer reviewed

true

Access rights

open access

Is accessible for free

true