An Approach to the Diversity of Achelata and Brachyura (Crustacea, Decapoda) from the Southern Mexican Caribbean

Abstract

Decapods include species of economic importance, such as Achelata (lobsters) and Brachyura (true crabs), since they have aesthetic, commercial, gastronomic, and biomedical value. These groups exhibit a great variety of shapes, larval stages, habits, and sizes, making them difficult to recognize. In the Southern Mexican Caribbean (SMC), no taxonomic list or analysis of the biological diversity for the Achelata and Brachyura has been performed. Herein, the biological diversity of these groups was analyzed by reviewing the literature and collecting specimens in the SMC to obtain morphological, ecological, and molecular data. These results showed a total of 29 families, 67 genera, and 98 species recorded, of which, one is considered as a potentially new species, six are new records for the SMC, 12 expanded their distribution range, and 14 species names were updated. In addition, the BOLD system assigned 21 BINs supported with morphological identification. This work contributes positively to the knowledge of the marine and coastal decapods from the SCM as it represents the first effort to recognize their current biological diversity. This information will be used to develop adequate strategies for the conservation and management of marine and coastal natural resources of the SMC.