''Procambarus'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

crayfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the infraorder Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. Taxonomically, they are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea. They breathe through feather-like gills. Some spe ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Cambaridae The Cambaridae are the largest of the four families of freshwater crayfish, with over 400 species. Most of the species in the family are native to the United States east of the Great Divide and Mexico, but fewer range north to Canada, and south ...

, all native to North and Central America. It includes a number of troglobitic species, and the marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is

parthenogenetic Parthenogenesis (; from the Greek + ) is a natural form of asexual reproduction in which the embryo develops directly from an egg without need for fertilization. In animals, parthenogenesis means the development of an embryo from an unfertiliz ...

. Originally described as a subgenus for four species, it now contains around 161 species.

Biogeography

The majority of the diversity is found in the southeastern United States, but the genus extends as far south as Guatemala and Honduras, and on the Caribbean island of Cuba. After United States, the highest diversity is in Mexico with about 45 species. Only two are native to Guatemala (''P. pilosimanus'' and ''P. williamsoni''), one to Belize (''P. pilosimanus''), one to Honduras (''P. williamsoni'') and three to Cuba (''P. atkinsoni'', ''P. cubensis'' and ''P. niveus''). Subgenus ''Ortmannicus'' was the most widespread, with the range of '' Procambarus acutus'' extending as far north as the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

and

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

, as well as south into northeastern Mexico; the subgenus ''Girardella'' also extended from the Great Lakes to Mexico, but was distributed further west than ''Ortmannicus''. ''Scapulicambarus'' and ''Pennides'' were widespread in the southeastern United States, further west (

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

) than ''Leconticambarus'' which was centered on

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and neighbouring states. The subgenus ''Austrocambarus'' had the most southerly distribution, being found in Cuba and parts of Central America from Mexico to Belize, Guatemala and Honduras. 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. A few species of ''Procambarus'' have been introduced to regions outside their native range, both in North America and other continents. They are frequently categorized as

invasive species An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...

, representing a threat to natives, including rarer crayfish species.

The earliest known fossil member of the genus is ''

Procambarus primaevus ''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 marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Originally described a ...

'', known from the

Early Eocene In the geologic timescale the Ypresian is the oldest age (geology), age or lowest stage (stratigraphy), stratigraphic stage of the Eocene. It spans the time between , is preceded by the Thanetian Age (part of the Paleocene) and is followed by th ...

-aged deposits of

Fossil Butte Fossil Butte National Monument is a United States National Monument managed by the National Park Service, located west of Kemmerer, Wyoming, United States. It centers on an assemblage of Eocene Epoch (56 to 34 million years ago) animal and pla ...

in the

Green River Formation The Green River Formation is an Eocene geologic formation that records the sedimentation in a group of intermountain lakes in three basins along the present-day Green River (Colorado River), Green River in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. The sedimen ...

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

, USA. This suggests that during the Eocene, ''Procambarus'' was found as far west as the

Intermountain West The Intermountain West, or Intermountain Region, is a geographic and geological region of the Western United States. It is located between the Rocky Mountain Front on the east and the Cascade Range and Sierra Nevada on the west. Topography ...

of the United States, where it is no longer present today.

Description

''Procambarus'' can be distinguished from other genera of crayfish by the form of the first

pleopod The anatomy of a decapod consists of 20 body segments grouped into two main body parts: the cephalothorax and the pleon (abdomen). Each segment – often called a somite – may possess one pair of appendages, although in various groups these m ...

in males, which typically has three or more processes at the tip, compared to two or fewer in '' Faxonius'' and '' Cambarus''.

Ecology

Most ''Procambarus'' species live in various above-ground waters such as rivers, streams, lakes, ponds and swamps, but several are troglobitic, living in

cave Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's Planetary surface, surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance undergrou ...

s, particularly in

karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

ic areas. In the United States, these include both species in subgenus ''Lonnbergius'' ('' P. acherontis'' and '' P. morrisi''). Other cave-dwellers in the United States with various levels of

troglomorphic Troglomorphism is the morphological adaptation of an animal to living in the constant darkness of caves, characterised by features such as loss of pigment, reduced eyesight or blindness, and frequently with attenuated bodies or appendages. The ter ...

adaptions are '' P. attiguus'', '' P. erythrops'', '' P. franzi'', '' P. leitheuseri'', '' P. lucifugus'', '' P. milleri'' and '' P. orcinus'', but these are all members of subgenera that also include species from above-ground waters. In Cuba, '' P. niveus'' is a cave-dweller. In Mexico, many species have been recorded in caves, but most of these have also been recorded from above-ground waters; only '' P. cavernicola'', '' P. oaxacae'', '' P. rodriguezi'' and '' P. xilitlae'' are strict cave-dwellers and troglomorphic. In 2007, troglomorphic specimens of '' P. clarkii'' were found in caves in Portugal and Italy.

Taxonomy

Marmorkrebs Procambarus fallax forma virginalis

''Procambarus'' was originally described by

Arnold Edward Ortmann Arnold Edward Ortmann (April 8, 1863 – January 3, 1927) was a Prussian-born United States naturalist and zoologist who specialized in malacology. Biography Ortmann was born in Magdeburg, Prussia on April 8, 1863. A student of Ernst Haeckel, he ...

in 1905 as a

subgenus In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...

of a wider genus '' Cambarus'', and originally contained only four species ('' P. williamsoni'', '' P. digueti'', '' P. mexicanus'' and '' P. cubensis''). The subgenus was elevated in 1942 to the

taxonomic rank In biology, taxonomic rank (which some authors prefer to call nomenclatural rank because ranking is part of nomenclature rather than taxonomy proper, according to some definitions of these terms) is the relative or absolute level of a group of or ...

by Horton H. Hobbs Jr., who later erected most of the subgenera formerly recognized within the genus in a 1972

monograph A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...

. However, more recently, the subgenera have been eliminated, and while it is recognized that ''Procambarus'' is not monophyletic, later literature does not make further taxonomic changes, instead suggesting that more species sampling is required.

Species

*'' Procambarus ablusus'' Penn, 1963 *'' Procambarus acanthophorus'' Villalobos, 1948 *'' Procambarus acherontis'' (Lönnberg, 1894) *'' Procambarus acutissimus'' (Girard, 1852) *'' Procambarus acutus'' (Girard, 1852) *''

Procambarus adani ''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 marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Originally described a ...

'' Álvarez, Torres & Villalobos, 2021 *'' Procambarus advena'' (LeConte, 1856) *'' Procambarus albaughi'' (Johnson, 2018) *'' Procambarus alleni'' (Faxon, 1884) *'' Procambarus ancylus'' Hobbs, 1958 *†'' Procambarus angustatus'' (LeConte, 1856) *'' Procambarus apalachicolae'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus atkinsoni'' (Ortmann, 1913) *'' Procambarus attiguus'' Hobbs Jr. & Franz, 1992 *'' Procambarus barbatus'' (Faxon, 1890) *'' Procambarus barbiger'' Fitzpatrick, 1978 *'' Procambarus bivittatus'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus blandingii'' (Harlan, 1830) *'' Procambarus bouvieri'' (Ortmann, 1909) *'' Procambarus braswelli'' J. E. Cooper, 1998 *'' Procambarus brazoriensis'' Albaugh, 1975 *'' Procambarus caballeroi'' Villalobos, 1944 *'' Procambarus capillatus'' Hobbs, 1971 *'' Procambarus caritus'' Hobbs, 1981 *'' Procambarus catemacoensis'' Rojas, Alvarez & Villalobos, 2000 *'' Procambarus cavernicola'' Mejía-Ortiz, Hartnoll & Viccon-Pale, 2003 *'' Procambarus ceruleus'' Fitzpatrick & Wicksten, 1998 *'' Procambarus chacei'' Hobbs, 1958 *'' Procambarus citlaltepetl'' Rojas, Alvarez & Villalobos, 1999 *'' Procambarus clarkii'' (Girard, 1852) *'' Procambarus clemmeri'' Hobbs, 1975 *'' Procambarus cometes'' Fitzpatrick, 1978 *'' Procambarus connus'' Fitzpatrick, 1978 *'' Procambarus contrerasi'' (Creaser, 1931) *'' Procambarus cubensis'' (Erichson, 1846) *'' Procambarus cuetzalanae'' Hobbs, 1982 *'' Procambarus curdi'' Reimer, 1975 *'' Procambarus delicatus'' Hobbs & Franz, 1986 *'' Procambarus digueti'' (Bouvier, 1897) *'' Procambarus dupratzi'' Penn, 1953 *'' Procambarus echinatus'' Hobbs, 1956 *'' Procambarus econfinae'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus elegans'' Hobbs, 1969 *'' Procambarus enoplosternum'' Hobbs, 1947 *'' Procambarus epicyrtus'' Hobbs, 1958 *'' Procambarus erichsoni'' Villalobos, 1950 *'' Procambarus erythrops'' Relyea & Sutton, 1975 *'' Procambarus escambiensis'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus evermanni'' (Faxon, 1890) *'' Procambarus fallax'' (Hagen, 1870) *'' Procambarus fitzpatricki'' Hobbs, 1972 *'' Procambarus franzi'' Hobbs & Lee, 1976 *'' Procambarus geminus'' Hobbs, 1975 *''

Procambarus geodytes ''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 marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Originally described a ...

'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus gibbus'' Hobbs, 1969 *'' Procambarus gonopodocristatus'' Villalobos, 1958 *'' Procambarus gracilis'' (Bundy, 1876) *'' Procambarus hagenianus'' (Faxon, 1884) *'' Procambarus hayi'' (Faxon, 1884) *'' Procambarus hinei'' (Ortmann, 1905) *'' Procambarus hirsutus'' Hobbs, 1958 *'' Procambarus hoffmanni'' (Villalobos, 1944) *''

Procambarus holifieldi ''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 marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Originally described a ...

'' (Schuster, Taylor & Adams, 2015) *'' Procambarus horsti'' Hobbs & Means, 1972 *'' Procambarus hortonhobbsi'' Villalobos, 1950 *'' Procambarus howellae'' Hobbs, 1952 *''

Procambarus hubbelli ''Procambarus'' is a genus of crayfish in the Family (biology), family Cambaridae, all native to North and Central America. It includes a number of troglobitic species, and the marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Origina ...

'' (Hobbs, 1940) *'' Procambarus hybus'' Hobbs & Walton, 1957 *'' Procambarus incilis'' Pennington, 1962 *'' Procambarus jaculus'' Hobbs & Walton, 1957 *'' Procambarus kensleyi'' Hobbs Jr., 1990 *'' Procambarus kilbyi'' (Hobbs, 1940) *'' Procambarus lagniappe'' Black, 1968 *'' Procambarus latipleurum'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus lecontei'' (Hagen, 1870) *'' Procambarus leitheuseri'' Franz & Hobbs, 1983 *'' Procambarus leonensis'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus lepidodactylus'' Hobbs, 1947 *'' Procambarus lewisi'' Hobbs & Walton, 1959 *'' Procambarus liberorum'' Fitzpatrick, 1978 syn. ''Procambarus ferrugineus'' Hobbs & Robison, 1988 *''

Procambarus litosternum ''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 marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Originally described a ...

'' Hobbs, 1947 *'' Procambarus llamasi'' Villalobos, 1954 *'' Procambarus lophotus'' Hobbs & Walton, 1960 *'' Procambarus lucifugus'' (Hobbs, 1940) *'' Procambarus lunzi'' (Hobbs, 1940) *'' Procambarus luxus'' (Johnson, 2011) *'' Procambarus lylei'' Fitzpatrick & Hobbs, 1971 *'' Procambarus machardyi'' Walls, 2006 *'' Procambarus mancus'' Hobbs & Walton, 1957 *'' Procambarus marthae'' Hobbs, 1975 *'' Procambarus maya'' Alvarez, López-Mejía & Villalobos, 2007 *'' Procambarus medialis'' Hobbs, 1975 *'' Procambarus mexicanus'' (Erichson, 1846) *'' Procambarus milleri'' Hobbs, 1971 *'' Procambarus mirandai'' Villalobos, 1954 *'' Procambarus morrisi'' Hobbs Jr. & Franz, 1991 *'' Procambarus natchitochae'' Penn, 1953 *'' Procambarus nechesae'' Hobbs Jr., 1990 *'' Procambarus nigrocinctus'' Hobbs Jr., 1990 *'' Procambarus niveus'' Hobbs & Villalobos, 1964 *'' Procambarus nueces'' Hobbs Jr. & Hobbs III, 1995 *'' Procambarus oaxacae'' Hobbs, 1973 *'' Procambarus okaloosae'' Hobbs, 1942 *''

Procambarus olmecorum ''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 marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Originally described a ...

'' Hobbs, 1987 *'' Procambarus orcinus'' Hobbs & Means, 1972 *'' Procambarus ortmannii'' Villalobos, 1949 *''

Procambarus ouachitae ''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 marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Originally described a ...

'' Penn, 1956 *'' Procambarus paeninsulanus'' (Faxon, 1914) *'' Procambarus pallidus'' (Hobbs, 1940) *'' Procambarus paradoxus'' (Ortmann, 1906) *'' Procambarus parasimulans'' Hobbs & Robison, 1982 *'' Procambarus pearsei'' (Creaser, 1934) *'' Procambarus penni'' Hobbs, 1951 *'' Procambarus pentastylus'' Walls & Black, 2008 *'' Procambarus petersi'' Hobbs, 1981 *'' Procambarus pictus'' (Hobbs, 1940) *'' Procambarus pilosimanus'' (Ortmann, 1906) *'' Procambarus planirostris'' Penn, 1953 *'' Procambarus plumimanus'' Hobbs & Walton, 1958 *'' Procambarus pogum'' Fitzpatrick, 1978 *''

'' (Packard, 1880) *'' Procambarus pubescens'' (Faxon, 1884) *'' Procambarus pubischelae'' Hobbs, 1942 **'' Procambarus pubischelae deficiens'' Hobbs, 1981 *'' Procambarus pycnogonopodus'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus pygmaeus'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus raneyi'' Hobbs, 1953 *'' Procambarus rathbunae'' (Hobbs, 1940) *'' Procambarus regalis'' Hobbs & Robison, 1988 *'' Procambarus regiomontanus'' Villalobos, 1954 *'' Procambarus reimeri'' Hobbs, 1979 *'' Procambarus riojai'' (Villalobos, 1944) *'' Procambarus roberti'' Villalobos & Hobbs, 1974 *'' Procambarus rodriguezi'' Hobbs, 1943 *'' Procambarus rogersi'' (Hobbs, 1938) *'' Procambarus ruthveni'' Pearse, 1911 *'' Procambarus sbordonii'' Hobbs, 1977 *'' Procambarus seminolae'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus shermani'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus simulans'' (Faxon, 1884) *'' Procambarus spiculifer'' (LeConte, 1856) *'' Procambarus steigmani'' Hobbs Jr., 1991 *'' Procambarus strenthi'' Hobbs, 1977 *'' Procambarus suttkusi'' Hobbs, 1953 *'' Procambarus talpoides'' Hobbs, 1981 *'' Procambarus texanus'' Hobbs, 1971 *'' Procambarus teziutlanensis'' (Villalobos, 1947) *'' Procambarus tlapacoyanensis'' (Villalobos, 1947) *'' Procambarus toltecae'' Hobbs, 1943 *'' Procambarus troglodytes'' (LeConte, 1856) *'' Procambarus truculentus'' Hobbs, 1954 *''

Procambarus tulanei ''Procambarus'' is a genus of crayfish in the Family (biology), family Cambaridae, all native to North and Central America. It includes a number of troglobitic species, and the marbled crayfish (''marmorkrebs''), which is parthenogenetic. Origina ...

'' Penn, 1953 *'' Procambarus vazquezae'' Villalobos, 1954 (species name often misspelled ''vasquezae'') *'' Procambarus veracruzanus'' Villalobos, 1954 *'' Procambarus verrucosus'' Hobbs, 1952 *'' Procambarus versutus'' (Hagen, 1870) *'' Procambarus viaeviridis'' (Faxon, 1914) *'' Procambarus villalobosi'' Hobbs, 1969 *'' Procambarus vioscai'' Penn, 1946 **'' Procambarus vioscai paynei'' Fitzpatrick, 1990 *'' Procambarus virginalis'' (Lyko, 2017) *'' Procambarus williamsoni'' (Ortmann, 1905) *'' Procambarus xilitlae'' Hobbs & Grubbs, 1982 *'' Procambarus xochitlanae'' Hobbs, 1975 *'' Procambarus youngi'' Hobbs, 1942 *'' Procambarus zapoapensis'' Villalobos, 1954 *'' Procambarus zihuateutlensis'' Villalobos, 1950 *'' Procambarus zonangulus'' Hobbs Jr. & Hobbs III, 1990

Notes

References

External links

* *
Key to the subgenera of ''Procambarus''
{{Authority control Cambaridae Freshwater crustaceans of North America Crustacean genera Taxa named by Arnold Edward Ortmann Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Extant Ypresian first appearances