Contributions to Zoology, 71 (4) 123-129 (2002) SPB AcademicPublishing bv. The Hague A note on the systematic position of the Bathynellacea (Crustacea, Malacostraca) using molecular evidence Ana+Isabel Camacho Isabel Rey²,Beatriz+A. Dorda Annie ³ ², Machordom Antonio+G. Valdecasas ¹ ³, 'Museo Naturales Nacional de Ciencias (CSIC). Dpto. Biodiversidady Biologia Evolutiva. C/ Jose Gutierrez Ahascal 28006- 2 2, Madrid. Spain,
[email protected]; Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), de Colecciones. Jose Gutierrez 3 Dpto. C/ Ahascal 2, 28006- Madrid; Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Dpto. Biodiversidady Biologia Evolutiva. C/ Jose Gutierrez Ahascal 2, 28006- Madrid. Keywords: Systematics, Crustacea, Malacostraca, Bathynellacea, 16S rDNA. lar, is the Abstract usually homogeneous amongst special- ists. The traditional of way working is to use the latest information or the latest Molecular data for the 16S of ba- hypothesis mt rDNA gene fragment a published in order to thynellacean is here presented for the first time and used to select those views that are going to be the of within the analyze relationship the group crustacean class compared. However, it must be universal that where Malacostraca Two (Arthropoda, Bathynellacea). contrasting there is more than one taxonomist working on a views have classified the bathynelids as being cither within the there will be group not a single hypothesis or in- order Syncarida or in a separate super-order Podophallocarida of the How terpretation descent. or small based group’s big belonging to the infra-class Eonomostraca, a disagreement are these irrelevant on debates internal The discrepancies and does it not mainly over external and morphology.