Mystacocarida

• Ctenocheilocaris
• Derocheilocaris

Mystacocarida are interstitial crustaceans, part of the meiobenthos. Their taxonomy is extremely conservative, superficially all mystacocarids look alike. There are only 12 described species divided between two genera, Derocheilocaris and Ctenocheilocharis.

The mystacocarid pictured (right) was found in the zone of retention at Playa Ritoque in Region V, Chile. All the Mystacocarida from South America reported so far have been of the genus Ctenocheilocaris (Hessler, 1988), so it is assumed that this is the genus of the individual pictured above. Mystacocarida have been observed in samples from Playa Grande (Las Cruces) and Curiñanco (near Valdivia). Zinn et al. (1982) give a bibliography for the Mystacocarida.

References

Hessler, R.R. (1988): Mystacocarida In: Higgins, R.P. & Thiel, H. Introduction to the study of meiofauna. Smithsonian Institution Press. ISBN 0-87474-488-1

Zinn, D.S., Found, B.W. & Kraus, M.G. (1982): A bibliography of the Mystacocarida. Crustaceana, 43:270-274.