Coastal Lowland Cave Crayfish
Procambarus leitheuseri Franz & Hobbs, 1983
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Animalia |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum | Crustacea |
| Class | Malacostraca |
| Order | Decapoda |
| Family | Cambaridae |
| Genus | Procambarus |
| Species | Procambarus leitheuseri Franz & Hobbs, 1983 |
Description
Diagnostic characters
- Ecological class
- Stygobiont
- Realm
- Aquatic
- Troglomorphy
- Troglomorphic
Distribution
Type locality
Weekiwachee Springs, Hernando Co., FL
Range
Known from two counties in Florida in the Florida Lime Sinks karst region.
Continent
North America
Country
United States
States and provinces
Florida
Counties
- Florida
- Hernando, Pasco
Karst regions
Florida Lime Sinks
Genetics
Molecular resources
| Marker | Molecule | Sequences | Length | Exemplar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28S | nuclear | 2 | 437-926 bp | KX238269.1 |
| 18S | nuclear | 1 | 362-362 bp | KX238114.1 |
| COI | mitochondrial | 1 | 606-606 bp | KX238200.1 |
| H3 | nuclear | 1 | 327-327 bp | KX238341.1 |
5 sequences, retrieved 23 August 2026. Counts change as sequences are deposited. Search GenBank.
Download all 5 sequence records (CSV) Accession, marker, molecule type, length, GenBank definition and a direct link.
Specimens
Type material
- Holotype
- USNM 178361 · National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
- Allotype
- USNM 178362 · National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
- Paratype ×4
- National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
- Paratype ×5
- North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
Collections holding material
| Institution | Lots |
|---|---|
| National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution | 7 |
| North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences | 5 |
12 cataloged lots in 2 collections. Compiled from GBIF and not an exhaustive census: many collections are not yet digitised, and holdings are added continually. Search GBIF for specimen records.
Download all 12 specimen records (CSV) Institution, catalog number, type status and preparation. No coordinates.
Conservation and management
IUCN Red List
EN Endangered B1ab(iii)
Assessed in 2010.
NatureServe
G1G2 Critically Imperiled to Imperiled
Global rank last reviewed 15 August 2022.
Subnational ranks
- Florida
- S1S2 Critically Imperiled to Imperiled
Ranks looked up 23 August 2026. Conservation status changes, and a rank here is as current as that date and no more.
State and federal status
Not listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
Threats
- Urbanization - Residential
- Recreational/Commerical Cave Activities
- Dams & Water Extraction
- Pollution -Sewage or Urban Wastewater
- Pollution - Commercial/Industrial
- Pollution - Agricultural & Forestry
- Climate Change-Sea Level Rise
Other resources
References
- Culver, D.C. & Hobbs, III, H.H. 2002. Patterns of species richness in the Florida stygobitic fauna. Hydrogeology and Biology of Post-Palaeozoic Carbonate Aquifers. Proceedings of the Symposium Karst Frontiers: Florida and Related Environments: 60–63. https://karstwaters.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/SP7-Florida-PostPaleozoic-carbonate-aquifers.pdf. details
- Franz, R. 1992o. Withlacoochee Light-Fleeing Cave Crayfish Procambarus (Ortmannicus) lucifugus lucifugus (Hobbs). In: Deyrup, M. & Franz, R. (eds), Rare and Endangered Biota of Florida. Volume IV. Invertebrates, pp. 203–205. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
- Franz, R. 1992n. Coastal Lowland Cave Crayfish Procambarus (Ortmannicus) leitheuseri Franz and Hobbs. In: Deyrup, M. & Franz, R. (eds), Rare and Endangered Biota of Florida. Volume IV. Invertebrates, pp. 201–202. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
- Franz, R., Bauer, J. & Morris, T. 1994. Review of biologically significant caves and their faunas in Florida and south Georgia. Brimleyana 20: 1–109. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/part/229726. details
- Franz, R. & Franz, S.E. 1990. A review of the Florida crayfish fauna, with comments on nomenclature, distribution, and conservation. Florida Scientist 53: 286–296. https://www.jstor.org/stable/24320400. details
- Hobbs & H.H. Jr. 1989. An illustrated checklist of the American crayfishes (Decapoda: Astacidae, Cambaridae, and Parastacidae). Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 480: 1–236. doi:10.5479/si.00810282.480
- Poucher, S. 2022. Wildlife of Florida's Springs. An Illustrated Guide to over 150 Species. Pineapple Press, Palm Beach, Florida, USA. 196 pp. ISBN 9780000000000.
- Simon, T.P. 2011. Conservation status of North American freshwater crayfish (Decapoda: Cambaridae) from the southern United States. Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science 120(1–2): 71–95. https://journals.indianapolis.iu.edu/index.php/ias/article/download/21024/20442/0. details
- Stern, D.B., Breinholt, J., Pedraza-Lara, C., Lopez-Mejia, M., Owen, C.L., Bracken-Grissom, H., Fetzner, J.W., Jr. & Crandall, K.A. 2017. Phylogenetic evidence from freshwater crayfishes that cave adaptation is not an evolutionary dead-end. Evolution 71(10): 2522–2532. doi:10.1111/evo.13326
- Walsh, S.J. 2001. Freshwater macrofauna of Florida karst habitats. Proceedings of the 2001 U.S. Geological Survey Karst Interest Group, USGS Water-Resources Investigations Report 01–4011: 78–88. https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/kip_talks/101/. details
This account was last revised 28 August 2026. Conservation ranks were looked up 23 August 2026.
How to cite this account
Data sources and funding are listed in the Acknowledgments.
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