New perspectives on the evolution of the genus Typhlatya (Crustacea, Decapoda): first record of a cavernicolous atyid in the Iberian Peninsula, Typhlatya miravetensis n. sp

On several occasions, shrimps belonging to a new species of the genus Typhlatya were collected in a cave in the province of Castellón, Spain. This is the first record of the genus in the Iberian Peninsula. The species is described and the validity, distribution, and zoogeography of the genus, as well as the status of the genus Spelaeocaris, are discussed. Former models for the evolution of the genus Typhlatya and its genus group are reviewed, as well as the system of inner classification of the Atyidae and its biogeographical meaning. For the age and evolution of the genus we developed a new model based on vicariance principles that involves further evolution of each species after the disruption of the ancestral range. This allows new estimations for the age of the genus. Accordingly, we suppose that other proposals, such as recent dispersal through the sea, should be disregarded for this genus. The evolutionary development of this species is discussed in the context of the geological history of the area and the world distribution of the genus, the genus group, and the family.