Parastacidae

Taxobox
name = Parastacidae


image_width = 250px
image_caption = "Cherax destructor"
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Arthropoda
subphylum = Crustacea
classis = Malacostraca
ordo = Decapoda
subordo = Pleocyemata
infraordo = Astacidea
superfamilia = Parastacoidea
familia = Parastacidae
familia_authority = Huxley, 1879
subdivision_ranks = Genera
subdivision = "Astacoides"
"Astacopsis"
"Cherax"
"Engaeus"
"Engaewa"
"Euastacus"
"Geocherax"
"Gramastacus"
"Paranephrops"
"Parastacoides"
"Parastacus"
"Samastacus"
"Tenuibranchiurus"
"Virilastacus"

Parastacidae is the family of freshwater crayfish found in the southern hemisphere. The family is a classic Gondwana-distributed taxon, with extant members in South America, Madagascar, Australia, New Zealand and New Guinea, and extinct taxa also in Antarctica.

Three genera are to be found in Chile, "Virilastacus", "Samastacus" and "Parastacus", the last of which also occurs disjunctly in southern Brazil.

There are no crayfish native to continental Africa, but six species on Madagascar, all of the genus "Astacoides".

Australasia is particularly rich in crayfish. The small genus "Paranephrops" is endemic to New Zealand (Huxley claims that "Paranephrops" also occurs in Fiji [cite book|title=The Crayfish|url=http://www2.biology.ualberta.ca/palmer/thh/crayfish.htm|year=1879|author=T. H. Huxley] ). Two genera, "Astacopsis" and "Parastacoides" are endemic to Tasmania, while a further two are found on either side of the Bass Strait - "Geocharax" and "Engaeus". The greatest diversity, however, is found on the Australian mainland. Three genera are endemic and have restricted distributions ("Engaewa", "Gramastacus" and "Tenuibranchiurus"), while two are more widespread and contain nearly ninety species between them: "Euastacus", around the Australian coast from Melbourne to Brisbane, and "Cherax" across Australia and New Guinea.

References