Genus Potamocypris Brady, 1870
Superfamily: Cypridoidea Baird, 1845
Family: Cyprididae Baird, 1845
Subfamily: Cypridopsinae Kaufmann, 1900
Three species have been reported from Japan:
1. Potamocypris acuminata Fuhrmann & Goth, 2011
External view of a female left valve of Potamocypris acuminata, length 659 microns.
External view of a female right valve of Potamocypris acuminata, length 629 microns.
- Additional figures in: Smith et al. 2024
- Habitat: Currently only known as a contaminant in the pet trade.
- Mode of life: Nektobenthic (swimmer).
- Reproductive mode: Sexual.
- Known distribution: Kanagawa Prefecture. Elsewhere, Germany (extinct).
- Notes: This is a species that is known as a fossil from Pleistocene deposits in Germany (Fuhrmann & Goth 2011). Living specimens were found in containers containing plants bought from a pet shop, but the naturally occuring populations of this species have not yet been discovered.
- References:
- ⚬ Fuhrmann, R. & Goth, K. (2011) Neue und weitere bemerkenswerte Ostrakoden aus dem Quartär Mitteldeutschlands. Palaeontographica, Abteilung A: Palaeozoology—Stratigraphy, 294 (4–6), 95–201.
- ⚬ Smith, R. J., Ozawa, H., Nishida, S. & Nakai, S. 2024. Non-marine Ostracoda (Crustacea) collected from pet shops and a hobbyist's aquaria in Japan, including two new species. Zootaxa 5410 (4), 451–494.
2. Potamocypris kusuokai Smith, 2023
External view of a female left valve of Potamocypris kusuokai, length 557 microns.
External view of a female right valve of Potamocypris kusuokai, length 568 microns.
- Additional figures in: Smith 2023
- Habitat: Pools on limestome outcrops.
- Mode of life: Nektobenthic (swimmer).
- Reproductive mode: Sexual.
- Known distribution: Kitadaitojima, Okinawa Prefecture
- References:
- ⚬ Smith, R. J. 2023. Descriptions of two Cypridopsinae (Ostracoda, Crustacea) species from the Nansei Islands, Japan, with the first records of non-marine ostracods from the Daito Islands. Zootaxa, 5293 (2), 294–316.
3. Potamocypris mastigophora (Methuen, 1910)
External view of a female left valve of Potamocypris mastigophora, length 627 microns.
External view of a female right valve of Potamocypris mastigophora, length 590 microns.
- Additional figures in: Okubo 1976 (as Potamocypris producta); Okubo 2004 (as Potamocypris producta); Meisch 1985 (as Potamocypris producta).
- Habitat: In Japan, eel culture ponds and pools of water (Okubo 1976; 2004), and a river estuary (Ikeya & Hanai 1982). Elsewhere, rice fields (Petkovski 1964).
- Mode of life: Nektobenthic (swimmer).
- Reproductive mode: Asexual in Japan. Males reported from South Africa (Sars 1924).
- Known distribution: Chiba and Shizuoka Prefectures (Okubo 1976; Ikeya & Hanai 1982 both as Potamocypris producta). Elsewhere, reported from Africa (see references in Martens 1984); Macedonia (Petkovski 1964 as Potamocypris producta); France (Meisch et al. 1990 as Potamocypris producta); Israel (Lerner-Seggev 1968 as Potamocypris producta); Korea (Kim and Min 1991 as Potamocypris producta).
- References:
- ⚬ Ikeya, N. & Hanai, T. 1982. Ecology of Recent ostracods in the Hamana-ko region, the Pacific coast of Japan. University Museum of the University of Tokyo, Bulletin 20, 15-76.
- ⚬ Kim, W. & Min, G.. S. 1991. Redescription of four recent freshwater ostracods (Crustacea: Ostracoda) from Korea. Korean Journal of Zoology, 34, 307-322.
- ⚬ Lerner-Seggev, R. 1968. The fauna of Ostracoda in Lake Tiberias. Israel Journal of Zoology, 17, 117-143.
- ⚬ Martens, K. 1984. Annotated checklist of non-marine ostracods Crustacea, Ostracoda from African inland waters. Musee Royal de l'Afrique Centrale Tervuren - Belgique, Documentation Zoologique N20, 1-51.
- ⚬ Meisch, C. 1985. Revision of the Recent West European species of the genus Potamocypris (Crustacea, Ostracoda). Part II. Species with long swimming setae on the second atennae. Travaux Scientifiques de Musée d'Histoire Naturelle de Luxembourg, 6, 1-95.
- ⚬ Meisch, C., Wouters, K. & Martens, K. 1990. Liste annotée des Ostracodes actuels nonmarins trouvés en France (Crustacea, Ostracoda). Travaux Scientifiques du Musee National d'Histoire Naturelle de Luxembourg, 15, 1-62.
- ⚬ Okubo, I. 1976. Potamocypris producta (Sars, 1924) from Japan. Researches on Crustacea, 7, 52-56.
- ⚬ Okubo, I. 2004. Nihon tansui san kaimijinko rui ni tsuite. Kabushikigaisha Sanmon Insatsusho, Okayama, Japan, 72pp. [In Japanese, privately published].
- ⚬ Petkovski, T. K. 1964. Bemerkenswerte Entomostraken aus Jugoslavien. Musei Macedonici Scientiarum Naturalium, 7, 147-182.
- ⚬ Sars, G. O. 1924.The Fresh-water Entomostraca of the Cape Province (Union of South Africa). Part II: Ostracoda. Annals of the South African Museum, 20, 105-177.