Similar Organisms
This page is dedicated to other cave organisms found across the world. While these organisms aren't all necessarily related by evolution, they do all exhibit similar traits which are exemplary of convergent evolution. All of these pages were created by students in the Organismal Biology class at UW-La Crosse (our theme for this semester was cave life). Check these other pages out to learn about other stygofauna!
Palaemonias alabamae- The Alabama cave shrimp. This miniscule organism is indigenous to Alabama. Like the Blind Cave Eel this organism has an extremely limited range: it is only found in five caves. Along the lines of convergence, this shrimp lacks pigment like Ophisternon candidum. The Alabama Cave Shrimp is translucent. Check out the site for another interesting cave creature!
Eurycea tridentifera- The Comal Blind Salamander. Another creature endemic to a region of the US, in this case Comal county Texas. The convergence is stated in the name: both the Blind Cave Eel and the Comal Blind Salamander are blind due to their habitat. This species is newly discovered and is being actively studied.
Eurycea rathbuni- The Texas Blind Salamander. Yet another creature coming from the United States, the Texas Blind Salamnder is found within the caves of the Edwards Aquifer in Texas. These salamanders exhibit the same atrophy of optical tissue that the Blind Cave Eel exhibits.
Amblyosis rosae- The Ozark Cave Fish. This light silvery looking fish occupies the bottom most waters in springs. In addition to a similar habitat, this organism also shares a lack of pigmentation with Ophisternon candidum.
Hickmania troglodytes- The Tasmanian Cave Spider. Two things that everybody loves come together; spiders and dark, damp, cramped places. I'm sure that this species has many insights to offer us. I just don't want it to drop down on me when I'm exploring a cave.
Astyanax jordani- The Blind Cave Fish. Another creature lacking eyes, this is a prototypical cave vertebrate.
Cambarus zophonastes- The Hell Creek Cave Crayfish. This creature comes from Arkansas. It is very reclusive and understudied. This is because, like many other cave dwelling organisms, its habitat is very inaccesible.
Meta menardi- The European Cave Spider. This is a much more wide-spread species (comparatively) of cave dweller. It is found from northern Europ to Korea.
Speleomantes strinatii- The North-west Italian Cave Salamander. This organism sets itself apart by its lack of lungs. The species from this genus are found in caves across Europe.
Had enough cave creatures? Visit MultipleOrganisms.net for pages on a variety of organisms!