Categorization of Cave Dwellers
The cave dwellers fall under one of the following categories:
- Troglobiont species are true cave dwellers, occurring exclusively in caves and never in the open.
- Troglophile species are insects which can and sometimes occur outside the cave, but prefer the cave habitat.
- Trogloxene insects are incapable of living long or permanently in caves, but do occasionally penetrate the caves and manage to survive the extreme environment.
Among the troglobionts insects the most important include Coleoptera, Stenopelmatidae and some Diptera (many of which are perhaps only troglophiles). Nearly all other insects found in caves are perhaps only trogloxene. The troglobiont grasshoppers of Europe belong to Dolichopoda and Troglophilus. These species are completely apterous, but are provided with well-developed and pigmented compound eyes. The legs and antennae are markedly elongate as in Dolichopoda. Numerous Carabidae are true caverniculous forms.
On the other hand the conspicuously microphthalmous staphylinids Glyptomerus cavicola, Atheta absoloni, Colydiidae Anommatus titanus, Curculionidae Troglorrhynchus and Absoloniella, some blind carabids, staphylinids and Bathysciinae found commonly in caves in Europe, are really only troglophiles. All true troglobionts are apterous, yellowish-brown or pale reddish-brown, with eyes mostly atrophied or absent. Two European aquatic beetles, Dytiscus balsetensis and Hydroporus aveniovensis, are pale yellowish-brown and with eyes greatly atrophied and unpigmented.
Read more about this topic: Cave Insect
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