Morphological diversity of extant polychelidan lobsters does not reach former heights despite the evolution of morphological differentiation during development

 

Authors: König C, Haug C, Haug JT, Braig F

Published in: Bulletin of Geosciences, volume 101, issue 2; pages: 247 - 261; Received 21 May 2025; Accepted in revised form 7 May 2026; Online 28 June 2026

Keywords: biodiversity, blind lobsters, geometric morphometrics, quantitative morphology, ontogeny, Polychelidae,

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Abstract

Deep-sea blind lobsters, representatives of the group Polychelida, are nowadays only found in the deep sea. The fossil record of the group reaches back to the Triassic (230 mya) with the majority of species occurring during the Triassic and Jurassic in a large geographical range. Since the Late Jurassic, the group has lost most of its species diversity. We investigated whether the loss of species diversity within the group is correlated with a loss of morphological diversity. We used outline analysis to approximate the shape of the shield and chela (propodus and dactylus separately) of polychelidan lobsters as a proxy for their morphological diversity. Our results indicate that morphological diversity had reached higher peaks in the past, and that some morphologies are lost today. These morphologies were likely better adapted to shallow waters. Furthermore, a distinct difference in larval versus adult morphology can be recognised in modern forms. There was no such pronounced difference in the fossil record, indicating a more expressed differentiation of ecological functions in the modern fauna, coupled to the giant “eryoneicus-type” larvae.

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