NEW DISTRIBUTION RECORDS OF Porcellionides pruinosus (Brandt, 1833) AND Cubaris murina Brandt, 1833 (Isopoda: Oniscidea) FROM THE NORTH-WESTERN HIMALAYA, INDIA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.48165/abr.2026.28.01.27Keywords:
Cubaris murina, India, Jammu & Kashmir, Porcellionides pruinosus, taxonomy, terrestrial isopodsAbstract
Terrestrial isopods remain poorly documented in northern India. This study reports Porcellionides pruinosus (Brandt, 1833) and Cubaris murina Brandt, 1833 from Jammu and Kashmir, India. C. murina is recorded for the first time from the northern India, whereas P. pruinosus is reported for the first time from the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir (India), extending its known distribution in the region. Species identification was based on detailed morphological examination, and the identity of P. pruinosus was further confirmed through mitochondrial cytochrome C oxidase subunit I (COI) sequencing and phylogenetic analysis, which demonstrated its close affinity with previously reported global populations. These findings expand the known distribution of terrestrial isopods in the North-Western Himalaya and provide baseline morphological and molecular data for future taxonomic and biodiversity studies.
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