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Projektom Biospeleološka istraživanja i inventarizacija faune u speleološkim objektima Nacionalnog parka Sjeverni Velebit u suradnji Javne ustanove "Nacionalni park Sjeverni Velebit" i Hrvatskog biospeleološkog društva, biospeleološki je istraženo 5 speleoloških objekata: Jama pod Budinom kosicom, Jama u kuku, Sniježnica u Medvjeđoj dolini, Špilja u Štirovači i Terca. U svakom je objektu sakupljana fauna, mjereni su mikroklimatski parametri te su fotodokumentirani ulaz, unutrašnjost objekta i fauna. Detaljno su taksonomski obrađene skupine pauka (Araneae), jednakonožnih rakova (Isopoda), striga (Chilopoda), dvojenoga (Diplopoda), skokuna (Collembola) i kornjaša (Coleoptera). Rezultati ovog istraživanja značajno su doprinijeli poznavanju podzemne faune Parka te su naglasili važnost i potrebu sustavne inventarizacije podzemne faune speleoloških objekata.

Five new species are described, Plusiocampa (Didymocampa) cvijici Sendra & Antić, sp. nov., Plusiocampa (Plusiocampa) atom Sendra & Antić, sp. nov., Plusiocampa (Stygiocampa) barethae Sendra & Rađa, sp. nov., Plusiocampa (Stygiocampa) dulcici Sendra & Rađa, sp. nov. and Plusiocampa (Venetocampa) pirnati Sendra & Borko, sp. nov. This brings the number of cave-adapted species of campodeids known from the Dinarides, Eastern Alps, Balkan System and Rodope Massif to 28 (one species in the genus Campodea and 27 in Plusiocampa). Among Plusiocampa, four out of five subgenera are present (Pentachaetocampa is not present in the region studied): Didymocampa (one species), Plusiocampa s. str. (15 species), Stygiocampa (eight species) and Venetocampa (three species), whereby Stygiocampa and Venetocampa are endemic to the studied region. These results reveal the importance of the Dinarides karst region as a centre of diversification for campodeids and for cave animals in general. A monophyletic subgroup, consisting of Stygiocampa, Venetocampa and Plusiocampa s. str. and characterized by the absence of medial posterior thoracic macrosetae, presumably colonized the Dinaric plate during the middle of the Cenozoic and occurs in that area since then.

The paper presents information on the spider collection (Araneae) housed in the Natural History Museum in Zagreb, Croatia. The collection was founded in 1931 and now includes the material assembled in 1884–1964; it consists of 2,461 lots and numbers 8,478 specimens belonging to 464 species, mainly collected by the Croatian arachnologist Narcis Damin. Most specimens are well-preserved in ethanol. This spider collection does not cover all Croatian regions with the majority of samples (67%) originating from coastal regions of east Adriatic. A taxonomic re-examination of the collection has revealed 31 species that are new to the Croatian spider fauna. Spider collecting has been resumed in Croatia recently., Rad donosi podatke o Zbirci pauka (Araneae) pohranjenoj u Hrvatskom prirodoslovnom muzeju u Zagrebu. Zbirka je osnovana 1931. godine i danas obuhvaća materijal prikupljan u razdoblju 1884.–1964.; sastoji se od 2.461 inventarne jedinice te broji 8.478 primjeraka 464 vrste, koje je uglavnom prikupio hrvatski arahnolog Narcis Damin. Većina primjeraka je dobro očuvana u etanolu. Zbirka pauka ne pokriva sve hrvatske regije; većina uzoraka (67%) potječe s istočne obale Jadrana. Taksonomska revizija zbirke utvrdila je 31 vrstu novu za hrvatsku faunu pauka. Odnedavno je prikupljanje pauka u Hrvatskoj ponovno započelo.

The Hon Chong‒Kâmpôt hills form a group of tiny karstic outcrops scattered in the alluvial plain across the southwestern border between Vietnam and Cambodia. This group hosts an exceptional concentration of endemic taxa that have been progressively discovered during the past two decades. Remarkable endemic genera of millipedes, mites, woodlice and beetles, as well as many endemic species of other arthropod groups are known from deep soil and from caves of this karst. Among them, several species remain known from only single caves or sites, despite intensive sampling. These hills are under critical threat from limestone exploitation. Most of them have already been, or are going to be, levelled during the coming years, the plan being to leave only 3 km2 of unquarried limestone in the Vietnamese part of the karst. We describe here the patterns of endemism and the patterns of threats to this karst group, and summarize the attempts that have been made so far to avoid what is turning out to be one of the worst mass extinctions of karst species documented to date.

Recent research of cave Collembola in Dinaric karst resulted in discovery of high regional diversification of the genus Verhoeffiella Absolon, 1900. The most striking feature of Verhoeffiella species is the high number of troglomorphic traits, which makes this genus a good model for studying morphological diversification and adaptation in subterranean environments. We explore the expression of various morphological modifications assumed to be linked to subterranean life, through detailed descriptions of four new species and redescription of two species including the type species of the genus. Species delimitations are confirmed by single locus (cytochrome c oxidase I) tree-based (Poisson tree processes) and distance-based (automatic barcode gap discovery) species delimitation approaches, which gave identical results. Morphological changes classically considered as adaptive for cave life and new, potentially troglomorphic characters for Collembola are discussed. For several of these characters, high morphological diversity between species and large decoupling in the development of different traits within species are recorded. Such a decoupling is also illustrated in the finding of two cases of Verhoeffiella species pairs at different levels of troglomorphy living in syntopy. We further provide several new differential characters of specific and possibly generic or supra-generic importance and describe for the first time among Collembola an original ‘distal organ’ on Ant. IV.

Two new species of the genus Neelus Folsom, 1896, N. cvitanovici sp. nov. and N. lackovici sp. nov., are described from caves of Croatia. N. lackovici sp. nov. exhibit marked troglomorphic features such as extremely elongated ungua and antennae, larger body among others. Descriptions are completed with comparative tables for chaetotaxy of antennae and legs. Diagnostic table for the congeners and identification key to the world species are provided. Distribution records of other Neelus species in Croatian caves are added. Threats of troglobiotic Neelus species in Croatia are discussed.

Tritomurus veles sp. n. (Tomoceridae) is described from a Croatian cave. It is characterized by troglomorphic features (absence of eyes, reduced pigmentation, slender claw, pointed tibiotarsal tenent hairs) that only compare, among Tomoceridae, to the microendemic species T. falcifer from the Pyrénées. Tritomurus veles also shares with T. falcifer the absence of macrochaetae on head, a presumably non-adaptive character that within Tomoceridae is unique to these two species. Both species have no known epigean relatives in their respective distribution areas and can be considered as relictual.