Aquatic invertebrates of epiphytic tank bromeliads on the island of Trinidad, W.I.: an illustrated checklist

Abstract

Tank bromeliads are common epiphytes throughout the Neotropics. Their leaf rosettes store rainwater and debris, creating detrital-based aquatic ecosystems with a rich fauna. In this paper, we provide the first illustrated checklist of the aquatic bromeliad invertebrates of Trinidad, based on a sample of ~150 plants from the Northern Range. Using a combination of morphological identification and DNA barcoding, we found 48 different invertebrates, distributed across 21 families from four classes, with many rare species. We also include the complete dataset associated with this species guide, in the hope of supporting future research aimed to resolve important biogeographical and ecological questions around this system.