Tranteeva
Tranteeva paradoxa Kratochvil, 1958
Order Opiliones
Family Sironidae
Conservation status: in Bulgaria: Critically endangered CR [B2a, b (ii)(v); C2a (i)].
General distribution. Bulgaria.
Distribution and abundance in Bulgaria. A local endemic known to occur in Rushovata cave near the village of Gradeshnitsa and the caves Toplya and Yalovitsa near the village of Golyama Zhelyazna [1, 3, 4, 5, 8]. There are no data of its numbers.
Habitats. Caves.
Biology. A troglobiont with an unstudied biology. It lives only in environments with high humidity (96-100%) at temperatures of 9.5 – 12 °C. It is mainly found on the bottom of the caves, on the clay wet walls and floors.
Similar species. None.
Negative factors. The use of the caves for industrial purposes; illegal tourism; treasure-hunting; uncontrolled gathering by collectors.
Conservation measures taken. The Rushovata cave is declared a natural site by Order No 2810 of 10.10.1962, issued by the Ministry of Environment and Waters (MOEW). The Toplya cave is declared a natural site by Order No 1799 of 30.06.1972, issued by the MOEW.
Conservation measures needed. Research activities for clarifying the biology and ecology of the species. Strict ban on the gathering of the species by collectors.
References. 1. Kratochvil, 1958; 2. Martens, 1978; 3. Juberthie, 1991; 4. Beron, 1994; 5. Beron & Mitov, 1996; 6. Giribet, 2000; 7. Boyer et al., 2005; 8. Deltshev et al., 2005; 9. Karaman, 2005; 10. Novak, 2005.
Author: Plamen Mitov
