Researchers at Prince of Songkla University discovered two types of marine isopods, new species of sea cockroaches in the Cirolana genus, on the coast of Thepha District, Songkhla province, and in the upper Gulf of Thailand. The findings indicate biodiversity and the abundance of marine resources in the Gulf of Thailand.
Dr. Eknarin Rodcharoen, lecturer of Aquatic Science and Management Innovation at PSU’s Faculty of Natural Resources, revealed that during the study of sea cockroach diversity in Thailand on both the coast of the Gulf and that of the Andaman Sea, two new species of isopods in the Cirolana genus were discovered in coral reefs on the coast of Thepha district, Songkhla province, and in the upper Gulf of Thailand. The finding was published in the academic journal Zootaxa on 31 March 2021.
The first isopod, scientifically named Cirolana parawongat sp. Nov. (after morphological similarities to another isopod, C. wongat, found in Papua New Guinea), spread from the coast of the Gulf of Thailand, from Chonburi province down to Koh Samui, Surat Thani province. Another species has been named Cirolana khamensis sp. Nov. (after the location of discovery), which has spread only in the area of Koh Kham, Thepha district, Songkhla province.
Dr. Eknarin said that these isopods, or sea cockroaches belong in the same classification as crustaceans, but are smaller. Their body length ranges from 0.5 to 2 cm. They serve as food for other aquatic life, and they are indicators of degradation in the ecosystem and of the quality of the natural water source. The discovery of two new species of sea cockroaches in the Gulf of Thailand this time is an accurate reflection of marine biodiversity and the abundance of marine resources in the Gulf of Thailand.
