Previous studies have suggested that the systematic status of two deep-water echinoderm-associated palaemonid shrimps might be problematic. Based on an analysis incorporating molecular, morphological and ecological data, the systematic status of the two species was re-evaluated and discussed. A preliminary scheme of the evolutionary process of the echinoid-associated palaemonid shrimps is also presented, suggesting the extant species might have evolved through several independent pathways.

The systematic of many water striders remains poorly know. The main goal of the present paper is to provide a review and phylogeny of the American species of Cylindrostethus. An updated identification key, resdecription, description of a new species, two new synonymized and illustrations of species are provided. Furthermore, we confirm the subdivision of Cylindrostethus into two major groups.

The megadiverse flesh fly genus Sarcophaga is divided into a large number of subgenera, with representatives in all biogeographical regions. Novel morphological and molecular evidence is assembled for species of Sarcophaga subgenera Rohdendorfisca and Stackelbergeola, and the analyses point to a sister-group relationship between them. Phylogenetic data for subgenera of Sarcophaga helps us to document patterns and elucidate processes in the evolution of this genus.

It has been thought that the deep-sea sponge-associated lifestyle of many Stenopoididea shrimps evolved from shallow-water free-living lineages. However, our molecular phylogenetic analyses showed that stenopoidid shrimps have colonised deep sea sponges multiple times. It appears that convergent evolution of a symbiotic lifestyle from free-living ancestors may be more prevalent in the ocean than previously assumed.

Feaellids are among the rarest of all pseudoscorpion families and, in Australia, have been previously known from only a single species from the Kimberley region of north-western Australia. We used a combination of molecular and morphological techniques to ascertain the identity of populations in the Pilbara bioregion, which revealed the presence of three distinct species. Each is a short-range endemic species.

Porcellanidae are marine crabs with understudied relationships and evolutionary history. We analysed the phylogenetic relationships between two morphologically close related genera, Pachycheles and Neopisosoma, based on mitochondrial and nuclear markers. We show that Pachycheles is a monophyletic group, older than the polyphyletic Neopisosoma, and that both taxa may have a distinct centre of origin.