Spilaio sta Pelekita

Higher Geography
Region: Kriti,
Sub-Region: Lasithi,
Municipality: Siteia,
Closest Settlement: Kato Zakros
Cave Synonyms
Spilaio Sykias Spilios
Cave type
Natural
Fauna
  • Albinaria teres (Olivier, 1801), Karakasi et al. 2024
    Phylum: Mollusca / Class: Gastropoda / Order: Stylommatophora / Family: Clausiliidae
  • Allochernes powelli (Kew, 1916), Mahnert 1979, Beron 2016
    Phylum: Arthropoda / Class: Arachnida / Order: Pseudoscorpionida / Family: Chernetidae
  • Cecilioides tumulorum (Bourguignat, 1856), Karakasi et al. 2024
    Phylum: Mollusca / Class: Gastropoda / Order: Stylommatophora / Family: Ferussaciidae
  • Chthonius sp., Mahnert 1979, Beron 2016
    Phylum: Arthropoda / Class: Arachnida / Order: Pseudoscorpionida / Family: Chthoniidae
  • Cordioniscus beroni Vandel, 1968, Schmalfuss et al. 2004, Beron 2016
    Phylum: Arthropoda / Class: Malacostraca / Order: Isopoda / Family: Styloniscidae
  • Dendarus puncticollis Koch, 1948, Trichas 2008
    Phylum: Arthropoda / Class: Insecta / Order: Coleoptera / Family: Tenebrionidae
  • Eukoenenia mirabilis (Grassi & Calandruccio, 1885), Condé 1979b, Condé 1996, Mammola et al. 2021
    Phylum: Arthropoda / Class: Arachnida / Order: Palpigradi / Family: Eukoeneniidae
  • Granopupa granum (Draparnaud, 1801), Karakasi et al. 2024
    Phylum: Mollusca / Class: Gastropoda / Order: Stylommatophora / Family: Chondrinidae
  • Hoplopholcus minotaurinus Senglet, 1971, Brignoli 1984, Bosmans & Chatzaki 2005, Bosmans et al. 2013
    Phylum: Arthropoda / Class: Arachnida / Order: Araneae / Family: Pholcidae
  • Metajapyx aemulans (Silvestri, 1932), Pagés 1993, Beron 2016
    Phylum: Arthropoda / Class: Entognatha / Order: Diplura / Family: Japygidae
  • Orculella sp., Karakasi et al. 2024
    Phylum: Mollusca / Class: Gastropoda / Order: Pulmonata / Family: Orculidae
  • Prionoglaris dactyloides Lienhard, 1988, Lienhard 1988b, Badonnel & Lienhard 1994, Beron 2016
    Phylum: Arthropoda / Class: Insecta / Order: Psocoptera / Family: Prionoglarididae
  • Xerocrassa sp., Karakasi et al. 2024
    Phylum: Mollusca / Class: Gastropoda / Order: Stylommatophora / Family: Hygromiidae
Cave references
  • Faure, P. 1962. 15 gottes explorees en Crete en 1961. Bull. Soc. Speleol. Grèce 6:19–21.
  • Ioannou, I. 1970. The cave “Pelekita” of Kato Zakros, Siteia, Kriti. Bull. Soc. Speleol. Grèce 10:40–46.
  • Petrocheilou, A. 1984. The Greek Caves. Ekdotiki Athinon 160pp.
  • Platakis, E. 1976. The caves of Lasithi. Prefecture of Lasithi Agios Nikolaos.
  • Platakis, E. 1964. Speleological researches at Siteia. Bull. Soc. Speleol. Grèce
Species references
  • Badonnel, A. & Lienhard, C. 1994. Psocoptera. In Juberthie, C.;Decu, V. Encyclopaedia Biospeologica I. Publisher. pp. 301-305.
  • Beron, P. 2016. Faune cavernicole de la Grèce. Maison d'édition Est-West., Sofia. pp. 229.
  • Bosmans, R. & Chatzaki, M. 2005. A catalogue of the spiders of Greece. A critical review of all spider species cited from Greece with their localities. Newsletter Belg. Arachn. Soc., 20 (2): 1-124.
  • Bosmans, R., Van Keer, J., Russell-Smith, A., Kronestedt, T., Alderweireldt, M., Bosselaers, J. & De Koninck, H. 2013. Spiders of Crete (Araneae). A catalogue of all currently known species from the Greek Island of Crete. Newsletter Belg. Arachn. Soc., 28 (1): 1-147.
  • Brignoli, P. M. 1984. Ragni di Grecia XII. Nuovi dati su varie famiglie (Araneae). Rev. suisse Zool., 91 (2): 281-321.
  • Condé, B. 1979. Palpigrades de Grèce, de Guyane et du Kenya. Rev. suisse Zool., 86 (1): 167-179.
  • Condé, B. 1996. Les Palpigrades, 1885-1995: acquisitions et lacunes. Proceedings of thé XlIIth International Congress of Arachnology. Rev. suisse Zool.. pp. 87-106.
  • Karakasi D, Paragamian K, Mylonas M, Vardinoyannis K 2024. What`s crawling in the dark? An annotated list of gastropods in Greek caves.. Subterranean Biology 48: 73-116. https://doi.org/10.3897/subtbiol.48.113383
  • Lienhard, C. 1988. Vorarbeiten zu einer Psocopteren-Fauna der Westpaläarktis : IV. die Gattung Prionoglaris Enderlein (Psocoptera : Prionoglarididae). Mitt. Schweiz. Entom. Ges. 61: 89-108
  • Mahnert, V. 1979. Pseudoskorpione (Arachnida) aus Höhlen Griechenlands, insbesondere Kretas. Arch. Sci. Genève, 32 (3): 213-233.
  • Mammola S, Fernanda M, Rezende V, Marco S, Ferreira RL. 2021. Global distribution of microwhip scorpions (Arachnida: Palpigradi). Journal of Biogeography, 00:1–13.
  • Pagés, J. 1993. Japygidés d'Europe et du bassin méditerranéen, n 7. - Dicellurata Genavensia XVII. Rev. suisse Zool., 100 (1): 47-64.
  • Schmalfuss, H., Paragamian, K. & Sfenthourakis, S. 2004. The terrestrial isopods (Isopoda: Oniscidea) of Crete and the surrounding islands. Stuttgart. Beitr. Naturk. Ser. A. (Biol.), 662: 1-74.
  • Trichas A 2008. The genus Dendarus Latreille 1829 (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae: Dendarini) in Greece. A systematic account of the genus with the description of a new species and four new systematic combinations. Papers dedicated to Prof. Dr. Božidar Ćurčić. S. E. Makarov & R. N. Dimitrijević. Advances in Arachnology and Developmental Biology, 12, 417-462
Citation
Paragamian, K. 2026. Fauna of the cave Spilaio sta Pelekita, Kato Zakros, Siteia, Kriti. In Paragamian, K., M. Poulinakis, S. Paragamian and I. Nikoloudakis. Cave fauna of Greece database - Hellenic Institute of Speleological Research. Cave data updated 14.02.2024, Accessed 09.03.2026