ABSTRACT
Decapoda is the most species-rich group of crustaceans, with numerous economically important and morphologically diverse species leading to a large amount of research. Our research groups are attempting to estimate a robust phylogeny of the Decapoda based on molecular and morphological data to resolve the relationships among the major decapod lineages and then to test a variety of hypotheses associated with the diversity of decapod morphological evolution. Thus, we have developed a database of molecular markers for use at different scales of the evolutionary spectrum in decapod crustaceans. We present potential mitochondrial and nuclear markers with an estimation of variation at the genus level, family level, and among infraorders for Decapoda. We provide a methodological framework for molecular studies of decapod crustaceans that is useful at different taxonomic levels.
