''Diphascon faialense'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

tardigrade Tardigrades (), known colloquially as water bears or moss piglets, are a phylum of eight-legged segmented micro-animals. They were first described by the German zoologist Johann August Ephraim Goeze in 1773, who called them Kleiner Wasserbär ...

in the genus '' Diphascon'' of the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Hypsibiidae and the subfamily Diphasconinae. The species is endemic to the

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

.Fontoura & Pilato, 2007:
''Diphascon'' (''Diphascon'') ''faialense'' sp. nov. a new species of Tardigrada (Eutardigrada, Hypsibiidae) from the Azores and a key to the species of the ''D. pingue'' group
. ''Zootaxa'', no 1589, p. 47-55. The species was first described and named by Paulo Fontoura and Giovanni Pilato in 2007. The specific name refers to Faial Island, on which it was found.

References

Parachaela Fauna of the Azores Faial Island Animals described in 2007 Taxa named by Giovanni Pilato {{tardigrade-stub