Cumacean Crustacea are an important faunal component of the deep-sea benthos of the Mediterranean. Thirty-three species have been collected from bathyal and abyssal depths and eight of these were new. Faunal composition is closely related to the North Atlantic cumacean fauna, especially to that of the Bay of Biscay. Mediterranean endemism is found for species occurring at depths of more than 2000 m. Trophic conditions and species diversity in the deep Mediterranean (2000-3000 m) are similar to those occurring in the North Atlantic between 4000 and 5000 m depth. [NOT CONTROLLED OCR]