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Five new species and a new genus of terrestrial ostracods from Brazil are described: Callistocypris mckenziei sp. nov., Callistocypris rossettii sp. nov., Terrestricypris wurdigae sp. nov., Caaporacandona shornikovi gen. et sp. nov. and Caaporacandona iguassuensis gen. et sp. nov. This is the first time that Callistocypris Shornikov, 1980 and Terrestricypris Shornikov, 1980 have been found since their original description from the Solomon Islands. The family Terrestricyprididae Shornikov is here lowered to the rank of tribe within the Candoninae; this tribe comprises Terrestricypris, Terrestricandona Danielopol & Betsch, 1980 (from Madagascar) and Caaporacandona gen. nov. Putative heterochronic character evolution within this tribe (in valves A1 and A2) is compared to a parallel evolutionary pathway in another group of terrestrial ostracods, the Mesocypridini. The similarity between the terrestrial ostracod faunas of Brazil and the Western Pacific Islands (including New Zealand) and the dissimilarity between those of Africa and South America is indicated. The putative causality of the prevalence of asexual reproduction in terrestrial ostracods is briefly discussed. © 2005 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2005, 145, 145–173. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]