Octopods of deep reefs off Curaçao, southern Caribbean including description of one newly discovered species

2020 ◽  
Vol 96 (2) ◽  
pp. 297-308
Author(s):  
Abigail Pratt ◽  
Carole Baldwin ◽  
Michael Vecchione
Keyword(s):  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Reef Fishes ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Deep Reef ◽  
New Information ◽  
Southern Caribbean ◽  
Manned Submersible ◽  
Deep Reefs ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
A New Species

Recent exploratory research on poorly studied deep reefs in the Caribbean Sea has yielded substantial new information about the diversity of deep-reef fishes and some invertebrates, but the diversity of deep-reef cephalopods has not been assessed. Using images, videos, and specimens collected with the aid of a manned submersible, as well as DNA sequences derived from the specimens, we surveyed the cephalopod diversity of the mesophotic and rariphotic reef communities in Curaçao, southern Caribbean. Among the 50 records comprising 15 specimens, 39 photos, and 15 videos (of which six specimens matched video records), we found Octopus hummelincki Adam, 1937, Pteroctopus cf. tetracirrhus Delle Chiaje, 1830, Scaeurgus unicirrhus Delle Chiaje, 1841, Paroctopus mercatoris Adam, 1937, and Lepidoctopus joaquini Haimovici and Sales, 2019. In addition, we found one group of octopods, with two specimens that did not correspond to any known species. We describe this as a new species. One specimen of Lepidoctopus joaquini was hectocotylized on two arms.

scholarly journals A new species of Petrolisthes (Crustacea, Anomura, Porcellanidae) inhabiting vermetid formations (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Vermetidae) in the southern Caribbean Sea

ZooKeys ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 876 ◽  
pp. 143-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Hiller ◽  
Bernd Werding
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Water Movement ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Genetic Distances ◽  
16S Rdna Gene ◽  
Southern Caribbean ◽  
Beach Rock ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
A New Species

Petrolisthes virgiliussp. nov. from the Caribbean Sea of Colombia is described. The new species resembles P. tonsorius morphologically but differs from it principally by its color and habitat. Petrolisthes tonsorius is brown or blueish brown and occurs under intertidal boulders strongly exposed to water movement. Petrolisthes virgiliussp. nov. is pale brown to beige and lives exclusively in intertidal areas dominated by vermetid snails, exposed to heavy wave action. The entangled tubular shells of vermetids are cemented to each other and to a hard substrate like beach rock, forming a microhabitat for the new crab species and other porcellanids of the genera Neopisosoma and Clastotoechus. Large genetic distances between DNA sequences of the mitochondrial 16S rDNA gene from P. virgiliussp. nov. and P. tonsorius confirmed that they comprise different species. Petrolisthes virgiliussp. nov. is the 53rd member of the West Atlantic porcellanid fauna.

scholarly journals A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae)

ZooKeys ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 817 ◽  
pp. 131-157 ◽  
Author(s):  
John C. Murphy ◽  
Alvin L. Braswell ◽  
Stevland P. Charles ◽  
Renoir J. Auguste ◽  
Gilson A. Rivas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Western Hemisphere ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Small Island ◽  
Forest Reserve ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Distinct Taxon ◽  
A New Species

Tobago is a small island on the southeast edge of the Caribbean Plate with a continental flora and fauna. Using DNA sequences from Genbank, new sequences, and morphological data from the snakesErythrolamprusepinephalus,E.melanotus,E.reginae, andE.zweifeli, the species status of specimens of a Tobago snake previously considered to beErythrolamprusreginaewas assessed.Erythrolampruszweifeli, long considered a subspecies ofE.reginae, was found to be a northern Venezuela-Trinidad endemic and the sister toE.reginae. The trans-Andean speciesE.epinephalusis shown to be non-monophyletic while the Costa Rican lineage ofE.epinephalusis weakly supported as the sister to the Tobago population. The TobagoErythrolamprusis described as a distinct taxon based upon five specimens from four localities in lower montane rainforest. Much of the new species range includes the Main Ridge Forest Reserve of Tobago, the oldest protected forest in the Western Hemisphere. All known locations fall within a 400-ha area, and its total geographic distribution is likely to be less than 4,566 ha. The restricted distribution of this new snake makes it a likely candidate for threatened status. The new species also becomes another biogeographic link between northern Venezuela and Tobago.

On a collection of deep-water shrimp (Crustacea, Decapoda) from the Dutch Caribbean, with the description of a new species of Pseudocoutierea

Zootaxa ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 4415 (3) ◽  
pp. 533
Author(s):  
GABRIËL OLTHOF ◽  
LEONTINE E. BECKING ◽  
CHARLES H.J.M. FRANSEN
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Deep Water ◽  
Additional Material ◽  
Marine Research ◽  
Deep Reef ◽  
Deep Reefs ◽  
Dutch Caribbean ◽  
A New Species

A collection of shrimp from deep reefs in the Dutch Caribbean is described. Most material originates from the Bonaire deep reef expedition (2013) by Wageningen Marine Research of Wageningen University. Some additional material was available from dives on Curaçao (2014). A new species of Pseudocoutierea Holthuis was recognized in the material collected off Bonaire. The new species is described and illustrated and its position in the phylogeny of the genus Pseudocoutierea analyzed. A key to the species in the genus is presented.

A new species of Uroplatus (Gekkonidae) from Ankarana National Park, Madagascar, of remarkably high genetic divergence

Zootaxa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4683 (1) ◽  
pp. 84-96
Author(s):  
FANOMEZANA M. RATSOAVINA ◽  
MARK D. SCHERZ ◽  
KRYSTAL A. TOLLEY ◽  
ACHILLE P. RASELIMANANA ◽  
FRANK GLAW ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Genetic Divergence ◽  
National Park ◽  
Pairwise Distance ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
New Information ◽  
Mitochondrial 16S Rrna Gene ◽  
A New Species

Previous studies on leaf-tailed geckos of the genus Uroplatus identified a lineage from the Ankarana karst massif in northern Madagascar as genetically highly divergent, but only fragmentary information was available on these geckos. Here, we provide an integrative analysis based on molecular and morphological data, including a newly collected specimen from this locality. Phylogenetic analysis placed the Ankarana lineage sister to U. ebenaui, but with a surprisingly high genetic divergence of over 19% uncorrected pairwise distance in the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene. We formally describe the Ankarana lineage as Uroplatus fetsy sp. nov. and provide new information on the distribution and genetic differentiation of its sister species, Uroplatus ebenaui. Based on DNA sequences of newly examined samples this latter species is confirmed as widespread, ranging from low-elevation dry forests from Beanka in western Madagascar to Forêt d’Ambre and Analalava/Fanambana in northern Madagascar, and thus far has not been found in the Ankarana Massif, where U. fetsy occurs. 

scholarly journals Genetic and morphological variation in corallivorous snails (Coralliophila spp.) living on different host corals at Curaçao, southern Caribbean

2017 ◽  
Vol 86 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-S9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerrit Potkamp ◽  
Mark J.A. Vermeij ◽  
Bert W. Hoeksema
Keyword(s):  
Host Species ◽  
Genetic Differences ◽  
Shell Shape ◽  
Morphological Development ◽  
Host Coral ◽  
Geometric Morphometric ◽  
Southern Caribbean ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
A New Species

Snails of the genus Coralliophila (Muricidae: Coralliophilinae) are common corallivores in the Caribbean, feeding on a wide range of host species. In the present study, the morphological and genetic variation in C. galea and C. caribaea were studied in relation to their association with host coral species at Curaçao. Differences in shell shape among snails living on different hosts were quantified using geometric morphometric and phylogenetic relationships were studied using two mitochondrial markers (12S and COI). Based on these analyses, a new species, C. curacaoensis sp. nov., was found in association with the scleractinian coral Madracis auretenra. Both C. galea and C. caribaea showed host-specific differences in shell shape, size, and shell allometry (i.e. changes in morphological development during growth). Shell spire variability contributed foremost to the overall variation in shell shape. In C. caribaea minor genetic differences existed between snails associated with scleractinian and alcyonacean corals, whereas in C. galea such intraspecific variation was not found. These results shed more light on morphological and genetic differences among coral-associated fauna living on different host species.

First record of the Indo-Pacific sponge genus Rhaphidhistia (Demospongiae, Hadromerida, Trachycladidae) from the Caribbean Sea, with description of a new species

2013 ◽  
Vol 94 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-259
Author(s):  
Christian M. Díaz ◽  
Sven Zea
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
First Record ◽  
Natural Group ◽  
Tethys Sea ◽  
Continental Shelves ◽  
Southern Caribbean ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Deep Distribution ◽  
A New Species

Exploration of continental shelves may produce unexpected faunal records. In shelf waters of La Guajira peninsula, Colombia, in the northern tip of South America, southern Caribbean Sea, we found a new species of Rhaphidhistia (Demospongiae, Hadromerida, Trachycladidae) a genus previously thought to be restricted to the Indo-Pacific Ocean. Rhaphidhistia guajiraensis sp. nov. is thickly encrusting, agglutinating bottom debris; it possesses asymmetric oxea as megascleres (465–757 μm by 6.3–17.5 μm) and spiraster-like spinispirae (15–37 μm by 2–5 μm). It is closely similar to the type species of the genus, R. spectabilis Carter, 1879, both standing apart from a third species, R. mirabilis (Dendy, 1924), thus conforming a natural group whose taxonomic placement needs to be reassessed. There are numerous cases of sponge genera with sister species in the Indo-Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans, possibly split since the Tethys Sea breakup; owing to their restricted or deep distribution, they are just starting to be discovered.

Description of a new species of Pachycheles (Decapoda, Anomura, Porcellanidae) from the southern Caribbean Sea

Crustaceana ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 90 (7-10) ◽  
pp. 1279-1288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernd Werding ◽  
Alexandra Hiller
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Caribbean Sea ◽  
Virgin Islands ◽  
16S Rdna Gene ◽  
Western Atlantic ◽  
Isthmus Of Panama ◽  
Southern Caribbean ◽  
Mitochondrial 16S Rdna ◽  
A New Species

A new species of porcellanid crab from the southern Caribbean Sea is described. Pachycheles tuerkayi n. sp. has been confused with P. serratus (Benedict, 1901) since the 1950s because the two species are morphologically and ecologically similar and have overlapping distributions in the southern Caribbean. P. tuerkayi n. sp. is restricted to the coasts of Costa Rica, Panamá and Colombia. P. serratus ranges from Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands to the coasts of Panamá, Colombia and Venezuela. Genetic differences based on DNA sequences of the mitochondrial 16S rDNA gene from the two species surpassed those estimated for geminate porcellanids on each side of the Isthmus of Panamá. Field observations where P. tuerkayi n. sp. and P. serratus overlap indicated that the two species come into contact when sharing the same substrate. The total number of porcellanid species in the western Atlantic rises to 50.

Discovery of New Genera Challenges the Subtribal Classification of Tok-Tok Beetles (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae: Sepidiini)

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivia M Gearner ◽  
Marcin J Kamiński ◽  
Kojun Kanda ◽  
Kali Swichtenberg ◽  
Aaron D Smith
Keyword(s):  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Species Group ◽  
Phylogenetic Placement ◽  
Darkling Beetles ◽  
Species Groups ◽  
Taxonomic Groups ◽  
Inference Methods ◽  
A New Species ◽  
Coleoptera Tenebrionidae

Abstract Sepidiini is a speciose tribe of desert-inhabiting darkling beetles, which contains a number of poorly defined taxonomic groups and is in need of revision at all taxonomic levels. In this study, two previously unrecognized lineages were discovered, based on morphological traits, among the extremely speciose genera Psammodes Kirby, 1819 (164 species and subspecies) and Ocnodes Fåhraeus, 1870 (144 species and subspecies), namely the Psammodes spinosus species-group and Ocnodes humeralis species-group. In order to test their phylogenetic placement, a phylogeny of the tribe was reconstructed based on analyses of DNA sequences from six nonoverlapping genetic loci (CAD, wg, COI JP, COI BC, COII, and 28S) using Bayesian and maximum likelihood inference methods. The aforementioned, morphologically defined, species-groups were recovered as distinct and well-supported lineages within Molurina + Phanerotomeina and are interpreted as independent genera, respectively, Tibiocnodes Gearner & Kamiński gen. nov. and Tuberocnodes Gearner & Kamiński gen. nov. A new species, Tuberocnodes synhimboides Gearner & Kamiński sp. nov., is also described. Furthermore, as the recovered phylogenetic placement of Tibiocnodes and Tuberocnodes undermines the monophyly of Molurina and Phanerotomeina, an analysis of the available diagnostic characters for those subtribes is also performed. As a consequence, Phanerotomeina is considered as a synonym of the newly redefined Molurina sens. nov. Finally, spectrograms of vibrations produced by substrate tapping of two Molurina species, Toktokkus vialis (Burchell, 1822) and T. synhimboides, are presented.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document