We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Green armoured tardigrades (Echiniscidae: Viridiscus), including a new species from the Southern Nearctic, exemplify problems with tardigrade variability research.
- Authors
Momeni, Sogol; Gąsiorek, Piotr; Loeffelholz, Jacob; Chtarbanova, Stanislava; Nelson, Diane R.; Fletcher, Rebecca Adkins; Michalczyk, Łukasz; Pienaar, Jason
- Abstract
Ranges of tardigrade intraspecific and interspecific variability are not precisely defined, both in terms of morphology and genetics, rendering descriptions of new taxa a cumbersome task. This contribution enhances the morphological and molecular dataset available for the heterotardigrade genus Viridiscus by supplying new information on Southern Nearctic populations of V.perviridis, V.viridianus, and a new species from Tennessee. We demonstrate that, putting aside already well-documented cases of significant variability in chaetotaxy, the dorsal plate sculpturing and other useful diagnostic characters, such as morphology of clavae and pedal platelets, may also be more phenotypically plastic characters at the species level than previously assumed. As a result of our integrative analyses, V.viridianus is redescribed, V.celatus sp. nov. described, and V.clavispinosus designated as nomeninquirendum, and its junior synonymy with regard to V.viridianus suggested. Morphs of three Viridiscus species (V.perviridis, V.viridianus, and V.viridissimus) are depicted, and the implications for general echiniscid taxonomy are drawn. We emphasise that taxonomic conclusions reached solely through morphological or molecular analyses lead to a distorted view on tardigrade α-diversity.
- Subjects
TENNESSEE; TARDIGRADA; SPECIES; CHAETOTAXY; GENETICS; BLOOD platelets
- Publication
Scientific Reports, 2023, Vol 13, Issue 1, p1
- ISSN
2045-2322
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1038/s41598-023-40609-4