No longer a circumtropical species: revision of the lizardfishes in the Trachinocephalus myops species complex,with description of a new species from the Marquesas Islands

Trachinocephalus, a formerly monotypic and nearly circumtropical genus of lizardfishes, is split into three valid species. Trachinocephalus gauguini n. sp. is described from the Marquesas Islands and is distinguished from the two other species in the genus by having a shorter snout, a narrower interorbital space, larger eye and modally fewer anal‐fin and pectoral‐fin rays. The distribution of Trachinocephalus myops (type species) is restricted to the Atlantic Ocean and the name Trachinocephalus trachinus is resurrected for populations from the Indo‐West Pacific Ocean. Principal component analyses and bivariate plots based on the morphometric data differentiated T. gauguini from the other two species, but a substantial overlap between T. myops and T. trachinus exists. Phylogenetic evidence based on mtDNA COI sequences unambiguously supports the recognition of at least three species in Trachinocephalus, revealing deep divergences between the Atlantic Ocean, Indo‐West Pacific Ocean and Marquesas entities. Additional analyses of species delimitations using the generalized mixed Yule coalescent model and the Poisson tree processes model provide a more liberal assessment of species in Trachinocephalus, indicating that many more cryptic species may exist. Finally, a taxonomic key to identify the three species recognized here is provided.     

Bryophytes of St Helena,South Atlantic Ocean. 1. Three new species of Cololejeunea (Jungermanniales,Lejeuneaceae), C. dianae sp. nov., C. sanctae-helenae sp. nov. and C. grossestyla sp. nov.

Abstract

Three new species of Cololejeunea, C. dianae M. Wigginton, C. sanctae-helenae M. Wigginton and C. grossestyla M. Wigginton are described and illustrated from St Helena, South Atlantic Ocean. Details of their distributions are provided, and differences between the new taxa and other species of Cololejeunea are discussed. This is also the first report of the genus Cololejeunea from St Helena.     

Revision of genus Melamphaes (Melamphaidae). II. Multi-Raker species: M. polylepis, M. falsidicus sp. nova, M. pachystomus sp. nova, M. macrocephalus, M. leprus

The second part of the publication is devoted to the Melamphaes species (family Melamphaidae), which are characterized by 20 and more rakers on the first gill arch, by seven soft rays in the ventral fin, by absence of a temporal spine, by 14–15 rays in the pectoral fin, and by 11 abdominal vertebrae. M. polylepis is characterized by circumtropical range (Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, western and central Pacific Ocean). Newly described species M. falsidicus is described from the northern Atlantic Ocean, where it was sampled between 34°N and 58°N. Before, this species was defined as M. microps. Another newly described species, M. pachystomus, is described along the Peruvian Coast. M. macrocephalus is redescribed. This species inhabits the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean (approximately between 30°N and 23°S). One of the studied specimens of M. macrocephalus was characterized by larger body size (SL = 128 mm) than was described before for this species. M. leprus is known currently by single findings from the eastern tropical Atlantic Ocean (between 11°N and 4°S). This species was also found in the samples obtain in the Gulf of Guinea.     

On the anatomy and zoogeography of Tritoniella belli Eliot, 1907 (Opisthobranchia,Nudibranchia) and the synonymy of T. sinuata Eliot, 1907

Summary Rich material of the genus Tritoniella (Opisthobranchia, Nudibranchia) from the Atlantic sector of the Antarctic Ocean demonstrates that the features of the internal anatomy are fairly constant in contrast to those of the external morphology and the cuticularized structures (radula and jaws). There are specimens intermediate between the two known species of the genus: T. belli Eliot, 1907 and T. sinuata Eliot, 1907. These specimens either show a combination of features characteristic for T. belli and T. sinuata, or of features which lie in between. Therefore T. sinuata is considered to be synonymous with T. belli. The monotypic genus Tritoniella has a circumpolar distribution with an extension of its range to the Subantarctic (South Georgia).     

A barcode analysis of the genus Lobophora (Dictyotales,Phaeophyceae) in the western Atlantic Ocean with four novel species and the epitypification of L. variegata (J.V. Lamouroux) E.C. Oliveira

In the western Atlantic Ocean, the brown algal genus Lobophora is currently represented by a single species, L. variegata, with a type locality designated by Lamouroux as ‘Antilles’. In this study, we used molecular-assisted alpha taxonomy (MAAT) to assess species diversity of Lobophora in Bermuda, the Florida Keys, St. Croix and Guadeloupe (Lesser Antilles). Using cox1 and cox3 sequences as barcode markers, five species of Lobophora, four of them novel, were delineated, all previously having been identified in the area as L. variegata. Our morphological and habitat studies, made possible by abundant sampling, have revealed unique characters for each of these western Atlantic species, including distinct cellular arrangements, as well as different depth ranges for certain species. Observations made from Lamouroux’s holotype of Dictyota variegata (= Lobophora variegata) allowed us to assess the anatomy of this species, which enabled us to easily align this early taxon to one of our genetic species from the western Atlantic. As the type was unavailable for genetic analysis, we selected a recent St. Croix (Virgin Is., Antilles) specimen as the epitype to support it with molecular sequence data.     

A new species of the genus Zalophotrema (Digenea: Campulidae), Zalophotrema atlanticum n. sp., from the liver of the striped dolphin Stenella coeruleoalba (Meyen, 1833) (Cetacea: Delphinidae) in Atlantic waters

Zalophotrema atlanticum n. sp. from the liver of a striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba (Meyen, 1833), stranded in the Canary Islands is described. This new species differs from the other Zalophotrema species in body dimensions and relative size and position of the suckers and cirrus-sac. This is the first record of a species of the genus Zalophotrema in the striped dolphin, and the Atlantic Ocean constitutes a new locality record for this genus.     

Bryophytes of St Helena,South Atlantic Ocean. 4. Kurzia nemoides (Hook.f. et Taylor) Grolle and Lepidozia africana Steph. (Jungermanniales,Lepidoziaceae) described from the island

Abstract

The little known species Kurzia nemoides (Hook.f. et Taylor) Grolle and Lepidozia africana Steph. (Lepidoziaceae) are described and illustrated from St Helena, South Atlantic Ocean. Details are given of their distributions on the island, and the differences between related species are discussed. This is the first report of the genus Lepidozia from St Helena.     

An updated phylogeny of the redlip blenny genus Ophioblennius

An updated molecular phylogeny of the blenny genus Ophioblennius, with a focus on two geographically disjunct morphotypes observed in Brazil, is presented. The analyses showed that specimens from the north‐eastern Brazilian coast are the endemic redlip blenny Ophioblennius trinitatis, but specimens from the southern Brazilian coast are conspecific to an undescribed east Atlantic Ocean (Gulf of Guinea) species, previously unknown in Brazil. Possible explanations for this geographical pattern include: natural larval dispersal and rafting across the Atlantic; an unknown ecological attribute that enabled this species to colonize southern Brazil; oil platforms as introduction vectors.     

Marine Amebae From Clean and Stressed Bottom Sediments of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico*,†,‡

SYNOPSIS Amebae isolated from sediments of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico were maintained in continuous culture and most were identified to genus and species. Twenty-six species representing 12 genera were recognized from existing literature and several others (Flabellula, Mastigamoeba, Cochliopododium) were identified only to genus. One ameboflagellate and several small limax-type amebae which require further study also were isolated. Other sarcodmids belonging to the Heliozoida, Testocida, Leptomyxida, and Proteomyxida were identified only tentatively. the distribution of the amebae and ameba-like organisms was tabulated for the following geographic areas: Atlantic Ocean near Long Island, New York: Atlantic Ocean 16-65 miles offshore from New York and New Jersey: Atlantic Ocean 1-50 miles offshore from Maryland and Delaware: and the Gulf of Mexico 3.5-41 miles offshore from the southeastern United States. Amebae present in shellfish holding trays at Lewis. Delaware, were isolated, and identified to compare the distribution of species in laboratory tanks with those present in natural ocean bottoms. Published accounts of each collection site were reviewed to obtain specific data on contamination with sewage wastes, acid wastes, dredge spoils, and petroleum hydrocarbons. Two previously undescribed amebae were found to represent new genera and species and are described herein, one from the Delaware mariculture facility, and the other from the digestive tract of the blue crab, Callinectes sapidus, and the gill surface of the lady crab, Ovalipes ocellatus. Sarcodinids present in clean or stressed environments were listed, and genera and species that were widespread or apparently geographically restricted were recorded.     

Origins, phytogeny and taxonomy of the gadfly petrels Pterodroma spp

Taxonomic characters of gadfly petrels (Procellariidae: Pterodroma spp.) are reviewed and the genus is redefined. The structure of the upper intestines, which have become helicoidally twisted to varying degrees in most species, is an important character not hitherto used. Results of a phylogenetic study of the genus based mainly on the development of helicoidal intestines agree substantially with findings from studies of the Mallophaga parasitizing these petrels. One species, the Kerguelen Petrel Lugensa brevirostris, previously classified in Pterodroma, is shown to have closer affinity with some fulmar genera. The Tahiti Petrel Pseudobulweria rostrata and its rare or extinct relatives, formerly placed in a superspecies of Pterodroma, are more closely related to the Procellaria and Bulweria petrels, and may be derived from the link between the subfamilies Procellariinae and Fulmarinae. From consideration of the fossil record, anatomical characters and Mallophaga, a phylogeny of the Procellariidae is proposed which supports its monophyletic origin. Gadfly petrels apparently descended from the fulmars through the ancestral lines of Snow Petrels Pagodroma, the Kerguelen Petrel and finally the Blue Petrel Halobaena, which may have given rise separately both to gadfly petrels and to the prions Pachyptila. A late Pliocene origin of Pterodroma in the vicinity of southern New Zealand is possible. The genus Pterodroma is divided into four subgenera, representing four connected radiations, and 29 species are recognised. In probable chronological order, Proaestrelata (new subgenus) contains five species and is restricted to the Pacific Ocean, Cookilaria comprises six species restricted as breeders to the South Pacific, Hallstroma has seven species mainly in the tropics of the Pacific, Indian and South Atlantic Oceans, whereas Pterodroma includes 11 species which extend as breeders from the southwest Pacific west to the South Atlantic and into the North Atlantic. Ecological, physical and physiological adaptations in the evolution of gadfly petrels are discussed.     

Phylogeography of North Atlantic intertidal tardigrades: refugia,cryptic speciation and the history of the Mid‐Atlantic Islands

Aim To analyse the phylogeographical history of intertidal tardigrades in the North Atlantic in order to improve our understanding of geographical differentiation in microscopic organisms, and to understand the potential importance of the Mid‐Atlantic Islands as stepping stones between the American and European coasts of the Atlantic Ocean. Location Twenty‐four localities from the Mid‐Atlantic Islands (Greenland, Iceland and the Faroe Islands) and both sides of the North Atlantic Ocean. Methods A mitochondrial marker (cytochrome c oxidase subunit I) was sequenced from individual tardigrades belonging to the genus Echiniscoides. The existence of cryptic species was detected using generalized mixed Yule coalescence analysis; lineage ages were estimated with relaxed clock methods; and the degree of geographical differentiation was analysed with samova analyses, haplotype networks and Mantel tests. Results Echiniscoides hoepneri, previously known only from Greenland, was recovered throughout the Mid‐Atlantic Islands. The Faroe Islands population was isolated from Greenland and Iceland, but overall genetic variation was low. The morphospecies Echiniscoides sigismundi had high genetic variation and consisted of at least two cryptic species. A northern and a southern species were both recovered on both sides of the Atlantic, but only the northern species was found on the Mid‐Atlantic Islands. The northern species showed signs of long‐term isolation between the Western and Eastern Atlantic, despite the potential of the Mid‐Atlantic islands to act as stepping‐stones. There was no sign of long‐term isolation in the southern species. The Mid‐Atlantic individuals of the northern species were of Eastern Atlantic origin, but Greenland and Iceland showed signs of long‐term isolation. The genetic pattern found in the southern species is not clearly geographical, and can probably be best explained by secondary contact between former isolated populations. Main conclusions North Atlantic intertidal tardigrades from the genus Echiniscoides showed strong geographical differentiation, and the Mid‐Atlantic Islands seemed unimportant as stepping stones across the Atlantic. The geographical variation of the northern species of E. sigismundi suggests post‐glacial recolonization from several refugia.     

Biogeographical distribution of Hartaetosiga strains (Choanoflagellatea,Craspedida, Salpingoecidae) including morphological and transcriptomic data from a transect across the Atlantic Ocean

The genus Hartaetosiga Carr, Richter and Nitsche, 2017 comprised up to now only three species, H. gracilis (Kent) Carr, Richter, Nitsche, 2017, H. balthica (Wylezich and Karpov) Carr, Richter and Nitsche, 2017 and H. minima (Wylezich and Karpov) Carr, Richter and Nitsche, 2017. Based on distinct molecular data these species were relocated from the strictly freshwater genus Codosiga (Ehrenberg) Bütschli, 1878 to a new genus comprising brackish and marine species. During the cruise MSM82/2 across the Atlantic Ocean in 2019, surface water samples were taken from 15 stations along a transect ranging from 35°S to 23°N. We were able to isolate and cultivate 14 strains of the genus Hartaetosiga. Morphometric data showed no distinct morphological traits allowing for a species delineation, indicating a cryptic species complex within the genus. Based on cultivation, morphological data, and molecular analyses, we recorded H. gracilis for the first time from off-shelf waters of the Atlantic Ocean and could describe a new species, H. australis n. sp. This new species was recorded from sampling stations in the Southern Hemisphere only, which may indicate a potential biogeographic restriction likely caused by the Equatorial Counter Current (ECC), dividing the northern and southern surface waters.     

New species of the genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bathycongrus—B. parviporus</Emphasis> (Congridae,Anguilliformes)—from waters of Central Vietnam (Nha Trang and Van Phong Bays)

Bathycongrus parviporus sp. nova is described from specimens collected in the South China Sea, in the coastal waters of central Vietnam. By its characters (short snout, elongate-oval vomerine tooth patch with numerous small teeth of approximately the same size, slender relatively short tail, and residual leptocephalic pigmentation as a series of small melanophores just below lateral line in adults), the species belongs to the group of species of this genus represented by B. bleekeri, B. trimaculatus, and B. unimaculatus in the western part of the Pacific Ocean and B. dubius in the western Atlantic Ocean but differs in small infraorbital pores which are enlarged in all known species of the genus Bathycongrus. By the number of preanal pores, the new species is similar to B. bleekeri from Philippine waters but differs from it in a higher number of vertebrae (120–122), in more numerous rows of teeth on the premaxilloethmoid, in more number of branchiostegal rays (9–10), a shorter head, and in some other proportions of head and body. Topography of canals and pores of the cephalic seismosensory system of B. parviporus sp. nova is described. Morphometric and osteological characters for placing this species in the genus Bathycongrus are noted.