A new divergent lineage of Daphnia (Cladocera: Anomopoda) and its morphological and genetical differentiation from Daphnia curvirostris Eylmann, 1887

The systematic biology of the subgenus Daphnia s . s . remains confused. Prior attempts at resolution used chiefly postabdominal claw morphology, chromosome numbers and rRNA gene sequences as characters for higher-level relations. Still, several taxa, such as Daphnia curvirostris Eylmann, 1878, have unclear affiliations. We addressed the position of D. curvirostris in this genus by estimating phylogenetic trees from a rapidly evolving protein coding gene (ND2), conducting broad geographical comparisons and carrying out detailed morphological comparisons. The Japanese ' curvirostris' was found to be a new divergent lineage in the subgenus Daphnia , and to possess distinctive morphological characteristics from D. curvirostris . We described this new species as Daphnia tanakai sp. nov. , and redescribed D. curvirostris . The polymorphic postabdominal claw morphology and the distinctive chromosome number of D. tanakai sp. nov. provided evidence for rapid evolution of these traits. Our new morphological, chromosomal and genetic assessment of Daphnia weakened the argument for division of the subgenus Daphnia ( Daphnia ) O. F. Müller, 1785 sensu Johnson, 1952, into two further subgenera.  © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 146 , 385–405.     

Cyclomorphosis inDaphnia galeata mendotae: variation and stability in phenotypic cycles

Phenotypic change is studied in a cyclomorphicDaphnia galeata mendotae population known from previous studies to be clonally diverse. Morphological analyses revealed cyclical changes in both adult and juvenile helmet length and tailspine length which were: 1) strongly correlated with mean water temperature; and 2) repeated annually during the 3-year study period. Field populations exhibited high (5% to 30%) coefficients of variation (CV) for both helmet length and tailspine length; the CV also exhibited seasonal fluctuations such that it was lowest in late summer. The period of highestDaphnia helmet development coincides with peak densities of the common invertebrate predatorsChaoborus andLeptodora. The fluctuations in CV may be due to both differential phenotypic expression of the coexisting clones and invertebrate predation.