Amphibioplanidae: a new branch and family on the phylogenetic tree of the triclad flatworms (Platyhelminthes: Tricladida), represented by a species from Sardinian caves with a remarkable lifestyle
| Autor: | Marta Riutort, Ronald Sluys, Renata Manconi, Giacinta Angela Stocchino, Daniel Dols-Serrate, Carlo Onnis |
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| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
0301 basic medicine geography geography.geographical_feature_category Phylogenetic tree Zoology Biodiversity Biology biology.organism_classification 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Dimarcusidae 03 medical and health sciences 030104 developmental biology Cave Animalia Animal Science and Zoology Amphibioplanidae Platyhelminthes Tricladida Ecology Evolution Behavior and Systematics Taxonomy |
| Popis: | In this study we document the phylogenetic position and the anatomical and ecological characteristics of a new taxon of cave-dwelling triclad flatworms. This species from the Mediterranean island of Sardinia (Italy) forms a separate branch on the phylogenetic tree of the planarians for which we proposed a new genus and placed it in a new family. Molecular analysis reveals a sister-group relationship between this new family, Amphibioplanidae, and the family Dimarcusidae of the suborder Cavernicola, together constituting the sister-group of the suborder Maricola. The new species Amphibioplana onnisi Stocchino & Sluys, sp. nov. is slender and furnished with an epidermis that is abundantly and uniformly provided with cilia and rhabdites. The pharynx presents an oesophageal projection pointing into the pharynx lumen. Ovaries are located far behind the brain. A relatively long common oviduct opens into the diverticulum of the bursal canal. The probursal copulatory bursa is lined with a highly vacuolated, syncytial epithelium. The habitat of this species is formed by groundwater in microcrevices of the epikarst and temporary cave pools, but the animals can survive in a basically terrestrial environment, thus exhibiting an amphibious lifestyle. Some tentative scenarios are discussed for the evolution of the new taxon and for the presence of the new species in three separate caves in Sardinia. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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