Anadara demiri (Piani, 1981) is an alien species in the Mediterranean Sea extending its range from Turkey westernly to the Adriatic Sea, where it is locally abundant. The species was first identified as Arca amygdalum Philippi, 1847 in the 1970s. The locus typicus of A. amygdalum is China. This first identification has never been discussed and the species has been thought to be of Indo-Pacific origin to date. However, in the Indo-Pacific province no Anadara shows any similarity with A. demiri. Morphological and molecular data suggest A. demiri is closely related to Anadara transversa (Say, 1822), a common species of the eastern coasts of North America. Anadara demiri is hence considered a junior synonym of A. transversa and the origin of this immigration has to be searched in the southern range of this species, maybe the Gulf of Mexico coasts of Florida.
SUMMARY: This work represents an attempt to resolve the confused and contradictory taxonomy of Mediterranean chitons of the genus Acanthochitona by analysing morphological (SEM observations of aesthetes, radula and girdle) and molecular data (COI, 12S, ITS1). Both analyses support the validity of the three species, Acanthochitona fascicularis, A. crinita and A. oblonga, the latter two of which were previously considered as synonymous.Keywords: SEM morphology, molecular systematics, Mediterranean Sea, Acanthochitona, Polyplacophora. RESUMEN: El género AcAnthochitonA (Mollusca: Polylacophora) en el mar Mediterráneo: datos morfológi-cos y moleculares. -En el presente trabajo se pretende resolver la confusa taxonomía de las especies mediterráneas de los quitones del género Acanthochitona a través de su estudio morfológico (observaciones al SEM de aestetes, rádula y cintura) y molecular (COI, 12S, ITS1). En ambos casos se confirma la validez de las tres especies Acanthochitona fascicularis, A. crinita y A. oblonga, las dos últimas consideradas previamente como sinónimas.
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