Molecular and morphological data reveal three new species of Thouarella Gray, 1870 (Anthozoa: Octocorallia: Primnoidae) from the Southern Ocean

Núñez–Flores, Mónica; Gomez‐Uchida, Daniel; López–González, Pablo J.

doi:10.1007/s12526-020-01053-z

Cited by 8 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 50 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Most recent phylogenetic studies in pennatulaceans based on mitochondrial genes (mtMutS and ND2) have proposed the existence of four main clades (Dolan et al 2013, Kushida andReimer 2018). However, given the low evolution rate of the mitochondrial genome in octocorals, and its uniparental inheritance, phylogenetic hypotheses relying solely on mtDNA could be biased, while the integration of both mitochondrial and nuclear markers (such as 28S) must be preferable (Bilewitch and Degnan 2011, McFadden et al 2014, Núñez-Flores et al 2020.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular phylogeny and divergence time estimates in pennatulaceans (Cnidaria: Octocorallia: Pennatulacea)

García-Cárdenas

Núñez–Flores

López–González

2020

scimar

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Pennatulaceans are an important component of benthic marine communities usually related to soft bottoms. Despite their important ecological role, as yet little is known about their origin and divergence time. The first attempts to establish phylogenetic relationships among genera date from the early 20th century, when only morphological characters were available. In the last decade, phylogenetic analyses based on mitochondrial DNA sequences from a selected number of species have proposed a different hypothetical ancestor for this group, but their intergeneric relationships remain obscure. The present study is based on a combination of mitochondrial and nuclear markers (mtMutS, Cox1 and 28S rDNA), adding new molecular information about the phylogenetic relationships among the pennatulacean genera, including 38 new sequences belonging to 13 different species. Some of the phylogenetic relationships inferred in the present study question the current classification of sea pens based on morphology (at different taxonomic levels), clearly indicating that the two main groups Sessiliflorae and Subselliflorae, some of their main families (e.g. Pennatulidae, Umbellulidae, Virgulariidae) and some genera (e.g. Umbellula, Veretillum) are non-monophyletic. In addition, the veretillids, traditionally considered the most primitive pennatulaceans, are not shown as the earliest-diverging taxon. Moreover, an analysis of divergence time performed here suggested that the origin of the pennatulaceans dates from the Lower Cretaceous (Berriasian, ~144 Ma), in agreement with their sparsely known fossil record, while the initial divergence of most extant genera occurred in the Oligocene and Miocene times.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular phylogeny and divergence time estimates in pennatulaceans (Cnidaria: Octocorallia: Pennatulacea)

García-Cárdenas

Núñez–Flores

López–González

2020

scimar

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Untiedt et al [55] mentioned that an integrated approach assessing morphological and molecular variation is needed to address classification issues. Information integration is often considered the key to alleviating octocoral taxonomic problems [60][61][62]. The integration of genetic and morphological data is often considered key to mitigating taxonomic issues in octocorals [60][61][62].…”

Section: Key Points For the Morphological Identification Of The Genus...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Information integration is often considered the key to alleviating octocoral taxonomic problems [60][61][62]. The integration of genetic and morphological data is often considered key to mitigating taxonomic issues in octocorals [60][61][62]. As early as 2001, the scholar Bayer mentioned that new technologies in molecular analysis will allow for the possibility of solving the concept of species and genus, especially in problems that change with long-distance changes in geographical and ecological conditions [63].…”

Section: Key Points For the Morphological Identification Of The Genus...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Species Diversity of the Genus Echinogorgia in Xiamen Bay and Its New Record in China

Wang,

Yang,

Chu

et al. 2023

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The rapid reduction in coral reefs worldwide has led to increasing attention toward protecting and restoring coral reef ecosystems. Coral reefs not only have a rich diversity of coral species, but they can also provide important products and services for human beings. One type of coral, Echinogorgia, has important scientific research value and application prospects. To understand the diversity of coral species, diving surveys were conducted in Xiamen Bay in 2017 and 2021, and a total of 928 samples were collected. Taxonomic research was conducted using methods such as morphological identification through electron microscopy. Specific phylogenetic trees of the COI gene, mtMuts gene, and ITS1 gene were analyzed. There were 47 specimens of Echinogorgia coral included among 928 samples. Fifteen species of Echinogorgia were identified, including Echinogorgia ramosa, Echinogorgia flexilis, Echinogorgia russelli, Echinogorgia ramulosa, and Echinogorgia gracilima (which represent the newly recorded species in the waters of China). This study increases the species diversity records in China and contributes to new geographical distribution information of Echinogorgia worldwide. The primary data also serve as the baseline data for long-term biomonitoring programs to estimate the status of octocorals in Xiamen Bay.

show abstract

Novel species discrimination method elucidates colony growth form variation between the New Zealand soft corals Kotatea aurantiaca and Kotatea lobata

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In New Zealand, Kotatea aurantiaca and Kotatea lobata are two common, endemic, co-occurring, and morphologically similar soft coral species that currently cannot be distinguished without microscopic examination of sclerites and of which little is known regarding any aspect of their ecology or biology. The aim of the present study is to ascertain if, and in what ways, their colony growth forms differ, and to test the taxonomic value of macroscopic morphological character measurements using statistical discrimination analyses. A binary logistic regression model is developed whereby macroscopic characters of colony morphology can be used to assign specimens to either species with ~ 90% accuracy. Species assignment accuracy is greatest when ratios formed from morphological measurements are used rather than direct measurements. Here, these ratios are used for the first time to account for the appearance-altering habit among soft corals of hydrostatically expanding and contracting their coelenteron with seawater. Relationships between colony morphology and depth are also examined, and it is suggested that phenotypic plasticity detected in K. lobata, causing it to resemble K. aurantiaca more closely at greater depths, may contribute to their morphological overlap. It is anticipated that this discrimination technique will facilitate future research on the ecology and biology of these species and will be replicated on other sets of morphologically similar soft corals for which species discrimination has been problematic.

show abstract

Molecular and morphological data reveal three new species of Thouarella Gray, 1870 (Anthozoa: Octocorallia: Primnoidae) from the Southern Ocean

Cited by 8 publications

References 50 publications

Molecular phylogeny and divergence time estimates in pennatulaceans (Cnidaria: Octocorallia: Pennatulacea)

Molecular phylogeny and divergence time estimates in pennatulaceans (Cnidaria: Octocorallia: Pennatulacea)

The Species Diversity of the Genus Echinogorgia in Xiamen Bay and Its New Record in China

Novel species discrimination method elucidates colony growth form variation between the New Zealand soft corals Kotatea aurantiaca and Kotatea lobata

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About