Systematic revision of the genus Peronia Fleming, 1822 (Gastropoda, Euthyneura, Pulmonata, Onchidiidae)

Abstract

The genus Peronia Fleming, 1822 includes all the onchidiid slugs with dorsal gills. Its taxonomy is revised for the first time based on a large collection of fresh material from the entire Indo-West Pacific, from South Africa to Hawaii. Nine species are supported by mitochondrial (COI and 16S) and nuclear (ITS2 and 28S) sequences as well as comparative anatomy. All types available were examined and the nomenclatural status of each existing name in the genus is addressed. Of 31 Peronia species-group names available, 27 are regarded as invalid (twenty-one synonyms, sixteen of which are new, five nomina dubia, and one homonym), and four as valid: Peronia peronii (Cuvier, 1804), Peronia verruculata (Cuvier, 1830), Peronia platei (Hoffmann, 1928), and Peronia madagascariensis (Labbé, 1934a). Five new species names are created: P. griffithsi Dayrat & Goulding, sp. nov., P. okinawensis Dayrat & Goulding, sp. nov., P. setoensis Dayrat & Goulding, sp. nov., P. sydneyensis Dayrat & Goulding, sp. nov., and P. willani Dayrat & Goulding, sp. nov.Peronia species are cryptic externally but can be distinguished using internal characters, with the exception of P. platei and P. setoensis. The anatomy of most species is described in detail here for the first time. All the secondary literature is commented on and historical specimens from museum collections were also examined to better establish species distributions. The genus Peronia includes two species that are widespread across the Indo-West Pacific (P. verruculata and P. peronii) as well as endemic species: P. okinawensis and P. setoensis are endemic to Japan, and P. willani is endemic to Northern Territory, Australia. Many new geographical records are provided, as well as a key to the species using morphological traits.

A DNA barcode library for mangrove gastropods and crabs of Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area reveals an unexpected faunal diversity associated with the intertidal forests of Southern China

“…In Hong Kong, Britton [65] recorded four species, namely Peronia verruculata, Paraonchidium reevesii, Platevindex mortoni and Onchidium hongkongense. As previously mentioned, a revision on the taxonomy of this family is being carried out by Dayrat et al [44][45][46][66][67][68][69], and found that P. reevesii, O. hongkongense, and some of the P. verruculata in [65] are actually Paromoionchis tumidus [44,66]. Our molecular analyses revealed six species of Onchidiidae in Hong Kong (Table 1).…”

The Coral Triangle and Strait of Malacca are two distinct hotspots of mangrove biodiversity

“…Some adapted to distinct microhabitats within riverine mangrove forests, including silty muds ( Alionchis , Laspionchis , Paromoionchis , and Peronina ) 57 , 59 , 61 , 62 , mounds of mud and dead logs ( Onchidium ) 50 , 51 , roots and trunks of mangrove trees ( Melayonchis and Platevindex ) 52 , 54 , 55 , and supratidal fringes of mangroves ( Onchidina ) 56 . Other onchidiids diversified in coastal, fringe forests with sand and coral rubble ( Wallaconchis ) 58 or transitioned back to the rocky intertidal ( Peronia, Marmaronchis , and Wallaconchis ) 53 , 58 , 60 . The association of onchidiids with rocky intertidal habitats is not phylogenetically constrained, with none of these three genera being sister-taxa, and all being highly diverged from the genus Onchidella, which also inhabits rocky shores at the margins of the Indo-West Pacific 46 .…”