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Anthony CJ, Bentlage B, Helm RR. Animal evolution at the ocean's water-air interface. Curr Biol 2024; 34:196-203.e2. [PMID: 38194916 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.11.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Revised: 08/28/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024]
Abstract
Innovation is a key to evolutionary success and entrance into novel ecosystems.1 Species that float freely at the ocean's surface, termed obligate neuston (also called pleuston, here referred to simply as neuston), include highly specialized taxa from distinct evolutionary lineages that evolved floating morphologies.2 In 1958, Soviet scientist, A.I. Savilov,3 stated that floating animal species are derived from benthic ancestors, rather than species from the adjacent pelagic zone, and that floating morphologies are homologous to benthic attachment structures. To test Savilov's hypothesis, we constructed molecular phylogenies and ancestral states for all major floating groups for which molecular data were available. Our results reveal that four of the five clades examined arose directly from a substrate-attached ancestor, although that substrate was not necessarily the benthos, as Savilov stated, and instead included epibiotic and rafting ancestors. Despite their diverse evolutionary origins, floating animals use gas-trapping mechanisms to remain at the surface,4,5,6 and many of these gas-trapping structures appear to be homologous to substrate attachment structures. We also reconstruct the trophic habits of floating mollusks and their sister species, revealing that prey preference remains conserved upon entering the ocean's surface ecosystem. Colonization of the ocean's surface seems to have occurred through successive evolutionary steps from the seafloor. Our results suggest that these steps often included transitions through epibiotic (where species attach to other living organisms) or rafting (where species attach to floating debris) habits. The water-air interface, despite its unique properties, may, in some ways, be just another substrate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin J Anthony
- Marine Laboratory, University of Guam, Mangilao, Guam 96913, USA
| | - Bastian Bentlage
- Marine Laboratory, University of Guam, Mangilao, Guam 96913, USA
| | - Rebecca R Helm
- Earth Commons Institute, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, USA.
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2
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Photographic Checklist, DNA Barcoding, and New Species of Sea Slugs and Snails from the Faafu Atoll, Maldives (Gastropoda: Heterobranchia and Vetigastropoda). DIVERSITY 2023. [DOI: 10.3390/d15020219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Baseline biodiversity data are key for ecological and evolutionary studies and are especially relevant for areas such as the Maldivian Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, which can act as a stepping-stone for the transport of widely distributed marine species. We surveyed the islands and reefs of the Faafu and Malé Atolls with snorkeling and scuba diving, collecting the two gastropod subclasses, Heterobranchia and Vetigastropoda. Our inventory comprises 104 species photographed alive to create an identification guide. We also provide COI barcodes for most species, adding novel sequence data for the Maldivian malacofauna. Half of our species represent new records for the Maldives, emphasizing how much diversity remains to be discovered. Species distributions reflect ecological rarity, with almost 60% of taxa only found in one site. We also compiled a comprehensive checklist of heterobranchs and vetigastropods of the Maldives based on literature records, resulting in 320 species, which, together with barcoding data, indicate several potential cryptic species in the Indo-Pacific. Six new species are described, the nudibranchs Limenandra evanescenti n. sp., Eubranchus putnami n. sp., Sakuraeolis marhe n. sp., Moridilla maldivensis n. sp., Tergiposacca perspicua n. sp., and the sacoglossan Costasiella fridae n. sp.
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Karmeinski D, Meusemann K, Goodheart JA, Schroedl M, Martynov A, Korshunova T, Wägele H, Donath A. Transcriptomics provides a robust framework for the relationships of the major clades of cladobranch sea slugs (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Heterobranchia), but fails to resolve the position of the enigmatic genus Embletonia. BMC Ecol Evol 2021; 21:226. [PMID: 34963462 PMCID: PMC8895541 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-021-01944-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Accepted: 11/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The soft-bodied cladobranch sea slugs represent roughly half of the biodiversity of marine nudibranch molluscs on the planet. Despite their global distribution from shallow waters to the deep sea, from tropical into polar seas, and their important role in marine ecosystems and for humans (as targets for drug discovery), the evolutionary history of cladobranch sea slugs is not yet fully understood. Results To enlarge the current knowledge on the phylogenetic relationships, we generated new transcriptome data for 19 species of cladobranch sea slugs and two additional outgroup taxa (Berthella plumula and Polycera quadrilineata). We complemented our taxon sampling with previously published transcriptome data, resulting in a final data set covering 56 species from all but one accepted cladobranch superfamilies. We assembled all transcriptomes using six different assemblers, selecting those assemblies that provided the largest amount of potentially phylogenetically informative sites. Quality-driven compilation of data sets resulted in four different supermatrices: two with full coverage of genes per species (446 and 335 single-copy protein-coding genes, respectively) and two with a less stringent coverage (667 genes with 98.9% partition coverage and 1767 genes with 86% partition coverage, respectively). We used these supermatrices to infer statistically robust maximum-likelihood trees. All analyses, irrespective of the data set, indicate maximal statistical support for all major splits and phylogenetic relationships at the family level. Besides the questionable position of Noumeaella rubrofasciata, rendering the Facelinidae as polyphyletic, the only notable discordance between the inferred trees is the position of Embletonia pulchra. Extensive testing using Four-cluster Likelihood Mapping, Approximately Unbiased tests, and Quartet Scores revealed that its position is not due to any informative phylogenetic signal, but caused by confounding signal. Conclusions Our data matrices and the inferred trees can serve as a solid foundation for future work on the taxonomy and evolutionary history of Cladobranchia. The placement of E. pulchra, however, proves challenging, even with large data sets and various optimization strategies. Moreover, quartet mapping results show that confounding signal present in the data is sufficient to explain the inferred position of E. pulchra, again leaving its phylogenetic position as an enigma. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12862-021-01944-0.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dario Karmeinski
- Centre for Molecular Biodiversity Research, Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change/ZFMK, Museum Koenig, Adenauerallee 160, 53113, Bonn, Germany
| | - Karen Meusemann
- Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change/ZFMK, Museum Koenig, Adenauerallee 160, 53113, Bonn, Germany.,Australian National Insect Collection, National Research Collections Australia, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), National Facilities and Collections, Clunies Ross Street, Acton, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - Jessica A Goodheart
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, La Jolla, San Diego, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Michael Schroedl
- SNSB-Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, Münchhausenstr. 21, 81247, Munich, Germany.,GeoBioCenter LMU und Biozentrum, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Alexander Martynov
- Zoological Museum of the Moscow State University, Bolshaya Nikitskaya Str. 6, 125009, Moscow, Russia
| | - Tatiana Korshunova
- Koltzov Institute of Developmental Biology, Vavilova Str. 26, 119334, Moscow, Russia
| | - Heike Wägele
- Centre for Molecular Biodiversity Research, Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change/ZFMK, Museum Koenig, Adenauerallee 160, 53113, Bonn, Germany
| | - Alexander Donath
- Centre for Molecular Biodiversity Research, Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change/ZFMK, Museum Koenig, Adenauerallee 160, 53113, Bonn, Germany.
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Furfaro G, Mariottini P. Looking at the Nudibranch Family Myrrhinidae (Gastropoda, Heterobranchia) from a Mitochondrial '2D Folding Structure' Point of View. Life (Basel) 2021; 11:583. [PMID: 34207329 PMCID: PMC8235141 DOI: 10.3390/life11060583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Revised: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 06/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Integrative taxonomy is an evolving field of multidisciplinary studies often utilised to elucidate phylogenetic reconstructions that were poorly understood in the past. The systematics of many taxa have been resolved by combining data from different research approaches, i.e., molecular, ecological, behavioural, morphological and chemical. Regarding molecular analysis, there is currently a search for new genetic markers that could be diagnostic at different taxonomic levels and that can be added to the canonical ones. In marine Heterobranchia, the most widely used mitochondrial markers, COI and 16S, are usually analysed by comparing the primary sequence. The 16S rRNA molecule can be folded into a 2D secondary structure that has been poorly exploited in the past study of heterobranchs, despite 2D molecular analyses being sources of possible diagnostic characters. Comparison of the results from the phylogenetic analyses of a concatenated (the nuclear H3 and the mitochondrial COI and 16S markers) dataset (including 30 species belonging to eight accepted genera) and from the 2D folding structure analyses of the 16S rRNA from the type species of the genera investigated demonstrated the diagnostic power of this RNA molecule to reveal the systematics of four genera belonging to the family Myrrhinidae (Gastropoda, Heterobranchia). The "molecular morphological" approach to the 16S rRNA revealed to be a powerful tool to delimit at both species and genus taxonomic levels and to be a useful way of recovering information that is usually lost in phylogenetic analyses. While the validity of the genera Godiva, Hermissenda and Phyllodesmium are confirmed, a new genus is necessary and introduced for Dondice banyulensis, Nemesis gen. nov. and the monospecific genus Nanuca is here synonymised with Dondice, with Nanuca sebastiani transferred into Dondice as Dondice sebastiani comb. nov.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Furfaro
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies—DiSTeBA, University of Salento, I-73100 Lecce, Italy
| | - Paolo Mariottini
- Department of Science, University of Roma Tre, I-00146 Rome, Italy;
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Mehrotra R, A Caballer Gutiérrez M, M Scott C, Arnold S, Monchanin C, Viyakarn V, Chavanich S. An updated inventory of sea slugs from Koh Tao, Thailand, with notes on their ecology and a dramatic biodiversity increase for Thai waters. Zookeys 2021; 1042:73-188. [PMID: 34163291 PMCID: PMC8208966 DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1042.64474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Improved access to field survey infrastructure throughout South-East Asia has allowed for a greater intensity of biodiversity surveys than ever before. The rocky bottoms and coral reef habitats across the region have been shown to support some of the highest sea slug biodiversity on the planet, with ever increasing records. During the past ten years, intensive SCUBA surveys have been carried out at Koh Tao, in the Gulf of Thailand, which have yielded remarkable findings in sea slug biology and ecology. In this work a brief history of sea slug biodiversity research from Thailand is covered and a complete inventory of sea slugs from Koh Tao, Gulf of Thailand is provided. This inventory is based on surveys from 2012 to 2020, with previously unreported findings since 2016. Habitat specificity and species-specific ecology are reported where available with a focused comparison of coral reef habitats and deeper soft-sediment habitats. The findings contribute 90 new species records for Thai waters (92 for the Gulf of Thailand) and report a remarkable consistency in the proportional diversity found to be exclusive to one habitat type or another. Additionally, taxonomic remarks are provided for species documented from Koh Tao that have not been discussed in past literature from Thailand, and a summary of previous records in the Indo-West Pacific is given.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rahul Mehrotra
- Reef Biology Research Group. Department of Marine Science, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.,Aow Thai Marine Ecology Center, Koh Mun Nai, Kram, Klaeng District, Rayong 21110, Thailand
| | - Manuel A Caballer Gutiérrez
- American University of Paris, Department of Computer Science Math and Environmental Science, 6 rue du Colonel Combes, 75007 Paris, France.,Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, 55 rue de Buffon, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Chad M Scott
- Conservation Diver. 7321 Timber Trail Road, Evergreen, Colorado, 80439, USA
| | - Spencer Arnold
- Conservation Diver. 7321 Timber Trail Road, Evergreen, Colorado, 80439, USA
| | - Coline Monchanin
- Aow Thai Marine Ecology Center, Koh Mun Nai, Kram, Klaeng District, Rayong 21110, Thailand.,Research Center on Animal Cognition (CRCA), Center for Integrative Biology (CBI); CNRS, University Paul Sabatier,Toulouse III, France
| | - Voranop Viyakarn
- Reef Biology Research Group. Department of Marine Science, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
| | - Suchana Chavanich
- Reef Biology Research Group. Department of Marine Science, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.,Center of Excellence for Marine Biotechnology, Department of Marine Science, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
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Wang A, Conti-Jerpe IE, Richards JL, Baker DM. Phestilla subodiosus sp. nov. (Nudibranchia, Trinchesiidae), a corallivorous pest species in the aquarium trade. Zookeys 2020; 909:1-24. [PMID: 32089632 PMCID: PMC7015969 DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.909.35278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2019] [Accepted: 12/23/2019] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Phestillasubodiosussp. nov. (Nudibranchia: Trinchesiidae) is a novel species that feeds on corals in the genus Montipora (Scleractinia: Acroporidae) which are economically important in the aquarium industry. Nuclear-encoded H3, 28SC1-C2, and mitochondrial-encoded COI and 16S markers were sequenced. Phylogenetic analysis, Automatic Barcode Gap Discovery (ABGD), morphological data, and feeding specialization all support the designation of Phestillasubodiosussp. nov. as a distinct species. Although new to science, Phestillasubodiosussp. nov. had been extensively reported by aquarium hobbyists as a prolific pest over the past two decades. The species fell into a well-studied genus, which could facilitate research into its control in reef aquaria. Our phylogenetic analysis also revealed Tenelliachaetopterana formed a well-supported clade with Phestilla. Based upon a literature review, its original morphological description, and our phylogenetic hypothesis, we reclassified this species as Phestillachaetopteranacomb. nov.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Wang
- Chinese International School, Hau Yuen Path, Braemar Hill, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Inga Elizabeth Conti-Jerpe
- Swire Institute of Marine Science, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong SAR.,School of Biological Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong SAR
| | | | - David Michael Baker
- Swire Institute of Marine Science, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong SAR.,School of Biological Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong SAR
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