Morphology and systematics of Potamotrygon scobina Garman, 1913 (Chondrichthyes: Myliobatiformes: Potamotrygonidae): a species complex?

• Grant number: 11/03952-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: March 01, 2012
• End date: September 30, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Taxonomy of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: Marcelo Rodrigues de Carvalho
• Grantee: João Pedro Fontenelle de Araújo Freire da Silva
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 12/19479-1 - Taxonomic review of the species complex Potamotrygon scobina Garman, 1913 (Chondrichthyes: Myliobatiformes: Potamotrygonidae): implications on the biogeography of the family Potamotrygonidae and the South American Continent, BE.EP.MS

Abstract

The family Potamotrygonidae is the only monophyletic group between the extant elasmobranchs, being the only exclusive to freshwater environment and endemic to south american rivers. Despite its monophyly, this group has considerable taxonomic problems, thus its great dorsal coloration and patterns variation and the lack of a great number of diagnostic characters, resulting in erroneos identification of its members, specially for the great intermediate colloration patterns that are seen. This family is composed by approximately 22 species, distributed in 4 genera. Potamotrygon scobina Garman 1913 was described upon a single juvenile male specimen, from Cameta (lower Tocantins river). Although, many other specimen were collected in different location through out the Amazon basin, displaying a great morphological variation, mainly in its dorsal coloration patterns, and occurrence range. These fact have brought to misidentification of this species, in literature and on field. Based on these problems, P. scobina will be taxonomically revised and rediscribed, based on well representative series of recently collected specimen. This revision will be based on an internal and external morphologic study and will sample individuals from all its occurrence range. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

FONTENELLE, JOAO PEDRO; DE CARVALHO, MARCELO R.. Systematic revision of the Potamotrygon scobina Garman, 1913 species-complex (Chondrichthyes: Myliobatiformes: Potamotrygonidae), with the description of three new freshwater stingray species from Brazil and comments on their distribution and biogeography. Zootaxa, v. 4310, n. 1, p. 1+, AUG 21 2017. (12/02349-8, 12/19479-1, 12/05391-5, 12/09877-0, 11/03952-7)

FONTENELLE, JOAO PEDRO; DA SILVA, JOAO PAULO C. B.; DE CARVALHO, MARCELO R.. Potamotrygon limai, sp nov., a new species of freshwater stingray from the upper Madeira River system, Amazon basin (Chondrichthyes: Potamotrygonidae). Zootaxa, v. 3765, n. 3, p. 249-268, FEB 18 2014. (12/02349-8, 02/06459-0, 12/05391-5, 12/09877-0, 11/03952-7)

FONTENELLE, JOAO PEDRO; LOBODA, THIAGO S.; KOLMANN, MATTHEW; DE CARVALHO, MARCELO R.. Angular cartilage structure and variation in Neotropical freshwater stingrays (Chondrichthyes: Myliobatiformes: Potamotrygonidae), with comments on their function and evolution. ZOOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, v. 183, n. 1, p. 121-142, MAY 2018. (12/19479-1, 11/03952-7)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

SILVA, João Pedro Fontenelle de Araújo Freire da. Taxonomic revision of the Potamotrygon scobina Garman, 1913 (Chondrichthyes: Myliobatiformes: Potamotrygonidae) complex, with biogeographical inferences. 2013. Master's Dissertation - Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto de Biociências (IBIOC/SB) São Paulo.