Variability on microevolutionary and macroevolutionary scales: a review on patterns of morphological variation in Cnidaria Medusozoa

Autor(es)

Cunha, Amanda F. ; Maronna, Maximiliano M. ; Marques, Antonio C.

• Tipo de documento: Artigo de Revisão
• Fonte: ORGANISMS DIVERSITY & EVOLUTION; v. 16, n. 3, p. 431-442, SEP 2016.
• Citações Web of Science: 3

Resumo

Members of Cnidaria Medusozoa are known for their wide morphological variation, which is expressed on many different levels, especially in different phases of the life cycle. Difficulties in interpreting morphological variations have posed many taxonomic problems, since intraspecific morphological variations are often misinterpreted as interspecific variations and vice-versa, hampering species delimitation. This study reviews the patterns of morphological variation in the Medusozoa, to evaluate how different interpretations of the levels of variation may influence the understanding of the patterns of diversification in the group. Additionally, we provide an estimate of the cryptic diversity in the Hydrozoa, based on COI sequences deposited in GenBank. Morphological variations frequently overlap between microevolutionary and macroevolutionary scales, contributing to misinterpretations of the different levels of variation. In addition, most of the cryptic diversity described so far for the Medusozoa is a result of previously overlooked morphological differences, and there is still great potential for discovering cryptic lineages in the Hydrozoa. We provide evidence that the number of species in the Medusozoa is misestimated and emphasize the necessity of examining different levels of morphological variations when studying species boundaries, in order to avoid generalizations and misinterpretations of morphological characters. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 13/25874-3 - Variabilidade e sinal filogenético da morfologia em organismos coloniais marinhos: um estudo com a família Campanulariidae (Cnidaria, Hydrozoa)
• Beneficiário: Amanda Ferreira e Cunha
• Linha de fomento: Bolsas no Exterior - Estágio de Pesquisa - Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 13/50484-4 - Biodiversity and distribution patterns of the Medusozoa form the South-Western Atlantic
• Beneficiário: Antonio Carlos Marques
• Linha de fomento: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular
• Processo FAPESP: 11/22260-9 - Variabilidade e sinal filogenético da morfologia em organismos coloniais marinhos: um estudo com a família Campanulariidae (Cnidaria, Hydrozoa)
• Beneficiário: Amanda Ferreira e Cunha
• Linha de fomento: Bolsas no Brasil - Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 11/50242-5 - Dimensões da vida marinha: padrões e processos de diversificação em cnidários planctônicos e bentônicos
• Beneficiário: Antonio Carlos Marques
• Linha de fomento: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 06/56211-6 - Análise filogenética da Leptothecata (Hydrozoa; Hydroidolina) e evolução da metagênese
• Beneficiário: Maximiliano Manuel Maronna
• Linha de fomento: Bolsas no Brasil - Doutorado Direto
• Processo FAPESP: 10/52324-6 - Síntese e lacunas do conhecimento sobre os organismos da zona costeiro-marinha brasileira
• Beneficiário: Antonio Carlos Marques
• Linha de fomento: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Regular