Integrative taxonomy reveals that Charybdis variegata (Fabricius, 1798) (Brachyura: Portunidae) has not been introduced in the South Atlantic Ocean

Autor(es)

Negri, Mariana ; Mantelatto, Fernando L.

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: JOURNAL OF CRUSTACEAN BIOLOGY; v. 37, n. 3, p. 278-284, MAY 2017.
• Citações Web of Science: 3

Resumo

Records of non-indigenous species have been continuously increasing in the last decades, mainly as a consequence of anthropogenic activities. Identification of such species based on morphology, however, is not always accurate when few or only juvenile specimens are discovered. Accuracy is ideally best reached by comparing the morphology of specimens from native and non-native distributions integrated with molecular diagnostic methods. The portunid crab Charybdis variegata (Fabricius, 1798) was recently recorded in the Atlantic coast of Brazil based on a single juvenile female collected near Santos Harbor, Sao Paulo state. We tested the identification of this specimen using morphological and molecular data in order to verify that indeed this is a new case of a non-indigenous species that has reached the South American Atlantic coast. Using both a tree-based and genetic distance approaches, we built a phylogram and compared sequences of the mitochondrial genes COI and 16S rDNA of the juvenile specimen with those of several species of Charybdis De Haan, 1833. We also compared the morphology of the juvenile specimen with other specimens of C. variegata from its native ranges as well as with specimens of C. hellerii (A. Milne-Edwards, 1867), an invasive species well established in the western Atlantic. Morphological evidences, divergence estimates, and phylogenetic relationships indicated that the juvenile identified as C. variegata is actually C. hellerii. The presence in the juvenile of fifth pereiopods (natatory legs) having a spine on the posterior margin of carpus and the absence of ridges behind the epibranchial ridges on the carapace are characteristics of C. hellerii. These findings reinforce the need for caution when identifying non-indigenous species, because inaccurate reports of species can affect efforts to describe marine biodiversity and elaborate effective control strategies and eventual eradication. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 14/14245-8 - Variabilidade morfológica e molecular da espécie invasora Charybdis hellerii (A. Milne-Edwards, 1876) (Decapoda, Brachyura, Portunidae) como ferramenta para inferir sobre seu histórico de invasão
• Beneficiário: Mariana Negri Pereira
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Exterior - Estágio de Pesquisa - Doutorado Direto
• Processo FAPESP: 12/06300-3 - Diversidade e estruturação genética do siri invasor Charybdis hellerii (A. Milne-Edwards, 1876) como ferramenta para inferências sobre o seu modo de introdução na costa americana
• Beneficiário: Mariana Negri Pereira
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Doutorado Direto
• Processo FAPESP: 10/50188-8 - Crustáceos decápodes: multidisciplinaridade na caracterização da biodiversidade marinha do estado de São Paulo (taxonomia, espermiotaxonomia, biologia molecular e dinâmica populacional) (Biodiversidade Marinha)
• Beneficiário: Fernando Luis Medina Mantelatto
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Temático