Unravelling the taxonomic identity of Ophiothela Verrill, 1867 (Ophiuroidea) along the Brazilian coast

Autor(es)

Alitto, Renata A. S. ^[1] ; Granadier, Gabriela ^[1] ; Christensen, Ana B. ^[2] ; O'Hara, Timothy ^[3] ; Di Domenico, Maikon ^[4] ; Borges, Michela ^[5]

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Univ Estadual Campinas, Dept Biol Anim, BR-13083863 Campinas - Brazil

^[2] Lamar Univ, Dept Biol, Beaumont, TX 10037 - USA

^[3] Museum Victoria, GPO Box 666, Melbourne, Vic - Australia

^[4] Univ Fed Parana, Ctr Estudos Mar, BR-83255976 Pontal Do Parana - Brazil

^[5] Univ Estadual Campinas, Museu Zool, BR-13083863 Campinas - Brazil

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom; v. 100, n. 3, p. 413-426, MAY 2020.
• Citações Web of Science: 0

Resumo

Since 2012, when Ophiothela was first described in the Atlantic, there has been no consensus regarding its identification. It has been described as O. mirabilis, O. cf. mirabilis, O. danae, or only Ophiothela sp. In order to fill these gaps, our aim was to test if specimens from Brazil are Ophiothela mirabilis and/or Ophiothela danae. Syntypes from the Museum of Comparative Zoology and United States National Museum, Smithsonian Institution, were used. We examined species boundaries of the small six-rayed brittle star Ophiothela using independent character sets utilizing morphology (external morphology and morphometry) and molecular data (16S and COI). Concordance was found between the analyses indicating that Ophiothela sp. from Brazil (BR), Ophiothela mirabilis and Ophiothela danae are closely related. We suggest that O. danae should be considered as a junior synonym of O. mirabilis. A detailed description of O. mirabilis BR is presented using external morphology and microstructural ossicles (arm plates, vertebra, dental and oral plates). This description includes new diagnostic features, particularly regarding its microstructures: (i) transspondylous articulation (first record in Ophiotrichidae); (ii) eight smooth knobs on the dorsal surface of the vertebrae (to date only in Ophiothela); (iii) vertebrae with distal keel divided into two separate end processes matching the two large dorsal grooves proximally (first time in the literature); and (iv) an opening on both sides of the oral plate (as seen in other fissiparous species Ophiactis savignyi and Ophiocomella ophiactoides). (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 11/50317-5 - Biodiversidade e funcionamento de um ecossistema costeiro subtropical: subsídios para gestão integrada
• Beneficiário: Antonia Cecília Zacagnini Amaral
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 18/10313-0 - Consolidação de coleções científicas de invertebrados marinhos: estratégias para conservação da biodiversidade
• Beneficiário: Antonia Cecília Zacagnini Amaral
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 17/09987-3 - Taxonomia integrativa do táxon Ophiothela (Ophiotrichidae, Ophiuroidea): reconhecimento das espécies com ocorrência em duas ecorregiões do Brasil
• Beneficiário: Gabriela Granadier
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Iniciação Científica