6533b861fe1ef96bd12c4d0b
RESEARCH PRODUCT
New records of marine Tardigrada in the Mediterranean Sea
Susanna De Zio GrimaldiSantiago Villora-morenosubject
Mediterranean climategeographygeography.geographical_feature_categorybiologyEcologyMeiobenthosTardigradaSubspeciesbiology.organism_classificationMediterranean seaEchiniscoides sigismundiPosidonia oceanicaArchipelagoAnimal Science and ZoologyEcology Evolution Behavior and Systematicsdescription
Abstract Meiofauna from Chafarinas archipelago (western Mediterranean, N. Africa) were studied, and marine Tardigrada were identified to species level. A total of 15 species, belonging to families Stygarctidae, Halechiniscidae (Subfamilies Halechiniscinae, Florarctinae, Styraconyxinae and Tanarctinae), Batillipedidae, and Echiniscoididae, were found for the first time from the Alboran Sea and southwestern Mediterranean area. Four species and one subspecies are new records for the Mediterranean Sea: Floractus acer , F. asper , F. stellatus , Actinarctus doryphorus and Echiniscoides sigismundi hispaniensis . The male of Floractus stellatus , previously unknown to science, is described. Many species have been recorded for the first time in different sedimentary environments, such as midlittoral pools, very shallow gravels, pools in a mixed rocky environment or between Posidonia oceanica meadows, ‘Amphioxus’ gravels, and coastal detritic.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-01-01 | Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society |