Distribution of testate amoebae in bryophyte communities in São Miguel Island (Azores Archipelago).

Martin Souto Souto,Xabier Pontevedra-Pombal,Vítor Gonçalves,Pedro M Raposeiro

doi:10.3897/bdj.9.e63290

Abstract

BackgroundTestate amoebae are a polyphyletic group of protists living preferentially in soils, freshwaters and wetlands. These Protozoa have a worldwide distribution, but their presence and diversity in the Azores (a remote oceanic archipelago) is poorly known, with only twelve taxa recorded so far. The published information reflects occasional collections from sporadic field visits from naturalists to São Miguel Island, mainly in the nineteenth century. To overcome this limitation, a standardised survey was carried out on the Island, sampling different types of habitats from several localities to provide the distribution and information on species ecology of testate amoebae.New informationIn this study, 43 species of testate amoebae were recorded (within a total of 499 occurrences), belonging to two orders of Protista (26 Arcellinida and 17 Euglyphida). The most frequently occurring testate amoebae were Euglypha strigosa, Trinema lineare, Euglypha rotunda, Assulina muscorum and Cyclopyxis eurystoma. The most diverse genus was Euglypha (six species). A total of 38 species are new records for the Azores Archipelago. These data help to improve knowledge of the geographical distribution of testate amoebae in the northern hemisphere and their diversity in the Azores Archipelago.

Highlights

Testate amoebae are a polyphyletic group of small size [ranging from 7 to 500 μm long (Clarke 2003)] protists, enclosed within a xenosomic or idiosomic shell or test, made from proteinaceous, calcareous and/or siliceous material (Mitchell et al 2008), with one or two oral apertures
Interest in Azorean testate amoebae started almost two centuries ago with the work of Ehrenberg (1854), which reported three protist species Difflugia azorica, Difflugia oligodon and Trinema enchelys, found in soil collected on São Miguel Island
We present the first systematic study that explored the distribution of testate amoebae in bryophyte communities mainly in forest habitats

Summary

Background

Testate amoebae are a polyphyletic group of protists living preferentially in soils, freshwaters and wetlands. These Protozoa have a worldwide distribution, but their presence and diversity in the Azores (a remote oceanic archipelago) is poorly known, with only twelve taxa recorded so far. The published information reflects occasional collections from sporadic field visits from naturalists to São Miguel Island, mainly in the nineteenth century. To overcome this limitation, a standardised survey was carried out on the Island, sampling different types of habitats from several localities to provide the distribution and information on species ecology of testate amoebae.

Introduction

Sampling methods

Findings

Discussion