Abstract
Several Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) populations of the central and eastern Iberian Peninsula have been ascribed to Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) astieri (Dupuy, 1851), though recent evidence demonstrates the species could be endemic to the departments of Var and Alpes-Maritimes in France. Through the identification of cryptic species using a combined morphological and phylogenetic approach, this paper provides a detailed morphological description of Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) astieri, clarifying its taxonomic boundaries and confirming it as a French endemic. In parallel, by comparing Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) populations from the provinces of Castellón and Valencia in Eastern Spain, it was observed that rather than Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) astieri they represented a new species here described as Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) hauffei sp. n. Among other characters, the two species show marked differences in shell shape, male and female genital systems, radular formula and concentration of the nervous system. Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) hauffei sp. n. was also compared morphologically to another two Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) species living in nearby areas [Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) hinzi Boeters, 1986 and Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) navasiana (Fagot, 1907)], molecularly to Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) falkneri (Boeters, 1970), the type species of the subgenus, and to the rest of the Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) species described so far. Morphological differentiation between the species is supported by a genetic divergence of 7.4% inferred from a partial sequence (658 bp) of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI). On the basis of an average 8% (5.39 to 11.15%) divergence estimated for the COI gene in other Pseudamnicola (Corrosella) species reported in GenBank, the existence of two specific entities is here proposed, which will have impact on conservation policies both in France and in Spain.
Highlights
The Mediterranean basin, and within it the Iberian Peninsula, has been identified as a biodiversity hotspot for animal species including those of hydrobiid gastropods (Arconada and Ramos 2003)
The Iberian populations formerly cited as P. (C.) astieri in Castellón province (Gasull 1981, VidalAbarca and Suárez 1985) correspond to the new species P. (C.) hauffei sp. n
A considerable difference between the two species was detected in nervous system condensation (RPG ratio)
Summary
The Mediterranean basin, and within it the Iberian Peninsula, has been identified as a biodiversity hotspot for animal species including those of hydrobiid gastropods (Arconada and Ramos 2003). The freshwater genus Pseudamnicola Paulucci, 1878, among the most cumbersome in terms of taxonomy, is one of the largest and most diverse groups of Hydrobiidae Stimpson, 1965, with around 85 nominal species (Boeters 1976, Ghamizi et al 1997, Glöer et al 2010, Glöer and Pesic 2009, Fauna Europaea 2011). Many of these taxa require confirmation of their taxonomic status since they have yet to be morphologically well characterized. Recent papers have demonstrated that molecular data are useful to support the morphological delimitation of hydrobiid genera and species (Hershler et at. 2003, Szarowska et al 2005, Arconada and Ramos 2006, Arconada et al 2007) and that a combined approach using morphological and molecular data can help reveal intraspecific variability unveiling cryptic species within the genus Pseudamnicola (Szarowska et al 2006, Delicado et al 2012)
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