On the Habitat Specificity of the Testate Amoebae Assemblages from Devon Island (NWT, Canadian Arctic), with the Description of a New Species: Difflugia ovalisina

Abstract

Summary A classification analysis of samples from different habitats demonstrates the importance of some ubiquistic and cosmopolitic taxa in high arctic environments. The number of habitat specific assemblages was found to be rather low: only 6 out of 18 recognized assemblages could be linked to a specific habitat. These assemblages are: for the soils, the Plagiopyxis callida assemblage; for the moss habitats, the Assulina muscorum — Corythion dubium , and the Euglypha rotunda assemblages; for the aquatic habitats, the Trinema lineare and the Paraquadrula irregularis — P. penardi assemblages. A new species, Difflugia ovalisina , is described.