Abstract
A detailed redescription of two endemic, cave-dwelling niphargid species of the Hungarian Mecsek Mts., Niphargus molnari Méhely, 1927 and Niphargus gebhardti Schellenberg, 1934 is given based on newly collected material. Morphology was studied under light microscopy and with scanning electon microscopy. Morphological descriptions are complemented with mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences as barcodes for both species and with notes on their ecology. Using three independent molecular markers we showed that Niphargus gebhardti belongs to the clade distributed between Central and Eastern Europe, whereas phylogenetic relationship of Niphargus molnari to the rest of Niphargus species is not clear. The two species from the Mecsek Mts. are phylogenetically not closely related. Both species need to be treated as vulnerable according to IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Highlights
Fragmented mountain areas in East-Central Europe had been suggested to be centres of endemisms that evolved through a complex geological history including Eocene marine regression-transgression cycles and Pleistocene glacial cycles (Hou et al 2013, Meleg et al 2013, Mamos et al 2014)
We provide a detailed and richly illustrated redesription of N. molnari and N. gebhardti with cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences as barcodes
Comparative scanning electron microscopy used for first time on niphargids, and it proved to be a rather useful method in analysing and illustrating of barely visible diagnostic characters
Summary
Fragmented mountain areas in East-Central Europe had been suggested to be centres of endemisms that evolved through a complex geological history including Eocene marine regression-transgression cycles and Pleistocene glacial cycles (Hou et al 2013, Meleg et al 2013, Mamos et al 2014). The closest mountain ranges are the Croatian Papuk Mts. The area is small of approximately 545 km. The area is small of approximately 545 km2 In biological sense, it is populated by numerous endemic species the origin of which may date back to Tertiary and which apparently have survived mass extinctions in glacial periods. The subterranean environment of the area harbours numerous terrestrial and aquatic highly endemic invertebrates, known only from one or a few caves. We morphologically redescribe and present phylogenetic relationships of two amphipod species from the genus Niphargus, both endemic to this area
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