The genus Schizymenia (Nemastomatales, Rhodophyta) on the Russian coast of the northwest Pacific and description of S. tamarae sp. nov

Abstract

ABSTRACT We analysed rbcL and COI sequence data of specimens of Schizymenia from the Sea of Okhotsk and Sea of Japan. Our results revealed a new species of Schizymenia, S. tamarae sp. nov., from the northwestern Sea of Japan. This species is distinct based on shape and the position of glandular cells. Morphological and genetic analyses confirmed that the previously described S. jonssonii is a synonym of S. dubyi var. palmata, which was originally described from the Kuril Islands. The latter taxon was synonymized with Neoabbottiella valentinae. We verified the synonymy of the three names and the affinity of the taxon with the genus Schizymenia. Since the name N. valentinae has priority at the rank of species we propose Schizymenia valentinae comb. nov. The only species of Schizymenia currently known to occur along the Russian coast are S. valentinae and S. tamarae. Schizymenia valentinae is distributed along southeastern Kamchatka, on the Commander Islands and Kurile Islands, and S. tamarae is known only from the Sea of Japan, where it occurs from Olga Bay to Peter the Great Bay on the Russian coast, and in Japan.