Marine and estuarine leeches (Hirudinida : Ozobranchidae and Piscicolidae) of Australia and New Zealand with a key to the species

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eugene M. Burreson
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Endemic Species ◽  
Sea Turtles ◽  
Teleost Fishes ◽  
Mysid Shrimp

Marine leeches are sanguivorous parasites either on sea turtles (family Ozobranchidae) or on elasmobranch and teleost fishes (family Piscicolidae), with the exception of Mysidobdella, which may feed on mysid shrimp. The marine leeches of Australia and New Zealand are poorly known, especially those on teleost fishes. Collections of marine leeches from all major museums in Australia and New Zealand were examined, as well as many specimens sent to the author. Ozobranchus branchiatus and O. margoi were found on sea turtles in Australia. Seven genera and 14 species of fish leeches were found in Australia; 6 genera and 10 species of fish leeches were found in New Zealand. Two genera (Pontobdella and Branchellion) and four species (P. leucothela, P. moorei, B. australis and B. plicobranchus) occur in both Australia and New Zealand. No genus is endemic to Australia, but four species are endemic based on current records (Austrobdella bilobata, Austrobdella translucens, Trachelobdella leptocephali and Pterobdella platycephalus). Two genera (Bdellamaris and Leporinabdella) and three species (B. manteri, B. eptatreti, and L. digglesi) are endemic to New Zealand based on current records. The marine leeches of Australia and New Zealand are a mix of endemic species, those of tropical or subtropical origin, and those of subantarctic origin.

scholarly journals THE DISTRIBUTION OF ENDEMIC SPECIES IN NEW ZEALAND

Science ◽  
1917 ◽  
Vol 45 (1173) ◽  
pp. 641-642
Author(s):  
H. D. Vries
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Endemic Species

Use of a real-time PCR to explore the intensity of Plasmodium spp. infections in native, endemic and introduced New Zealand birds

Parasitology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 144 (13) ◽  
pp. 1743-1751 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. C. SIJBRANDA ◽  
B. D. GARTRELL ◽  
Z. L. GRANGE ◽  
L. HOWE
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Sensitivity And Specificity ◽  
Endemic Species ◽  
Avian Malaria ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Parasite Load ◽  
Infection Prevalence ◽  
Species Groups ◽  
New Zealand Birds

SUMMARYAvian malaria, caused by Plasmodium spp., is an emerging disease in New Zealand (NZ). To detect Plasmodium spp. infection and quantify parasite load in NZ birds, a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (qPCR) protocol was used and compared with a nested PCR (nPCR) assay. A total of 202 blood samples from 14 bird species with known nPCR results were tested. The qPCR prevalences for introduced, native and endemic species groups were 70, 11 and 21%, respectively, with a sensitivity and specificity of 96·7 and 98%, respectively, for the qPCR, while a sensitivity and specificity of 80·9 and 85·4% were determined for the nPCR. The qPCR appeared to be more sensitive in detecting lower levels of parasitaemia. The mean parasite load was significantly higher in introduced bird species (2245 parasites per 10 000 erythrocytes) compared with endemic species (31·5 parasites per 10 000 erythrocytes). In NZ robins (Petroica longipes), a significantly lower packed cell volume was found in birds that were positive for Plasmodium spp. compared with birds that were negative. Our data suggest that introduced bird species, such as blackbirds (Turdus merula), have a higher tolerance for circulating parasite stages of Plasmodium spp., indicating that introduced species are an important reservoir of avian malaria due to a high infection prevalence and parasite load.

The New Zealand species of Amanita (Fungi: Agaricales)

1991 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 325 ◽  
Author(s):  
GS Ridley
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Endemic Species

The genus Amanita in New Zealand is reviewed. Fourteen species are accepted of which 10 are endemic to New Zealand. Seven new species are described: Amanita taiepa, A, nehuta, A. pekeoides, A. karea, A. mumura, A. pumatona and A. pareparina. The endemic species are placed in the Amanita sections Amanita, Vaginatae, Validae and Lepidella.

Relationships amongst length, weight and growth of north-eastern New Zealand reef fishes

1998 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard B. Taylor ◽  
Trevor J. Willis
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Growth Parameters ◽  
Reef Fishes ◽  
Fish Growth ◽  
Regression Equations ◽  
Strong Positive Correlation ◽  
Teleost Fishes ◽  
Growth Data ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Adult Body

This paper examines relationships amongst length, weight and growth parameters of teleost fishes found in shallow north-eastern New Zealand waters. Length–weight equations are presented for 51 species. Fish growth was described using the von Bertalanffy growth parameters L∞ (asymptotic length) and K (growth constant), which were available for 19 species. Literature-derived values for adult body length showed a strong positive correlation with L∞ (r2 = 0.89), which, after conversion to weight, was strongly negatively correlated with K (r 2 = 0.80). Regression equations describing these relationships can be used to predict L∞ and K for fish species lacking such growth data.

scholarly journals Wikimedia Projects and Citizen Science

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siobhan Leachman
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Endemic Species ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Original Description ◽  
Observation Data ◽  
Citizen Scientist ◽  
The Creation

I intend to present an outline of my work as a citizen scientist. I use English Wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata to interlink databases, including GBIF, EOL, NZOR and Plant-SyNZ. All of these provide information on New Zealand endemic species. I link those databases to scientific literature, including the original description as well as the New Zealand conservation threat classification of the species. I also link to other pieces of information, such as photographs and illustrations as well as outreach efforts by Department of Conservation staff. In addition, I will explain how, by editing Wikidata, Wikimedians can assist in filling gaps that result from a lack of publicly available, comprehensive and authoritative databases. Using practical examples, I will show how data collated and curated in Wikidata can be queried. I will explain how information collated in Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons is ingested and reused by the citizen science observation platform iNaturalist. I intend to argue that this reuse assists with the creation of more accurate citizen science-generated biodiversity observation data. This in turn increases the depth of information known about particular species.

Poecilosclerida (Porifera : Demospongiae) from the New Caledonia lagoon

1993 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 1221 ◽  
Author(s):  
JNA Hooper ◽  
C Levi
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Shallow Water ◽  
Endemic Species ◽  
New Caledonia ◽  
Species Distributions ◽  
Sister Species ◽  
West Pacific

Twenty species of shallow-water poecilosclerid demosponges are described from the lagoon and reefs of New Caledonia, including thirteen new species and six new locality records, belonging to five families and eight genera {Myxillidae (1, Acarnus), Desmacellidae (1, Neofibularia), Crellidae (1, Crella), Microcionidae 113, Clathria (Clathriopsamma), C. (Clathria), C. (Thalysias), Echinochalina (Echinochalina), E. (Protophlitaspongia)] and Raspailiidae [4 species, Raspailia (Raspailia), Ceratopsion, Aulospongus]}. The shallow-water fauna contained a mixture of endemic species (65%) and those with affinities to both northern and southern Australia, in contrast to the deeper-water fauna which was previously found to have high endemism (70%) and ancestral affinities to northern New Zealand. The non-endemic shallow-water fauna represents the easternmost extent of species' distributions in the Indo-west Pacific, and the endemic component was also usually immediately recognisable as (transformed) sister-species from Australian tropical and temperate provinces.

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