scholarly journals Overlooked Species Diversity and Distribution in the Antarctic Mite Genus Stereotydeus

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 506
Author(s):  
Claudia Brunetti ◽  
Henk Siepel ◽  
Peter Convey ◽  
Pietro Paolo Fanciulli ◽  
Francesco Nardi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Antarctic Species ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Continental Antarctica ◽  
Limited Dispersal ◽  
Dispersal Abilities ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
New Distribution ◽  
Mite Genus

In the harsh Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems, invertebrates are currently confined to sparse and restricted ice free areas, where they have survived on multi-million-year timescales in refugia. The limited dispersal abilities of these invertebrate species, their specific habitat requirements, and the presence of geographical barriers can drastically reduce gene flow between populations, resulting in high genetic differentiation. On continental Antarctica, mites are one of the most diverse invertebrate groups. Recently, two new species of the free living prostigmatid mite genus Stereotydeus Berlese, 1901 were discovered, bringing the number of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic species of this genus up to 15, of which 7 occur along the coast of Victoria Land and in the Transantarctic Mountains. To examine the biodiversity of Stereotydeus spp., the present study combines phylogenetic, morphological and population genetic data of specimens collected from nine localities in Victoria Land. Genetically distinct intraspecific groups are spatially isolated in northern Victoria Land, while, for other species, the genetic haplogroups more often occur sympatrically in southern Victoria Land. We provide a new distribution map for the Stereotydeus species of Victoria Land, which will assist future decisions in matters of the protection and conservation of the unique Antarctic terrestrial fauna.

scholarly journals Two New Species of the Mite Genus Stereotydeus Berlese, 1901 (Prostigmata: Penthalodidae) from Victoria Land, and a Key for Identification of Antarctic and Sub-Antarctic Species

Taxonomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 116-141
Author(s):  
Claudia Brunetti ◽  
Henk Siepel ◽  
Pietro Paolo Fanciulli ◽  
Francesco Nardi ◽  
Peter Convey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Scanning Electron Microscopy ◽  
Mite Species ◽  
Apical Segment ◽  
Antarctic Species ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Continental Antarctica ◽  
Two New Species ◽  
Mite Genus ◽  
Scanning Electron

Two new mite species belonging to the genus Stereotydeus Berlese, 1901 were discovered from locations along the coast of Victoria Land, continental Antarctica. Previous records of this genus in the area under study only reported the presence of S. belli and S. mollis. Although those studies included no morphological analyses, it has since been assumed that only these species were present within the area. Specimens of S. ineffabilis sp. nov. and S. nunatakis sp. nov. were obtained, sometimes in sympatry, from four different localities in Central and South Victoria Land and are here described and illustrated using optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques. Features useful for identification of the two new Stereotydeus species include the size of the specimens, the length of the apical segment of pedipalps, the presence/absence of division of the femora, the position of solenidia, the shape and disposition of the rhagidiform organs on the tarsi, the shape of the apical setae of the tarsi, the numbers of aggenital setae and the position of the anal opening. A key to 14 of the 15 currently described Antarctic and sub-Antarctic Stereotydeus species is provided.

scholarly journals Additions to the lichen flora of Victoria Land, Antarctica

2011 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerzy Smykla ◽  
Beata Krzewicka ◽  
Karina Wilk ◽  
Steven Emslie ◽  
Lucyna Śliwa
Keyword(s):  
Ross Sea ◽  
Land Area ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Continental Antarctica ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
Lichen Flora

Additions to the lichen flora of Victoria Land, Antarctica Lichens of relict penguin colonies and sites affected by active penguin colonies were investigated in Victoria Land, Ross Sea sector, continental Antarctica. A total of 17 coastal sites, seven in northern and ten in southern Victoria Land, have been investigated across 7° of latitude from 71° to 78°S. Altogether 40 taxa of lichens have been identified. Four of the recorded species are new to the Antarctic - Caloplaca erecta, C. soropelta, C. tominii and Physcia tenella; two species are new to the Victoria Land area - Lecania nylanderiana and Lecanora polytropa. The first lichen records from Beaufort Island are also provided. Data presented here expand the knowledge on the occurrence, diversity and distribution of Victoria Land lichens.

Diversity and distribution of tardigrades in soils of Edmonson Point (Northern Victoria Land, continental Antarctica)

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 61-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerzy Smykla ◽  
Nataliia Iakovenko ◽  
Miloslav Devetter ◽  
Łukasz Kaczmarek
Keyword(s):  
Water Content ◽  
Austral Summer ◽  
High Water ◽  
Soil Samples ◽  
High Water Content ◽  
Strong Constraint ◽  
Antarctic Soils ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Continental Antarctica ◽  
The Antarctic

This work contributes to the knowledge on distribution, diversity and ecology of the Antarctic soil biota. Different soil habitats from several ice-free coastal sites were sampled along the Victoria Land across 7° of latitude from 71° to 78°S during five austral summer seasons between 2003/04 and 2011/12. In this paper we report preliminary data on soil tardigrades (water bears) from Edmondson Point, Northern Victoria Land. Tardigrades were found to be present in 23 of the 41 examined soil samples (56%). Their presence was associated exclusively with soil samples collected from bryophytes communities and under cyanobacterial mats, whereas they were completely absent in fellfield and ornithogenic soils. Tardigrades were least numerous among all soil micrometazoans, their abundance in the positive samples was very variable and ranged from 3 to 1824 individuals per 100 g of soil DW. High water content seemed to be the major factor determining occurrence of tardigrades in the soils investigated. On the other hand low water content and toxic compounds from penguin guano seemed to act as a strong constraint on their existence in the Antarctic soils. Taxonomic evaluation of the extracted tardigrades revealed presence of only two species belonging to class Eutardigrada: Acutuncus antarcticus (Richters, 1904) and Milnesium antarcticum Tumanov, 2006. While A. antarcticus has already been reported previously as the most widespread and abundant tardigrade across the Victoria Land, the information on M. antarcticum is novel, both for Victoria Land and the continental Antarctica.

A network for monitoring terrestrial ecosystems along a latitudinal gradient in Continental Antarctica

2006 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 549-560 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicoletta Cannone
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Latitudinal Gradient ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Permanent Plots ◽  
Ecological Requirements ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Continental Antarctica ◽  
The Impact

A network for monitoring change in the vegetation communities to assess the impact of future climate changes was established in Victoria Land (Continental Antarctica) in 2002 and 2003. The network is within the framework of the SCAR project RiSCC (Regional Sensitivity to Climate Change in Antarctic terrestrial and limnetic ecosystems), and in cooperation with LGP (Latitudinal Gradient Project) assessing how ecosystem biodiversity and structure may change with latitude and with climate change. The network is composed of 19 permanent plots at nine sites along a latitudinal gradient from Apostrophe Island (73°30′S, 167°50′E) to Granite Harbour (77°00′S, 162°26′E), with a main coastal transect and three subtransects inland from the coast. The sites are representative of the most frequent environmental conditions and the most widespread communities occurring in Continental Antarctica and in Victoria Land. The selected communities show different ecological requirements and have different potential sensitivities to climate change. The vegetation of each plot was described using the RiSCC research protocol, developed originally in the Maritime Antarctic and here adapted, for plot size, to Continental Antarctica. This paper characterizes the vegetation at the sites as the starting point of the long term monitoring.

scholarly journals Uncovered Microbial Diversity in Antarctic Cryptoendolithic Communities Sampling Three Representative Locations of the Victoria Land

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Coleine ◽  
Nuttapon Pombubpa ◽  
Laura Zucconi ◽  
Silvano Onofri ◽  
Benedetta Turchetti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Microbial Diversity ◽  
Fungal Diversity ◽  
Rock Matrix ◽  
Remote Locations ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Continental Antarctica ◽  
Minimum Number ◽  
The Antarctic ◽  
Different Altitudes

The endolithic niche represents an ultimate refuge to microorganisms in the Mars-like environment of the Antarctic desert. In an era of rapid global change and desertification, the interest in these border ecosystems is increasing due to speculation on how they maintain balance and functionality at the dry limits of life. To assure a reliable estimation of microbial diversity, proper sampling must be planned in order to avoid the necessity of re-sampling as reaching these remote locations is risky and requires tremendous logistical and economical efforts. In this study, we seek to determine the minimum number of samples for uncovering comprehensive bacterial and fungal diversity, comparing communities in strict vicinity to each other. We selected three different locations of the Victoria Land (Continental Antarctica) at different altitudes and showing sandstone outcrops of a diverse nature and origin—Battleship promontory (834 m above sea level (a.s.l.), Southern VL), Trio Nunatak (1,470 m a.s.l., Northern VL) and Mt New Zealand (3,100 m a.s.l., Northern VL). Overall, we found that a wider sampling would be required to capture the whole amplitude of microbial diversity, particularly in Northern VL. We concluded that the inhomogeneity of the rock matrix and the stronger environmental pressure at higher altitudes may force the communities to a higher local diversification.

scholarly journals Molecular Comparison among Three Antarctic Endemic Springtail Species and Description of the Mitochondrial Genome of Friesea gretae (Hexapoda, Collembola)

Diversity ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 450
Author(s):  
Antonio Carapelli ◽  
Claudio Cucini ◽  
Pietro Paolo Fanciulli ◽  
Francesco Frati ◽  
Peter Convey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Antarctic Peninsula ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Distinct Species ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
Molecular Data ◽  
Molecular Techniques ◽  
Terrestrial Arthropods ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Springtail Species ◽  
The Antarctic

Springtails and mites are the dominant groups of terrestrial arthropods in Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems. Their Antarctic diversity includes a limited number of species, which are frequently endemic to specific regions within the continent. Advances in molecular techniques, combined with the re-evaluation of morphological characters and the availability of new samples, have recently led to the identification of a number of new springtail species within previously named, but ill-defined, species entities described in the last century. One such species, the neanurid Friesea grisea, originally described from sub-Antarctic South Georgia, was for many years considered to be the only known springtail with a pan-Antarctic distribution. With the recent availability of new morphological and molecular data, it has now been firmly established that the different representatives previously referred to this taxon from the Antarctic Peninsula and Victoria Land (continental Antarctica) should no longer be considered as representing one and the same species, and three clearly distinct taxa have been recognized: F. antarctica, F. gretae and F. propria. In this study, the relationships among these three species are further explored through the sequencing of the complete mtDNA for F. gretae and the use of complete mitogenomic as well as cytochrome c oxidase I data. The data obtained provide further support that distinct species were originally hidden within the same taxon and that, despite the difficulties in obtaining reliable diagnostic morphological characters, F. gretae is genetically differentiated from F. propria (known to be present in different locations in Northern Victoria Land), as well as from F. antarctica (distributed in the Antarctic Peninsula).

CharcotianaandAmundsenia, two new genera inTeloschistaceae(lichenized Ascomycota, subfamilyXanthorioideae) hosting two new species from continental Antarctica, andAustroplaca frigida, a new name for a continental Antarctic species

2014 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 763-782 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulrik SØCHTING ◽  
Isaac GARRIDO-BENAVENT ◽  
Rod SEPPELT ◽  
Miris CASTELLO ◽  
Sergio PÉREZ-ORTEGA ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
New Genus ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
New Genera ◽  
Antarctic Species ◽  
New Name ◽  
Continental Antarctica ◽  
Two New Species ◽  
The Antarctic

AbstractBased on a combined three locus analysis two new genera,CharcotianaandAmundsenia,are proposed in the lichen familyTeloschistaceae, subfamilyXanthorioideae.Charcotianaincludes the new speciesC. antarctica, which is known only from continental Antarctica. The bipolar genusAmundseniaincludes the new speciesA. austrocontinentalis, which is also known only from continental Antarctica, and the Arctic speciesCaloplaca approximatawhich is here combined into the new genus. The two new genera are phylogenetically distinct, but poor in morphological characters; the new species consist mainly of minute apothecia in cracks of rocks located in the climatically harshest regions of the Antarctic. They are somewhat similar to another continental Antarctic species,Austroplaca frigida,which is described as a new name based on the illegitimate nameCaloplaca frigidaSøchting. The distribution of the four species is mapped.

Relationships between periglacial features and vegetation development in Victoria Land, continental Antarctica

2010 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 703-713 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Cannone ◽  
M. Guglielmin
Keyword(s):  
Ground Surface ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Ecological Niches ◽  
Vegetation Patterns ◽  
Patterned Ground ◽  
Vegetation Development ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Continental Antarctica ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Antarctic

AbstractThe relationships between vegetation patterns and periglacial features and their underlying ecology are still poorly understood and lack specific investigations in Antarctica. Here we present the results of vegetation colonization of different types of sorted patterned ground and gelifluction features (lobes and terracettes) at four sites in northern Victoria Land. This paper aims to understand the relationships between vegetation and the most widespread periglacial features in Victoria Land, discuss the role of periglacial features and vegetation in determining the ground surface temperature, and assess whether periglacial features provide ecological niches for vegetation colonization and development. Vegetation patterns are influenced by the feature type, mainly relating to patterned ground and debris island versus gelifluction features. The relations between vegetation and the periglacial features investigated in continental Antarctic are similar to those described for the Arctic, although in this part of the Antarctic vegetation is exclusively composed of cryptogams. Frost heave, ground texture and relief associated with different types of periglacial features provide a range of ecological niches sustaining vegetation biodiversity. Our data confirm the importance of periglacial features in shaping flora and vegetation biodiversity, as previously assessed only for the soil fauna in continental Antarctic.

Phyllolepid placoderm fish remains from the Devonian Aztec Siltstone, southern Victoria Land, Antarctica

2005 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 387-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
GAVIN C. YOUNG ◽  
JOHN A. LONG
Keyword(s):  
Mass Extinction ◽  
Middle Devonian ◽  
Fish Fauna ◽  
Disjunct Distribution ◽  
Late Devonian ◽  
Antarctic Species ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Fish Remains ◽  
Dispersal Events ◽  
The Antarctic

Phyllolepid placoderm remains from the Aztec Siltstone fish fauna are described as Austrophyllolepis quiltyi sp. nov., Austrophyllolepis cf. A. youngi, Placolepis tingeyi sp. nov., and phyllolepid indet. The new Antarctic species of two genera previously only known from Australia reinforce evidence from other fish taxa of close biogeographic affinity, as part of the eastern margin of Palaeozoic Gondwana. At least three genera and four species gives the Aztec Siltstone fish fauna the most diverse phyllolepid assemblage known, and probably the oldest documented so far (?late Middle Devonian). Specimens of Austrophyllolepis from the type locality at Mount Howitt, Victoria, are refigured for comparison with the Antarctic species. The order Phyllolepida is a key group for understanding Devonian vertebrate biogeography and palaeogeography, with a unique disjunct distribution in both time and space between the Southern and Northern hemispheres. Phyllolepids document one of the major dispersal events in early vertebrate history, which approximately coincided with the Frasnian–Famennian boundary mass extinction during the Late Devonian.

scholarly journals Identifying appropriate sampling and modelling approaches for analysing distributional patterns of Antarctic terrestrial arthropods along the Victoria Land latitudinal gradient

2010 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 742-748 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tancredi Caruso ◽  
Ian D. Hogg ◽  
Roberto Bargagli
Keyword(s):  
Abiotic Factors ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Biotic Interactions ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Trophic Levels ◽  
Terrestrial Arthropods ◽  
Victoria Land ◽  
Dispersal Capability ◽  
Modelling Techniques

AbstractBiotic communities in Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems are relatively simple and often lack higher trophic levels (e.g. predators); thus, it is often assumed that species’ distributions are mainly affected by abiotic factors such as climatic conditions, which change with increasing latitude, altitude and/or distance from the coast. However, it is becoming increasingly apparent that factors other than geographical gradients affect the distribution of organisms with low dispersal capability such as the terrestrial arthropods. In Victoria Land (East Antarctica) the distribution of springtail (Collembola) and mite (Acari) species vary at scales that range from a few square centimetres to regional and continental. Different species show different scales of variation that relate to factors such as local geological and glaciological history, and biotic interactions, but only weakly with latitudinal/altitudinal gradients. Here, we review the relevant literature and outline more appropriate sampling designs as well as suitable modelling techniques (e.g. linear mixed models and eigenvector mapping), that will more adequately address and identify the range of factors responsible for the distribution of terrestrial arthropods in Antarctica.

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