Taxonomy and Melanism Patterns of Freshwater Leeches in the Genus <i>Glossiphonia</i> (Hirudinea: Glossiphoniidae) from Northeast Asia

oleh: Ivan N. Bolotov, Tatyana A. Eliseeva, Alexander V. Kondakov, Alexander V. Kropotin, Olga V. Aksenova, Yulia V. Bespalaya, Oksana V. Travina, Mikhail Y. Gofarov, Sang Ki Kim, Jin Hee Lee, Maxim V. Vinarski

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2023-06-01

Deskripsi

Freshwater leeches belonging to the genus <i>Glossiphonia</i> Johnson, 1816 are fairly common benthic annelids in freshwater ecosystems throughout Eurasia, but the taxonomy of this group remains poorly resolved, and the species content of some local faunas is unsatisfactorily known. For example, it was thought that the only widespread species, <i>Glossiphonia complanata</i> (Linnaeus, 1758), dwells in Northeast Asia. Here, we revise the Northeast Asian <i>Glossiphonia</i> leeches with an integrative taxonomic approach. This revision is based on the largest DNA-sequence and morphological datasets collected to date. Two <i>Glossiphonia</i> species are recorded from the region. First, <i>Glossiphonia koreaensis</i><b>sp. nov.</b>, a putative regional endemic species, was discovered in South Korea. Second, a valid name and complete description are provided for <i>Glossiphonia mollissima</i> Moore, 1898 (non-Grube, 1871). The latter name was wrongly applied through misidentification and, according to ICZN (Article 49), is unavailable. Hence, we propose a new name, <i>Glossiphonia moorei</i><b>sp. nov.,</b> in memory of Dr. J. Percy Moore, who discovered this leech. It is a prospective trans-Beringian species, ranging through Eastern Siberia, the Russian Far East, and Alaska (although Alaskan records are based on nonsequenced samples), showing a significant proportion of melanic individuals in samples north of the Arctic Circle. The latter pattern may reflect substrate-induced cryptic coloration (camouflage), but this hypothesis needs to be statistically checked in the future. Finally, a complete checklist of <i>Glossiphonia</i> species is presented.