Four freshwater cyrtophorids from the Lake Weishan Wetland, China (Protozoa, Ciliophora): taxonomy, phylogeny, and description of a new species

It has long been recognized that ciliates play a crucial role in microbial food webs in all kinds of biotopes. However, basic information about their species diversity, geographic distribution, and ecological function is scant, and molecular data are unavailable for most species. As a new contribution, a comprehensive survey of the diversity of ciliates in the Lake Weishan freshwater Wetland in northern China has recently been undertaken. In the present study, four species of the subclass Cyrtophoria were morphologically investigated including a new one, <i>Phascolodon paravorticella</i> sp. nov., which is characterized by having a body size 40–55 × 25–40 μm, 4 or 5 right and 4–7 left kineties, 20–22 nematodesmal rods, and two diagonally positioned contractile vacuoles. Three known forms, namely <i>Gastronauta aloisi</i>, <i>Trithigmostoma cucullulus</i>, and <i>Trithigmostoma steini</i>, are re-described based on the Lake Weishan Wetland populations. Additionally, phylogenetic analyses based on 18S rRNA gene sequences support the validity of the family Gastronautidae and imply that <i>Trithigmostoma cucullulus</i> contains cryptic species. The phylogenetic relationship between the families Chilodonellidae and Gastronautidae remains uncertain. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:6AF4F5E2-A7F1-4E32-A080-2B6B2435DC2A

长期以来，学界已公认纤毛虫（ciliates）在各类生境的微生物食物网中发挥着至关重要的作用。然而，有关其物种多样性、地理分布及生态功能的基础信息仍较为匮乏，且多数物种缺乏分子数据。作为一项新的研究贡献，近日针对中国北部微山湖（Lake Weishan）淡水湿地的纤毛虫多样性开展了一项全面调查。
本研究对咽膜亚纲（Cyrtophoria）的4个物种进行了形态学研究，其中包括1个新种——拟旋形袋虫（*Phascolodon paravorticella* sp. nov.），该新种的鉴别特征为：虫体大小40–55 × 25–40 μm，具4或5列右动基列、4–7列左动基列，20–22根胞杆，以及2个呈对角排列的伸缩泡。
基于微山湖湿地种群，本研究对3个已知物种进行了重新描述，分别为阿洛伊西腹袋虫（*Gastronauta aloisi*）、兜形三膜虫（*Trithigmostoma cucullulus*）及斯坦因三膜虫（*Trithigmostoma steini*）。
此外，基于18S rRNA基因序列的系统发育分析验证了腹袋虫科（Gastronautidae）的分类有效性，并表明兜形三膜虫存在隐存种。而斜管虫科（Chilodonellidae）与腹袋虫科之间的系统发育关系仍未明确。
http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:6AF4F5E2-A7F1-4E32-A080-2B6B2435DC2A

搜集汇总

背景与挑战

背景概述

该数据集详细描述了微山湖湿地中四种淡水纤毛虫的分类和系统发育，包括一个新物种的形态特征和已知物种的重新描述，并提供了基于18S rRNA基因序列的系统发育分析结果。