Shadows in the abyss: unveiling a cryptic species complex of Macrostylidae Hansen, 1916, (Crustacea: Isopoda) from the Vema Fracture Zone, North Atlantic

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Abstract
The molecular operational taxonomic unit (MOTU) Macrostylis sp. ML08 was particularly abundant in samples from the abyssal depths of the Vema Fracture Zone (VFZ) in the Atlantic Ocean. This MOTU exhibited an extensive distribution spanning thousands of kilometers across the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and was common and abundant in samples from the eastern VFZ, but rare in samples from the western VFZ. An earlier phylogenetic reconstruction based on 16S mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) identified M. ML08 as a potential species complex. The present study used an integrative approach combining molecular genetics and geometric morphometrics to show that M. ML08 is a species complex comprising seven new species. The M. ML08 species complex is further characterized by extreme sexual dimorphism.
Funding Information
  • German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (03G0237A)
  • Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut und Naturmuseum Frankfurt

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