identifier	taxonID	type	CVterm	format	language	title	description	additionalInformationURL	UsageTerms	rights	Owner	contributor	creator	bibliographicCitation
03C187CEFFA6BD48FE80444918FEFA4C.text	03C187CEFFA6BD48FE80444918FEFA4C.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Chimaeradasys Kieneke & Todaro 2021	<div><p>GENUS CHIMAERADASYS GEN. NOV.</p> <p>Zoobank registration: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 832074E4-FCC0-410F-85FB-2AFFCFEC637E</p> <p>Genus type species: Chimaeradasys oligotubulatus sp. nov.</p> <p>Diagnosis: A thaumastodermatin characterized by a smooth cuticle and a forked caudal peduncle. Body slender, slightly arched dorsally and flattened ventrally; adults up to 391 µm in total length (TL) and up to 74 µm in maximum width. Head furnished with ample mouth and oral hood but lacking sensory structures, such as knob-like organs and eye spots. Sensorial (?) papillae present on mouth rim and margins of the oral hood. Trunk widest in the mid-intestinal region, tapering gently to the rear before ending abruptly in a peculiar, narrow caudal peduncle; peduncle branched, indenting medially at U93. Five to eight pairs of large epidermal glands along the pharyngeal and posterior trunk region, other smaller glands may be present along the anterior trunk region.</p> <p>Numerous sensorial cilia are distributed in lateral and dorsolateral columns along the body, sparingly around the head. Locomotor cilia arranged in transverse bands, coveringtheentireventralsurface, excepttheanalregion and peduncle. Anterior adhesive tubes (TbA), one or two per side, in a row just posterior to the mouth; ventral adhesive tubes (TbV) absent or present as a single pair in the anterior pharyngeal region; lateral adhesive tubes (TbL), noticeable, one per side just anterior to the peduncle; ventrolateral adhesive tubes (TbVL), five to ten per side, one of which is in the anterior pharyngeal region and the others distributed along the half to two-thirds of the trunk; dorsal adhesive tubes (TbD) absent; posterior adhesive tubes (TbP), three per side, two of which are at the end of each peduncular branch and one flanking them medially. Mouth wide, (up to 55 µm in breadth), leading to a shallow, funnel-shaped buccal cavity and surmounted dorsally by a scalloped oral hood. Pharynx up to 92 µm in length; pharyngeal pores near the base, with ventrolateral openings at U28–U33. Pharyngeo-intestinal junction (PhIJ) at U32–U34, intestine straight, slightly wider at midbody; anal opening ventral at U80–U88. Hermaphrodite; single testis on right body side, elongate, beginning posterior to the PhIJ; sperm duct presumably opens on the ventral surface, through the anus or near to it; spermatozoa filiform with a corkscrew-like anterior region and a lash-like tail. Ovary solitary, posterior in the trunk region; eggs growing from posterior to anterior with the ripest cell dorsal to the mid-intestine. Caudal organ, compact, posterior to the ovary, glandomuscular in nature, showing several spermatozoa, probably to be released ventrally throughout an independent pore or via the anus; frontal organ inconspicuous, saclike, at midline, adjacent to the caudal organ, with several motile spermatozoa inside. Anatomical and/or functional relationship between testis and the accessory reproductive organs or between the latter structures, indefinite. Type species: Chimaeradasys oligotubulatus; other species: C. multitubulatus.</p> <p>Etymology: The new genus name is derived from the Greek Χίµαιρα (Latinized as Chimaera), a mythological creature composed of a lion, a goat and a snake, and from the Greek δασύς, shaggy, which refers to the dense facing with cilia of the ventral surface of Gastrotricha and which is often used as the second part of generic names of Macrodasyida.</p> <p>Both authors independently found specimens of the new genus, although with almost exactly eight years between the discoveries, and both faced the challenge of a proper systematic placement, because the animals appeared as ‘chimeras’, showing characters of several genera of the Macrodasyida, viz. Dendrodasys Wilke, 1954 and Ptychostomella (see ‘Taxonomic affinities’ for more details).</p> </div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03C187CEFFA6BD48FE80444918FEFA4C	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		Plazi	Kieneke, Alexander;Todaro, M. Antonio	Kieneke, Alexander, Todaro, M. Antonio (2021): Discovery of two ‘ chimeric’ Gastrotricha and their systematic placement based on an integrative approach. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 192
03C187CEFFA6BD45FCE041041A58FB8C.text	03C187CEFFA6BD45FCE041041A58FB8C.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Chimaeradasys oligotubulatus Kieneke & Todaro 2021	<div><p>CHIMAERADASYS OLIGOTUBULATUS SP. NOV.</p> <p>(FIGS 1, 2)</p> <p>Zoobank registration: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 4871880A-8688-4883-A5DB-C2FE600C389</p> <p>Type locality: Portugal, Azores, Flores, sandy deep sublittoral bottom at about 6 km to the south-west of the southern coast (station #84-1, 39°19.699’N, 031°16.390’W); collection made on 3 September 2018 with a Shipek Grab lowered to a depth of 257 m from aboard the R / V Meteor during expedition M150.</p> <p>Type specimen: The single specimen that was documented microscopically and described herein is the holotype, fixed by monotypy (Article 73.1.2. of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, ICZN, 1999). The holotype specimen does not exist any longer (Article 73.1.4. of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, ICZN, 1999). Declarations according to recommendations 73G–73J (ICZN, 2017): the living, anaesthetized specimen was extensively investigated microscopically in order to gain optimal, taxonomy-relevant data. The morphological distinctness and uniqueness is the reason for naming this new taxon now. The specimen was recovered from the microscopic slide and immediately dissolved in order to extract genomic DNA for genetic analyses. The remaining genomic DNA was stored at –20 °C. None of the remaining sediment samples yielded further specimens of the new species. Several gastrotrich taxonomists have been consulted prior to this taxonomic act. The following recommendations regarding taxonomic processing of soft-bodied meiofauna (Garraffoni et al., 2019) were applied: the specimen was observed and documented using high-resolution objectives and differential interference contrast (DIC), series of highresolution digital images and a video sequence were deposited in MorphDBase (https://www.morphdbase. de/?A_Kieneke_20200503-S-1.1 respectively https:// doi.org/10.20363/mdb.2w1k-mr22 and https://www. m o r p h d b a s e.d e /? A_ K i e n e k e _2 0 2 0 0 5 0 1- M - 7 0.1 respectively https://doi.org/10.20363/mdb.rj1d-8y15). The partial nuclear 18S rDNA and mitochondrial COI sequences have been deposited in the European Nucleotide Archive (ENA) at EMBL-EBI under accession number PRJEB38727 (https://www.ebi. ac.uk/ena/browser/view/PRJEB38727). The individual accession numbers are LR862428 (18S) and LR862427 (COI).</p> <p>Material examined: Only the single holotype specimen was surveyed using light microscopy with DIC. Furthermore, the genomic DNA was extracted from the single specimen and used as a template for amplification of nuclear and mitochondrial gene fragments.</p> <p>Ecology: Sediment was made up of fine, organogenous sand (granulometric data not available). Temperature, salinity, oxygen content and irradiation (photosynthetically active radiation from 400–700 nm) of the bottom water at the time of sampling were 14.5 °C/35.93 PSU/218 µmol/kg/160 µmol photons/ m 2 and s, respectively (measured at a depth of 250 m during CTD deployment #77-1 of expedition M150 at 39°19,650’N, 031°16,430’W).</p> <p>Diagnosis: A Chimaeradasys of 277 µm in total length and 50 µm in maximum width. Anterior adhesive tubes, one per side, in a row just posterior to the mouth; TbV, a single pair in the anterior pharyngeal region at U15; TbL, one per side at U85; TbVL, five per side, one of which was in the anterior pharyngeal region at U14 and the other four were unevenly distributed along the anterior half of the trunk; TbP, three per side, two at the end of each peduncular branch and one medial, inserting ventrally near the base of the branch. Mouth wide (up to 55 µm in breadth), leading to a shallow, funnel-shaped buccal cavity and surmounted dorsally by a scalloped oral hood. Pharynx 67 µm in length, with pores at U33; PhIJ at U34. Intestine straight, slightly wider at midbody; anal opening at U80. Hermaphrodites, single testis on right body side, beginning well posterior to the PhIJ at U43; caudal organ glandomuscular; frontal organ sac-like, both with spermatozoa inside; ovary and oocytes not seen.</p> <p>Etymology: The species epithet is composed of the Greek ολιγος, little, and Latin tubulus, a small tube or hose, referring to the low number of ventrolateral adhesive tubes.</p> <p>Description: The body measures 277 µm in total length (Figs 1A, B, 2A–C). The habitus shows a clear widening in the region of the mouth opening (U10) that is surmounted by a scalloped oral hood. The mouth measures 43 µm in diameter and continues in a shallow, funnel-shaped buccal cavity (Figs 1B, 2B, C). The region of the pharynx (U10 to U34) is slightly narrowed followed by the slightly widened trunk until approximately U55. The rear trunk continuously narrows until U87 and between U87 and U97, it is just a narrow peduncle that splits into a pair of short appendages (peduncular branches) at U97 (Figs 1A, B, 2B). Body width is 50/36/50/41/30/18/8 µm at U10/20/55/70/80/85/95, respectively. The trunk is dorsoventrally flattened with a flat venter and a moderately arched dorsum.</p> <p>The adhesive tubes occur as anterior (TbA), ventral (TbV), lateral (TbL), ventrolateral (TbVL) and posterior (TbP) groups (Figs 1B, 2B, C). There is only a single pair of TbA. At U10, these two ventral TbA are placed close to the ventral (posterior) mouth rim (Figs 1B, 2C). The distance between the insertions of both tubes is 26 µm. Each TbA is about 7.5 µm long. At U15, a single pair of TbV is placed midventrally (Figs 1B, 2C). Each of the two TbV is about 5.5 µm long and the distance between both tubes is 13.5 µm. A single pair of TbL inserts at U85 (Figs 1A, 2B, C); TbL are about 18 µm long and project more posteriorly than laterally at an angle of less than 40° against the longitudinal axis of the animal. It has to be stressed that this single pair of TbL could, in principle, alternatively be defined as a fourth pair of TbP (see ‘Taxonomic affinities’). There are five pairs of TbVL: the first pair inserts in the anterior pharyngeal region at U14, while the others are unevenly distributed from about the pharyngeo-intestinal region to about half the trunk at U37, U46, U59 and U62, respectively (Figs 1B, 2C). The most anterior TbVL are just 7.5 µm long, followed by the second pair with up to 12.5-µm long tubes, while all other TbVL measure between 16 and 18 µm in length. All TbVL project laterally and slightly towards posterior at an angle between 48° and 60° against the longitudinal axis of the animal. In total, there are six bilaterally arranged TbP, all confined to the peduncular branches (Figs 1B, 2C). In fact, each peduncular branch bears two tubes at its apex, arranged in a V-shaped manner, and a third tube along the medial margin, inserting ventrally near the base. Distal tubes measure 8.5 µm in length, while the proximal tube is 10.5 µm long. The ventral locomotory cilia start at U12 shortly posterior to the ventral mouth rim and end posterior to the anus at about U85. In the pharyngeal region, the cilia cover the entire ventral surface and are weakly arranged in transverse rows. At about U40, locomotory cilia seem to split into two separated fields, each c. 10 µm in width and 20 µm spaced from each other at U50. Around U60, both fields fuse again and form a more or less uniform field of more sparsely placed cilia (Figs 1B, 2C). Length of ventral locomotor cilia varies between 11 and 14 µm. At least ten presumptively sensory cilia, up to 20 µm long, insert on the dorsal surface of the oral hood, roughly arranged in pairs. Further putative sensory cilia insert dorsolaterally along the trunk, arranged roughly pairwise (Figs 1A, 2A). Some of these cilia are associated with epidermal glands. Along the dorsal (anterior) and lateral parts of the mouth rim, there are seven evenly spaced and presumptively sensory papillae, each one measures about 4µm in height (Figs 1A, B, 2B). No cilia where directly linked to the papillae.</p> <p>The holotype specimen had five pairs of bilaterally arranged epidermal glands at U10/22/30/64/79, respectively (Figs 1A, 2A). The globular to slightly pear-shaped glands had a diameter of 5 to 6 µm and appear with granular content. At least for the second and third pair, we were able to observe putative sensory cilia associated with the epidermal glands. In the area of the trunk, between roughly U33 and U62, glands seemed to be missing.</p> <p>The digestive system starts anteriorly with the ample mouth opening that continues in a funnelshaped buccal cavity. Fold-like structures at the dorsal epithelium of the buccal cavity and along the lip-like mouth rim indicate a certain contractile property of the whole oral basket (Figs 1B, 2C). The pharynx is about 67 µm in length with pharyngeal pores that open ventrolaterally at U31. The width of the musculoglandular pharynx is 42/16/11/14/22/11 µm at U10/15/20/25/31/33, respectively. The pharyngeointestinal junction is at U34 (Figs 1A, 2B). The intestine spans from U34 to U80, where it opens externally with an inconspicuous ventral anus (Fig. 2C, F). It has a maximum width in its middlethird and tapers considerably toward the anus. Widths are 16/19/22/12/8/5 µm at U35/45/55/60/70/75, respectively. Only a slight regionalization of the intestine is recognizable with a higher density of presumptively enzymatic vesicles in the middlethird and bigger, vacuole-like digestive vesicles in the posterior-third (Fig. 2B). The nature of the gut content was not ascertainable.</p> <p>There is a single, 80-µm long right testis spanning from U43 to U73, including the posteriorly directed vas deferens (Figs 1A, 2B, D–F). However, since the actual termination of the sperm duct could not be determined with certainty (see below), the length measurement is just an approximation. The maximum width of the single testis is 15 µm at U60. Lateral to the posterior testis, between U62 and U76, there is a thick-walled, muscular hollow structure, presumptively the caudal organ (Figs 1A, 2B, D–F). It is roughly club-shaped and narrows posteriorly (maximum width is about 11 µm at the muscular section) into a kind of outlet duct that passes the intestine ventrally and forms a slight ‘swelling’ (9.5 µm in diameter) on the left side of the posterior intestine (Fig. 2D–F). Dorsal to the intestine, between U60 and U 68 in a median position, there is a sac-like, 23 by 11 µm structure, the frontal organ (Fig. 2D). All three reproductive structures, testis, frontal and caudal organs, are filled with filiform spermatozoa with clearly spiralled sperm heads (Fig. 2D–F). While sperm lies in more or less parallel bundles inside the testis and the caudal organ, they are curled inside the frontal organ.</p> <p>Remarks on external anatomy and reproductive structures: The apparent absence of maturing oocytes in the studied specimen of Chimaeradasys oligotubulatus is a likely indication that the specimen has not reached full adulthood. While we acknowledge that fully mature specimens may reach a larger size and may develop some additional adhesive tubes of the anterior and ventrolateral series, the well-formed spermatozoa inside the testis and caudal organ, and the motile spermatozoa inside the frontal organ, indicate that the size of fully grown adults will not be much different from that of the studied specimen. Likewise, the number of adhesive tubes will not undergo ample variations.</p> <p>Furthermore, the studied specimen of C. oligotubulatus shows a heterogeneous organization of the ventral locomotory ciliation, i.e. cilia are organized in transverse bands in the anterior and posterior body regions, but as paired longitudinal bands at mid-trunk. Such an inhomogeneous organization is so far unreported among Gastrotricha. Considering that in C. polytubulatus (see below) the locomotory cilia are organized in transverse rows all over the ventral surface, we think the unusual organization of locomotor cilia observed in C. oligotubulatus represents an artefact rather than the natural condition, probably due to excessive compression of the specimen. Consequently, C. oligotubulatus should be considered to possess ventral cilia distributed in transverse rows that cover the entire ventral surface.</p> <p>There are some uncertainties concerning the reproductive system of the new species. We were not able to unambiguously detect external and/or internal pores of either the testis, or the frontal and caudal organs. Furthermore, the connectivity between the three organs could not be clarified with certainty. If the function of these organs matches those of the closest phylogenetically allied species (see below), as the incomplete information we currently have seems to suggest, most likely the vas deferens and the caudal organ open independently on the ventral side each with its own pore or via the anus (for a summary see, for example: Ruppert &amp; Shaw, 1977; Ruppert, 1978; Kieneke &amp; Schmidt-Rhaesa, 2015). Likewise, a direct internal connection between frontal and caudal organ (see: Ruppert, 1978; Kieneke et al., 2009) is possible, but could not be demonstrated unequivocally. Neither a large egg nor any developing oocytes were observed in the single specimen of the new species. On the left side of the intestine, more or less in the same region as the frontal organ (between U60 and U72), there is an accumulation of droplets and globular material of presumptively glandular property, about 7 µm wide at U65 (Fig. 2B). We were not able to definitely clarify whether this is just vesicular mesodermal tissue or secretory material of an as yet undescribed gland.</p> <p>Variability and remarks: Information on character variability among individuals of the new species is currently not available.</p> <p>Taxonomic affinities: The taxonomic affinities of the new genus and both new species are discussed collectively below, following the description of the second new species.</p></div> 	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03C187CEFFA6BD45FCE041041A58FB8C	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		Plazi	Kieneke, Alexander;Todaro, M. Antonio	Kieneke, Alexander, Todaro, M. Antonio (2021): Discovery of two ‘ chimeric’ Gastrotricha and their systematic placement based on an integrative approach. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 192
03C187CEFFABBD5FFF4343491A97FF6C.text	03C187CEFFABBD5FFF4343491A97FF6C.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Chimaeradasys polytubulatus Kieneke & Todaro 2021	<div><p>CHIMAERADASYS POLYTUBULATUS SP. NOV.</p> <p>(FIGS 3, 4)</p> <p>Zoobank registration: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: DD1807A1-ED8C-4D76-9BE6-435BAFAAC278</p> <p>Ty p e l o c a l i t y: I t a l y, S a r d i n i a, C o s t a Pa r a d i s o (41°3’8.84’’N, 8°56’15.71’’E); collection made on 4 September 2010 by scuba-diving at 35 m depth.</p> <p>Type specimen: The single specimen that was documented microscopically and described herein is the holotype, fixed by monotypy (Article 73.1.2. of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, ICZN, 1999). The holotype specimen does not exist any longer (Article 73.1.4. of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, ICZN, 1999). Declarations according to recommendations 73G–73J (ICZN, 2017): the living, anaesthetized specimen was extensively investigated microscopically in order to gain optimal, taxonomyrelevant data. The morphological distinctness and uniqueness is the reason for naming this new taxon now. The specimen was recovered from the microscopic slide and stored in pure ethanol until dissolving it in order to extract genomic DNA for genetic analyses. The remaining genomic DNA was stored at –20 °C. None of the remaining sediment samples yielded further specimens of the new species. Several gastrotrich taxonomists have been consulted prior to this taxonomic act. Following recommendations regarding taxonomic processing of soft-bodied meiofauna (Garraffoni et al., 2019) were applied: the specimen was observed and documented using highresolution objectives and DIC, series of high-resolution digital images were deposited in MorphDBase (https:// www.morphdbase.de/?A_Kieneke_20200503-S-2.1 respectively https://doi.org/10.20363/mdb.mjky-s935).</p> <p>Material examined: Only the single holotype specimen was surveyed using light microscopy with DIC. Furthermore, the genomic DNA was extracted from the single specimen and used as template for amplification of nuclear, as well as mitochondrial, gene fragments, although amplification has failed so far.</p> <p>Ecology: Sediment was made up of coarse, well-sorted sand (mean grain size = –0.02 phi, sorting = 0.48). Temperature and salinity of the pore water at the time of tha samplings were 13 °C and 38 PSU, respectively.</p> <p>Diagnosis: A Chimaeradasys of 391 µm in total length and 74 µm in maximum width. Anterior adhesive tubes, two per side, in a row just posterior to the mouth; TbV and TbD, absent; TbL, one per side at U86; TbVL, ten on the left side and 12 on the right side; the first tube of each side in the anterior pharyngeal region at U13 and the others unevenly distributed along the anterior two-thirds of the trunk; TbP, three per side, two at the end of each peduncular branch and one along the medial side, inserting ventrally near to the others. Mouth wide, (up to 60 µm in breadth), leading to a shallow, funnel-shaped buccal cavity and surmounted dorsally by a scalloped oral hood. Pharynx 92 µm in length, with pores at U28; PhIJ at U32. Intestine straight, slightly wider at midbody; anal opening at U78. Hermaphrodites; single testis on right body side, beginning just posterior to the PhIJ at U34; caudal organ glandomuscular; frontal organ sack-like, both with spermatozoa inside; ovary unpaired, large egg dorsal to intestine centered at U51.</p> <p>Etymology: The species epithet is derived from Greek Π ολύ, much, and Latin tubulus, tubule, referring to the high number of ventrolateral adhesive tubes.</p> <p>Description: The body measures 391 µm in total length (Figs 3A, B, 4A, B). The habitus shows a clear widening in the region of the mouth opening (U0 to U8) that is surmounted by a scalloped oral hood and an expanded mouth rim. The mouth measures 60 µm in diameter (Figs 3B, 4B, C). The region of the pharynx (U8 to U32) is slightly narrowed followed by the slightly widened trunk until approximately U52. The rear trunk continuously narrows until U89 and, between U89 and U96, it is just a narrow peduncle that splits into a pair of short appendages at U96 (Figs 3A, B, 4A). Body width is 61/50/49/74/60/46/30/11 µm at U5/10/20/52/70/80/85/90, respectively. The trunk is dorsoventrally flattened with a flat venter and a moderately arched dorsum.</p> <p>The adhesive tubes occur as anterior (TbA), lateral (TbL), ventrolateral (TbVL) and posterior (TbP) groups (Figs 3A, B, 4A–C). There are two pairs of TbA. At U11, these two pairs of TbA are placed close to the ventral (posterior) mouth rim. Especially the inner pair may be masked by the withdrawn ventral, lip-like mouth rim (Figs 3B, 4C). The distance between the insertions of both inner tubes is 16 µm and between the outer TbA it is 39 µm. The outer TbA are about 9 µm long, while the inner TbA are shorter (6–7 µm) and much more delicate. A single pair of TbL inserts at U86 (Figs 3A, B, 4A); TbL are about 23 µm long and project laterally and towards posterior at an angle of 38° against the longitudinal axis of the animal. The TbVL occur in different numbers on left and right sides, mostly in the middle-third of the body (Figs 3B, 4B). In total, there are ten pairs of TbVL inserting at U14, between U32 and U37, at U41, U46, U52, U58, U65 and U68, respectively. The most anterior TbVL are just 8–9 µm long, while all other TbVL measure between 15 and 19 µm in length. All TbVL project laterally and towards the posterior at an angle between 29° and 55° against the longitudinal axis of the animal. In addition to these paired TbVL, the examined specimen shows two further tubes on the right side, between U59 and U61. In total, there are six bilaterally arranged TbP, all confined to the peduncular branches (Figs 3B, 4A). Each branch shows two tubes at the distal end, arranged in a V-shaped manner, and a third tube along the medial margin, inserting ventrally near the other two tubes. Distal tubes measure 10 µm in length, the medial tube is 12 µm long.</p> <p>The ventral locomotory cilia start at U10 shortly posterior to the ventral mouth rim and end posterior to the anus at about U85. The cilia cover the entire ventral surface and are distinctly arranged in transverse rows (Figs 3B, 4C). The field of locomotor cilia has a more or less uniform width of about 42 µm, but the density of cilia decreases slightly towards the posterior. Length of ventral locomotor cilia varies between 10 and 15 µm. At least four presumptively sensory, up to 12 µm long and pairwise arranged cilia insert on the dorsal surface of the oral hood. Further putative sensory cilia insert dorsolaterally along the trunk, arranged roughly pairwise (Figs 3A, 4A, D). Some of these cilia are associated with epidermal glands. Along the dorsal (anterior) and lateral parts of the lip-like mouth rim, there are 13 presumptively sensory papillae, each one measures about 4 µm in height (Figs 3A, B, 4C, D). The seven most anterior sensory papillae are evenly spaced from each other, while the distance between papillae decreases towards the lateral rims of the mouth opening. There is a c. 14-µm long cilium inserting on the tip of each papilla.</p> <p>The surveyed specimen has seven pairs of more or less bilaterally arranged epidermal glands at about U8/18/25/33/62/71/79, respectively (Figs 3A, 4A, D). The irregular, globular or slightly pear-shaped glands have a diameter of 9 to 11 µm and appear with granular content. At least for some glands, we were able to observe putative associated sensory cilia. In the area of the trunk, between U35 and U60, there are further epidermal glands in a roughly pairwise arrangement. However, these glands are much smaller and measure just 4 to 6 µm in diameter. Regarding the epidermal gland system, there is a certain degree of asymmetry, i.e. there are also some unpaired glands.</p> <p>The digestive tract starts anteriorly with the ample mouth opening that continues in a funnelshaped buccal cavity. Fold-like structures at the dorsal epithelium of the buccal cavity and along the lip-like mouth rim indicate a certain contractile property of the whole oral hood (Figs 3B, 4C). The pharynx is 91 µm in length with pharyngeal pores that open ventrolaterally at U28. The pharyngeointestinal junction is at U32 (Fig. 3A). The width of the musculoglandular pharynx is 48/18/19/23/51/25 µm at U6/11/20/25/28/32, respectively. The intestine spans from U32 to U82, where it opens externally with an inconspicuous ventral anus. It has a more or less constant width of about 20 to 25 µm in its anterior half and tapers gradually toward the anus. Widths are 25/22/20/15/11 µm at U40/50/60/70/80, respectively. Only an inconspicuous regionalization of the intestine is recognizable with a higher density of refractive, presumptively enzymatic vesicles in the anterior twothirds and bigger, vacuole-like digestive vesicles in the posterior-third (Fig. 4B). At low magnification, the middle-third of the intestine shows up in a greenish to brownish colour. However, the nature of the gut content was not ascertainable.</p> <p>There is a single, 165-µm long right testis spanning from U35 to U76, including the posteriorly directed vas deferens that starts at about U60 (Figs 3A, 4F). However, the actual termination of the sperm duct could not be determined with certainty (see below). The maximum width of the single testis is 16 µm at U50. Apart from the most anterior portion that is filled with vesicular content (approximately U35 to U40), the whole testis, including the vas deferens, is stuffed with filiform spermatozoa with clearly spiralled sperm heads (Fig. 4F). Lateral to the posterior (distal) portion of the vas deferens, between U68 and U76, there is a thick-walled, muscular, hollow structure, presumptively the caudal organ (Figs 3A, 4F, H). It is roughly club-shaped and narrows posteriorly (maximum width is about 8 µm at the muscular section at U74) into a kind of outlet duct that curves to the left and ventrally under the intestine. The anterior (proximal) portion seems to be folded by almost 180° and reclines parallel and medial to the muscular section of the caudal organ (Figs 3A, 4F, H). Dorsal to the intestine in a median position, between U67 and U75, there is a sac-like structure measuring roughly 10 by 31 µm, the frontal organ (Figs 3A, 4G). In addition to the testis, there are filiform spermatozoa with clearly spiralled heads inside the frontal and caudal organs (Fig. 4F–H). While sperm lies in dense, more or less parallel bundles inside the testis and the caudal organ, there are only few, single and coiled spermatozoa inside the frontal organ. Slightly dorsal and lateral to the right side of the intestine there is an unpaired ovary spanning between U40 and U67 (Figs 3A, 4B, E–H). Between approximately U60 and U67 there are a few early oocytes (10–20 µm in diameter) that mature in a cephalic direction. Between U40 and U60 there is a large, roughly drop-shaped egg (26 by 80 µm) densely filled with refractive vesicles and containing a large nucleus (almost 19 µm in diameter) with distinct nucleolus (Fig. 4E).</p> <p>Remarks on external anatomy and reproductive structures: The observed specimen is characterized by an interesting asymmetry, which concerns the adhesive tubes of the ventrolateral series. More specifically, it shows ten TbVL on the left side and 12 TbVL on the right side. Phenomena of asymmetry regarding tubes of the ventral and ventrolateral series has previously been reported several times within marine Gastrotricha and appear to be particularly frequent in taxa of the subfamily Thaumastodermatinae, e.g. Ptychostomella orientalis Lee &amp; Chang, 2003, Tetranchyroderma inequitubulatus Todaro, Balsamo &amp; Tongiorgi, 2002 and T. weissi Todaro, 2002 (Todaro, 2002; Todaro et al., 2002; Lee &amp; Chang, 2003).</p> <p>Similar to the specimen of C. oligotubulatus, this specimen also has some uncertainties concerning the three reproductive structures: testis, the frontal and the caudal organs. We were not able to unambiguously detect external and/or internal pores. However, the spermatozoa inside the frontal organ are in closest proximity to the mature or maturing egg, respectively. Furthermore, the connectivity between the three organs could not be clarified with certainty. But as in the other new species, our incomplete data indicate accordance of function of these reproductive organs with that of phylogenetically allied species of the taxon Thaumastodermatinae. Hence, the vas deferens and caudal organ much likely open independently on the ventral side or throughout the anus and there probably is a connection between the frontal and the caudal organ lumina. On the left side of the intestine, more or less in the same region as the frontal organ, around U70, there is an accumulation of droplets and globular material about 7 µm wide (Fig. 4F, H). We were not able to clarify whether this is just vesicular mesodermal tissue, or secretory material of a new type of gland.</p> <p>Variability and remarks: Information on character variability among individuals of the new species is currently not available.</p> <p>TAXONOMIC AFFINITIES</p> <p>Based on general appearance, we initially regarded the discoveredspecimenseitherasbelongingto Dendrodasys (fam. Dactylopodolidae), due to the branched caudal peduncle, or to the Thaumastodermatidae, perhaps close to Ptychostomella in virtue of the wide mouth and the bare cuticular covering. Undeniably, at first sight both new species appear like ‘chimeras’ of both mentioned genera, being ‘compound’ from the anterior two-thirds of a Ptychostomella and the posterior-third of a Dendrodasys (Fig. 5A–C).</p> <p>The peculiar posterior body region, ending with the narrow peduncle that splits into two short appendages, whose tips are equipped with adhesive tubes, resembles the anatomic condition of Dendrodasys (see, for example, the recently described D. rubomarinus Hummon, 2011; see also Fig. 5A). The two noticeable and posteriorly directed lateral adhesive tubes shown by the new species amplify the overall similarity of their posterior body region with that of Dendrodasys because a pair of similar tubes is present also in members of the latter taxon (e.g. D. duplus Lee, 2012 and D. gracilis Wilke, 1954; see also Fig.5A). However, there is an important difference regarding this character: while in Dendrodasys these tubes insert on the elongate posterior peduncle (less often at its base), in Chimaeradasys they are clearly inserted anterior to it. The situation concerning the gonads is somewhat ambiguous. In general, Dendrodasys possesses paired testes and paired ovaries (e.g. Wilke, 1954; Schmidt, 1974; Valbonesi &amp; Luporini, 1984; Hummon, 2011), but at least one species, Dendrodasys affinis Wilke, 1954 (Fig. 5A) possesses a single right testis and a single ovary (see: Hummon et al., 1998), therefore matching the new species concerning these characters. Another species, D. duplus, shows a certain reduction of the right testis (Lee, 2012) pointing to a phenomenon that is recurrent in Gastrotricha (e.g. in Urodasys; see: Schoepfer-Sterrer, 1974; Todaro et al., 2019a). The reported instances indicate that reduction and/or complete loss of testes, respectively, in Dendrodasys happened at least twice independently, while such a character loss occurred only once within the stem lineage of the Thaumastodermatinae (Todaro et al., 2011; Kieneke &amp; Schmidt-Rhaesa, 2015). But there are even more striking dissimilarities between both new species and Dendrodasys: first, the anterior adhesive tubes of Dendrodasys (always a single pair) are borne on extensible fleshy bases; second, none of the hitherto known species of Dendrodasys possesses lateral or ventrolateral adhesive tubes (Fig. 5A); and, third, there are only two adhesive tubes per posterior appendage instead of three like in both new species of the new genus (Fig. 5A, B).</p> <p>Species of the new genus are also strikingly similar to members of Thaumastodermatidae Remane, 1927. Species of this family possess an ample mouth surmounted by an oral hood, which is diagnostic of the family. Importantly, the new species also share additional characteristics with members of the subfamily Thaumastodermatinae Remane, 1927, including the following: (1) anterior adhesive tubes originating directly from the body surface, (2) presence of ventrolateral adhesive tubes, (3) paired posterior ‘adhesive pedicles’, (4) small posterior pharyngeal pores, (5) unpaired right testis and (6) single ovary with gametes maturing in a caudocephalic direction (Fig. 5B–E; Ruppert, 1978; see also: Kieneke &amp; Schmidt-Rhaesa, 2015). Among the Thaumastodermatinae, the new species are most comparable with species of Ptychostomella with which they share also the arrangement of the anterior adhesive tubes and the unarmored (bare/smooth) cuticle (Fig. 5B, C). However, due to the extremely exceptional shape of their posterior region, we regard both new species as part of an evolutionary lineage distinct from that of Ptychostomella, supporting, therefore, the erection of a new genus that we name Chimaeradasys here. The results of the molecular phylogenetic analyses (see below) provide further support for this proposal.</p> <p>Several morphological differences between the two discovered specimens support the idea of two species within the new genus. These are a smaller total body length, less anterior and ventrolateral adhesive tubes, less sensory papillae and a lower number of epidermal glands in Chimaeradasys oligotubulatus compared with C. polytubulatus. Furthermore, C. oligotubulatus possesses a pair of ventral adhesive tubes that are absent in C. polytubulatus. Also, the geographic distance between the two type localities may account for the erection of two new species. Of course, we cannot completely rule out that the aforementioned differences just represent the range of character variability of one widespread species, because we only were able to investigate a single specimen per location. However, the presence of two separate species, one occurring at the Azores and another at Sardinia, is the most likely hypothesis that has to be tested once further data are available.</p> </div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03C187CEFFABBD5FFF4343491A97FF6C	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		Plazi	Kieneke, Alexander;Todaro, M. Antonio	Kieneke, Alexander, Todaro, M. Antonio (2021): Discovery of two ‘ chimeric’ Gastrotricha and their systematic placement based on an integrative approach. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 192
03C187CEFFA6BD48FF4845CA191FFCBD.text	03C187CEFFA6BD48FF4845CA191FFCBD.taxon	http://purl.org/dc/dcmitype/Text	http://rs.tdwg.org/ontology/voc/SPMInfoItems#GeneralDescription	text/html	en	Thaumastodermatidae REMANE 1927	<div><p>FAMILY THAUMASTODERMATIDAE REMANE, 1927</p> <p>SUBFAMILY THAUMASTODERMATINAE REMANE, 1927 (RUPPERT, 1978)</p> </div>	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03C187CEFFA6BD48FF4845CA191FFCBD	Public Domain	No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.		Plazi	Kieneke, Alexander;Todaro, M. Antonio	Kieneke, Alexander, Todaro, M. Antonio (2021): Discovery of two ‘ chimeric’ Gastrotricha and their systematic placement based on an integrative approach. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 192
