Two new Cypridopsinae Kaufmann, 1900 (Crustacea, Ostracoda) from southern Africa

Abstract

Two new Cypridopsinae ostracods, Potamocypris meissnerisp. nov. and Sarscypridopsis harundinetisp. nov. are described. Both were found only as asexual (all-female) populations in temporary waters of southern Africa. Potamocypris meissneri was collected from a small pan in the North-West Province of South Africa. It is approximately 0.5 mm long and belongs to the species group with long swimming setae on the second antennae. However, the species has a somewhat isolated position in the genus owing to the conspicuously reticulated carapace, which is furthermore densely covered by prominent conuli with normal pores carrying long sensilla, as well as to the wide anterior and posterior flanges on the left valve. To allow identification of the new species in relation to its closest congeners, a key to the species of the genus Potamocypris Brady, 1870 from southern Africa is provided. The genus Sarscypridopsis McKenzie, 1977 mostly has an Afrotropical distribution with only few species occurring in other regions. Sarscypridopsis harundineti was collected from floodplains of the outskirts of the Okavango Delta in Botswana. It is approximately 0.4 mm long and can be distinguished from congeners mainly by the smaller and more oval-shaped valves. We conclude that southern African Cypridopsinae urgently need integrated taxonomic revision, by means of both morphological characters and DNA-sequence data.

A New Species of the Genus <i>Sarscypridopsis</i> (Crustacea: Ostracoda) Discovered in a Japanese Rice Field

“…The species most similar to S. denticulata n. sp. is S. harundineti, reported from Botswana, in particular, these two species share a more rounded carapace shape in lateral and dorsal views and a small size (Szwarc et al 2021). Additionally, both spe-cies have antennal G2 claws that are more robust than the other claws, and bulbous ends to the antennal Y aesthetascs.…”

“…Remarks. The genus Sarscypridopsis contains 18 species described in previous studies (Meisch et al 2019;Szwarc et al 2021), but most can be differentiated from S. denticulata n. sp. by their more triangular lateral views of the carapaces, which have a distinctive angle at maximum height.…”

“…Species with a more evenly curved dorsal margin, similar to S. denticulata n. sp., include S. brevis (Sars, 1924), S. glabrata (Sars, 1924), S. harundineti Szwarc, Martens, andNamiotko, 2021, S. punctata (Sars, 1924), S. reniformis (Sars, 1924) and S. sarsi (Klie, 1935) [Sars 1924 (for S. sarsi see under Cypridopsis tumidula Sars, 1924); Szwarc et al 2021]. Sarscypridopsis glabrata and S. punctata are both larger (≥ 700 µm), higher, more sub-triangular in lateral view, and more compressed in dorsal view compared to S. denticulata n. sp.…”

“…The 18 previously reported species of Sarscypridopsis are mostly restricted to the Afrotropical zoogeographical region, in particular in southern Africa (Fig. 4) (Meisch et al 2019;Szwarc et al 2021). Four named species have been reported from outside of this region: S. aculeata is mostly reported from the western Palaearctic region, with scattered records in the Afrotropical, Australasian, Nearctic, and Neotropical regions; S. lanzarotensis is also known from the western Palaearctic; S. ochracea (Sars, 1924) from the Afrotropical, Australasian and Oriental regions; and S. elizabethae (Sars, 1924), in addition to the Afrotropical region, is also reported from Inaccessible Island, just inside the Antarctic region (Fig.…”

Late Pleistocene–Holocene Palaeoenvironmental Evolution of the Makgadikgadi Basin, Central Kalahari, Botswana: New Evidence From Shallow Sediments and Ostracod Fauna

“…Sarscypridopsis ochracea is the most common secondary species of the dataset, with a number of valves up to 1/5 of the total assemblage (unique exception one sample where it is the dominant taxa). The genus Sarscypridopsis is mostly an Afrotropical genus (Szwarc et al, 2021) and S. ochracea is one of the most frequently recorded species in southern Africa within both permanent and temporary water bodies (Martens et al, 1996).…”