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| Relicanthus daphneae | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: May 17 2014, 03:00 PM (3,299 Views) | |
| Taipan | May 17 2014, 03:00 PM Post #1 |
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Relicanthus daphneae Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Cnidaria Class: Anthozoa Subclass: Hexacorallia Order: Incerti ordinis Family: Relicanthidae (Rodriguez and Daly, 2014) Genus: Relicanthus (Rodriguez and Daly, 2014) Species: Relicanthus daphneae Relicanthus daphneae (formerly Boloceroides daphneae) is a monotypic cnidarian resembling a sea anemone, which occurs in the depths of the East Pacific Rise and was described in 2006. Features R. daphneae has a pink-colored cylindrical body capable of reaching a metre across, with long, thin, whitish tentacles up to two meters in length. The body is divided into 24 septa. The muscles of the mesenteries are less developed. The spirocysts, which are stinging cells in which the stinging tube is spirally rolled up and which are covered with adhesive threads instead of spines, are significantly larger than those of any other deep-sea species and among the largest of all cnidarians. Habitat and range Its habitat is the ocean floor, peripheral to hydrothermal vents. Its range is known to be in the Eastern Pacific (the type specimen was taken from the Lau Basin) but may extend beyond that. The type specimen was collected by the submersible DSV Alvin. Taxonomy R. daphneae was described in 2006 and initially assigned to the genus Boloceroides (Family Boloceroididae). The other species of the genus Boloceroides, however, are rather small and occur on warm seashores. A phylogenetic study from 2014, in which two genes of mitochondrial DNA and three genes from the nucleus of over a hundred different sea anemones were compared, however, shows that the species is no sea anemone, but belongs in a new order. For the type, therefore the new genus is Relicanthus (from Latin relictum; "covered", "stored", "left") in the family Relicanthidae, which allows for the possible discovery of additional species. The specific name daphnaea is after Daphne Gail Fautin, "in honor of her contributions to actinarian systematics." Mistaken Identity: 'Sea Anemone' Is Actually New Type of Animal By Elizabeth Howell, Live Science Contributor | May 16, 2014 10:19am ET ![]() The newly named Relicanthidae sea creature, which lives near hydrothermal vents, was previously thought to be a giant sea anemone (order Actiniaria). New research places this animal in a new order—a classification equal to Carnivora in mammals or Crocodilia in reptiles. Lurking in the deep sea is a marine creature thought to be one of the world's largest sea anemones. But the animal, which has tentacles measuring more than 6 feet (2 meters) long, isn't an anemone but rather the first known organism in a new order of animals, according to new research. In the four-year study, researchers created a "tree of life" for sea anemones, which are sometimes called "flowers of the sea" but are actually stationary meat-eating animals. In doing so, they examined the DNA of Boloceroides daphneae — discovered in 2006 in the deep Pacific Ocean — and found the creature stood out as not fitting on the sea anemone tree of life at all. Researchers have now renamed the species Relicanthus daphneae, placing it into a new order (the equivalent of Carnivoria for mammals, Crocodilia for reptiles or Actiniaria for sea anemones) within the subclass Hexacorallia, which also includes anemones, black corals and stony corals. "The discovery of this new order of Cnidaria — a phylum that includes jellyfish, corals, sea anemones and their relatives — is the equivalent to finding the first member of a group like primates or rodents," Estefanía Rodríguez, an assistant curator in the American Museum of Natural History, said in a statement. "This amazing finding tells us that we have so much more to learn and discover in the ocean," added Rodriguez, who led the research. Not an anemone So why does the oddball look like a sea anemone? Its similarity to anemones is an example of convergent evolution, which means that two different branches of the tree of life form features that look the same, the researchers said. "Both groups of animals lack the same character[istic]s, but our research shows that while the anemones lost those character[istic]s over millions of years of evolution, R. daphneae never had them," Rodriguez said in a statement. The group hopes other members of the same order will be found soon, which will help provide more information on how the tree of life is structured. From characteristics to DNA In addition to giving the boot to Boloceroides daphneae, the new study sheds light on sea anemones, a group of animals that are difficult to classify because they have few distinctive structures. "Anemones are very simple animals," Rodríguez said. "Because of this, they are grouped together by their lack of characteristics — for example, the absence of a skeleton or the lack of colony-building, like you see in corals. So it wasn't a huge surprise when we began to look at their molecular data and found that the traditional classifications of anemones were wrong." The four-year study aimed to classify the known species of anemones based on their evolutionary relationships with one another. DNA and structural comparisons of more than 112 species worldwide revealed there are only two suborders of anemones (not four, as previously thought). The findings were published online May 7 in the journal PLOS ONE. http://www.livescience.com/45655-marine-creature-is-new-animal-order.html Rodriguez, Estefania; Barbeitos, Marcos S.; Brugler, Mercer R.; Crowley, Louise M.; Grajales, Alejandro; Gusmão, Luciana; Häussermann, Verena; Reft, Abigail et al. (7 May 2014). "Hidden among Sea Anemones: The First Comprehensive Phylogenetic Reconstruction of the Order Actiniaria (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Hexacorallia) Reveals a Novel Group of Hexacorals". PLOS ONE (Plos.org) 9 (5). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0096998. e96998. Retrieved 10 May 2014. Abstract Sea anemones (order Actiniaria) are among the most diverse and successful members of the anthozoan subclass Hexacorallia, occupying benthic marine habitats across all depths and latitudes. Actiniaria comprises approximately 1,200 species of solitary and skeleton-less polyps and lacks any anatomical synapomorphy. Although monophyly is anticipated based on higher-level molecular phylogenies of Cnidaria, to date, monophyly has not been explicitly tested and at least some hypotheses on the diversification of Hexacorallia have suggested that actiniarians are para- or poly-phyletic. Published phylogenies have demonstrated the inadequacy of existing morphological-based classifications within Actiniaria. Superfamilial groups and most families and genera that have been rigorously studied are not monophyletic, indicating conflict with the current hierarchical classification. We test the monophyly of Actiniaria using two nuclear and three mitochondrial genes with multiple analytical methods. These analyses are the first to include representatives of all three currently-recognized suborders within Actiniaria. We do not recover Actiniaria as a monophyletic clade: the deep-sea anemone Boloceroides daphneae, previously included within the infraorder Boloceroidaria, is resolved outside of Actiniaria in several of the analyses. We erect a new genus and family for B. daphneae, and rank this taxon incerti ordinis. Based on our comprehensive phylogeny, we propose a new formal higher-level classification for Actiniaria composed of only two suborders, Anenthemonae and Enthemonae. Suborder Anenthemonae includes actiniarians with a unique arrangement of mesenteries (members of Edwardsiidae and former suborder Endocoelantheae). Suborder Enthemonae includes actiniarians with the typical arrangement of mesenteries for actiniarians (members of former suborders Protantheae, Ptychodacteae, and Nynantheae and subgroups therein). We also erect subgroups within these two newly-erected suborders. Although some relationships among these newly-defined groups are still ambiguous, morphological and molecular results are consistent enough to proceed with a new higher-level classification and to discuss the putative functional and evolutionary significance of several morphological attributes within Actiniaria. http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0096998 |
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