Ramazzottius oberhaeuseri ( Doyère, 1840 ), Kaczmarek, 2017

Kaczmarek, Łukasz, 2017, Annotated zoogeography of non-marine Tardigrada. Part IV: Africa, Zootaxa 4284 (1), pp. 1-74 : 31

77. Ramazzottius oberhaeuseri ( Doyère, 1840) sensu lato [T]

MacRobiotus obeRhäuseRi Doy. ( Murray 1913)

Hypsibius obeRhäseRi Doyère, 1840 ( Rahm 1936)

Hypsibius obeRhaeuseRi C.G. Ehrenberg, 1848 ( Teunissen 1938)

Hypsibius obeRhaüseRi ( Doyère) 1840 (da Cunha & do Nascimento 1964) H. (H.) obeRhaüseRi ( Doyère, 1840) ( Séméria 1986)

Terra typica : Germany (Europe)

Angola:

• 14°55′S, 13°30′E; 1,750 m asl: Huíla Province, surroundings of Sá da Bandeira [Lubango], lichens. da Cunha & do Nascimento (1964)

Israel and Palestinian National Authority:

• 32°41′N, 35°23′E; 550 m asl: Tavor Mountain Reserve, Tabor Mt., extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 32°13′N, 35°16′E; 550 m asl: Judean Mountains, Samaria, Nablus, extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 32°05′N, 34°53′E; 50 m asl: Petah Tikva, humid climate, lichen. Rahm (1936)

• 31°47′N, 35°13′E; 800 m asl: Judean Mountains, Jerusalem, wall of Abyssinian [ Ethiopian ] Church , extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 31°47′N, 35°14′E; 750 m asl: Judean Mountains, Jerusalem, City Wall of Jerusalem, Damascus Gate, extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 31°47′N, 35°15′E; 800 m asl: Judean Mountains, Jerusalem, Olives Mt., Pater Noster church, Russians tower, wall of church, extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 31°46′N, 35°14′E; 750 m asl: Judean Mountains, Jerusalem, Zion Mt., wall behind the Church of Zion , extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 31°46′N, 35°16′E; 650 m asl: Judean Mountains, al-Eizariya, Bethany, Tomb of Lazarus, rock, extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 31°41′N, 35°10′E; 800 m asl: Judean Mountains, Solomon's Pools, extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 31°32′N, 35°06′E; 950 m asl: Judean Mountains, Hebron, extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

• 31°32′N, 35°06′E; 950 m asl: Judean Mountains, Hebron, Abraham's Oak, extreme arid climate or semi-arid climate, moss ( BaRbula sp.?). Rahm (1936)

Jordan:

• 31°50′N, 36°49′E; 500 m asl: Zarqa Governorate, Zarqa [Azarq Wetland Reserve], moss. Kaczmarek & Michalczyk (2004a)

Kenya:

• 00°01′S, 37°54′E: Undefined locality, British East Africa [ Kenya], moss. Murray (1913)

Morocco:

• 33°31′N, 05°07′W; 1,650 m asl: Meknès-Tafilalet Region, Ras al Ma [Res el Ma], mosses trees ( CedRus ) and rocks. Séméria (1986)

• 33°27′N, 05°13′W; 1,250 m asl: Meknès-Tafilalet Region, ca. 30 [60] km S of Meknes, Azrou , lichens. Séméria (1986)

Republic of South Africa:

• 25°45′S, 28°11′E; 1,300 m asl: Gauteng Province, Pretoria , moss. Murray (1913)

Rwanda:

• 01°30′S, 29°32′E; 2,400 m asl: Northern Province, Albert National Park [Volcanoes National Park], Kibga, S slope of the volcano Visoke , at the edge of a bamboo forest, soil. Teunissen (1938)

Uganda:

• 01°22′N, 32°17′E: Undefined locality, moss. Murray (1913)

Record numbers. Angola: 1; Israel and Palestinian National Authority: 11, Jordan: 1, Republic of South Africa : 1 , Rwanda: 1, Kenya: 1, Morocco: 2, Uganda: 1; total: 19.

Remarks. Ramazzottius oberhaeuseri is a species complex with a cosmopolitan distribution ( McInnes 1994, see also Pilato et al. 2013). Recent papers have begun to identify individual species (see: Degma et al. 2009– 2016), though most require the presence of eggs (see Biserov 1998 for a diagnostic key to the genus). The presence of R. oberhaeuseri in Africa remains unconfirmed. Some North African specimens may belong to the recently described R. libycus (see above) or another Ramazzottius species. Murray (1913), briefly reported specimens from Uganda and Kenya, which he described as, “strongly papillose over the whole body, and brightly coloured, varying from the typical madder brown to vivid purple”. We suggest these specimens do not belong to the nominal R. oberhaeuseri but may represent R. szeptycki .