Niphargus aquilex Schiödte, 1855

Fišer, Cene, Zagmajster, Maja & Dethier, Michel, 2018, Overview of Niphargidae (Crustacea: Amphipoda) in Belgium: distribution, taxonomic notes and conservation issues, Zootaxa 4387 (1), pp. 47-74 : 50-51

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.4387.1.2

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:C679BD1D-6F0A-4347-B7A7-9C527A8BA675

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5989006

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/241C87DE-2D29-B059-FF10-F9C1C147FBDD

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Niphargus aquilex Schiödte, 1855
status

 

Niphargus aquilex Schiödte, 1855 View in CoL

Published records: L.1—Gent, well in Botanic garden ( Schellenberg 1933, Leruth 1934a, 1934b, 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.4—Sars-La-Bruyere pool (ZMB Berlin); L.7—Lessines, well ( Schellenberg 1933, Leruth 1934b, 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.13—Grotte de Han (Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.16—Wavreille, well 400 m west (Fišer et al. 2017); L.25—Pré-au-Tonneau cave ( Leruth 1934a, 1934b, 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999, ZMB Berlin); L.26—Rochefort cave ( Schellenberg 1933, Leruth 1934b, 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.75—Pouhon des Cuves, in gravel ( Leruth 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.76—Bévercé La Varchette, gravel of brook bank (ZMB Berlin); L.84—Remouchamps cave ( Leruth 1934a, 1934b, 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999, ZMB Berlin); L.91—La Reid, brooks and springs ( Pandourski & Dethier 2006); L.112—Sainte Anne cave ( Leruth 1934a, 1934b, 1939b, Hubert & Dethier 1999, ZMB Berlin); L.117—Grotte de Flère (Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.121—Trou du Diable cave ( Leruth 1934b, 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.127—Végétations cave ( Leruth 1934b, 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999, Dethier & Hubart 2010, ZMB Berlin); L.136—Grotte de Bebronne (Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.139—House well in Beyne-Heusay (ZMB Berlin); L.143—Herstal, wells ( Leruth 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.146—Spring S.1 of La Xhavée ( Leruth 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999); L.152—Gravel of Meuse river, phreatic ( Leruth 1939b); L.153—Hermalle sous Argenteau, pump well (Hubart & Dethier 1999, ZMB Berlin); L.167—Bohon cave ( Leruth 1939b, Hubart & Dethier 1999).

New records: L.27—Fayt cave (2.12.2000, GR); L.34—Netinne cave (31.3.2001, MD); L.93—La Reid, brooks and springs, station B1 (18.3.2002, MD); L.110—Ru de Targnon, brook (6.11.2002, MD, JMH).

Niphargus aquilex View in CoL is small to mid-sized species, distinct by its slender body, and often misidentified with similar species like N. tauri Schellenberg 1940 View in CoL (see Karaman 1973). The species was originally described from British Isles ( Karaman 1980). It is one of the most frequently reported Niphargus View in CoL species from the entire Europe, including Austria ( Straškraba 1958), Belgium ( Straškraba 1958), Czech ( Schellenberg 1938; Skalski 1972); France ( Straškraba 1958), Germany ( Ronneberger 1975; Zaenker & Nagel 1999), Luxembourg ( Straškraba 1958), Italy ( Karaman 1982), Netherlands ( Holthuis 1950; Stock 1961; Cuppen 1978a,b), and Poland ( Skalski 1970). The species is known from 26 localities in Belgium, four of which we report here for the first time ( Fig. 2 View FIGURE 2 ). Most of the localities are situated in south-eastern Belgium, but there are three localities in its western parts ( Fig. 2 View FIGURE 2 ), referring to localities from wells (App. 1). We collected the species mainly in tiny pools in mud and clay and might have been washed out from epikarst. Other published records from Belgium report the species also from interstitial and wells. This is in accord with published information, hypothesizing that species with such morphologies are bound to tiny crevices, either in interstitial or in epikarst ( Trontelj et al. 2012).

Many populations of this species were described as distinct subspecies (e.g., Sket 1999); however, recent molecular analyses indicated that this morphology evolved several times independently ( Trontelj et al. 2009). The populations from Belgium likely belong to species complex distributed between southern Britain and Germany (possibly “ N. aquilex View in CoL E” from McInnerney et al. 2014). Although N. aquilex View in CoL from West Europe was included into at least three molecular studies ( Trontelj et al. 2009; Hartke et al. 2011; McInnerney et al. 2014), its taxonomic structure so far remains unclear. All molecular studies hint extremely complex taxonomy that ought to be revised in a separate study.

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Malacostraca

Order

Amphipoda

Family

Niphargidae

Genus

Niphargus

Loc

Niphargus aquilex Schiödte, 1855

Fišer, Cene, Zagmajster, Maja & Dethier, Michel 2018
2018
Loc

N. tauri

Schellenberg 1940
1940
Loc

Niphargus aquilex

Schiodte 1855
1855
Loc

N. aquilex

Schiodte 1855
1855
Loc

Although N. aquilex

Schiödte 1855
1855
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