Journal article

Publication year: 2019

Pages: 31-124

Journal: ZooKeys

Volume number: 827

ISSN: 1313-2970

Open access status: Gold

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.827.31365

Publisher: Pensoft Publishers

Abstract: 

Defining and recording the loss of species diversity is a daunting task,
especially if identities of species under threat are not fully
resolved. An example is the Pontocaspian biota. The mostly endemic
invertebrate faunas that evolved in the Black Sea – Caspian Sea – Aral
Sea region and live under variable salinity conditions are undergoing
strong change, yet within several groups species boundaries are not well
established. Collection efforts in the past decade have failed to
produce living material of various species groups whose taxonomic status
is unclear. This lack of data precludes an integrated taxonomic
assessment to clarify species identities and estimate species richness
of Pontocaspian biota combining morphological, ecological, genetic, and
distribution data. In this paper, we present an expert-working list of
Pontocaspian and invasive mollusc species associated to Pontocaspian
habitats. This list is based on published and unpublished data on
morphology, ecology, anatomy, and molecular biology. It allows us to (1)
document Pontocaspian mollusc species, (2) make species richness
estimates, and (3) identify and discuss taxonomic uncertainties. The
endemic Pontocaspian mollusc species richness is estimated between 55
and 99 species, but there are several groups that may harbour cryptic
species. Even though the conservation status of most of the species is
not assessed or data deficient, our observations point to deterioration
for many of the Pontocaspian species.

Harvard Citation style: Wesselingh, F., Neubauer, T., Anistratenko, V., Vinarski, M., Yanina, T., ter Poorten, J., et al. (2019) Mollusc species from the Pontocaspian region – an expert opinion list, ZooKeys, 827, pp. 31-124. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.827.31365

APA Citation style: Wesselingh, F., Neubauer, T., Anistratenko, V., Vinarski, M., Yanina, T., ter Poorten, J., Kijashko, P., Albrecht, C., Anistratenko, O., D'Hont, A., Frolov, P., , G., Gittenberger, A., Gogaladze, A., Karpinsky, M., Lattuada, M., Popa, L., Sands, A., van de Velde, S., ...Wilke, T. (2019). Mollusc species from the Pontocaspian region – an expert opinion list. ZooKeys. 827, 31-124. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.827.31365