Elucidating the evolutionary relationships of the Aiptasiidae, a widespread cnidarian–dinoflagellate model system (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Actiniaria: Metridioidea)

[Display omitted] •We explored the phylogenetic relationships of the family Aiptasiidae.•We described a new cryptic species, Exaiptasia brasiliensis.•We confirmed the presence of a widespread species Exaiptasia pallida.•All clonal strains referred as Aiptasia spp. are now classified as Exaiptasia pa...

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Published inMolecular phylogenetics and evolution Vol. 94; no. Pt A; pp. 252 - 263
Main Authors Grajales, Alejandro, Rodríguez, Estefanía
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Elsevier Inc 01.01.2016
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Summary:[Display omitted] •We explored the phylogenetic relationships of the family Aiptasiidae.•We described a new cryptic species, Exaiptasia brasiliensis.•We confirmed the presence of a widespread species Exaiptasia pallida.•All clonal strains referred as Aiptasia spp. are now classified as Exaiptasia pallida. Sea anemones of the family Aiptasiidae sensu Grajales and Rodríguez (2014) are conspicuous members of shallow-water environments, including several species widely used as model systems for the study of cnidarian–dinoflagellate symbiosis and coral bleaching. Although previously published phylogenetic studies of sea anemones recovered Aiptasiidae as polyphyletic, they only included a sparse sample in terms of its taxonomic diversity and membership of the family had not been yet revised. This study explores the phylogenetic relationships of this family using five molecular markers and including newly collected material from the geographical distribution of most of the currently described genera and species. We find a monophyletic family Aiptasiidae. All the currently proposed genera were recovered as monophyletic units, a finding also supported by diagnostic morphological characters. Our results confirm Bellactis and Laviactis as members of Aiptasiidae, also in agreement with previous morphological studies. The monophyly of the group is congruent with the morphological homogeneity of the members of this family. The obtained results also allow discussing the evolution of morphological characters within the family. Furthermore, we find evidence for and describe a new cryptic species, Exaiptasia brasiliensis sp. nov., based on molecular data, geographical distribution, and the identity of its endosymbiotic dinoflagellate.
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ISSN:1055-7903
1095-9513
DOI:10.1016/j.ympev.2015.09.004