Juliana G. Hinton

Milnesium lagniappe, a new species of water bear (Tardigrada, Eutardigrada, Apochela, Milnesiidae) from the southern United States

ABSTRACT. Over 200 species of freshwater and terrestrial water bears (phylum Tardigrada) are known to occur in North America. Of these, 20 species have been recorded in Louisiana. Foliose and fruticose lichen and moss samples collected in 2011 in the city of Lake Charles and in Sam Houston Jones State Park, Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, USA, were stored in paper envelopes and later soaked in tap water overnight. Tardigrade specimens and eggs were extracted and mounted in polyvinyl lactophenol. The samples contained a new species of tardigrade. Milnesium lagniappe sp. n. has claw formula [2–3]-[3–2] and 9 sculptured bands in the dorsal and lateral cuticle. The new species most closely resembles Milnesium reticulatum, a species known only from the Seychelles Islands, in its cuticular pattern. However, M. lagniappe sp. n. is almost twice as large as M. reticulatum, lacks gibbosities, has proportionally wider buccal tube and longer claws, and has a more posterior point of stylet insertion. Reexamination of tardigrades from central Florida, USA, previously reported as M. tardigradum shows that they are in fact M. lagniappe sp. n.

The Tardigrada of southern Africa, with the description of Minibiotus harrylewisi , a new species from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (Eutardigrada: Macrobiotidae)

ABSTRACT Nine species of tardigrades (Phylum Tardigrada) were found in moss and lichen samples in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, with two species being also present in Lesotho. Macrobiotus richtersi, Minibiotus intermedius, Hypsibius convergens, Ramazzottius theroni, Milnesium tardigradum, and Echiniscus duboisi were previously known to be part of the southern African fauna, Macrobiotus iharosi has not been reported before from this region. One species, Macrobiotus cf. echinogenitus, could be identified only to species complex because eggs were not found. One South African species, Minibiotus harrylewisi sp. n., is new to science and is described and illustrated. It differs from other Minibiotus species in its adult cuticle and its egg ornamentation. It most closely resembles M. furcatus, from which it differs in having smooth lunules on leg IV, smaller eyes, smaller and more rounded posterior cuticular pores, and eggs with a smooth shell and much longer, non-bifurcate processes. These new records bring to 61 the number of tardigrade species reported from southern African mosses, lichens and soil.

Milnesium zsalakoae and M. jacobi, two new species of Tardigrada (Eutardigrada: Apochela: Milnesiidae) from the southwestern United States

Abstract Two new species of the phylum Tardigrada belonging to the genus Milnesium are described. Two specimens of Milnesium zsalakoae, new species, were collected from foliose lichens on rocks in Arizona and New Mexico, U.S.A. and mounted in Hoyers medium. Milnesium zsalakoae has primary claw branches of great length and slenderness, substantially longer relative to the length of the buccal tube than those of any other species of Milnesium. Eleven specimens of Milnesium jacobi, new species, were found in foliose and fruticose lichens collected in eastern Texas, U.S.A. and mounted in Hoyers medium or polyvinyl lactophenol. Milnesium jacobi differs from all species of Milnesium in having a very broad, cylindrical buccal tube and in the posterior placement of its stylet support insertions.

Terrestrial Tardigrada of the Island of Barbados in the West Indies, with the Description of Milnesium barbadosense sp. n. (Eutardigrada: Apochela: Milnesiidae)

Abstract. Eleven samples of moss, lichen, and leaf litter were collected at four sites on Barbados, an island of the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies, in January, 2009 and examined for the presence of water bears (Phylum Tardigrada). Although no tardigrades were found in leaf litter, 84 specimens and 11 eggs were present in moss and lichen samples. Four tardigrade species (Macrobiotus harmsworthi, Macrobiotus hufelandi, Paramacrobiotus richtersi, and Minibiotus intermedius) are considered cosmopolitan, and have been found on other Caribbean islands. The fifth species, Milnesium barbadosense sp. n., is described and illustrated. This new species is characterized by having a smooth cuticle, a posterior insertion of the stylet supports on the buccal tube, thick main claw branches with very small accessory points, slender secondary claw branches with short basal spurs, and no eyes. The most likely sources of tardigrades on Barbados are colonists from older islands in the Lesser Antilles, or immigrants brought in by humans on introduced plants.

Tardigrada of the West Gulf Coastal Plain, with Descriptions of Two New Species from Louisiana

Abstract Fifty-one species make up the known tardigrade fauna of the West Gulf Coastal Plain (western Louisiana, eastern Texas, southeastern Oklahoma, and southern Arkansas). Tardigrade diversity appears low compared to well-sampled areas of North America and Europe. Lichens and mosses collected in southwestern Louisiana during the Spring of 2010 contained ten species of tardigrades. Macrobiotus anemone sp. n. belongs to the hufelandi group. It differs from other species in the group in having egg processes whose terminal disks have 7–10 long, tentacular arms. Murrayon hyperoncus sp. n. differs from other species in the genus in the much larger dimensions of its buccal tube, placoids, and lunules. Echiniscus arctomys, Hypsibius convergens, Mesocrista spitzbergensis, Paramacrobiotus richtersi, and Murrayon pullari are new records for Louisiana.

Seasonal and Spatial Variation in Diversity and Abundance of Tardigrades in Leaf Litter from Louisiana and Florida

Abstract During 2002–2003, we collected samples of leaf litter (10-cm diameter) from two woodland sites in southwestern Louisiana and one in central Florida. In Louisiana, we collected at four times (autumn, winter, spring, and summer) and in Florida in spring and summer. We divided each sample into two layers, an upper leafy layer (1–2 cm in depth) and a lower layer of humus (1–2 cm in depth). We detected six species of tardigrades in samples from Louisiana and five in samples from Florida. Seasonal variation in density of tardigrades was pronounced at each site. Tardigrades generally were more abundant in the upper layer. Density and diversity of tardigrades in the leaf litter at these sites were less than in mountainous areas of Italy and Tennessee, USA.

New water bear records (Phylum Tardigrada) from the Pacific Northwest of North America

Abstract The terrestrial tardigrade fauna of Vancouver Island has been surveyed extensively, but very little has been published about tardigrades from mainland British Columbia, Canada. Mixed moss and lichen samples collected from Whistler Mountain, mainland British Columbia contained ten species of terrestrial tardigrade: Echiniscus horningi, E. mauccii, Milnesium cf. tardigradum, Ramazzottius sp., Diphascon (Diphascon) alpinum, D. (D.) nodulosum, Macrobiotus cf. harmsworthi, Macrobiotus hufelandi, Macrobiotus montanus, and Minibiotus jonesorum. Six of these species have previously been reported from Vancouver Island, British Columbia or from the Canadian Rocky Mountains. Macrobiotus montanus has not hitherto been found in British Columbia; Minibiotus jonesorum is new to the fauna of Canada. Detailed morphometric data are provided for E. horningi. Seven species—E. mauccii, E. quadrispinosus, E. wendti, Milnesium cf. tardigradum, D. (D.) recamieri, R. baumanni, and Macrobiotus islandicus—were found in cryptogams collected in Oregon, USA. Echiniscus mauccii, E. wendti, D. (D.) recamieri, and Ramazzottius baumanni are new records for Oregon.

Lone Star Bears: The Tardigrada of Big Thicket National Preserve, Texas

Abstract We completed an all taxa biological inventory (ATBI) for water bears (Phylum Tardigrada) in the Big Thicket National Preserve (BTNP) of southeastern Texas begun in 2006. Our inventory is based on methods used in a tardigrade ATBI of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP). We sampled lichens, mosses, liverworts, leaf litter, soil, and aquatic vegetation. Tardigrades were present in 47% of terrestrial and 3% of freshwater samples. We identified 631 tardigrade specimens and 63 eggs, representing 13 genera and 37 species. Tardigrade species richness in BTNP is approximately half that in GSMNP. Lower diversity in BTNP is partly explained by the absence of the altitudinal variation characteristic of GSMNP. Freshwater tardigrades were especially poorly represented at BTNP. Streams and lakes in BTNP are eutrophic and muddy, and may be poor habitats for tardigrades. This study confirms previous findings that the high tardigrade diversity found in mountainous areas may not be typical of other landscapes, and that in North America, tardigrades are less numerous and diverse in southern coastal plains and flatlands than in northern forests and mountains.