Volume 24 (2019) Article 36

Centrohelid heliozoans (Haptista: Centroplasthelida) from mires in the North Caucasus, Russia

by K.I. Prokina and D.A. Philippov

Published online: 04.12.2019

Summary

At present, little is known about the diversity and functioning of microbial communities in mire ecosystems. Among protists, centrohelid heliozoans remain the least studied components of mire microbial communities. The aim of the present work was to determine the species diversity of centrohelid heliozoans at five mountain mires (peatlands) in North Ossetia and Kabardino-Balkaria (North Caucasus, Russia) for the first time. The morphology of cell coverings (siliceous scales) was observed using scanning and transmission electron microscopy for species identification. Thirteen species from four families and six genera were recorded. One new species (Pterocystis anglocollegarum sp. n.) was described. Acanthocystis nigeriensis was found for the first time since its original description. Four species were new records for Russia: Acanthocystis nigeriensis, Pseudoraphidiophrys veliformis, Pterocystis anapoda and Pterocystis anglocollegarum sp. n. The most common species were Acanthocystis nigeriensis, A. trifurca, A. turfacea, and Pterocystis pinnata. Above-water microtopographical levels (hummock and carpet) were characterised by significantly higher species richness than mire water bodies (in-mire lakes, hollow-pools, and inter-hummock spaces). Among the microhabitat types studied, moss extracts were characterised by the highest species richness. There was great similarity between the communities of bottom sediments and water surface. Our results also showed that water temperature and pH significantly influenced the species richness of the studied biotopes.

Citation

Prokina, K.I. & Philippov, D.A. (2019) Centrohelid heliozoans (Haptista: Centroplasthelida) from mires in the North Caucasus, Russia. Mires and Peat, 24(36), 1–20. (Online: http://www.mires-and-peat.net/pages/volumes/map24/map2436.php); doi: 10.19189/MaP.2019.OMB.StA.1806

Reviewers

IMCG and IPS acknowledge the work of the reviewers.