Aplysia hooveri, Golestani & Crocetta & Padula & Camacho-García & Langeneck & Poursanidis & Pola & Yokeş & Cervera & Jung & Gosliner & Araya & Hooker & Schrödl & Valdés, 2019

Golestani, Haleh, Crocetta, Fabio, Padula, Vinicius, Camacho-García, Yolanda, Langeneck, Joachim, Poursanidis, Dimitris, Pola, Marta, Yokeş, M. Baki, Cervera, Juan Lucas, Jung, Dae-Wui, Gosliner, Terrence M., Araya, Juan Francisco, Hooker, Yuri, Schrödl, Michael & Valdés, Ángel, 2019, The little Aplysia coming of age: from one species to a complex of species complexes in Aplysia parvula (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Heterobranchia), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 187, pp. 279-330 : 308-311

APLYSIA HOOVERI SP. NOV.

( FIGS 14D, 15A–B, 16G–I, 17B–C)

Holotype: Punta Belches , Baja California, Mexico, 1 September 2015, 10-mm long preserved specimen, leg. C. Hoover ( LACM 3644 , isolate HG97).

‘ Aplysia parvula californica ’ Engel, 1936: 28 , not Aplysia californica Cooper, 1863 . Type locality: California [sic.]. Three syntypes are mentioned: Isla San Marcos , Baja California, Mexico, 12 May 1921, leg. F. Baker, California Academy of Sciences Gulf of California Expedition, 1921 ( CASIZ 0040327 ).

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:A6D0DE37-11CB-4E32-A03D-6A14B47B5DFD

Additional material examined: Punta Belches , Baja California, Mexico, 1 September 2015, one specimen 9 mm preserved length, leg. C. Hoover ( CPIC 01851 , isolate HG94); 1 September 2015, one specimen 6 mm preserved length, leg. C. Hoover ( CPIC 01848 , isolate HG98); one specimen 9 mm preserved length, leg. C. Hoover ( CPIC 01845 , HG95). Baja California, Mexico, 10-m depth, 30 June 1987, three specimens, leg. S. Millen ( CASIZ 071868 ) . Tenacatita , Jalisco, Mexico, 16 January 1976, two specimens 11 mm preserved length, leg. Forrest & R. Poorman ( LACM 117921 ) . Isla Coiba , Panama, 10–21-m depth, 8 May 2003, one specimen 4 mm preserved length, leg. A. Hermosillo ( LACM 153315 ) . Bahia Honda , La Guajira, Colombia, 16–18-m depth, 8 April 1939, one specimen 19 mm preserved length, leg. R/VVelero III ( LACM 1939 - 188.4 ) . Black Beach , Floreana Island, Galapagos, Ecuador, 6 m depth, 17 January 1934, one 1 specimen 19 mm preserved length ( LACM AHF161-34 ) ; 5–10-m depth, 23 January 1972, two specimens 11–14 mm preserved length, leg. S. Earle ( LACM 72–190 ) . Tumbes, Peru, 3 December 2006, three specimens, leg. M. Schrödl & Y. Hooker ( ZSM Mol 20090834) .

Description: Morphological characteristics as in the description of species complex 3. Radular formula 27 × 3.7.1.7. 3 in a 9-mm long preserved specimen from Baja California, Mexico ( CPIC 01851, isolate HG94) and 25 × 3.8.1.8. 3 in a 9-mm long preserved specimen from Baja California, Mexico ( CPIC 01845, HG95).

Etymology: Named after Craig Hoover, enthusiast of sea slug taxonomy and ecology, who collected the holotype of this new species.

Range: Eastern Pacific Ocean, mainly along the Panamic Biogeographic Region. Reported from San Clemente Island, California ( Behrens & Hermosillo, 2005) to Peru ( Uribe et al., 2013) as Aplysia parvula .

Remarks

The results of this study confirm that the eastern Pacific specimens sequenced are genetically distinct from other specimens collected in other regions of the Pacific Ocean. Based on these results, and the species delimitation analyses, we conclude that these specimens constitute a distinct species. However, we have been unable to find an available or valid name for the eastern Pacific species here recognized, thus we introduce the new name Aplysia hooveri for these specimens.

MacFarland (1924) reported Aplysia parvula for the first time for the eastern Pacific, based on three specimens collected in Isla San Marcos, Baja California, Mexico. Engel (1936) divided A. parvula into several subspecies with different geographic ranges and introduced the name Aplysia parvula subsp. californica Engel, 1936 for the specimens reported by MacFarland (1924). Engel (1936) stated the type locality of the new subspecies as California, but this is probably an error for Baja California, as the name was based on MacFarland’s (1924) specimens. However, Engel (1936) did not include a description or a statement of differentiation, thus the name Aplysia parvula californica Engel, 1936 does not meet the criteria of availability ( ICZN 1999: Article 13.1).

Aplysia juanina is another species from the eastern Pacific Ocean that was regarded as a synonym of Aplysia parvula , but this species is genetically distinct from Aplysia hooveri and other closely related species previously included in Aplysia parvula (see remarks under Aplysia juanina ).