Ozestheria packardi ( Brady, 1886 )

Schwentner, Martin & Hethke, Manja, 2025, Revision of the Australian Ozestheria Schwentner & Richter, 2015 (Crustacea: Branchiopoda: Spinicaudata) fauna, with the descriptions of 27 new species, European Journal of Taxonomy 992, pp. 1-172 : 104-105

Ozestheria packardi ( Brady, 1886) species inquirenda

Estheria packardi Brady, 1886: 85–86 , fig. c.

Estheria packardi – Sars 1895: 28–29, figs 4–5. — Spencer & Hall 1896: 236–238, figs 9–14. — Sayce 1903: 250–252, 255, fig. 34. — Henry 1924: 121–122, 134.

Cyzicus (Estheria) packardi – Wolf 1911: 254. — Dakin 1914: 295.

Caenestheriella packardi – Daday 1914: 108, 116–120, fig. 20. — Richter & Timms 2005: 347 .

Cyzicus packardi – Bishop 1967: fig. d. — Brtek 1997: 46.

Ozestheria packardi – Rogers 2020: 24.

Remarks

Since Sars’ (1895) detailed redescription of O. packardi , it appeared to be the most ubiquitous and widespread of all Australian spinicaudatan species, being found in virtually all types of habitats throughout (semi)arid Australia (e.g., Timms et al. 2006; Timms 2009b). Every individual with a long condyle was attributed to this species. Already in 1896, Spencer & Hall described three varieties (var. typica, var. minor and var. cancellata ), noting that these represent only the most extreme forms and that various intermediates had been observed (because of these intermediates they hesitated to raise these varieties to species). Subsequent authors usually regarded these varieties as junior synonyms of O. packardi (e.g., Richter & Timms 2005; Rogers 2020). Molecular genetics showed that the individuals with a long condyle (i.e., packardi -like) represent at least 14 different species. None of these can be safely attributed to the original description of O. packardi . In his original description, Brady (1886) only superficially described and depicted the carapace, which occupies a central position in Ozestheria morphospace ( Fig. 6 ), completely ignoring the main body. He based the description on specimens from Lake Bonney and Fowler Bay (South Australia), which are> 500 km apart, noting some differences in carapace coloration (only one individual with a lighter marginal band), though it is not clear which were depicted. It is highly likely that Brady incorporated and mixed individuals of different species in the original description of O. packardi . Moreover, the long condyle, which has long served as the main identification character, was not mentioned by Brady; it first appears in the detailed redescription by Sars (1895). However, Sars did not study any types, but specimens collected near Hay in southern New South Wales which most likely belong to yet another species. In 1896, Sars further described the development of O. packardi in detail; however, based on specimens raised from mud collected in Sydney.

The original description of O. packardi is not adequate and all subsequently published redescriptions are probably based on other species. Thus, O. packardi has to be treated as a species inquirenda.

Figures

Fig. 6. Morphometrics of long-condyled species. upper. Scores on PC1 and PC2 of Fourier shape coefficients of 497 outlines, including 480 new individuals and 17 historic type specimens, two of which are drawings of Ozestheria cancellata (Spencer & Hall, 1896) and O. packardi (Brady, 1886). The names used by Schwentner et al. (2015a) to identify genetically delimited species (e.g., A, B etc.; extended for the newly identified species, e.g., X2) are provided. New specimens are represented by convex hulls, type specimens and species documented by a single specimen (U, W, X7) by data points. lower. Mean shape of each species, calculated based on up to 67 individuals per species.