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Diversity and distribution of intertidal Microporella (Bryozoa: Cheilostomatida) from California
(2024)
Seven species of the cheilostome bryozoan genus Microporella were identified across 15 rocky intertidal sites spanning 940 km of the California coast, from Mill Creek in the Montereyan Pacific Transition Region north to Point Saint George in the Mendocinian Region. Colonies of Microporella were found encrusting boulders and mollusc shells. Among these species, three are new to science, namely Microporella dentata Chowdhury & Di Martino sp. nov., M. pauciperforata Chowdhury & Di Martino sp. nov. and M. rota Chowdhury & Di Martino sp. nov. Three other species, M. californica, M. setiformis, and M. umbonata have previously been recorded from other localities in California. Finally, Microporella neocribroides, originally described from off Kodiak Island, Alaska, and subsequently found in Hokkaido, Japan, was recorded in California for the first time. An additional new species, M. similis Chowdhury & Di Martino sp. nov., was identified through the re-examination of museum material previously attributed to M. cribrosa and M. californica. These newly acquired data allowed for a more comprehensive examination of the distribution of species, intraspecific variability, and potential predator-induced teratologies in certain species, thanks to the availability of numerous colonies from various sites and the re-examination of museum records. Altogether, this study increases the known Recent diversity of Microporella in California’s waters to a total of 18 species.
Microporella Hincks, 1877 is one of the most diverse genera of cheilostome bryozoans, containing more than 150 named species. Distributed globally since the early Miocene, the majority of species of Microporella have sheet-like colonies encrusting hard and / or ephemeral substrates, while a limited number of species have erect bifoliate colonies starting from an encrusting base. Herein, the four nominal species of erect bifoliate Microporella (M. bifoliata, M. hastigera, M. hyadesi and M. ordo) are revised, and one new Pliocene (M. tanyae sp. nov.) and three new Recent species (M. ordoides sp. nov., M. lingulata sp. nov. and M. modesta sp. nov.) are formally described. Furthermore, the lectotype and paralectotypes were designated for M. bifoliata and M. hastigera. An additional Recent species, Microporella sp. 1, is also described and illustrated but left in open nomenclature owing to the absence of ovicells in the single available fragment. Although the molecular phylogeny of Microporella has yet to be resolved, the diversity of character states present among the erect bifoliate species described here suggests that this colony growth-form is not monophyletic but has evolved on multiple occasions.