Crustacean Biology Advance Access Published 25 April 2019 Journal of Crustacean Biology the Crustacean Society Journal of Crustacean Biology 39(3) 202–212, 2019
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Journal of Crustacean Biology Advance Access published 25 April 2019 Journal of Crustacean Biology The Crustacean Society Journal of Crustacean Biology 39(3) 202–212, 2019. doi:10.1093/jcbiol/ruz008 Distribution of Recent non-marine ostracods in Icelandic lakes, springs, and cave pools Jovana Alkalaj1, , Thora Hrafnsdottir2, Finnur Ingimarsson2, Robin J. Smith3, Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jcb/article/39/3/202/5479341 by guest on 23 September 2021 Agnes-Katharina Kreiling1,4 and Steffen Mischke1 1University of Iceland, Institute of Earth Sciences, Sturlugötu 6, 101 Reykjavik, Iceland; 2Natural History Museum of Kópavogur, Hamraborg 6a, 200 Kópavogur, Iceland; 3Lake Biwa Museum, 1091 Oroshimo, Kusatsu, Shiga 525-0001, Japan; and 4Hólar University College, Háeyri 1, 550 Sauðárkrókur, Iceland Correspondence: J. Alkalaj; e-mail: [email protected] (Received 20 February 2018; accepted 25 February 2019) ABSTRACT Ostracods in Icelandic freshwaters have seldom been researched, with the most comprehen- sive record from the 1930s. There is a need to update our knowledge of the distribution of ostracods in Iceland as they are an important link in these ecosystems as well as good can- didates for biomonitoring. We analysed 25,005 ostracods from 44 lakes, 14 springs, and 10 cave pools. A total of 16 taxa were found, of which seven are new to Iceland. Candona candida (Müller, 1776) is the most widespread species, whereas Cytherissa lacustris (Sars, 1863) and Cypria ophtalmica (Jurine, 1820) are the most abundant, showing great numbers in lakes. Potamocypris fulva (Brady, 1868) is the dominant species in springs. While the fauna of lakes and springs are relatively distinct from each other, cave pools host species that are common in both lakes and springs. Icelandic non-marine ostracods include mostly generalist species, as well as species adapted to cold climates and resemble those of other north European countries while shar- ing very few species with the North American Arctic. Iceland is experiencing impacts from climate change and a booming tourism. It is possible to use selected freshwater ostracods as biomonitoring tools by constructing a detailed database of these species. Key Words: Arctic region, biodiversity, biogeography, ecology, freshwater environment EIGHTEENTH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON OSTRACODA INTRODUCTION found in sediments (Horne et al., 2012). It is thus important to fully understand the ecology of extant species as well as their cur- Ostracods inhabit almost all aquatic environments. One of their rent distributions. major defining features is their hard, bivalve, calcitic shell, dorsally Approximately 2,330 freshwater ostracod species have been connected and encasing the entire non-mineralized parts of the described worldwide (Meisch et al., 2019), of which 47 have been body, with only the tips of their appendages occasionally protrud- found to inhabit Arctic non-marine water bodies, four of them ing. Both the carapace and the soft body parts can have taxonomi- endemic to the region (Hodkinson et al., 2013). cally distinguishing characteristics, which are the basis of accurate Few studies have dealt with the existence and distribution of taxonomic identification (Meisch, 2000). ostracods in Iceland, and none in a systematic way and within the Ostracods constitute one of the most diverse crustacean past few decades. The first collection of Icelandic freshwater crus- groups, with 62,000 described nominal freshwater and marine, taceans was undertaken by the French explorer Charles Rabot in extant and fossil species (Kempf, 1980), of which the estimated 1891 (De Guerne & Richard, 1892). He reported two freshwater number of living species is around 10,000 to 15,000 (Meisch, species of ostracods, Cypris pubera Müller, 1776 and Sarscypridopsis 2000). Based on the knowledge of ecology and biology of the liv- aculeata (Costa, 1847) (recorded by Rabot as Cypris aculeata). ing species, it is possible to apply palaeoecological and palaeo- Haberbosch (1916) published a list of crustaceans collected by climatological reconstructions from the fossilised ostracod shells © The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Crustacean Society. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. For commercial re-use, please contact [email protected] RECENT NON-MARINE OSTRACODS OF ICELAND A. G. Böving from the Zoological Museum of Copenhagen, add- they are to be used effectively, it is important to map their cur- ing one more freshwater ostracod species, Bradleystrandesia affinis rent distribution so that they could be compared with future col- (Fischer, 1851) (listed as Eucypris affinis hirsuta). In 1936, Schwabe lections. This study explores the Icelandic ostracod fauna and its (1936) recorded four more species from thermal waters, Herpetocypris distribution in lakes, springs, and cave pools, and aims to provide a chevreuxi (Sars, 1896), Heterocypris incongruens (Ramdohr, 1808) (as comprehensive overview of these species. Cyprinotus incongruens), Cyprideis torosa (Jones, 1850) (as Cyprideis littora- lis), and Heterocypris salina (Brady, 1868) (as Cyprinotus salina). The first STUDY SITES (and last) comprehensive study of Icelandic non-marine ostracods was conducted by the Danish zoologist Erik M. Poulsen (1939), Iceland is a volcanic island in the North Atlantic Ocean on the who added another eight species and compared Iceland to other Mid-Atlantic Ridge marking the boundary between the Eurasian high-latitude regions, such as Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and and North American tectonic plates. As such, Iceland is geologically Sweden. He found, in addition to those mentioned above, Eucypris active, with numerous active volcanoes, geysers, and hot springs. pigra (Fischer, 1851), Tonnacypris glacialis (Sars, 1890) (as Eucypris The island has an area of 103,125 km2 of which about 11% is cov- glacialis), Potamocypris pallida Alm, 1914, Cyclocypris ovum (Jurine, ered by glaciers and 2.8% by water (Statistics Iceland, 2015), includ- 1820), Cypria ophtalmica (Jurine, 1820), Candona candida (Müller, ing approximately 1,850 freshwater lakes larger than 0.1 km2 and 1776), Cytherissa lacustris (Sars, 1863) (as Cytheroidea lacustris), and about 200 lakes larger than 1 km2 (Aðalsteinsson et al., 1989). Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jcb/article/39/3/202/5479341 by guest on 23 September 2021 Limnocytherina sanctipatricii (Brady & Robertson, 1869) (as Limnocythere Despite lying just below the Arctic Circle, the Icelandic climate sanctipatricii). Since then, most research of the Icelandic freshwater is considered subarctic and generally more temperate than that fauna excluded ostracods entirely (i.e., Lindegaard, 1979) or relied of other regions located at the same latitude. This is due to the on Poulsen (1939). Ólafsdóttir (2015) recorded six ostracod taxa, of effect of the warm North Atlantic Current that keeps the coasts which Potamocypris zschokkei (Kaufmann, 1900) was the only species ice-free throughout the year. The weather is also affected by the not previously found in Iceland. A specimen of P. zschokkei was re- East Greenland Polar Current, mainly in the northeastern region. examined during the current study. The clash of the mild Atlantic air and colder Arctic air causes the As ostracods are an important component of many ecosystems, weather to be very variable. Much of Iceland is covered by tundra acting as predators and prey, this absence from faunal listings has and the central region is dominated by a highland plateau (the left a prominent gap in the knowledge of the Icelandic fauna. central highlands) that has a rough climate and is not inhabited Taking into consideration the disjointed ostracod records available by people. Vegetation is mostly subarctic and only covers around so far, a systematic and comprehensive database of freshwater 23% of the land, compared to 63% covered by wastelands. ostracod species found in Iceland requires a clean start. With the The active Mid-Atlantic Ridge crosses Iceland in a southwest- tourist boom of the past decade as well as the effects of climate northeast direction, causing new oceanic crust to emerge and form. change, it is unwise to ignore the potential of ostracods as bio- Thus, the bedrock age increases with increasing distance from the monitoring tools. Certain ostracod species might be especially sen- ridge (Fig. 1). The topography, geology and soil characteristics of sitive to the changes in nutrient availability and oxygen content, the catchment area influence the aquatic ecosystem; waters formed water temperature, and other parameters (Geiger, 1990), and if in younger bedrock have a higher biodiversity than those formed in Figure 1. Map of Iceland showing sampled locations (numbers and letters correspond to names of locations given in Supplementary material Table S1) and zonation of four major bedrock classes in Iceland (modified from Jóhannesson & Saemundsson, 1998; different coloured zones are marked by letters A to D): Historical (< 0.0011 Ma) and postglacial prehistoric (0.0011–0.01 Ma) basic and intermediate lavas (A); late and middle Pleistocene (0.01–0.8 Ma) basic and intermediate hyaloclastite pillow lavas, interglacial and supraglacial lavas (B); early Pleistocene and upper