13 4 305 Kasaei et al NOTES ON GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION Check List 13 (4): 305–313 https://doi.org/10.15560/13.4.305 Bryozoa of the southern Caspian Sea, Iranian coast S. Mojtaba Kasaei,1 Ali Nasrolahi,1 Behrooz Abtahi,1 Paul D. Taylor2 1 Shahid Beheshti University, Faculty of life Sciences and Biotechnology, Department of Aquatic Biotechnology, Tehran, Iran, Postal Code: 1983969411. 2 Natural History Museum, Department of Earth Sciences, London, SW7 5BD, United Kingdom. Corresponding author: Ali Nasrolahi, [email protected] Abstract Bryozoans were found attached to various natural and artificial substrates at 18 sites along the Iranian coast of the southern Caspian Sea. Two species of cheilostome bryozoans—Conopeum grimmi and Lapidosella ostroumovi—and 2 species of ctenostomes—Amathia gracilis and Victorella pavida—are reported. Lapidosella ostroumovi is a new record for the Caspian Sea. Key words Cheilostomes; ctenostomes; Iranian coast; new record. Academic editor: Rafael B. de Moura | Received 20 January 2017 | Accepted 30 June 2017 | Published 18 August 2017 Citation: Kasaei SM, Nasrolahi A, Abtahi B, Taylor PD (2017) Bryozoa of the southern Caspian Sea, Iranian coast. Check List 13 (4): 305–313. https://doi.org/10.15560/13.4.305 Introduction ranean–Caspian species; and (4) Mediterranean species that have recently been introduced into the Caspian Studies on Caspian Sea bryozoans have been done mostly through the Volga–Don Canal (Abrikosov and Zevina in the northern Caspian (Abrikosov 1959, Abrikosov and 1968). Here, for the first time, we report the occurrence Zevina 1968, Gontar et al. 2009). The fauna of bryozoans and distributions of 4 species of bryozoans from the Ira- in the Caspian Sea comprises species belonging to the nian coast of the Caspian Sea. We also test their potential classes Phylactolaemata and Gymnolaemata, includ- preferences for different substrate types. ing representatives of both orders Cheilostomatida and Ctenostomatida. High levels of endemism have been detected that can be explained by the low salinity and Methods long-term isolation of the Caspian Sea (Gontar 2013). Cheilostome bryozoans attached to stones, plastic debris, Seven species have been reported: the freshwater bryo- wood, glass and other objects washed-up on the beach zoans Paludicella articulata (Ehrenberg, 1831) and or from shallow water (< 1 m depth) were collected Plumatella emarginata Allman, 1844, and the brack- from 18 sites along the Iranian coastline of the southern ish/marine species Conopeum seurati (Canu, 1928), C. Caspian Sea (Fig. 1, Table 1). Specimens were bleached grimmi Gontar & Tarasov, 2009, Amathia imbricata using sodium hypochlorite solution (5.2%), air-dried and caspia (Adams, 1798), Amathia gracilis (Leidy, 1855) coated with gold prior to scanning electron microscopy and Victorella pavida Saville-Kent, 1870. Bryozoans in using a Hitachi SU3500. To study the ctenostome bryo- the Caspian Sea can be subdivided into: (1) freshwater zoans, a series of PVC panels were deployed at 1 m depth species; (2) Caspian Sea endemic species; (3) Mediter- in the port of Astara (38°25ʹ26.80ʺ N, 048°52ʹ45.70ʺ E). Copyright Kasaei et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. 306 Check List 13 (4) Figure 1. Map of the sampling sites (rectangles), southern Caspian Sea, Iran; 1: Bandar Torkaman; 2: Bandar Gaz; 3: Mahmudabad; 4: Nur; 5: Sisangan; 6: Chalus; 7: Ramsar-1; 8: Ramsar-2; 9: Chaboksar; 10: Kelachay; 11: Rudsar; 12: Dastak; 13: Kiashahr; 14: Hasan Rud; 15: Bandar-e Anzali; 16: Khalifabad; 17: Haviq; 18: Astara. The blue rectangles indicate the locations of the new record. Maps were made using freeware tool PanMap. Live specimens on the panels were then transferred to the are stored in the Marine Ecology Laboratory of Shahid lab and photographed in seawater using a digital camera Beheshti University, Iran (MELSB). (Canon G12) and a Dino Capture, both mounted on a ste- reoscopic microscope (Leica, WILD M8). All specimens Results Table 1. Location and geographic coordinates of bryozoan sam- Order Cheilostomata Busk, 1852 pling sites in the southern Caspian Sea. Suborder Malacostega Levinsen, 1902 Station no. Location Latitude Longitude Superfamily Membraniporoidea Busk, 1854 1 Bandar Torkaman 36°53’47.94” N 054°02’31.45” E Family Electridae d’Orbigny, 1851 2 Bandar Gaz 36°47’17.10” N 053°56’30.10” E Genus Lapidosella Gontar, 2010 3 Mahmudabad 36°38’10.70” N 052°15’37.50” E 4 Nur 36°34’38.70” N 051°59’51.60” E Lapidosella ostroumovi Gontar, 2010: Figure 2A–F 5 Sisangan 36°34’41.40” N 051°49’42.51” E Material examined. MELSB-38, Station 3, on stone, 6 Chalus 36°40’58.66” N 051°26’04.63” E February 17, 2016; MELSB-56, Station 4, on stone, 7 Ramsar-1 36°55’34.10” N 050°40’10.90” E 8 Ramsar-2 36°56’40.30” N 050°38’46.30” E February 17, 2016; MELSB-110, MELSB-112, Station 9 Chaboksar 36°58’25.30” N 050°34’54.50” E 9, on wood, February 20, 2016; MELSB-121, Station 11, 10 Kelachay 37°04’56.10” N 050°23’42.22” E on glass bottle, February 21, 2016; MELSB-125, Station 11 Rudsar 37°12’48.24” N 050°16’27.62” E 12, on stone, February 21, 2016; MELSB-146, Station 12 Dastak 37°22’45.73” N 050°11’57.23” E 13, on stone, February 21, 2016; MELSB-149, Station 13 Kiashahr 37°26’30.88” N 049°57’48.96” E 14 Hasan Rud 37°27’34.70” N 049°39’29.56” E 14, on plastic bottle, February 21, 2016; MELSB-176, 15 Bandar-e Anzali 37°28’50.92” N 049°27’21.53” E Station 16, on stone, February 22, 2016; MELSB-182, 16 Khalifabad 37°43’01.88” N 049°0’52.81” E Station 17, on stone, February 22, 2016; MELSB-198A, 17 Haviq 38°06’03.85” N 048°54’55.15” E MELSB-198B, MELSB-199, Station18, on plastic bottle, 18 Astara 38°25’26.80” N 048°52’45.70” E February 22, 2016. Kasaei et al. | Southern Caspian Sea bryozoans 307 Figure 2. Lapidosella ostroumovi. A. Portion of a colony showing rectangular autozooids. B. Close-up of some autozooids. C. Close-up of an autozooid. D. Close-up of a wide, “Doppelgänger” autozooid with two opercula preceding a row bifurcation. E. Part of colony showing some autozooids with proximal spinules (distal is downwards). F. Close-up of a vertical wall showing uniporous mural septulae (distal is downwards). (A, B, D, E: MELSB-199; C: MELSB-121; F: MELSB-198A.) Description. Colony white, growing on various sub- or absent, up to 3 pairs located proximally. Gymnocyst strates, a few centimetres in diameter, initially encrusting absent. Lateral walls well-calcified, translucent in young and unilaminar, becoming erect and bifoliate. Autozooids autozooids. Operculum transparent, uncalcified, with subrectangular to rectangular and irregularly elongated in rounded distal and straight proximal edge. Closure plates shape, arranged in rows, 0.43–0.66 mm long by 0.17– not observed. Ovicells and avicularia absent. Transverse 0.37 mm wide, distal edge rounded and proximal edge walls with a row of uniporous mural septulae. concave. Opesia oblong-oval in shape, occupying almost entire frontal surface. Cryptocyst a very narrow rim, Remarks. Gontar (2010) originally erected the genus covered with tubercles. Cryptocystal spinules present Lapidosella for Lapidosella ostroumovi from the Sea of 308 Check List 13 (4) Azov. According to Gontar (2010) this species was been ally, developing regular sheets on even surfaces and first found there by Ostroumov in 1891 but misidentified becoming irregular on uneven surfaces, diameter mea- as Membranipora reticulum. The present study gives the suring a few centimetres. Autozooids elongated oval first record of Lapidosella ostroumovi from the Caspian with rounded distal edges, irregular in shape in the Sea. Gontar (2010) noted that autozooids in specimens colonies formed on uneven substrata, 0.35–0.69 mm from the Sea of Azov were about 0.35–0.57 mm long by long by 0.15–0.32 mm wide, often arranged in oblique 0.22–0.39 mm wide. In comparison with Gontar’s Sea and disordered rows. Cryptocyst narrow, covered of Azov material, autozooids of the present material are with tubercles. Pointed spinules present in a minority generally longer and narrower. of zooids, up to 5 pairs. Gymnocyst narrow, mostly According to Gontar (2010), Lapidosella differs from developed proximally. Opesia occupying almost entire other genera of the family Electridae in the absence of a frontal surface. Operculum impressed on closure plates gymnocyst, having cryptocystal opesial spines, budding of some zooids. Ancestrula smaller than later autozo- pattern of autozooids (which is distal and leads into 1 or oids, lacking spines, budding 1 daughter zooid distally 2 daughter autozooid), and colony formation. Biflustra and 1 proximally. Lateral vertical walls containing at sphinx Vieira, Almeida & Winston, 2016 resembles L. least 2 communication pores. Kenozooids and intramu- ostroumovi in autozooidal shape and budding pattern and rally budded autozooids present. in having uniporous mural septulae in the vertical walls, According to Zevina (1967), Conopeum seur- but L. ostroumovi is distinguished by having cryptocys- Remarks. tal spines, while gymnocystal tubercles are present in B. ati is the most abundant species in the Sea of Azov, as sphinx but absent in L. ostroumovi. well as the first bryozoan species to have been discovered Opercula of L. ostroumovi differ from those of Cono- in the Black Sea. She also pointed out that this species peum seurati in which a folded membranous structure was confused in the past with Electra crustulenta (Pal- occupies their periphery.