Recent introduction of the dominant tunicate, Pyura praeputialis (Urochordata, Pyuridae) to Antofagasta, Chile.
The large sessile tunicate Pyura stolonifera (Pleurogona: Stolibranchiata: Pyuridae), has been regarded as a complex taxon with disjointed distributions, including Australia (Pyura stolonifera praeputialis), South Africa (Pyura stolonifera stolonifera) and South America (Chile, Antofagasta: Pyura sp., the 'piure de Antofagasta'), and has been cited under at least five taxonomic combinations. The 'piure de Antofagasta' is a competitively dominant species in rocky intertidal habitats and shows a limited geographical range (60-70 km) exclusively inside the Bay of Antofagasta. Using cytochrome oxidase I (COI) mitochondrial sequence data from Pyura specimens of the three taxa we tested whether the Chilean taxon represents: (i) a Gondwana relict; (ii) a more recently divergent species; or (iii) a recently introduced species. The results suggest that the Chilean taxon is a recent introduction to Chile from Australian populations and that Pyura stolonifera praeputialis, from Australia, and the 'piure de Antofagasta' are geographical populations of a single species: Pyura praeputialis; whereas the South African taxon represents a second species: Pyura stolonifera.
Castilla
J C
JC
Centro de Estudios Avanzados en Ecología & Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Alameda 340, Casilla 114-D. Santiago, Chile. jcastill@genes.bio.puc.cl
Collins
A G
AG
Meyer
C P
CP
Guiñez
R
R
Lindberg
D R
DR
D000818:Animals; D001315:Australia; D002677:Chile; D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV / Q000235:genetics; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000201:enzymology; D010802:Phylogeny; D013019:South Africa; D014561:Urochordata / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*
D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV