Caribbochiton guadeloupensis n. gen et n. sp. (Mollusca: Polyplacophora) from the Caribbean Sea

ABSTRACT

A new genus and new species of the family Callistoplacidae from the bathyal zone near Guadeloupe Island in the Caribbean Sea are described. Caribbochiton guadeloupensis n. gen. et n. sp. is unlike other genera in the family Callistoplacidae: it has no ribs on end valves or on lateral areas of intermediate valves. According to other morphological features (thick shell, relatively narrow valves, noticeably raised lateral areas, similar slit formula, insertion plate teeth thickened at edges of slits, dorsal scales), this genus is closest to the family Callistoplacidae. Given that a number of species of the family do not have at a young age the ribs which appear later, we hypothesise that the new genus could have evolved as a result of paedomorphosis. An emended diagnosis of the family Callistoplacidae is hereby proposed.

ZooBank registration: LSIDurn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:BB94DD8F-C466-4B1B-8868-EEAB75E6930B Carribochiton LSIDurn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:EBD4411B-C39D-446C-AD24-EB5F3A27AB32 Carribochiton guadeloupensis LSIDurn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:19B8AF77-2AB8-4BD1-940A-CA4EAFFCF215

KEYWORDS:

• Chitons
• new species and genus
• paedomorphosis
• Callistoplacidae
• deep-sea
• Guadeloupe

Acknowledgements

We are very grateful to Philippe Bouchet (MNHN) for the material, Virginie Heros and Barbara Buge (MNHN) for their help in the information on the material, Alexey Miroljubov (ZISP) for his technical assistance with SEM procedures and Galina Kuznetsova (ZISP), who prepared the digital plates. Scientific research was performed using equipment of the ‘Taxon’ Research Resource Center (http:// www.ckp-rf.ru/ckp/3038/?sphrase_id=8879024) of ZISP. The manuscript benefited from the critical reading and comments by Adriana Reyes-Gómez and Don Colgan as well as an anonymous reviewer. Finally we thank Kevin Cummings for polishing the English. The KARUBENTHOS 2 cruise was conducted by Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (PIs Laure Corbari, Philippe Bouchet), in conjunction with the National Park of Guadeloupe and Université des Antilles et de la Guyane, with support from Institut Ecologie et Environnement (INEE) of the French Research Council (CNRS) and the AGOA Marine Sanctuary. The PIs also acknowledge the UMS Flotte Océanographique Française, Genavir and Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD) for deploying the Research Vessel Antéa.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the State scientific program ‘Taxonomy, biodiversity and ecology of invertebrates from Russian and adjacent waters of World ocean, continental water bodies and damped areas AAA-A19-119020690072-9’.