Homology of the head sensory structures between Heterotardigrada and Eutardigrada supported in a new species of water bear (Ramazzottiidae: Ramazzottius).

ABSTRACT: Phylum Tardigrada is represented by microscopic eight-legged panarthropods that inhabit terrestrial and marine environments. Although tardigrades are emerging model animals for areas of research including physiology, evolutionary biology, and astrobiology, knowledge of their external morphology remains insufficient. For instance, homologies between marine and terrestrial relatives largely remain unexplored. In the present study we provide detailed pictures of the head sensory organs in a new tardigrade, Ramazzottius groenlandensis sp. nov. Specimens were collected from a mixed moss and lichen sample on Ella Island, East Greenland. The new species differs from congeneric species in the presence of polygonal sculpturing on the dorsal cuticle, which is accentuated in the posterior region of t

SUBMITTER: Kihm JH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10680360 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature