Comparative Morphological and Molecular Phylogeny of the Branchiopod Crustacea

虽然鞭足类通常被描述为原始的甲壳类动物，但人们对其组成类群的形态和关系知之甚少。最近分裂成两个目的分支足类分类群Conchostraca是一个由小型双壳淡水甲壳类动物组成的多样化的群落。两个甲壳纲中的第一个目(棘尾目)早些时候已经提到；棘尾目是本提案的重点。这项研究的目标已经扩大到包括整个支足类动物，重点是棘尾目动物。这项研究分为三个阶段：1)对四个刺尾对虾科(环虾科、环虾科、细虾科和环虾科)的每一属进行彻底的形态处理；2)对形态数据进行系统发育分析，并采用枝角类、无尾类和门类的外类群；(3)利用新鲜材料中的18S核糖体RNA序列对所有8个已知的分支足目进行系统发育分析。在之前归入甲壳动物分类单元的五个科中，已完成了对两个科的形态观察和系统评价：山猫科和环甲科。第三个科(单型科)被仔细研究，发现是不变的，并与上个世纪的形态描述一致。这样，五个海螺家庭中的三个完成了。本项目的目的是完成对现存的两个棘尾动物科(Cyzicidae和Leptestheriidae)以及枝角类、无尾类和Notostraca类的外类群的形态观察和数据收集，并为rRNA工作收集新的材料。

Although branchipods are often depicted as primitive crustaceans, little is known about the morphology and relationships of the constituent groups. The branchipod taxon Conchostraca, recently split into two orders, is a diverse assemblage of small, bivalved, freshwater crustaceans. The first of the two conchostracan orders (Laevicaudata) was addressed earlier; the Spinicaudata are the focus of this proposal. The goals of the research have been expanded to encompass the entire Branchiopoda, with emphasis on the spinicaudatan families. The proposed research is a three phase project consisting of 1) a thorough morphological treatment of each genus of the four spinicaudatan clam shrimp families (Cyclestheriidae, Cyzicidae, Leptestheriidae, and Limnadiidae); 2) a phylogenetic analysis of the morphological data and employing outgroups in the Cladocera, Anostraca, and Notostraca; and 3) a phylogenetic analysis employing 18S ribosomal RNA sequences from fresh material of all 8 currently recognized branchipod orders. Of the five families previously combined in the taxon Conchostraca, morphological examinations and systematic reviews have been completed of two: Lynceidae and Limnadiidae. A third family (the monotypic Cyclestheriidae) has been carefully examined and found to be invariant and to agree with morphological descriptions made in the last century. Thus, three of the five conchostracan families are completed. This project is to complete the morphological examination and data collection for the two remaining spinicaudatan families ( Cyzicidae and Leptestheriidae) and for the outgroups in the Cladocera, Anostraca, and Notostraca, and to collect fresh material for the rRNA work.