Comparative Morphological and Molecular Phylogeny of the Branchiopod Crustacea

虽然鳃足类动物通常被描述为原始甲壳类动物， 关于这些组织的形态和相互关系知之甚少。 组成团体。 最近， 分为两个目，是一个多样化的小，双瓣， 淡水甲壳类动物 两个叶肢介目中的第一个 （Laevicaudata）是解决较早; spinicaudata是 本提案的重点。 研究的目标是 扩大到包括整个鳃足类，重点是 棘尾纲 研究分为三个阶段 项目包括1）一个彻底的形态治疗的每一个 四个棘尾蛤虾科的一个属 （环兽科、Cyzicidae、Leptestheriidae和Limnadiidae）; 2） 形态学数据的系统发育分析， 枝角类、无甲类和背甲类中的外类群;以及3）a 系统发育分析采用18S核糖体RNA序列从 所有8个目前公认的鳃足目的新鲜材料。 在以前结合在叶甲纲分类单元中的五个科中， 形态学检查和系统评价已经被 有两种：水鲨科和水鲨科。 第三个家庭（The 单型环兽科）已仔细检查，发现 是不变的，并同意形态描述作出 在上个世纪。 因此，五种叶肢介中的三种 家庭已经完成。 本项目旨在完成 形态学检查和数据收集的两个其余的 棘尾类（Cyzicidae和Leptestheriidae）， 枝角类、无甲类和背甲类的外类群， 收集新鲜材料进行rRNA研究。

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.