Zoelucasa

Zoelucasa
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Clade: Sar
Clade: Rhizaria
Phylum: Cercozoa
Subphylum: Filosa
Class: Imbricatea
Superorder: Euglyphia
Order: Zoelucasida
Cavalier-Smith in Scoble & Cavalier-Smith 2014
Family: Zoelucasidae
Cavalier-Smith in Scoble & Cavalier-Smith 2014
Genus: Zoelucasa
Nicholls 2012
Species:
Z. sablensis
Binomial name
Zoelucasa sablensis
Nicholls 2012

Zoelucasa is a genus of imbricate cercozoans. It is the only genus in the family Zoelucasidae and order Zoelucasida and belongs to the superorder Euglyphia. It contains the sole species Z. sablensis.

Characteristics

The posterior cilia are curved backward; the cells have non-sliding double cilia. Parallel centrioles are present. A large nucleus and a rigid lorica composed of large imbricate, overlapping, likely silicified oval scales that are probably double-layered, with meshwork connecting the smooth unperforated layers. The cells are housed within this lorica, which consists of a single morphological form of silicified scales. There are no chloroplasts. There is a long, single posterior flagellum and a short, single anterior flagellum extending laterally. The cells have a diameter of approximately 10 micrometers. They are found within a radially symmetrical, pyriform lorica that is 1.5–2 times the cell diameter in length (smaller in dried specimens). This lorica consists of 10–15 large, overlapping, circular to slightly elliptical scales, each with a diameter of 3–6 micrometers. The scales lack ornamentation, and their distal surfaces are convex. The long, posterior, trailing flagellum is approximately 1–1.5 times the length of the lorica. The shorter anterior flagellum is generally shorter than the cell diameter. Both flagella emerge from an anterior flagellar pocket in a parallel arrangement.[1][2]

Taxonomy

Zoelucasa was first described in 2012 by Nicholls with the only species Z. sablensis. The genus was assigned phylum Cercozoa incertae sedis, and noted to most likely belong to class Imbricatea.[2] Later, Cavalier-Smith described the monotypic order Zoelucasida and monotypic family Zoelucasidae in Scoble and Cavalier-Smith, 2014. It was assigned to the imbricate superorder Placofila, along with Thaumatomonadida.[1] In 2018, the imbricate superorder Euglyphia was described by Cavalier-Smith in Cavalier-Smith et al., 2018 and Zoelucasida was assigned to there along with the order Euglyphida.[3] In 2020, a new order Trivalvulariida was described by Siemensma and Dumack and also assigned to Euglyphia.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 Scoble, Josephine M.; Cavalier-Smith, Thomas (2014-06-01). "Scale evolution, sequence phylogeny, and taxonomy of thaumatomonad Cercozoa: 11 new species and new genera Scutellomonas, Cowlomonas, Thaumatospina and Ovaloplaca". European Journal of Protistology. 50 (3): 270–313. doi:10.1016/j.ejop.2013.12.005. ISSN 0932-4739.
  2. 1 2 Nicholls, Kenneth H. (2012-09-28). "Zoelucasa sablensis n. gen. et n. sp. (Cercozoa, Incertae Sedis), a New Scale-covered Flagellate from Marine Sandy Shores". Acta Protozoologica. 51 (2): 113–117. doi:10.4467/16890027AP.12.009.0513 – via ejournals.
  3. ↑ Cavalier-Smith, Thomas; Chao, Ema E.; Lewis, Rhodri (2018-09-01). "Multigene phylogeny and cell evolution of chromist infrakingdom Rhizaria: contrasting cell organisation of sister phyla Cercozoa and Retaria". Protoplasma. 255 (5): 1517–1574. doi:10.1007/s00709-018-1241-1. ISSN 1615-6102. PMC 6133090. PMID 29666938.
  4. ↑ Siemensma, Ferry; Dumack, Kenneth (2020-02-01). "SSU rDNA Phylogeny Indicates the Scale-lacking Trivalvulariida ord. nov. as a Sister Group to the Euglyphida (Cercozoa, Rhizaria)". Protist. 171 (1) 125701. doi:10.1016/j.protis.2019.125701. ISSN 1434-4610.