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Ascidian distribution provides new insights to help define the biogeographic provinces in the South American Region

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Abstract

The validity and size of the biogeographic Magellan Province of marine organisms have been the focus of discussion of many authors. The distribution of fish and other organisms has revealed a lack of homogeneity in the area, which has also been interpreted as comprising four different Provinces: Southern Chile (SCH), Tierra del Fuego (TDF), Southern Argentina (SAR), and the Malvinas/Falkland Islands (MAI). For the first time, we assess the ascidian fauna of this region to determine if the distribution of benthic sessile filter feeders corresponds to these biogeographic provinces. Ascidian species richness and percentages of endemism for these four areas were estimated using data from the literature and new sampling. Biogeographic affinities among SCH, TDF, SAR, and MAI were also calculated. The species Pyura pilosa, Molgula malvinensis, and Molgula manhattensis, the latter frequently considered as invasive, were found for the first time on the TDF shelf. The highest ascidian species richness was found in TDF (70 species), while the percentages of endemism greater than 10% (the minimum to qualify an area as a province) were found in TDF (15.7%) and SCH (11.1%). SAR and MAI showed the lowest percentages of endemism and the strongest affinity. Based on percentages of endemism, faunal affinities, and differences among the four provinces, we propose a separation of the South American Region into three Provinces: SCH, TDF, and SAR/MAI. Continued sampling of ascidians is considered to be particularly important, given the potential spread of invasive species throughout this region.

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Adapted from Briggs and Bowen (2012)

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Acknowledgements

We thank Antonela Taverna, Gaston Alurralde, and three anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments. We are grateful to the crew of the RV “Puerto Deseado”. This study was supported by the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) and Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (UNC). The work was partially funded by CONICET (PIP No. 20130100508), SECyT-UNC (30720150100406CB), ANPCyT-DNA (PICTO 2010-0119), EU Project IMCONet (FP7 IRSES, Action No. 319718) and IDEAWILD.

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  1. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Instituto de Diversidad y Ecología Animal (IDEA), Av. Vélez Sarsfield 299, 5000, Córdoba, Argentina

    A. Taverna, C. Lagger, T. Maggioni, P. Reyna & M. Tatián

  2. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas (CADIC), Bernardo Houssay 200, Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina

    G. Lovrich

  3. Ecología Marina, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina

    M. Tatián

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  1. A. Taverna
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Taverna, A., Lagger, C., Maggioni, T. et al. Ascidian distribution provides new insights to help define the biogeographic provinces in the South American Region. Polar Biol 41, 1123–1131 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-018-2272-y

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