Abstract
Understudied, but ubiquitous in every biome on Earth, tardigrades have been found in marine, freshwater, and terrestrial habitats, although ecological studies are still rather scarce, especially those that utilize quantitative replicate samples for statistical analysis. In this chapter, we discuss what is currently known about the ecology of tardigrades in the three major habitat categories: marine, freshwater, and terrestrial (including limnoterrestrial). Marine tardigrades have been described from all seas, occurring in intertidal and subtidal areas down to the abyss, while freshwater tardigrades inhabit a diversity of lotic, lentic, and subterranean ecosystems. Terrestrial tardigrade habitats include substrates such as mosses, lichens, and liverworts on rocks, soil, and tree trunks, as well as leaf litter and soil, whereas limnoterrestrial species are found in both freshwater and terrestrial environments. Tardigrades display various morphological adaptations for their associated environments. The high variability within and between samples (patchiness) limits data interpretation and reproducibility of previous studies of population dynamics and zonation. Long-term ecological studies are essential for future research. In addition, our knowledge of the biodiversity and biogeography of tardigrades is rapidly changing with the discovery of cryptic species and integrative taxonomy using combined morphological and molecular information, now considered essential for subsequent work with tardigrades.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Arroyo NL, Aarnio K, Bonsdorff E (2006) Drifting algae as a means of re-colonizing defaunated sediments in the Baltic Sea, a short-term microcosm study. Hydrobiologia 554:83–95
Barnes DKA (2002) Invasions by marine life on plastic debris. Nature 416:808–809
Bartels PJ, Nelson DR (2006) A large-scale, multihabitat inventory of the Phylum Tardigrada in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, USA: a preliminary report. Hydrobiologia 558:111–118
Bartels PJ, Nelson DR (2007) An evaluation of species richness estimators for tardigrades of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee and North Carolina, USA. Zool J Limnol 66(Suppl 1):104–110
Bartels PJ, Fontoura P, Nelson DR (2015) New records of marine tardigrades from Moorea, French Polynesia with the description of Styraconyx turbinarium sp. nov. (Arthrotardigrada, Halechiniscidae). Zootaxa 3955:389–402
Bartels PJ, Apodaca JJ, Mora C, Nelson DR (2016) A global biodiversity estimate of a poorly known taxon: Phylum Tardigrada. Zool J Linnean Soc 178(4):730–736
Baumann H (1961) Der Lebensablauf von Hypsibius (H.) convergens Urbanowicz (Tardigrada). Zool Anz 167:362–381
Benoit TG, Locke J, Marks JR, Beasley CW (2000) Laboratory transmission of Xanthomonas campestris pv. raphani by a tardigrade (Parachela: Macrobiotidae). Fla Entomol 83:197–199
Bertolani R (1982) Tardigradi. Guide per il riconoscimento delle specie animali delle acque interne Italiane. Consiglio Nazionale Delle Ricerche, Verona, Italy, 104 p [In Italian]
Bertolani R (2002) First report of tardigrades within hypogeal caves. Boll Accad Gioenia Sci Nat 35:649–654
Bertolani R, Biserov VI (1996) Leg and claw adaptations in soil tardigrades, with erection of two new genera of Eutardigrada, Macrobiotidae: Pseudohexapodibius and Xerobiotus. Invertebr Biol 115(4):299–304
Bertolani R, Rebecchi L (1996) The tardigrades of Emilia (Italy). II. Monte Rondinaio. A multihabitat study on a high altitude valley of the northern Apennines. Zool J Linnean Soc 116:3–12
Bertolani R, Rebecchi L, Giovannini I, Cesari M (2011) DNA barcoding and integrative taxonomy of Macrobiotus hufelandi C.A.S. Schultze 1834, the first tardigrade species to be described, and some related species. Zootaxa 2997:19–36
Bertolani R, Bartels PJ, Guidetti R, Cesari M, Nelson DR (2014a) Aquatic tardigrades in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee, U.S.A., with the description of a new species of Thulinius (Tardigrada, Isohypsibiidae). Zootaxa 3754(5):524–536
Bertolani R, Guidetti R, Marchioro T, Altiero T, Rebecchi L, Cesari M (2014b) Phylogeny of Eutardigrada: new molecular data and their morphological support lead to the identification of new evolutionary lineages. Mol Phylogenet Evol 76:110–126
Binda MG (1978) Risistemazione di alcuna tardigradi con l’istituzione di un nuovo genere di Oreellidae e della nuova famiglia Archechiniscidae. Animal 5:307–314
Boesgaard TM, Kristensen RM (2001) Tardigrades from Australian marine caves with a redescription of Actinarctus neretinus (Arthrotardigrada). Zool Anz 240:253–264
Bussau C (1992) New deep-sea Tardigrada (Arthrotardigrada, Halechiniscidae) from a manganese nodule area of the eastern South Pacific. Zool Scr 21:79–92
Ciobanu D, Roszkowska M, Moglan I, Kaczmarek Ł (2015) The first record of Pyxidium tardigradum Van der Land, 1964 (Ciliophona) in Romania. Zootaxa 3941:595–599
Colwell RK, Chao A, Gotell NJ, Lin S-Y, Mao CX, Chazdon RL, Longino JT (2012) Models and estimators linking individual-based and sample-based rarefaction, extrapolation, and comparison of assemblages. J Plant Ecol-UK 5:3–21
Commito JA, Tita G (2002) Differential dispersal rates in an intertidal meiofauna assemblage. J Exp Mar Biol Ecol 268:237–256
Coull BC (1990) Are members of the meiofauna food for higher trophic levels? T Am Microsc Soc 109:233–246
Coull BC (1999) Role of meiofauna in estuarine soft-bottom habitats. Aust J Ecol 24:327–343
Crisp DJ, Hobart J (1954) A note on the habitat of the marine tardigrade Echiniscoides sigismundi (Schultze). Ann Mag Nat Hist 7:554–560
Crisp M, Kristensen RM (1983) A new marine interstitial eutardigrade from east Greenland, with comments on habitat and biology. Vidensk Meddr Dansk Naturh Foren 144:99–114
da Rocha CM, Fonsêca-Genevois V, de Castro JV, Bezerra TNC, Venekey V, Bothelo AP (2004) Environmental interactions of Batillipes pennaki (Tardigrada, Heterotardigrada) in a tropical sandy beach (Itamaracá, Pernambuco, Brazil). Meiofauna Mar 13:79–86
Dabert M, Dastych H, Hohberg K, Dabert J (2013) Phylogenetic position of the enigmatic clawless eutardigrade genus Apodibius Dastych, 1983 (Tardigrada), based on 18S and 28S rRNA sequence data from its type species A. confusus. Mol Phylogenet Evol 70:70–75
Danovaro R, Scopa M, Gambi C, Frascheti S (2007) Trophic importance of subtidal metazoan meiofauna: evidence from in situ exclusion experiments on soft and rocky substrates. Mar Biol 152:339–350
Dastych H (1987) Altitudinal distribution of Tardigrada in Poland. In: Bertolani R (ed) Biology of tardigrades. Selected symposia and monographs, U.Z.I., Mucchi, Modena, Italy, pp 169–176
Dastych H (1988) The Tardigrada of Poland. Monografie Fauny Polski 16:1–255
Dastych H (2004a) Hypsibius thaleri sp. nov., a new species of a glacier-dwelling tardigrade from the Himalayas, Nepal (Tardigrada). Mitt Hamb Zool Mus Inst 101:169–183
Dastych H (2004b) Redescription of the glacier tardigrade Hypsibius janetscheki Ramazzotti, 1968 (Tardigrada) from the Nepal Himalayas. Entomol Mitt Zool Mus Hamburg 14:181–194
Dastych H (2011) Bergtrollus dzimbowski gen. n., sp. n., a remarkable new tardigrade genus and species from the nival zone of the Lyngen Alps, Norway (Tardigrada: Milnesiidae). Entomol Mitt Zool Mus Hamburg 15:335–359
Dastych H, Kraus HJ, Thaler K (2003) The description and notes on the biology of the glacier tardigrade Hypsibius klebelsbergi Michlčič, 1959 (Tardigrada) based on material from Ötztal Alps, Austria. Mitt Hamb Zool Mus Inst 100:73–100
de Zio S, Grimaldi P (1966) Ecological aspects of Tardigrada distribution in South Adriatic beaches. Veröff Inst Meeresforsch Bremerhav Sonderb 2:87–94
Degma P, Guidetti R (2007) Notes to the current checklist of Tardigrada. Zootaxa 1579:41–53
Degma P, Šimurka M, Gulánová S (2005) Community structure and ecological macrodistribution of moss-dwelling water bears (Tardigrada) in central European oak-hornbeam forests (sw Slovakia). Ekológia (Bratislava) 24(Suppl 2):59–75
Degma P, Bertolani R, Guidetti R (2009–2015) Actual checklist of Tardigrada species (2009–2015, Ver. 28: 31–03–2015). http://www.tardigrada.modena.unimo.it/miscellanea/Actual%20checklist%20of%20Tardigrada.pdf. Accessed 20 Oct 2015
Degma P, Katina S, Sabatovičová L (2011) Horizontal distribution of moisture and Tardigrada in a single moss cushion. J Zool Syst Evol Res 49(Suppl 1):71–77
Dewel WC, Dewel RA (1987) Study of a moss community containing Milnesium tardigradum parasitized by a chytridiomycetous fungus. In: Bertolani R (ed) Biology of tardigrades. Selected symposia and monographs U.Z.I., 1. Mucchi, Modena, Italy, pp 45–56
Dewel RA, Joines J, Bond J (1985) A new chytridiomycete parasitizing the tardigrade Milnesium tardigradum. Can J Bot 63:1525–1534
Doncaster CC, Hooper DJ (1961) Nematodes attacked by protozoa and tardigrades. Nematologica 6:333–335
Elith J, Phillips SJ, Hastie T, Dud ík M, Chee YE, Yates CJ (2011) A statistical explanation of MaxEnt for ecologists. Divers Distrib 17:43–57
Faurby S, Jonsson KI, Rebecchi L, Funch P (2008) Variation in anhydrobiotic survival of two eutardigrade morphospecies: a story of cryptic species and their dispersal. J Zool 275:139–145
Faurby S, Jørgensen A, Kristensen RM, Funch P (2012) Distribution and speciation in marine intertidal tardigrades: testing the roles of climatic and geographical isolation. J Biogeogr 39:1596–1607
Findlay SEG (1981) Small-scale spatial distribution of meiofauna on a mud and sandflat. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 12:471–484
Flø & Hågvar (2013) Aerial dispersal of invertebrates and mosses close to a receding alpine glacier in southern Norway. Arct Antarct Alp Res 45:481–490
Fontoura P, Bartels PJ, Jorgensen A, Kristensen RM, Hansen JG (2017) A dichotomous key to the genera of marine heterotardigrades. Zootaxa 4292:1–45
Fox I (1966) On the significance of tardigrades in the digestive tract of snails. Proceedings of the first international congress of parasitology, Rome, Italy, 21–26 Sept, 1964, vol 2, p 1064
Fox I, Garcia-Moll I (1962) Echiniscus molluscorum, new tardigrade from the feces of the land snail, Bulimulus exilis (Gmelin) in Puerto Rico (Tardigrada: Scutechiniscidae). J Parasitol 48:177–181
Franceschi T, Loi ML, Pierantoni R (1962–1963) Risultati di una prima indagine ecologica condotta su popolazioni di Tardigradi. Boll Mus Ist Biol Genova 32:69–93
Giere O (2009) Meiobenthology: the microscopic motile fauna of aquatic sediments, 2nd edn. Springer, London
Greven H, Schűttler L (2001) How to crawl and dehydrate on moss. Zool Anz 240:341–344
Greven H, Dastych H, Kraus HJ (2005) Notes on the integument of the glacier-swelling tardigrade Hypsibius klebelsbergi Mihelčič, 1959 (Tardigrada). Mitt Hamb Zool Mus Inst 102:11–20
Grimaldi de Zio S, Gallo D’Addabbo M (2001) Further data on the Mediterranean Sea tardigrade fauna. Zool Anz 240:345–360
Grimaldi de Zio S, De Lucia RM, Gallo MD, Grimaldi P (1983) Marine tardigrades ecology. Oebalia 9:15–31
Grimaldi de Zio S, Morone de Lucia MR, D’Addabbo Gallo M (1984) Relazione tra morfologia ed ecologia nei tardigradi marini (Heterotardigrada-Arthrotardigrada). Cah Biol Mar 25:67–73
Guidetti R, Bertolani R (2005) Tardigrade taxonomy: an updated check list of the taxa and a list of characters for their identification. Zootaxa 845:1–46
Guidetti R, Bertolani R, Nelson DR (1999) Ecological and faunistic studies on tardigrades in leaf litter of beech forests. Zool Anz 238:215–223
Guidetti R, Altiero T, Marchioro T, Amadè LS, Avdonina AM, Bertolani R, Rebecchi L (2012) Form and function of the feeding apparatus in Eutardigrada (Tardigrada). Zoomorphology 131:127–148
Guidetti R, Bertolani R, Rebecchi L (2013) Comparative analysis of the tardigrade feeding apparatus: adaptive convergence and evolutionary pattern of the piercing stylet system. J Limnol 72(s1):24–35. https://doi.org/10.4081/jlimnol.2013.e4
Guil N (2011) Molecular approach to micrometazoans. Are they here, there and everywhere? In: Fontaneto D (ed) Biogeography of microorganisms: Is everything small everywhere? Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 284–306
Guil N, Cabrero-Sañudo F (2007) Analysis of the species description process of a little known invertebrate group: the limnoterrestrial tardigrades (Bilateria, Tardigrada). Biodivers Conserv 16:1063–1086
Guil N, Giribet G (2009) Fine scale population structure in the Echiniscus blumi-canadensis series (Heterotardigrada, Tardigrada) in an Iberian mountain range—When morphology fails to explain genetic structure. Mol Phylogenet Evol 1:606–613
Guil N, Sánchez-Moreno S (2013) Fine-scale patterns in micrometazoans: tardigrade diversity, community composition and trophic dynamics in leaf litter. Syst Biodivers 11:181–193
Guil N, Hortal J, Sánchez-Moreno S, Machordom A (2009a) Effects of macro and micro-environmental factors on the species richness of terrestrial tardigrade assemblages in an Iberian mountain environment. Landsc Ecol 24:375–390
Guil N, Sánchez-Moreno S, Machordom A (2009b) Local biodiversity patterns in micrometazoans: Are tardigrades everywhere? Syst Biodivers 7:259–268
Guil N, Machordom A, Guidetti R (2013) High level of phenotypic homoplasy amongst eutardigrades (Tardigrada) based on morphological and total evidence phylogenetic analyses. Zool J Linnean Soc 169:1–26
Guil N, Rodrigo E, Machordom A (2015) Soil tardigrade biodiversity with the description of a new eutardigrade genus and it phylogenetic position. Syst Biodivers 13:234–256. https://doi.org/10.1080/14772000.2014.986554
Hallas T (1977) Survey of the Tardigrada of Finland. Ann Zool Finnici 14:173–183
Hallas T, Yeates G (1972) Tardigrada of the soil and litter of a Danish beech forest. Pedobiologia 12:287–304
Hansen JG, Jørgensen A, Kristensen RM (2001) Preliminary studies of the tardigrade fauna of the Faroe Bank. Zool Anz 240:385–393
Hansen JG, Kristensen RM, Arbizu PM (2003) Deep-sea tardigrades from the Angola Basin. Abstract in: First international DIVA workshop, Wihlemshaven, June 5–6, 2003, p 23
Harada H, Ito M (2006) Soil-inhabiting tardigrade communities in forests of central Japan. Hydrobiologia 558:119–127
Hawes TC, Worland MR, Convey P, Bale JS (2007) Aerial dispersal of springtails on the Antarctic Peninsula: implications for local distribution and demography. Antarct Sci 19:3–10
Hohberg K (2006) Tardigrade species composition in young soils and some aspects on life history of Macrobiotus richtersi J. Murray, 1911. Pedobiologia 50:267–274
Hohberg K, Traunspurger W (2005) Predator-prey interaction in soil food web: functional response, size-dependent foraging efficiency, and the influence of soil texture. Biol Fertil Soils 41:419–427
Hohberg K, Russell DJ, Elmer M (2011) Mass occurrence of algal-feeding tardigrade Apodibius confusus, in the young soils of a post-mining site. J Zool Syst Evol Res 49(Suppl 1):62–65
Ito M (1999) Ecological distribution, abundance and habitat preference of terrestrial tardigrades in various forests on the northern slope of Mt. Fuji, Central Japan. Zool Anz 238:225–234
Ito M, Abe W (2001) Micro-distribution of soil inhabiting tardigrades (Tardigrada) in a sub-alpine coniferous forest of Japan. Zool Anz 240:403–407
Jennings PG (1976a) The Tardigrada of Signy Island, South Orkney Islands, with a note on the Rotifera. Br Antarct Surv Bull 44:1–25
Jennings PG (1976b) Tardigrada from the Antarctic Peninsula and Scotia Ridge Region. Br Antarct Surv Bull 44:75–95
Jönsson KI (2003) Population density and species composition of moss-living tardigrades in a boreo-nemoral forest. Ecography 26:356–364
Jönsson KI (2007) Long-term experimental manipulation of moisture conditions and its impact on moss-living tardigrades. J Limnol 66(Suppl 1):119–125
Jørgensen A, Kristensen RM (2001) A new tanarctid arthrotardigrade with buoyant bodies. Zool Anz 240:425–439
Jørgensen A, Møbjerg N (2014) Notes on the cryptobiotic capability of the marine arthrotardigrades Styraconyx haploceros (Halechiniscidae) and Batillipes pennaki (Batillipedidae) from the tidal zone in Roscoff, France. Mar Biol Res 11(2):214–217. https://doi.org/10.1080/17451000.2014.904883
Jørgensen A, Møbjerg N, Kristensen RM (2007) A molecular study of the tardigrade Echiniscus testudo (Echiniscidae) reveals low DNA sequence diversity over a large geographical area. J Limnol 66(Suppl 1):77–83
Jørgensen A, Boesgaard TM, Møbjerg N, Kristensen RM (2014) The tardigrade fauna of Australian marine caves with descriptions of nine new species of Arthrotardigrada. Zootaxa 3802(4):401–443
Kaczmarek Ł, Michalczyk Ł, Eggermont H (2008) Dactylobiotus luci, a new freshwater tardigrade (Eutardigrada: Macrobiotidae) from the Rwenzori Mountains, Uganda. Afr Zool 43:150–155
Kaczmarek Ł, Gołdyn B, Wełnicz W, Michalczyk Ł (2011) Ecological factors determining Tardigrada distribution in Costa Rica. J Zool Syst Evol Res 49(Suppl 1):78–83
Kaczmarek Ł, Michalczyk Ł, McInnes SJ (2014) Annotated zoogeography of non-marine Tardigrada. Part I: Central America. Zootaxa 3763(1):1–62
Kaczmarek Ł, Michalczyk Ł, McInnes SJ (2015a) Annotated zoogeography of non-marine Tardigrada. Part II: South America. Zootaxa 3923(1):1–107
Kaczmarek Ł, Bartels PJ, Roszkowska M, Nelson DR (2015b) The zoogeography of marine Tardigrada. Zootaxa 4037(1):1–189
Kaczmarek Ł, Jakubowska N, Celewicz-Gołdyn S, Zawierucha K (2015c) The microorganisms of cryoconite holes (algae, Archaea, bacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, and Protista: a review. Polar Record. Cambridge University Press, 28 p. doi:https://doi.org/10.1017/S0032247415000637
Kathman RD, Cross SF (1991) Ecological distribution of moss-dwelling tardigrades on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Can J Zool 69:122–129
Kathman RD, Nelson DR (1987) Population trends in the aquatic tardigrade Pseudobiotus augusti (Murray). In: Bertolani R (ed) Biology of tardigrades. Selected symposia and monographs U.Z.I., 1. Mucchi, Modena, Italy, pp 155–168
Kinchin IM (1994) The biology of tardigrades. Portland Press, London, 186 p
Krantz S, Benoit TG, Beasley CW (1999) Phytopathogenic bacteria associated with Tardigrada. Zool Anz 138:259–260
Kristensen RM (1977) On the marine genus Styraconyx (Tardigrada, Heterotardigrada, Halechiniscidae) with description of a new species from a warm spring on Disko Island, West Greenland. Astarte 10:87–91
Kristensen RM (1982) New aberrant eutardigrades from homothermic springs on Disko Island, West Greenland. In: Nelson DR (ed) Proceedings of the third international symposium on the Tardigrada. East Tennessee State University Press, Johnson City, TN, pp 203–220
Kristensen RM (1984) On the biology of Wingstrandarctus corallinus nov. gen. et spec., with notes on symbiontic [sic] bacteria in the subfamily Florarctinae (Arthrotardigrada). Vidensk Meddr Dansk Naturh Foren 145:201–218
Kristensen RM, Hallas TE (1980) The tidal genus Echiniscoides and its variability, with erection of Echiniscoididae fam. n. Zool Scripta 9:113–127
Kristensen RN, Hansen J (2005) Tardigrada (Water Bears). In: Rhode K (ed) Marine parasitology, Ch 5, Minor groups and fossils. CSIRO Publishing, Australia, pp 230–235
Kristensen RM, Higgins RP (1984) Revision of Styraconyx (Tardigrada: Halechiniscidae) with description of two new species for Disko Bay, West Greenland. Smithsonian Contrib Zool 391:1–40
Kristensen RM, Renaud-Mornant J (1983) Existence d’arthrotardigrades semi-benthiques de genres nouveaux de la sous-famille des Styraconyxinae subfam. nov Cah. Biol Mar 24:337–353
Kristensen RM, Sørensen MV (2004) Phylum: Tardigrada (Water Bears). In: Grzimek’s animal life encyclopedia, vol 2: protostomes. Thompson Gale, Detroit, pp 115–123
Lindgren EW (1971) Psammolittoral marine tardigrades from North Carolina and their conformity to worldwide zonation patterns. Cah Biol Mar 12:481–496
Marshall WA, Convey P (1997) Dispersal of moss propagules on Signy Island, maritime Antarctic. Polar Biol 18:373–383
Martinez EA (1975) Marine meiofauna of a New York City beach with particular reference to Tardigrada. Estuar Coast Mar Sci 3:337–348
McInnes S (1995) Tardigrades from Signy Island, South Orkney Islands, with particular reference to freshwater species. J Nat Hist 29:1419–1445
McInnes S (2003) A predatory fungus (Hyphomycetes: Lecophagus) attacking Rotifera and Tardigrada in maritime Antarctic lakes. Polar Biol 26:79–82
McInnes S, Convey P (2005) Tardigrade fauna of the South Sandwich Islands, maritime Antarctic. Zootaxa 1058:43–49
McInnes S, Pugh P (1998) Biogeography of limnoterrestrial Tardigrada, with particular reference to the Antarctic fauna. J Biogeogr 25:31–36
McInnes S, Pugh P (1999) Zonation in Antarctic lake-dwelling benthic meiofauna, with emphasis on the Tardigrada. Zool Anz 238:283–288
McInnes S, Pugh P (2007) An attempt to revisit the global biogeography of limnoterrestrial Tardigrada. J Limnol 66(Suppl 1):90–96
Meyer H (2006) Small-scale spatial distribution variability in terrestrial tardigrade populations. Hydrobiologia 558:133–139
Meyer H (2013) Terrestrial and freshwater Tardigrada of the Americas. Zootaxa 3747(1):1–71
Michalczyk Ł, Welnicz W, Frohme M, Kaczmarek Ł (2012a) Redescriptions of three Milnesium Doyère, 1840 taxa (Tardigrada: Eutardigrada: Milnesiidae), including the nominal species for the genus. Zootaxa 3154:1–20
Michalczyk Ł, Wełnicz W, Frohme M, Kaczmarek Ł (2012b) Corrigenda of Zootaxa, 3154: 1–20 Redescriptions of three Milnesium Doyère, 1840 taxa (Tardigrada: Eutardigrada: Milnesiidae), including the nominal species for the genus. Zootaxa 3393:66–68
Møbjerg N, Dahl C (1996) Studies on the morphology and ultrastructure of the Malpighian tubules of Halobiotus crispae Kristensen, 1982 (Eutardigrada). Zool J Linnean Soc 116:85–99
Møbjerg N, Halberg KA, Jørgensen A, Persson D, Bjørn M, Ramløv H, Kristensen RM (2011) Survival in extreme environments – on the current knowledge of adaptations in tardigrades. Acta Physiol 202:409–420. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-1716.2011.02252.x
Morgan C (1977) Population dynamics of two species of Tardigrada, Macrobiotus hufelandi (Schultze) and Echiniscus (Echiniscus) testudo (Doyère), in roof moss from Swansea. J Anim Ecol 46:263–279
Nelson DR (1975) Ecological distribution of Tardigrada on Roan Mountain, Tennessee–North Carolina. Mem Ist Ital Idrobiol 32(Suppl):225–276
Nelson DR (1982) Developmental biology of the Tardigrada. In: Harrison RW, Cowden R (eds) Developmental biology of freshwater invertebrates. Alan R. Liss, Inc, New York, NY, pp 363–398
Nelson DR, Adkins RG (2001) Distribution of tardigrades within a moss cushion: Do tardigrades migrate in response to changing moisture conditions? Zool Anz 240:493–500
Nelson DR, Bartels PJ (2013) Species richness of soil and leaf litter tardigrades in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (North Carolina/Tennessee, USA). J Limnol 72(s1):144–151
Nelson DR, McGlothlin KM (1996) A new species of Calohypsibius (Phylum Tardigrada, Eutardigrada) from Roan Mountain, Tennessee–North Carolina, U.S.A. Zool J Linnean Soc 116:167–174
Nelson DR, McInnes SJ (2002) Tardigrada. In: Rundle SD, Robertson AL, Schmid-Araya JM (eds) Freshwater meiofauna: biology and ecology. Backhuys Publishers, Leiden, The Netherlands, pp 177–215
Nelson DR, Kincer CJ, Williams TC (1987) Effects of habitat disturbances on aquatic tardigrade populations. In: Bertolani R (ed) Biology of tardigrades. Selected symposia and monographs U.Z.I., 1. Mucchi, Modena, Italy, pp 141–153
Nelson DR, Guidetti R, Rebecchi L (2010) Chapter 14: Tardigrada. In: Thorp JH, Covich AP (eds) Ecology and classification of North American freshwater invertebrates. Elsevier, London, pp 455–484
Nelson DR, Guidetti R, Rebecchi L (2015) Chapter 17: Phylum Tardigrada. In: Thorp JH, Rogers DC (eds) Thorp & Covich’s freshwater invertebrates, Vol 1: Ecology and general biology. Elsevier, London, pp 347–380
Nelson DR, Guidetti R, Rebecchi L (2016) Chapter 15: Tardigrada. Keys to nearctica fauna. In: Thorp JH, Rogers DC (eds) Thorp and Covich’s freshwater invertebrates, vol II. Elsevier, London
Pearce DA, Bridge PD, Hughes KA, Sattler B, Psenner R, Russel NJ (2009) Microorganisms in the atmosphere over Antarctica. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 69:143–157
Peluffo JR, Rocha AM, Peluffo MCM (2007) Species diversity and morphometrics of tardigrades in a medium-sized city in the Neotropical Region: Santa Rosa (La Pampa, Argentina). Anim Biodivers Conserv 30:43–51
Petersen B (1951) The tardigrade fauna of Greenland. A faunistic study with some few ecological remarks. Meddr Grønland, København 150(5):1–94
Phillips SJ, Dudík M (2008) Modeling of species distributions with MaxEnt: new extensions and a comprehensive evaluation. Ecography 31:161–175
Pilato G, Binda MG (2001) Biogeography and limno-terrestrial tardigrades: are they truly incompatible binomials? Zool Anz 240:511–516
Pilato G, Binda MC (2010) Definition of families, subfamilies, genera and subgenera of the Eutardigrada, and keys to their identification. Zootaxa 2404:1–54
Pilato G, Guidetti R, Rebecchi L, Lisi O, Hansen J, Bertolani R (2006) Geonemy, ecology, reproductive biology and morphology of the tardigrade Hypsibius zetlandicus (Eutardigrada: Hypsibiidae) with erection of Borealibius gen. n. Polar Biol 29:595–603
Platt HM (1981) Chapter 16: Meiofaunal dynamics and the origin of the metazoa. In: Foreu PL (ed) The evolving biosphere. British Museum (Natural History) and Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 207–216
Pollock LW (1970) Distribution and dynamics of interstitial Tardigrada at Woods Hole, Massachusetts, U SA. Ophelia 7:145–165
Pollock LW (1995) New marine tardigrades from Hawaiian beach sand and phylogeny of the family Halechiniscidae. Invertebr Biol 114:220–235
Ramazzotti G, Maucci W (1983) Il Phylum Tardigrada. III edizione riveduta e aggiornata. Mem Ist Ital Idrobiol 4l:1–1012 [An English translation, edited by Dr. Clark Beasley (deceased), may be obtained from Dr. Diane R. Nelson, East Tennessee State University, TN, USA]
Rebecchi L, Boschini D, Cesari M, Lencioni V, Bertolani R, Guidetti R (2009) Stress response of a boreo-alpine species of tardigrade, Borealibius zetlandicus (Eutardigrada, Hypsibiidae). J Limnol 68(1):64–70
Renaud-Mornant J (1974) Un nouvelle famille de Tardigrades marins abyssaux: les Cornarctidae fam. nov. (Heterotardigrada). C R Acad Sci Paris 278:3087–3090
Renaud-Mornant J (1988) Chapter 33: Tardigrada. In: Higgins RP, Thiel H (eds) Introduction to the study of meiofauna. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC, pp 357–364
Richters R (1904) Arktische Tardigraden. In: Romer F, Schaudinn F (eds) Arktische Tardigraden. Fauna Arctica 3(3):495–508
Rost-Roszkowska MM, Poprawa I, Kaczmarek Ł (2013) Autophagy as the cell survival in response to a microsporidian infection of the midgut epithelium of Isohypsibius granulifer granulifer (Eutardigrada: Hypsibiidae). Acta Zool-Stockholm 94(3):273–279
Roszkowska M, Ostrawska M, Kaczmarek Ł (2015) The genus Milnesium Doyère 1840 (Tardigrada) in South America with the descriptions of two new species from Argentina and discussion of the feeding behaviour in the family Milnesiidae. Zool Stud 54:12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40555-014-0082-7
Rubal M, Veiga P, Fontoura P, Santos E, Sousa-Pinto I (2016) Biodiversity of marine tardigrades from the northern coast of Portugal (Iberian Peninsula). Zool J Linnean Soc 178(4):747–754
Saikawa M, Oyama M (1992) Electron microscopy on infection of tardigrades by Ballocephala sphaerospora and B. verrucospora conidia. T Mycol Soc Japan 33:305–311
Saikawa M, Oyama M, Yamaguchi Y (1991) Harposporium anguillulae and Haptoglossa intermedia parasitizing tardigrades. T Mycol Soc Japan 32:501–508
Sanchez-Moreno S, Ferris H, Guil N (2008) Role of tardigrades in the suppressive service of a soil food web. Agric Ecosyst Environ 124:187–192
Schill RO, Jönsson KI, Pfannkuchen M, Brümmer F (2011) Food of tardigrades: a case study to understand food choice, intake and digestion. J Zool Syst Evol Res 49(Suppl 1):66–70
Schmid-Araya JM, Schmid PE (2000) Trophic relationships: integrating meiofauna into a realistic benthic food web. Freshw Biol 44:149–163
Schmid-Araya JM, Hildrew AG, Robertson A, Schmid PE, Winterbottom J (2002) The importance of meiofauna in food webs: evidence from an acid stream. Ecology 83(5):1271–1285
Schuster R, Greven H (2007) A long-term study of population dynamics of tardigrades in the moss Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus (Hedw.) Warnst. J Limnol 66(Suppl 1):141–151
Schuster R, Greven H (2013) Reproductive traits of Macrobiotus hufelandi during a long-term field study with notes on Paramacrobiotus richtersi and Diphascon pingue (Eutardigrada). J Limnol 72:166–174
Schuster RO, Toftner EC, Grigarick AA (1978) Tardigrada of Pope Beach, Lake Tahoe, California. Wasmann J Biol 35:115–136
Shanks AL, Edmonson EW (1990) The vertical flux of metazoans (holoplankton, meiofauna, and larval invertebrates) due to their association with marine snow. Limnol Oceanogr 35:455–463
Shanks AL, Walters K (1997) Holoplankton, meroplankton, and meiofauna associated with marine snow. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 156:75–86
Sobczyk M, Michno K, Kosztyła P, Stec D, Michalczyk Ł (2015) Tolerance to ammonia of Thulinius ruffoi (Bertolani 1981), a tardigrade isolated from a sewage treatment plant. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 95:721–727. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-015-1593-6
Statzner B, Higler B (1986) Stream hydraulics as a major determinant of benthic invertebrate zonation patterns. Freshw Biol 16:127–139
Steiner WA (1994) The influence of air pollution on moss-dwelling animals. 4. Seasonal and long-term fluctuations on rotifer, nematode and tardigrade populations. Rev Suisse Zool 101(4):1017–1031
Strayer D, Findlay S (2010) Ecology of freshwater shore zones. Aquat Sci 72:127–163
Strayer D, Nelson DR, O’Donnell EB (1994) Tardigrades from shallow groundwaters in southeastern New York, with the first record of Thulinia from North America. T Am Microsc Soc 113:325–332
Tenlen JR, McCaskill S, Goldstein B (2013) RNA interference can be used to disrupt gene function in tardigrades. Dev Genes Evol 223:171–181
Thulin G (1942) Ein neur mariner Tardigrad. Medd Göteborgs Mus Zool Afd 99:1–10
Tsujimoto M, McInnes S, Convey P, Imura S (2014) Preliminary description of tardigrade species diversity and distribution pattern around coastal Syowa Station and inland Sør Rondane Mountains, Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica. Polar Biol 37:1361–1367
Utsugi K (2001) Tardigrades living in the sewage treatment plants. Zool Sci 18(Suppl):46 (abstract only)
van der Land J (1975) The parasitic marine tardigrade Tetrakentron synaptae. Mem Ist Ital Idrobiola 32(Suppl):413–423
Van Rompu EA, De Smet WH (1991) Contribution to the fresh water Tardigrada from Barentsøya, Svalbard (78 degrees 30 minutes North). Fauna Norvegica, Series A 12:29–39
Vecchi M, Vicente F, Guidetti R, Bertolani R, Rebecchi L, Cesari M (2016) Interspecific relationships of tardigrades with bacteria, fungi and protozoans, with a focus on the phylogenetic position of (Ciliophora). Zool J Linnean Soc 178(4):846–855
Verçosa MM, Dos Santos ECL, De Souza JRB, da Rocha CMC (2009) Distribuição de Stygarctus bradypus Schulz, 1951 (Tardigrada, Heterotardigrada) na margem sul da Ilha de Itamaracá (PE, Brasil). Atlantica (Rio Grande) 31(1):25–33
Vicente F, Bertolani R (2013) Considerations on the taxonomy of the Phylum Tardigrada. Zootaxa 3626:245–248
Vicente F, Michalczyk Ł, Kaczmarek Ł, Boavida MJ (2008) Observations on Pyxidium tardigradum (Ciliophora), a protozoan living on Eutardigrada: infestation, morphology and feeding behavior. Parasitol Res 103:1323–1331
Vicente F, Cesari M, Serrano A, Bertolani R (2013) The impact of fire on terrestrial tardigrade biodiversity: a first case-study from Portugal. J Limnol 72(s1):152–159
Villora-Morena S (1996) A new genus and species of the deep-sea family Coronarctidae (Tardigrada) from a submarine cave with a deep-sea like condition. Sarsia 81:275–283
Węglarska B (1970) Hypsibius (Isohypsibius) smreczynskii spec. nov., a new species of freshwater tardigrade. Zeszyty Nauk Uniw Jagiellonsk. Prace Zool 16:107–114
Wright J (1991) The significance of four xeric parameters in the ecology of terrestrial Tardigrada. J Zool 224:59–77
Zawierucha K, Grzelak K, Kotwicki L, Michalczyk Ł, Kaczmarek Ł (2013) Batillipes pennaki Marcus, 1946, a new addition to the Thai tardigrade fauna, with an overview of literature on the species. Pakistan J Zool 45(3):801–808
Zawierucha K, Kolicka M, Takeuchi N, Kaczmarek Ł (2015) What animals can live on cryoconite holes? A faunal review. J Zool 295:119–169
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Nelson, D.R., Bartels, P.J., Guil, N. (2018). Tardigrade Ecology. In: Schill, R. (eds) Water Bears: The Biology of Tardigrades. Zoological Monographs, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95702-9_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-95702-9_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-95701-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-95702-9
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)