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Taxonomy of Ascidians (Urochordata: Ascidiacea) in Japan: Past, Present, and Future

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Species Diversity of Animals in Japan

Part of the book series: Diversity and Commonality in Animals ((DCA))

Abstract

A historical retrospect of the ascidian taxonomy in Japan is briefly given, with a taxonomic revision of Hartmeyer’s (Zool Anz 31:1–30, 1906) monograph based on my reexamination of name-bearing type and other specimens long kept in European museums. The revision includes a new proposal of Styela elsa Hartmeyer, 1906 as a junior synonym of Styela fertilis Hartmeyer, 1906, correcting Nishikawa’s (Publ Seto Mar Biol Lab 35:99–103, 1991) nomenclatural act on S. elsa as a junior synonym of S. clara Hartmeyer, 1906, because of the rediscovery in 1998 of a syntype of S. elsa. Recent advances in our understanding of ascidian diversity in Japanese waters are exemplified by the studies on Halocynthia roretzi and Halocynthia hilgendorfi species complexes and the photosymbiotic species of the family Didemnidae. Also mentioned in this chapter are the seven alien ascidians so far known from Japanese coasts, as Molgula manhattensis since 1972, Polyandrocarpa zorritensis since 1991, Phallusia philippinensis in the sense of Vandepas and others since 1999 or earlier, Microcosmus squamiger since 2007, Ascidiella aspersa since 2008, the Atlantic form of Clavelina lepadiformis complex since 2011, and Microcosmus exasperatus since 2014.Abstract citations have been replaced with complete reference details. Please check and confirm.I have checked the citations. Thank you.

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Acknowledgments

Sincere thanks are offered to Prof. Euichi Hirose of the University of the Ryukyus for critical reading of the manuscript with many useful comments, to the curators of Naturhistorisches Museum Wien, Universitetes Zoologiske Museum København, Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin, Zoologisches Museum, Universität Hamburg, and Zoologische Staatssammlung München for their kind and generous help in examining specimens, and to Mr. Junya Nagayama of Toho University for kind permission to cite unpublished data. Financially supported by the Grants-in-Aid from the Japanese Government (nos. 57740416, 58740371, 59740386, 01304007, 03640628, 09041155, 12575008), Research Institute of Marine Invertebrates in 1991, and Nagoya University Foundation in 2000, and that for Scientific Research A of Toho University in 2013 and 2014.

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  1. Faculty of Science, Toho University, Miyama 2-2-1, Funabashi, Chiba, 274-8510, Japan

    Teruaki Nishikawa

  2. Department of Zoology, National Museum of Nature and Science, Amakubo 4-1-1, Tsukuba, 305-0005, Ibaraki, Japan

    Teruaki Nishikawa

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Correspondence to Teruaki Nishikawa .

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  1. The Kyoto University Museum, Kyoto University, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan

    Masaharu Motokawa

  2. Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan

    Hiroshi Kajihara

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Nishikawa, T. (2017). Taxonomy of Ascidians (Urochordata: Ascidiacea) in Japan: Past, Present, and Future. In: Motokawa, M., Kajihara, H. (eds) Species Diversity of Animals in Japan. Diversity and Commonality in Animals. Springer, Tokyo. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-56432-4_26

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