Abstract
AbstractUntil present, the Vampire squidVampyroteuthis infernalisChun, 1903 (Cephalopoda: Vampyromorpha) was the only accepted Recent species in the family Vampyroteuthidae Chun, 1903. However, morphological differences between specimens from the Gulf of Guinea, Africa, and California suggested the possibility that additional taxa existed. We report on a second species ofVampyroteuthisfrom the South China Sea, China which differs fromV. infernalisin tail shape, lower beak morphology, and molecular characteristics, with phylogenetic trees based on large subunit ribosomal DNA and mitochondrial CO1 sequences supporting recognition of two species:V. infernalis, reserved for species lacking a tail, photophores near the fins, and a lower beak with a broad, short wing; andVampyroteuthis southchinaseaissp. nov., which we apply to those species with a coracoid-shaped tail, a pair of photophores located between the fins and tail, and a lower beak with a broad, prolonged wing.
Publisher
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
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