Tanycypris alfonsi Nagler, Geist and Matzke-Karasz, 2014

(Figures 8C–F, 9C)

Strandesia camaguinensis Tressler, 1937 – Okubo 1972. Synonymy herein. Tanycypris pellucida (Klie, 1932) – Okubo and Ida 1989; Okubo 2000, 2004.

Synonymy herein.

Remarks

Tanycypris alfonsi was described using specimens collected from the Munich Botanical Gardens, Germany (Nagler et al. 2014). The German specimens were collected from containers with hydrophytes in glasshouses of the botanical gardens, together with T. centa, another Korean species, and they are considered to be an artificial introduction, unwittingly transported with plants to the botanical gardens. The Korean specimens were collected from two ponds and are most probably a natural occurrence.

Tanycypris pellucida (Klie 1932) has been reported from Japan (Okubo 1972, as Strandesia camaguinensis; 2000, 2004; Okubo and Ida 1989), but Chang et al. (2012) noted that the Japanese specimens are different from Klie’ s original description, and more similar to Tanycypris siamensis Savatenalinton and Martens, 2009a. For this study, the specimen figured by Okubo (2004) (labelled ‘Tany 30’) was investigated. The specimen lacks the groove along the posterior and anterior margins of the left valve, and so is not T. siamensis, which does have a groove running along these margins (Savatenalinton and Martens 2009a). Okubo’ s (2004) specimen is, however, very similar to Tanycypris alfonsi, which also lacks the groove along the anterior and posterior margins. The specimen’ s accompanying appendages are incomplete (missing the antennae and caudal rami) and embedded in an unknown matrix (together with the valves) that makes detailed observation difficult. However, it is probable that the Japanese Tanycypris species is conspecific with the Korean and Germany species. During our surveys, Tanycypris alfonsi was found in two irrigation ponds (localities 5 and 7).