Annotated checklist of the leech species diversity in the Maloe More Strait of Lake Baikal, Russia

By

Kaygorodova, Irina A.

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2015

Original Publication

ZooKeys

Volume

545

Pages

37-52

Subjects

Checklist , endemic , Hirudinea , Lake Baikal , Maloe More Strait

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.545.6053

 

Abstract

In this paper, the very first checklist of the freshwater leeches of Maloe More Strait, a special part of Lake Baikal, is presented. It includes 14 free-living and parasitic species, of which four species belong to endemic Baikal genera – two species from Baicalobdella and one species each from Baicaloclepsis and Codonobdella. The checklist highlights six potentially new morphological species recorded for the first time in the area. The exact systematic position is stated for all leech species. Each species from the list is provided with information on taxonomic synonymy, data on its geographic distribution, and ecological characteristics. New species records are additionally provided with brief morphological characteristics and photos of their external morphology.