Integrative taxonomy reveals two new species of Ligidium (Crustacea, Isopoda, Oniscidea) from China

2025/07/10 by Zili Zong, JIN WANG, Chao Jiang +1 · 1 voice
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Environmental Science · #Marine Biology and Ecology Research #Parasite Biology and Host Interactions #Subterranean biodiversity and taxonomy

paper · pdf · doi:10.3897/zse.101.148504

openalex publication_date 2025/07/10 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/02

Abstract

Ligidium is the most species-rich genus within the family Ligiidae. In morphological taxonomy, some species are often difficult to identify due to their high morphological similarity. This study evaluates the taxonomic status of nine similar Ligidium species by combining morphological examination with molecular phylogenetic analyses based on two mitochondrial genes ( COI , 12S rRNA ). Two new species – Ligidium alpinum Li & Jiang, sp. nov. and L. cuspidatum Li & Jiang, sp. nov. – are described from China. Morphological photographs of the new species and three maps showing the geographic distribution patterns of Ligidium species are provided.

Citations

• MrBayes 3.2: Efficient Bayesian Phylogenetic Inference and Model Choice Across a Large Model Space
• MAFFT Multiple Sequence Alignment Software Version 7: Improvements in Performance and Usability
• IQ-TREE 2: New Models and Efficient Methods for Phylogenetic Inference in the Genomic Era
• Interactive Tree Of Life (iTOL) v5: an online tool for phylogenetic tree display and annotation
• Is there anybody (new) out there? Seven new species of Ligidium (Isopoda, Oniscidea, Ligiidae) from the Southern Appalachians, eastern North America

Discussions

• Researchers describe two new species of the woodlouse genus Ligidium from China based on morphological taxonomy. 🔗 doi.org/10.3897/zse.... [bsky, 0 points, 0 comments]