Moina micrura Kurz, 1875

Pascual, Jhaydee Ann F., Rizo, Eric Zeus C., Han, Boping, Dumont, Henri J. & Papa, Rey Donne S., 2014, Taxonomy and distribution of four Cladoceran families (Branchiopoda: Cladocera: Moinidae, Bosminidae, Chydoridae and Sididae) in Philippine inland waters, Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 62, pp. 771-794 : 781

Moina micrura Kurz, 1875

Specimen examined. 11 adult parthenogenic female specimens from Lake Taal , Lake Sampaloc , and Candaba Swamp were examined and stored in University of Santo Tomas Zooplankton Reference Collection ( UST-ZRC) with reference numbers 0072–0081, and 0093 .

Description. Moinidae is composed of only two genera: Moina and Moinodaphnia . Moina are found from temporary freshwater pools to brackish and saline lakes. Moina micrura are one of the smallest species in Family Moinidae . Mean length in all specimen examined is 1.1 mm. The head is evidently characterised by a well-developed supraocular depression and a large eye ( Fig. 19A). The antennules of M. micrura are situated in a knob-liked position just behind the eye with two sensory setae in each located one-third to one-half the distance from the head. The sensory papillae are long and distinguishable. A distinct groove located behind the second antennae separates the head and the body. The exopod is composed of four-segmented ramus which contains heavy setation that extends from second to the fourth segment. Two short sensory setae are evident in the second antennae as shown in Fig. 19E. The P1 has reduced its filtering functions but have fewer setae compared to other sidids ( Fig. 19D). Carapace is round and surrounded by 37–40 setae in the shell margin.The postabdomen is short and slender. The distal conical portion composes one-fourth of the total length. A sharp postabdominal claw contains three to eleven feathered teeth ( Fig. 19C). The number of teeth varies on the body size of the specimen. Its dorsal margin is characterised by having several numbers of setae extend up to the sharp part of the claw. There is also a long bident tooth present located at the base of the feathered teeth. The long and sharply curved postabdominal claw contains four to seven sharp teeth that are also called “basaldorn” that extends towards the distal end ( Goulden, 1968).

Distribution. Ilocos Norte: Lake Paoay; Cagayan: Lake Nagatutuan; Benguet: Ambuklao Dam; Pangasinan: Fish Pond in Burgos; Tarlac: Lake Tambo; Nueva Ecija: Pantabangan Dam; Zambales: Lake Mapanuepe; Pampanga: Candaba swamp; National Capital Region (NCR): Pasig River, Marikina River; Laguna: Lake Bunot, Lake Palakpakin, Lake Sampaloc, Lake Pandin, Lake Kalibato, Lake Tadlak, Lake Caliraya, Lake Lumot-Mahipon, Laguna De Bay; Batangas: Taal Lake; Camarines Sur: Lake Buhi; Oriental Mindoro: Lake Naujan; Misamis Oriental: Lake Gumaod; South Cotabato: Lake Siloton, Lake Lahit, Lake Sebu ( Fig. 18 )

Remarks. M. micrura can be distinguished from other Moinids based from its small size and by the complete absence of hairs on both the head and shell. The species is reported in the Palearctic region and also from the tropics and subtropics of America, Australia (2002) as well as in Africa and Europe ( Goulden, 1968). Goulden (1968) also confirmed its presence in the Far East and Southeast Asia specifically in India, Indonesia and Taiwan. The species is mostly found in temporary water bodies but is also common in large plankton of large freshwater lakes ( Fernando, 2002; Goulden, 1968).

Figures

Fig. 18. Distribution of family Moinidae based on recently collected samples (2013) and stored samples in the UST ZRC.