Wooden Stepping Stones: Diversity and Biogeography of Deep-Sea Wood Boring Xylophagaidae (Mollusca: Bivalvia) in the North-East Atlantic Ocean, With the Description of a New Genus

• Published in: Frontiers in Marine Science
• Main Authors: Chiara Romano, Amandine Nunes-Jorge, Nadine Le Bris, Greg W. Rouse, Daniel Martin, Christian Borowski
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2020
• Subjects: genetic connectivity; wood falls; Mediterranean; deep sea; phylogeography; Science; Q; General. Including nature conservation; geographical distribution; QH1-199.5; Stepping Stones; North East Atlantic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2020.579959; https://doaj.org/article/2285fe805a1041b284627430bbe52412

Wood boring bivalves of the family Xylophagaidae inhabit sunken wood on the deep-sea floor where they play a key role in the degradation of this organic matter in the ocean. The patchiness of wood-fall habitats is impeding targeted sampling and little is therefore known on xylophagaid biology. We in...