AUSTRALASIAN etey * af St Slee eee?” tent? Seer Figure 1: One ofthe paratype of Hale ots fatui From Geiger (1999), SHELL NEWS Abalone update Dan Geiger T have been working on abslone for a good decade, with some of my work having garnered interest from the shall collector community. Whitehead (1998, 1999) provided a summary of the changes in abalone taxomony relevant for Australia, Here Iwill oudine some furcher insight into the systematics, evolution, and biology of abalone with Special reference tothe Australian tax, Nomenclature 1 recently described a new species from the western Pacific, Halls fru Geiger, 1999 (Figute 1). The species had long ben known to bein the proces of being described by the late Dr. H. Rehder which caused some nomina nuda to Circulate i che grey literature (ef: Geiger, 19994). The species has noc yet heen ported fom Ausra, but fom nearby Solomon Islands, Tis airy simile to the exsemely variable HL. maria Linnaeus, 1758, but tends to have much small, ‘more levated, and more numerous holes, is usually eounder, and ofien has pronounced bumps on the sel. Check your 1H. varia and sce whether you may have some H. fat interspersed among them, T resurrected a second species native to the Mediter- ranean Sea, appropriately named H. neglecta Philippi, 1848 (Geiger, 1998). Buzz Owen poinced out that £1 Molluscs 2000 4-8 Dec. See page 7 NEWSLETTER OF THE MALACOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AUSTRALASIA LTD NO. 107 Sept 2000 tomatieformis Reeve, 846, has priority over H. neglecta Halts oatizformis bas been erroneously synonymized swith the Weseen Australian 7. sguamata Reeve, 1846, We are currenely preparing a paper dealing cis find including 2 discussion ofthe soft part anatomy of H stomatiaformis (Geiger &¢ Owen, in prep) The satus of H. brie (= H, mek ua) and H. hargraves (= H. ethlogu) from southern Queensland and New ‘South Wales has been uncertain for a while. These species are ia U specimens with animals fre 3 premium find. The existence of “hybrid” specimens had questioned the valiic of the cwo main at, but report ‘Pipodialdiferences had convinced Ime eit tha dhese two ta ae distin (cf. Geiger, 1998). In the meantime I have obtained on lan formalin preserved specimens from the Australian Museum Sydney. The cpipodia ofthese specimens are identical, but very diferent From the epipodia ofall ther abalone species. The formalin storage of these specimens has prevented me fom extricting DNA in order to further study representatives of these morphs. I would be most greatful for tissue samples of ethanol preserved or dried materi Figure 2: Dorcel view of Haliotis quamata with in sow pea crab in the mantle cavity. Modified fom Gtiger & Martin 11999)continued from page 1 Distribution Many abalone have only been known to exist on the face of the earth. Even such basic data as the range of many species have been poorly determined. A further paper has filed that void (Geiger, 2000). The distribution ofall species is detailed based on museum specimens. However, many specimens with good locality data are found in private shell collections n order to tap into thishighly valuable resource, Twill soon be releasing a web site that shows the known, distribution ofall abalone species illustrates their shell, and invites interested parties to communicate further diseibucional data, which wil be incorporated into the site nformation that can verify she identity ‘of the specimens for which locality information is given in order co maintain the highest quality standard. The site will be announced on the internet lstervers ABNET, MOLLUSCA, and CONCH-L, Fouls Geiger & Groves (1999) provided a review of the current knowledge on fossil abalone. A few additional data points have been obtained, and we are cager to further expand the project. Mike Eagle (1999) has recenly described an additional species (aliovs maheibensi) fro the Miocene fof New Zealand. With respect to Austealia, only from southeastern Australia are any fosil abalone specimens known. There is also a lack of specimens from the Indo- Pacifie. The later is surprising, because phylogeneti analysis and biogeorgraphic data (Brooks’ parsimony) indicate a broad Indo-Pacific oxgin of the family. One would expect ‘ofind the oldest fess in that particular area bu he oldest known abalone have licen collected from the uppermost Cretaceous (Maastrichian) rocks in California and in the Caribbean Biology In 1993 I wisted the British Muscum of Natural History, cxamining every last specimen of abalone the collection hholds. One jar chat subboraly resisted being opened contained a specimen of #.squamata collected by Sowerby. lin 1901. In order to view the mante cavity and its organs T removed the animal from the shell To my great surprise | found two pea crabs (Decapoda: Pinnotheridze) contained in the mantle cavity, where they had remained for alms a century (Figure 2). As Tam nota crab expert, I simply fled the observation co be deale with lace. A few years afterwards I was working in the collection of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (LACM) and Found yee another pair of pea craby now ina H. asinine Linnaeus, 1758, from Queensland. Pea crabs had been know from abalone for quite awhile. In collaboration with the curator of Crustacea at LACM Jodi Martin, we quickly derermined that the previous reports naming Pinnixa faba (Dana, 1851) as the commensal could not be correct. Eventually we (Geiger & Martin, 1999) named a new species: Onhothererhalotiis Giger 8 Martin, 1999. Ifyou find abalone with pea crabs, ! would be mest interested in ‘examining those specimens. The host range (H.asnina,H. ‘ecoradita, H.sguamata) is most likely no complet. Tio Books The first rome is my dissertation (Geiger, 1999b). It coneaines the slightly updated "98 paper, the review of fos abalone, the 2000 biogeography paper, plus two addtional chapters. You can download the dissereation from my web sites pd 4 files. ‘More than one person has asked me when I will be 3 svtting the book. The good news is Iam currently doing so ‘The volume willbe part ofthe Conchologicalleonography series edited by Guido Poppe and Klaus Grok, The estimated publication is late 2000. The volume will contain an Introductory section of approximately 25 pages on the taxonomy and biology ofthe Family followed bya treatment ‘ofeach species with approximately one page pe species, and two appendices containing the synonymies ofall speces- level taxa, and the species found in each oogeographic ares, The entire text part will run approximately 120 pages without the approximately 100 color plates Workin Proges Tam now in the process of sequencing DNA from abalone and its relatives (Vesigastropoda). The group in the narrow Sense includes key-hole limpets (Fissurelidae), slit shells (Pleusotomarida), ite slic shells (Scssurelidae) cop snails (Trochidae) urban snails (Turbinidae), and the ile known Ihydorthermal vent limpetsLepetodrldae. Somewhat more distant relatives include the vent taxa Peleospiridae and ‘Neomphaldae. The relationships of Vetigastropada have been previously investigated and most ofthe phylogenetic hypotheses squarely contradict one another. The majority of studies has excluded representatives of the Seisurellidae, a situation I currently try to remedy. Lam looking for aleohol sored or dried tissue simples of Vetgastropods to further ‘expand my study. Despite che small size of scissuelids 1 have been abe to generate DNA sequence data from single dried specimens. References Eagle, M.K. 1999. A new species of Hats (Marina) (Mollusca) from the early Miocene Otaua Group, Northland, New Zealand. Recoad of the Auckland Museum 3545-53, Geiger, DL 1998. Recent genera and species ofthe fly alae (Gasropodat Vegatopoda). The Navas M1856. Geiger, D. L- 1999, Description of Halits fai new ‘species (Gastropoda: Veigastopoda) from the tropical western Pace, The Nauthus 11327377. Geiger D.L.1999b. Atal evidence adic anayisof the aioe (Gastopoda: Vetigastropoda). Dissertation University of Southern California, Los Angeles. x, 423, pp chp og/-dgegerdiseaion bml> Geiger, DL. 2000. Distribution and biogeography of the Recent Halioxidae (Gastropoda: Vetiastopods) world-wide Bolletino Malaologico 35: 57-120 Geiger, D. L, & L:T Groves. 1999. Review of fosi abalone (Gastropoda: Veigatropds: Halt) with comparison to Recent spies. Journal of Palonsology 73: 872-885 Geiger DLL. & J. W. Marti. 1999. The pea crab Orthotheres halt ids new spies (Deca poda: Brachyura: Pine hotherdae inthe Aus telian abalone Habits dsinina Linnaeus, 1758 and H. squamata Reeve, 1846 (Gastopoda: Veigateo- oda: Haliotidse). Bulletin of Matine Science 64 269-280. Whitehead, T. 1998. Changes in the taxonomy of the ‘Austin Halt. The Sydney Shller October 1998 “ Whitehead, T: 1999, Haliovidae revisited, with some name changes for Australian speck Shall News 103: 1.3. Daniel Geiger, Los ioe ‘edgeiger@nhm.orge