Galeripora


Galeripora is a genus of testate amoebae in the family Arcellidae, closely related to Arcella. Both genera share a proteinaceous organic shell, but Galeripora species are distinguished by pores surrounding their central circular aperture, and a thin organic layer that partially obscures the hexagonal units composing the shell.

Taxonomy

Several species now classified under Galeripora were originally described as members of Arcella. The reassignment of these species was based on a combination of molecular phylogenetics and detailed morphological analysis of shell structures.
Galeripora was formally described in 2021 by González-Miguéns et al., following a comprehensive review of the family Arcellidae. The authors used the mitochondrial COI gene to reconstruct evolutionary relationships within the group. This molecular information was used to evaluate historic classification schemes in which the family Arcellidae was subdivided on the basis of the overall appearance of the shell.
In a classification scheme proposed by Georges Deflandre in 1928, hemispherical shells possessing a "keel" around the perimeter of the shell were placed in the section Carinatae, while those lacking this keel were classified in section Vulgares. Species with notably flattened shells were assigned to the section Aplanatea.
However, González-Miguéns et al. found that the evolutionary lineages revealed by their molecular analysis did not correspond neatly to Deflandre's subdivisions of the family. Instead, the authors identified two distinctive traits exclusive to Galeripora: pores around the aperture of the shell, and an organic layer covering at least part of the shell. These characters were found to be absent in other members of Arcellidae, and were therefore suggested as possible synapomorphies for the new genus.

Ecology and habitat

Species of Galeripora are common and widely distributed in freshwater habitats, including ponds, wetlands, moss, and soil. Species have also been found in the sediments of saline lakes.
Variations in overall shell morphology within Arcellidae are thought to have arisen largely through multiple evolutionary convergences, driven by ecological pressures rather than direct phylogenetic inheritance.

List of species