Three Seinura species from Japan with a description of S. shigaensis n. sp. (Tylenchomorpha: Aphelenchoididae)

A preliminary survey of Seinura spp. was conducted in the Kyoto area, Western Japan. The survey yielded four new strains of Seinura spp., including two strains of S . caverna , a strain of S . italiensis , and a strain of an undescribed species. Molecularly, the two strains of S . caverna were nearly identical to the type strain but showed some minor variations, particularly in the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I gene. The small subunit and D2-D3 large subunit sequences of the Japanese strain of S . italiensis were nearly identical and identical to its original description, respectively, and the difference in the small subunit was due to mis-reading of the sequences. The new species, S . shigaensis n. sp., was phylogenetically close to S . caverna and S . persica , although these three species were clearly different phylogenetically. The new species was typologically similar or nearly identical to several other Seinura spp., including S . chertkovi , S . christiei , S . italiensis , S . steineri , and S . tenuicaudata , but it can be distinguished from those species by the morphometric values. Because the new species is phylogenetically very close to S . caverna , it could be a good comparative system for S . caverna as a potential satellite model for the predatory nematode.