Nikolaj Livanow’s historical collection sheds new light on potential local extinctions and host association in Hirudinea

Abstract

In this correspondence, we re-examine and illustrate a few interesting specimens from the historical Hirudinea collection in the EEZM – Edward Eversman Zoology Museum and Herbarium, Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University (formerly Zootomy Cabinet Museum of the Imperial Kazan University), prepared by Nikolaj A. Livanow and Eduard A. Meyer. First, four specimens of Acanthobdella peledina Grube, 1851 (Acanthobdellidae) from Lake Onega (Vologda Region, Russia) represent the remaining part of a sample collected by N. A. Livanow in 1902 and used for preparation of his classical monograph on the morphology and anatomy of this species (Livanow 1906). A. peledina was once common in the lake but it was not recorded there since the 1930s that may indicate a local extinction event. Second, two specimens of Hirudo medicinalis Linnaeus, 1758 (Hirudinidae) from Kazan (Tatarstan, Russia) were collected by E. A. Meyer in 1891, whereas this species was not rediscovered in the city and its environs, probably due to habitat loss. Third, a specimen of Glossiphonia grubei (Lukin & Epshtein, 1959) (Glossiphoniidae) was collected from the Maloe More Strait of Lake Baikal by V. P. Garjaew in 1899 and was misidentified as G. echinulata (Grube, 1871). To the best of our knowledge, it is the largest specimen of G. grubei ever discovered (body length = 52.0 mm and maximum body width = 15.8 mm). Field notes of the collector indicate that this species was sampled feeding on unspecified molluscs. This data suggest that Glossiphonia species endemic to Lake Baikal are associated with Mollusca, as do other species in this genus. Finally, our findings highlight that natural history museums house unique historical specimens, re-examination of which may provide new insights into local extinctions and ecological traits of individual species.