Taxonomic revision of the Siphonophora (Cnidaria, Medusozoa, Hydrozoa): Phylogenetic analysis based on mophological data
Siphonophores are a group of hydrozoans (Cnidaria: Medusozoa) of great importance in the marine pelagic environment, being potentially one of the main predators of the zooplankton present in these areas. Despite that, studies about the systematics of these organisms are scarce in the literature. Most studies conducted worldwide are limited to faunistic surveys, and little is known about the phylogenetic relationships between the superior taxa of the group (e.g. families and genera). In this context, the present project aims to fill a significant portion of this gap through a taxonomic redescription of siphonophores based on the study of morphological phylogeny. This will be done through a detailed morphological study of specimens obtained from oceanographic campaigns conducted along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America, as well as material borrowed from museums and private collections of researchers from around the world.