A new species, Ramazzottius belubellus, is described from a single lichen sample collected in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in western North Carolina, U.S.A. The new species is easily distinguishable from all other members of the genus Ramazzottius by the presence of long dorsal, sharp triangular spines not arranged in transverse bands as opposed to small tubercles arranged in bands, or a thin reticulum, or a smooth cuticle present in all other described species of the genus. The new species could be confused with R. baumanni but differs from it by the presence of sharp triangular spines on the dorsal side of the body instead of flat, hemispherical tubercles.

One of the largest inventories of tardigrades ever conducted occurred from 2000 2010 in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, USA. Over 16,000 specimens were catalogued, 85 species were identified, 11 species new to science were described, and 16 other possible new species await further study. More than 20 papers have resulted from the GSMNP tardigrade inventory, making the Smokies the most thoroughly studied area in North America for tardigrades. Several species lists have been published over this 20-year period, but many taxonomic revisions and new identifications have led to significant changes to the list. Biogeographical studies citing species records from earlier studies could yield serious errors. Here we update the species list from the Smokies to accommodate the many recent changes in tardigrade taxonomy, we re-Analyze some species in light of delineations of cryptic species groups that have occurred recently via integrative taxonomy, and we provide a table of all synonyms that have been used in previous publications. We also make available, for the first time, the Smokies tardigrade database, complete with all locations, elevations, and substrates.

Depuis plusieurs décennies, un déclin important de la biodiversité est observé à l'échelle mondiale. Les amphibiens constituent aujourd'hui le groupe le plus vulnérable sur la planète. Près d'un tiers des espèces recensées dans le monde est à ce jour menacé d'extinction. Dans le cadre de ce doctorat, nous nous sommes intéressés dans un premier temps à l'émergence d'une maladie infectieuse des amphibiens, la chytridiomycose, provoquée par le champignon pathogène Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). Nous avons étudié la répartition actuelle de ce champignon en France, démontré son impact sur la batrachofaune locale et mis en évidence le rôle de la Grenouille taureau (Lithobates catesbeianus) comme vecteur de transmission du pathogène. Afin de limiter la dissémination de Bd, nous avons également élaboré deux protocoles d'hygiène à mettre en oeuvre lors d'interventions sur le terrain ou lors d'utilisations d'amphibiens en laboratoire. Dans une seconde partie, nous avons développé une nouvelle méthode d'inventaire de la biodiversité basée sur la détection de l'ADN environnemental (ADNe). Nous avons mis en évidence que la persistance de l'ADNe dans un écosystème d'eau douce était d'environ 15 jours et que cette méthode innovante permettait d'améliorer la détection d'espèces exotiques envahissantes, comme la Grenouille taureau. Nous avons ensuite développé cette approche pour le suivi d'autres groupes taxonomiques (poissons, macro-invertébrés, chiroptères, etc.), dans des milieux différents et en utilisant notamment les technologies de séquençage nouvelle génération. / Since several decades, a significant decline in biodiversity is observed worldwide. Amphibians are now the most vulnerable group on the planet. Nearly a third of known species in the world is today threatened of extinction. Among many causes, diseases appear as an emerging threat worldwide. As part of this PhD, we were interested at first to the emergence of an infectious disease of amphibians, chytridiomycosis, caused by the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). We studied the current distribution of this fungus mostly in France, showed the impact on local batrachofauna and highlighted the role of the Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) as a vector for transmission of the pathogen. To limit the spread of Bd, we also developed two hygiene protocols to implement during field trips or use of amphibians in the laboratory. In the second part of this thesis, we have developed a new method of biodiversity inventory based on the detection of environmental DNA (eDNA). We have shown that the persistence of vertebrates (fish and amphibian) eDNA in freshwater ecosystems was about 15 days and that this innovative method greatly improves the detection of invasive alien species, such as Bullfrog. We are then developed this approach for monitoring other taxonomic groups (fish, macro-invertebrates, bats, etc...), in various environments, taking advantage of bio-technological developments such as next generation DNA sequencing.