[Entomology • 2024] Muscuspina neblina • A New Genus of Pleminiini Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1878 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Pseudophyllinae) from the Colombian Andes

 Muscuspina neblina Mendes, 

in Mendes, Pádua, Araujo, Mazariegos et Fernandes, 2024.

DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5437.2.5

  academia.edu/117375772

 

Abstract

The Pleminiini tribe (Pseudophyllinae: Tettigoniidae) currently comprises 51 genera and 227 valid species with a Neotropical and Afrotropical distribution. Herein, the new monotypic genus Muscuspina Mendes gen. nov. is described with a new species, Muscuspina neblina Mendes sp. nov., distributed in the Andean montane forest of Antioquia, Colombia. Maps and natural history observations are provided.

Key words: Andean cloud forest, Biodiversity, Katydid, Mesenia-Paramillo nature reserve, taxonomy

 Muscuspina neblina sp. nov., female specimen alive. 

Diego M. M. Mendes, Diego G. Pádua, Rodrigo O. Araujo, Luis A. Mazariegos and Daniell R. R. Fernandes. 2024. New Genus of Pleminiini Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1878 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Pseudophyllinae) from the Colombian Andes.  Zootaxa. 5437(2); 262-272. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5437.2.5

  academia.edu/117375772/New_genus_of_Pleminiini_from_the_Colombian_Andes

Researchgate.net/publication/379756238_New_genus_of_Pleminiini_(Tettigoniidae_Pseudophyllinae)_from_the_Colombian_Andes

[Botany • 2024] Myrsine cirrhosa (Primulaceae) • A distinctive New shrub Species from Kaua‘i, Hawaiian Islands

Myrsine cirrhosa Lorence & K.R.Wood, 

in Lorence, Wood, Appelhans et Wagner, 2024.  

 DOI: 10.3897/phytokeys.243.123694

 

Abstract

Myrsine cirrhosa Lorence & K.R.Wood (Primulaceae), a new single-island endemic shrub species from Kaua‘i, Hawaiian Islands, is described and illustrated. Notes on its distribution, ecology and conservation status are included. The new species is known from an area with ca. 45 individuals, where it is restricted to the remote central windward region of Kaua‘i in open bogs and along open windy ridges. Suggested IUCN Red List status is CR (Critically Endangered). It differs from its Kaua‘i congeners by its longer petals and narrowly elliptic leaves with strongly undulate margins and tendril-like apex. Phylogenetic analysis using RADseq data supports the recognition of this new species.

Key words: Conservation, Hawaiian Islands, Kaua‘i endemism, Myrsine, Primulaceae

Myrsine cirrhosa Lorence & K.R.Wood
 A habit, fruiting branch B leaf showing cirrhose apex and detail of intramarginal venation C inflorescence in bud D inflorescence, flowers at anthesis E flower at anthesis, view from apex F flower at anthesis, view from base G pistil H mature drupe.

A, B drawn from Wood et al. 835 (PTBG), C drawn from Wood & Query 12824 (PTBG), D–G drawn from Wood et al.18139 (PTBG), H drawn from Perlman & Wood 12747 (PTBG). 

Illustration by Robin Jess.

Myrsine cirrhosa Lorence & K.R.Wood
A habit showing leaves with characteristic undulate margins and cirrhose apex (from Kamo‘oloa headwater below Kapalaoa Kaua‘i, Wood & Query 12824)
B twig with leaves and flowers (from Wai‘ahi, Kaua‘i Wood 18139)
C open exposed wind-swept summit ridges of Wai‘ale‘ale, Kaua‘i representing the habitat for Myrsine cirrhosa.

All photos by K.R. Wood.

 Myrsine cirrhosa Lorence & K.R.Wood, sp. nov.

 

Diagnosis: Myrsine cirrhosa is most similar morphologically to both M. helleri and M. fosbergii, from which it differs by its longer petals and leaves with a combination of strongly undulate margins and tendril-like, cirrhose apex.

Etymology: Specific epithet refers to the curved or hooked, tendril-like leaf apices. However, the plant is shrubby and non-climbing.

David H. Lorence, Kenneth R. Wood, Marc S. Appelhans and Warren L. Wagner. 2024. Myrsine cirrhosa (Primulaceae), A distinctive New shrub Species from Kaua‘i, Hawaiian Islands. PhytoKeys. 243: 47-61. DOI: 10.3897/phytokeys.243.123694

[Ichthyology • 2024] Sinobdella longitubulus • A New Species of Spiny Eel (Pisces: Mastacembelidae) from the Zhu-Jiang Basin, southern China, with A Note on the Type Locality of S. sinensis (Bleeker, 1870)

 

 Sinobdella longitubulus Shan & Zhang,   

in Shan, Li et Zhang, 2024.

长管华刺鳅  ||  DOI: 10.3897/BDJ.12.e123990

Abstract

Background: The spiny eel genus Sinobdella belongs to the family Mastacembelidae of the order Synbranchiformes. Kottelat and Lim (1994) utilised Rhynchobdella sinensis as the type species to propose the genus. Currently, it contains a single species widespread in eastern and southern China and northern Vietnam.

New information: Sinobdella longitubulus, a new species of spiny eel, is here described from the Xi-Jiang of the Zhu-Jiang Basin in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, southern China. It differs from the single congeneric species S. sinensis in having a more or less white-brown reticulated pattern on the flank, two tubular anterior nostrils longer than or equal to the rostral appendage, an anal fin heavily mottled with dark brown markings and white spots and bearing a narrow white distal margin; shorter pre-anal length; and fewer abdominal vertebrae. The validity of this new species is corroborated by its monophyly recovered in a COI gene-based phylogenetic analysis and its significant sequence divergence with S. sinensis. A note on the type locality of S. sinensis is also given; its type specimen is possibly from mountain streams of Jiangxi Province, in the lower Chang-Jiang Basin.

Keywords: Sinobdella, new species, taxonomy, Zhu-Jiang Basin

 Sinobdella longitubulus, holotype, IHB 202303066738, 153.3 mm SL, dorsal (a), lateral (b) and ventral (c) views. China: Guangxi Province: Guigang City: Pingnan County: Lilia Village: Datong-Jiang, a stream tributary to Meng-Jiang flowing into Xi-Jiang of Zhu-Jiang basin.

 Sinobdella longitubulus, IHB 202303066740, 148.7 mm SL, China: Guangxi Province: Guigang City: Pingnan County: Lilia Town: Datong-Jiang: Zhu-Jiang Basin;

Sinobdella longitubulus Shan & Zhang sp. nov.

Diagnosis: Sinobdella longitubulus is clearly distinguished from the single congeneric species (S. sinensis) by having a more or less white-brown reticulated pattern (vs. many dark brown vertical bars, with very narrow light yellow interspaces) on the flank (Fig. 2), two tubular anterior nostrils longer than or equal to (vs. shorter than) the rostral appendage (Fig. 3), an anal fin heavily mottled with dark brown markings and white spots and bearing a narrow white distal margin (vs. black with a relatively wide light white distal margin) (Fig. 2); shorter pre-anal length (53.3-56.2 vs. 56.3-60.6 % SL; see Fig. 4) and fewer abdominal vertebrae (32-33, mean = 32.9 vs. 34-36, mean = 35.1) (Table 1).

...

Etymology: The epithet name, used here as a noun, is derived from the Latin word longus (= long) and tubulus (= pipe), alluding to two longer tubes modified from anterior nostrils. The common Chinese name here suggested for this new species is “长管华刺鳅”.

 Peng Shan, Guangyu Li and E Zhang. 2024. Sinobdella longitubulus, A New Species of Spiny Eel (Pisces, Mastacembelidae) from the Zhu-Jiang Basin, with A Note on the Type Locality of S. sinensis (Bleeker, 1870). Biodiversity Data Journal. 12: e123990. DOI: 10.3897/BDJ.12.e123990

[Ichthyology • 2024] Severe Bottleneck Impacted the Genomic Structure of Egg-Eating Cichlids in Lake Victoria

the Nile perch Lates niloticus, a voracious predator introduced into Lake Victoria by humans to satisfy meat demands in the 1950s. Several species of endemic cichlids that were markedly affected are shown. The populations of some of these species declined so much that their genomic structure remained significantly altered even after their numbers climbed back up.

in Imamoto, Nakamura, Aibara,  Hatashima, ... et Nikaido, 2024.

DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msae093 

Abstract

Within 15,000 years, the explosive adaptive radiation of haplochromine cichlids in Lake Victoria, East Africa, generated 500 endemic species. In the 1980s, the upsurge of Nile perch, a carnivorous fish artificially introduced to the lake, drove the extinction of more than 200 endemic cichlids. The Nile perch predation particularly harmed piscivorous cichlids, including paedophages, cichlids eat eggs and fries, which is an example of the unique trophic adaptation seen in African cichlids. Here, aiming to investigate past demographic events possibly triggered by the invasion of Nile perch and the subsequent impacts on the genetic structure of cichlids, we conducted large-scale comparative genomics. We discovered evidence of recent bottleneck events in 4 species, including 2 paedophages, which began during the 1970s to 1980s, and population size rebounded during the 1990s to 2000s. The timing of the bottleneck corresponded to the historical records of endemic haplochromines” disappearance and later resurgence, which is likely associated with the introduction of Nile perch by commercial demand to Lake Victoria in the 1950s. Interestingly, among the 4 species that likely experienced bottleneck, Haplochromis sp. “matumbi hunter,” a paedophagous cichlid, showed the most severe bottleneck signatures. The components of shared ancestry inferred by ADMIXTURE suggested a high genetic differentiation between matumbi hunter and other species. In contrast, our phylogenetic analyses highly supported the monophyly of the 5 paedophages, consistent with the results of previous studies. We conclude that high genetic differentiation of matumbi hunter occurred due to the loss of shared genetic components among haplochromines in Lake Victoria caused by the recent severe bottleneck.

genetic structure, bottleneck, cichlid, paedophage, genetic diversity

 Sampling information and localities of 7 haplochromine cichlids endemic to Lake Victoria and Astatotilapia stappersii as an outgroup. These species were included for genetic statistics comparison.
a) Pictures of the 8 species. Colored triangles for paedophages and circles for others next to species names correspond to sampling locations on the map. Paedophages, Haplochromis sp. “matumbi hunter,” and H. microdon was shaded by a yellow box. A photo of Astatotilapia stappersii was retrieved from Meier, Marques et al. (2017).
b) Sampling localities of all samples in a). The area marked by a red square in the bottom left map represents the location of Mwanza Gulf, Lake Victoria, and the map of the enlarged Mwanza Gulf is shown on the right. The number of samples per species obtained in each sampling locality is shown next to markers colored by species, corresponding to the labels in a). Samples without locality information are noted as unknown.

Pictured on the left is the Nile perch Lates niloticus, a voracious predator introduced into Lake Victoria by humans to satisfy meat demands in the 1950s. On the right, several species of endemic cichlids that were markedly affected are shown. The populations of some of these species declined so much that their genomic structure remained significantly altered even after their numbers climbed back up.

photos: Minami Imamoto, Masato Nikaido

Conclusion: 

We successfully demonstrated the population history and phylogenetic relationship of endemic haplochromines by performing large-scale comparative genomics. This study is the first example to present the impacts of the Nile perch upsurge on the genetic structure of Lake Victoria haplochromines. Signatures of bottleneck events in multiple endemic species further supported that the introduction and subsequent expansion of the exotic species Nile perch negatively influenced the demography of endemic species and eventually altered the genetic structure. The previously known hypothesis that piscivores, like paedophages, should have experienced a stronger bottleneck was further supported by inferred evidence of the intense bottleneck in paedophages, especially in matumbi hunters.

Minami Imamoto, Haruna Nakamura, Mitsuto Aibara, Ryo Hatashima, Ismael A Kimirei, Benedicto B Kashindye, Takehiko Itoh, Masato Nikaido. 2024. Severe Bottleneck Impacted the Genomic Structure of Egg-Eating Cichlids in Lake Victoria. Molecular Biology and Evolution. 41(6); msae093. DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msae093 

https://phys.org/news/2024-06-nile-perch-invasion-triggered-genetic.html

[Herpetology • 2024] Alytes obstetricans lusitanicus • A New Subspecies of Midwife Toad (Anura: Alytidae: Alytes Wagler, 1829) supported by Genomic Taxonomy

  Alytes obstetricans lusitanicus  

 Ambu, Martínez-Solano & Dufresnes, 2024

 biotaxa.org/Alytes/article/view/85334 

 x.com/batracofistro

photo: Christophe Dufresnes

Abstract

The mapping, delimiting and naming of biodiversity forge the links between academic research, conservation efforts and communication about wildlife. Midwife toads from the subgenus Alytes are a group of high conservation concern widely popular among European naturalists, but for which the taxonomy remains unsettled. Six phylogeographic lineages that diversified during the Pliocene and the Pleistocene epochs have been identified and delimited in two species (A. obstetricans and A. almogavarii), but only five subspecies are presently recognized (A. o. obstetricans, A. o. pertinax and A. o. boscai; A. a. almogavarii and A. a. inigoi). Accordingly, two distinct lineages found in northwestern and western Iberia are still regrouped under the same taxon A. o. boscai. Contrary to the discordant findings of earlier studies based on a few genes, phylogenomic analyses of thousands of nuclear markers have confirmed their independent evolution, estimated to exceed two million years. In this article, we detail molecular, morphological and behavioral variation in the subgenus Alytes to provide a taxonomic description for the previously unnamed western Iberian lineage. Like other taxa of this subgenus, the new taxon is supported by robust evidence for genetic divergence despite little external differentiation. It is designated as a subspecies of A. obstetricans, as per its phylogenetic placement and young evolutionary age, which compares to freely admixing Alytes subspecies. Combining genetic barcoding and distribution information, we provisionally define its range in central Portugal and western central Spain, and prompt to evaluate its potentially worrisome conservation status. Our study highlights how phylogeographic diversity can be acknowledged in zoological systematics, even when phenotypic differences are subtle, and illustrates the advantages of genomic approaches to overcome the limitations of single-gene analyses when implementing taxonomic revisions.

Keywords: Alytes obstetricans; Iberian Peninsula; integrative taxonomy; species delimitation

The holotype MNCN 50839 of Alytes obstetricans lusitanicus ssp. nov., depicted live

photo: Christophe Dufresnes

Alytes obstetricans lusitanicus ssp. nov.

Diagnosis: A midwife toad from the subgenus Alytes, which becomes the fourth subspecies of A.

obstetricans. According to phylogenomic analyses, A. o. lusitanicus ssp. nov. is the sister

taxon of A. o. boscai, from which it diverged around the Plio-Pleistocene transition ca. 2.5

Mya (Ambu et al. 2023). It features 0.19 % of sequence divergence at ~ 282 kb of nuclear

(RAD) loci from that subspecies. The mitochondrial diversity of A. o. lusitanicus ssp. nov. is

counter-intuitive. The Spanish populations feature a “ghost” lineage different from the regular

A. o. lusitanicus ssp. nov. mtDNA predominantly found in Portugal (Ambu 2024b).

Accordingly, the mtDNA of A. o. lusitanicus ssp. nov. differs from the mtDNA of A. o.

boscai by 0.93 % (Portuguese lineage) or 0.99 % (Spanish ghost lineage) at 16S, and by 5.2

% (Portuguese lineage) or 3.3 % (Spanish ghost lineage) at ND4 (Table 1) – again noting that

these mtDNA distances do not reflect the true divergence between taxa due to a past

mitochondrial capture in A. o. boscai (Ambu et al. 2023). According to MOLD, the new

subspecies can be distinguished from all other taxa from subgenus Alytes by the following

diagnostic nucleotides in the ND4 gene ...

Etymology: The nomen lusitanicus refers to the ancient Roman Province of Lusitania, which encompassed central and southern Portugal (south of the Douro River) and western central Spain (Extremadura, Castilla la Mancha and Castilla y León), thus broadly matching the distribution of the new taxon.  

Johanna Ambu, ĺñigo Martínez-Solano, Christophe Dufresnes. 2024. A New Subspecies of Midwife Toad (Anura, Alytidae, Alytes Wagler, 1829) supported by Genomic Taxonomy. Alytes. 2024, 41 (1–4): 18–39.  biotaxa.org/Alytes/article/view/85334

  x.com/batracofistro/status/1790095552081780790

[Botany • 2024] Petrocosmea arunachalense (Gesneriaceae) • A New Species from Northeast India

 Petrocosmea arunachalense 

in Chowlu, Shenoy et Ray, 2024. 

DOI: 10.1111/njb.04423 

Abstract

Petrocosmea arunachalense, a new species of Gesneriaceae, is described and illustrated from West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh, India. The new species is similar to P. nanchuanensis, and P. parryorum, but differs from the former in having much bigger, lanceolate ovate to lanceolate elliptic leaves, uniformly entire margins, more numerous lateral veins, inflorescence with long peduncles, short pedicels, and more numerous flowers, striated corolla, hairy filaments and number of staminodes, and from the later by more numerous leaves per plant, texture of leaves, uniformly entire margins, more numerous lateral veins, green calyx, corolla colour and striation, and colour of the hairs on the filaments. The new species is assessed as Data Deficient according to the IUCN Red List criteria.

Krishna Chowlu, Akshath Shenoy and Ajit Ray. 2024. Petrocosmea arunachalense: A New Species of Gesneriaceae from Northeast India. Nordic Journal of Botany. DOI: 10.1111/njb.04423 

[Arachnida • 2024] Complete Phylogeny of Micrathena Spiders suggests Multiple Dispersal Events among Neotropical Rainforests, Islands and Landmasses, and indicates that Andean Orogeny promotes Speciation

Micrathena spp.

in Magalhaes, Martins, Faleiro, Vidigal, ... et Santos, 2024. 

 

DOI: 10.1111/cla.12593 

 x.com/6eyes8legs

Abstract

The Neotropical region is the most diverse on the planet, largely owing to its mosaic of tropical rainforests. Multiple tectonic and climatic processes have been hypothesized to contribute to generating this diversity, including Andean orogeny, the closure of the Isthmus of Panama, the GAARlandia land bridge and historical connections among currently isolated forests. Micrathena spiders are diverse and widespread in the region, and thus a complete phylogeny of this genus allows the testing of hypotheses at multiple scales. We estimated a complete, dated phylogeny using morphological data for 117 Micrathena species and molecular data of up to five genes for a subset of 79 species. Employing eventc-based approaches and biogeographic stochastic mapping while considering phylogenetic uncertainty, we estimated ancestral distributions, the timing and direction of dispersal events and diversification rates among areas. The phylogeny is generally robust, with uncertainty in the position of some of the species lacking sequences. Micrathena started diversifying around 25 Ma. Andean cloud forests show the highest in-situ speciation, while the Amazon is the major dispersal source for adjacent areas. The Dry Diagonal generated few species and is a sink of diversity. Species exchange between Central and South America involved approximately 23 dispersal events and started ~20 Ma, which is consistent with a Miocene age for the Isthmus of Panama closure. We inferred four dispersal events from Central America to the Antilles in the last 20 Myr, indicating the spiders did not reach the islands through the GAARlandia land bridge. We identified important species exchange routes among the Amazon, Andean cloud forests and Atlantic forests during the Plio-Pleistocene. Sampling all species of the genus was fundamental to the conclusions above, especially in identifying the Andean forests as the area that generated the majority of species. This highlights the importance of complete taxonomic sampling in biogeographic studies.

Ivan L. F. Magalhaes, Pedro H. Martins, Bárbara T. Faleiro, Teofânia H. D. A. Vidigal, Fabrício R. Santos, Leonardo S. Carvalho, Adalberto J. Santos. 2024. Complete Phylogeny of Micrathena Spiders suggests Multiple Dispersal Events among Neotropical Rainforests, Islands and Landmasses, and indicates that Andean Orogeny promotes Speciation. Cladistics. DOI: 10.1111/cla.12593

  x.com/6eyes8legs/status/1800655011946369107

[Entomology • 2024] Holaptilon abdullahii, H. iranicum, ... • The Six Dwarfs of the Middle East: Revision of the enigmatic Praying Mantis Genus Holaptilon (Mantodea: Gonypetidae: Gonypetinae) with the Description of Four New Species under Integrative Taxonomy

[a] Holaptilon abdullahii sp. nov.  [d-e] H. iranicum sp. nov.
[f] H. khozestani sp. nov. [h-i] H. tadovaniensis sp. nov. 
[c] H. brevipugilis [j] H. pusillulum
 

in Mirzaee, Battiston,  Ballarin, Sadeghi, Simões, Wiemers et Schmitt, 2024.

DOI: 10.3897/asp.82.e112834 

Abstract

The dwarf-mantid genus Holaptilon Beier, 1964 is composed of small-sized ground-runner species distributed in the Middle East. Due to their elusive lifestyle, little is known about their behaviour, distribution, and phylogeny. The genus Holaptilon was once established for a single species, H. pusillulum Beier, 1964, based on material collected in Jerusalem, Israel. Later, H. brevipugilis Kolnegari, 2018, and H. yagmur Yılmaz and Sevgili, 2023 were described from Iran and Turkey, respectively. In this study, integrated morphology, molecular analyses, and ecology were used to revise the genus Holaptilon and define the boundaries of its species. New data on this genus are presented, based on Holaptilon specimens collected from various provinces of Iran, Israel, Jordan, and Turkey. Extensive analyses, including examinations of male and female genitalia, morphometrical analysis, and morphological hypervolumes were conducted to distinguish its species morphologically. In addition, four molecular markers (mitochondrial and nuclear) were studied to gain a better understanding of species delimitation and phylogenetic relationships. As a result, impressive inter- and intraspecific variability was recovered. In addition to the three already known species, four new species with their distributions restricted to Iran (H. abdullahii sp. nov., H. khozestani sp. nov., H. iranicum sp. nov., and H. tadovaniensis sp. nov.) are here described, and H. yagmur Yılmaz and Sevgili, 2023 is synonymized with H. brevipugilis Kolnegari, 2018. The integrative approach was essential for an adequate classification in Holaptilon taxonomy and also helpful in the clarification of problematic and cryptic Mantodea species. Additional information concerning the life cycle, ecological aspects, spermatophore feeding, as well as geographic range and historical biogeography of Holaptilon species is also provided.

Keywords: Autecology, biogeography, morphology, species delimitation, species descriptions, systematics

Genus Holaptilon life habitus:
a Holaptilon abdullahii sp. nov., paratype male from Soroo, Busheher province (29.569N, 51.947E). b H. abdullahii sp. nov., paratype female from Kangan, Busheher province (27.843N, 52.064 E).
c H. brevipugilis male and female from Arak (34.128N, 50.07E) (photo credit: Mahmood Kolnegari).
d H. iranicum sp. nov., holotype male from Arjan, Fars province (29.569N, 51.947E). e H. iranicum sp. nov., paratype female from Arjan, Fars province (29.569N, 51.947E).
f H. khozestani sp. nov., holotype male from Malagha, Khozestan province (31.607N, 49.998E). g H. khozestani sp. nov., paratype female from Dehdez, Khozestan province (31.733N, 50.222E).
h H. tadovaniensis sp. nov., paratype female from Tadovan, Fars (28.853N, 53.326E). i H. tadovaniensis sp. nov., holotype male from Tadovan, Fars (28.853N, 53.326E).
j H. pusillulum male from Jerusalem, Israel (28.853N, 53.326E) (photo credit: More Yosef Avi). k H. pusillulum female from Jerusalem, Israel (31.737N, 35.077E) (photo credit: Chaym Turak).

 Holaptilon pusillulum Beier, 1964

Holaptilon brevipugilis Kolnegari, 2018

Holaptilon abdullahii Mirzaee and Battiston, sp. nov.

 Holaptilon iranicum Mirzaee and Sadeghi, sp. nov.

 Holaptilon khozestani Mirzaee and Battiston, sp. nov.

 Holaptilon tadovaniensis Mirzaee and Sadeghi, sp. nov.

 

 Zohreh Mirzaee, Roberto Battiston, Francesco Ballarin, Saber Sadeghi, Marianna Simões, Martin Wiemers and Thomas Schmitt. 2024. The Six Dwarfs of the Middle East: Revision of the enigmatic Praying Mantis Genus Holaptilon (Mantodea: Gonypetidae: Gonypetinae) with the Description of Four New Species under integrative taxonomy. Arthropod Systematics & Phylogeny. 82: 89-117. DOI: 10.3897/asp.82.e112834

[Paleontology • 2024] Lokiceratops rangiformis gen. et sp. nov. (Ceratopsia: Ceratopsidae: Centrosaurinae) from the Campanian Judith River Formation of Montana reveals Rapid Regional Radiations and Extreme Endemism within centrosaurine dinosaurs

Lokiceratops rangiformis

 Loewen​​, Sertich​, Sampson, O’Connor, Carpenter, Sisson, Øhlenschlæger, Farke, Makovicky, Longrich & Evans, 2024

DOI: 10.7717/peerj.17224

Abstract
 The Late Cretaceous of western North America supported diverse dinosaur assemblages, though understanding patterns of dinosaur diversity, evolution, and extinction has been historically limited by unequal geographic and temporal sampling. In particular, the existence and extent of faunal endemism along the eastern coastal plain of Laramidia continues to generate debate, and finer scale regional patterns remain elusive. Here, we report a new centrosaurine ceratopsid, Lokiceratops rangiformis, from the lower portion of the McClelland Ferry Member of the Judith River Formation in the Kennedy Coulee region along the Canada-USA border. Dinosaurs from the same small geographic region, and from nearby, stratigraphically equivalent horizons of the lower Oldman Formation in Canada, reveal unprecedented ceratopsid richness, with four sympatric centrosaurine taxa and one chasmosaurine taxon. Phylogenetic results show that Lokiceratops, together with Albertaceratops and Medusaceratops, was part of a clade restricted to a small portion of northern Laramidia approximately 78 million years ago. This group, Albertaceratopsini, was one of multiple centrosaurine clades to undergo geographically restricted radiations, with Nasutuceratopsini restricted to the south and Centrosaurini and Pachyrostra restricted to the north. High regional endemism in centrosaurs is associated with, and may have been driven by, high speciation rates and diversity, with competition between dinosaurs limiting their geographic range. High speciation rates may in turn have been driven in part by sexual selection or latitudinally uneven climatic and floral gradients. The high endemism seen in centrosaurines and other dinosaurs implies that dinosaur diversity is underestimated and contrasts with the large geographic ranges seen in most extant mammalian megafauna.

Skull of Lokiceratops rangiformis n. gen et n. sp. (EMK 0012).
(A) Skull of Lokiceratops rangiformis in dorsal view. (B) Skull reconstruction in anterior view. (C) Skull reconstruction in lateral view interpreted from both sides. Reconstructions are based on 3D surface scans with deformation and parallax removed. The mandible was not found with EMK 0012.

Stippled artwork by Sergey Krasovskiy. Scale bar equals 1 m.

Systematic Paleontology

Dinosauria Owen, 1842; sensu Padian & May, 1993

Ornithischia Seeley, 1887; sensu Sereno, 1998

Ceratopsia Marsh, 1890; sensu Dodson, 1997

Ceratopsidae Marsh, 1888; sensu Sereno, 1998

Centrosaurinae Lambe, 1915; sensu Dodson, Forster & Sampson, 2004

Albertaceratopsini clade nov.

 

Diagnosis—Albertaceratopsini is defined as a stem-based clade that consists of all taxa more closely related to Albertaceratops nesmoi than to Centrosaurus apertus.

Lokiceratops gen. nov.

Lokiceratops rangiformis gen. et sp. nov.

Diagnosis—Lokiceratops rangiformis is an albertaceratopsin centrosaurine ceratopsid distinguished from other centrosaurines by the following autapomorphies: presence of unadorned nasal; elongate, uncurved ep1 epiossification directed in plane of frill along posterior margin of parietosquamosal frill; hypertrophied, lateral curving epiparietal ep2 directed in plane of frill. The hypertrophied ep2 is relatively larger than any other parietal epiossification within Centrosaurinae. Both ischia are distinctly kinked distally at about two-thirds of the length of the shaft, at the point where the two ischia contact medially. Postorbital horncore bases are deeply excavated by sinuses penetrating a distance equivalent to the orbital diameter of each horncore, to an extent unobserved in other long horned centrosaurs.

 

Etymology— The generic name refers to the god Loki from Norse mythology, and ceratops, (Greek) meaning “horned face.” The species name refers to the bilateral asymmetry of frill ornamentations, similar to the asymmetry in antlers of the reindeer/caribou genus Rangifer.

 

Holotype Locality—EMK 0012 was recovered from the Loki Quarry in Kennedy Coulee, south of the Milk River in Hill County, northern Montana (Fig. 1). The quarry is 3.6 km from the Montana-Alberta border and 922 m above sea level. Exact coordinates are available at the Evolutionsmuseet, Knuthenborg, Maribo, Denmark, and the Natural History Museum of Utah, United States of America.

Holotype Horizon—EMK 0012 was recovered from lower Judith River Formation horizons that correlate to the McClelland Ferry Member to the south, and to the lower part of the Oldman Formation of southern Alberta, 3.6 km to the north. EMK 0012 was located 11.4 m above the Marker A Coal equivalent to the Taber Coal Zone (at the top of the Foremost Formation) and laterally equivalent to the Herronton Sandstone Zone near the base of the Oldman Formation 3.6 km to the north in Alberta.

Age—High-precision U–Pb analyses of zircons by the CA-ID-TIMS method in a bentonite within the Marker A Coal (KC061517-1; 11.4 m below the Loki Quarry) date to 78.549 ± 0.024 Ma (Ramezani et al., 2022). Using the median Bayesian age model developed by Ramezani et al. (2022) for the stratigraphic position of the Loki Quarry recovers a date of roughly 78.1 Ma, with a lower modeled bound of 78.38 Ma and an upper modeled bound of 77.18 Ma.

  

Mark A. Loewen​​, Joseph J. W. Sertich​, Scott Sampson, Jingmai K. O’Connor, Savhannah Carpenter, Brock Sisson, Anna Øhlenschlæger, Andrew A. Farke, Peter J. Makovicky, Nick Longrich and David C. Evans. 2024. Lokiceratops rangiformis gen. et sp. nov. (Ceratopsidae: Centrosaurinae) from the Campanian Judith River Formation of Montana reveals Rapid Regional Radiations and Extreme Endemism within centrosaurine dinosaurs. PeerJ. 12:e17224. DOI: 10.7717/peerj.17224

[Ornithology • 2024] Sakesphoroides niedeguidonae • A New Antshrike (Aves: Thamnophilidae) endemic to the Caatinga and the Role of Climate Oscillations and Drainage Shift in Shaping Cryptic Diversity of Neotropical Seasonal Dry Forests

[Pattern 1] Sakesphoroides niedeguidonae

Cerqueira, Gonçalves, Quaresma, Silva, Pichorim & Aleixo, 2024

 

[Pattern 2] Sakesphoroides cristatus (Wied, 1831)

DOI: 10.1111/zsc.12672

 

Abstract

The Caatinga is the largest patch of Seasonal Dry Tropical Forest in the Neotropics, located in northeastern Brazil and characterized mainly by deciduous vegetation and extreme rainfall seasonality. It has historically been treated as a biologically impoverished domain, but recent studies uncovered new diversification patterns and several new taxa of frogs, mammals, insects, and fishes. Here we employed a dense sampling regime to evaluate whether the São Francisco River (SFR) would have promoted genetic diversification and fixed phenotypic differences and how Quaternary climatic oscillations shaped distribution and population sizes in a Caatinga endemic species, the Silvery-cheeked Antshrike (Sakesphoroides cristatus). We adopted an integrative approach using multilocus genetic, plumage, vocal data, and ecological niche modelling (ENM) to characterize evolutionary units and niche suitability in past scenarios. We recovered strong genetic structure across the SFR that was congruent with plumage and vocal variation, revealing a yet undescribed species named herein as Sakesphoroides niedeguidonae, sp. nov.. The splitting time estimated between the newly described species and S. cristatus is consistent with the establishment of the modern course of SFR, with a more recent course shift apparently promoting the secondary contact between the two species in the Raso da Catarina region. After their split, both species experienced increases in population sizes and range sizes at similar times during the Last Glacial Maximum. We expect other Caatinga avian endemic lineages to show similar patterns of genetic differentiation across the SFR that were enhanced by Quaternary climatic oscillations.

Geographic distribution of diagnostic plumage characters in Sakesphoroides cristatus females. Green and blue circles represent diagnostic patterns numbered 1 and 2, respectively, recovered from plumage analyses using study skins and digital photographs (see text for details). The dark-blue line represents the modern course of the São Francisco River (SFR), with the red dashed lines representing the estimated position of abandoned meanders of a Late Pleistocene paleocourse of the SFR. The colour gradient represents altitudinal variation.

Credit photos: Rocílio Ribeiro Rocha (pattern 1) and Oberdan Nunes (pattern 2).

...

Once we defined S. cristatus as the applicable name for clade 2 and no taxon name is available for clade 1 birds, herein we describe the latter group as a new species:

Sakesphoroides niedeguidonae, sp. nov. Cerqueira, Gonçalves, Quaresma, Silva, Pichorim & Aleixo

Northern Silvery-cheeked Antshrike (English).

Choca-do-nordeste-de-cauda-barrada (Portuguese).

 Diagnosis: 

Morphology: The new species is assigned to the genus Sakesphoroides based on its morphological diagnostic characters as described by Grantsau (2010), and its sister relationship to Sakesphoroides cristatus.

Males of Sakesphoroides niedeguidonae are similar in plumage to Sakesphoroides cristatus, but females differ from the former by distinct crown, back, and tail colours, (Table 1). Sakesphoroides niedeguidonae has an overall lighter (Amber) colour rather than Chestnut as S. cristatus. The back is olive brown in S. niedeguidonae, whereas that of S. cristatus is Cinnamon-Brown. The overall tail colour in S. niedeguidonae is darker than in S. cristatus, with the most conspicuous difference being the black and white barring, replaced in S. cristatus only by discreet dull brown and rufous bars and complete absence of white barring (Figure S1).

Voice: The loudsong of S. niedeguidonae is slightly similar in general pattern to that of S. cristatus, but differs conspicuously by the shape of the first notes. While the loudsong of S. niedeguidonae has initial notes with an ascending–descending pattern of frequency modulation, looking visually like an inverted ‘U’ letter on sound spectrograms, that of S. cristatus has initial ascending notes reaching quickly a high frequency (~2300 Hz) and then descending to the maximum amplitude and continuing to descend further to a lower frequency (~580 Hz), which confers to it a sigmoid shape on spectrograms (Figure 2). Additionally, the loudsong of S. niedeguidonae differs from that of S. cristatus by a significantly greater number of notes, longer overall duration, and slower pace in total song (see Table 3). Female recordings present noticeable higher pitched songs than males (ML579640291; Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds, Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithaca).

Etymology: 

It is our pleasure to name this species in honour of Niède Guidon, a Brazilian archaeologist who in 1970's explored the largest and oldest concentration of prehistoric sites in the Americas. Niède's efforts helped to create the Serra da Capivara National Park in Piauí state, where her research found evidence of artefacts that have provoked a re-evaluation of the traditional theories about human settlement in the Americas. Moreover, she is a symbol of power and persistence in preserving the Caatinga environment not just for archaeological purposes but also considering biodiversity and local human communities, highlighting the Caatinga as a singular place in the world, which has inspired us every day.

The English name (Northern Silvery-cheeked Antshrike) is a reference to its range in the Caatinga domain and the sister taxon S. cristatus (now called Southern Silvery-cheeked Antshrike). The Portuguese name (Choca-do-nordeste-de-cauda-barrada) highlights the main plumage feature in females distinguishing the new species from S. cristatus (Choca-do-nordeste in Portuguese). Both names maintain in its composition the name used in S. cristatus for an easy reference to their close phylogenetic relationship.

Pablo Cerqueira, Gabriela R. Gonçalves, Tânia F. Quaresma, Marcelo Silva, Mauro Pichorim and Alexandre Aleixo. 2024. A New Antshrike (Aves: Thamnophilidae) endemic to the Caatinga and the Role of Climate Oscillations and Drainage Shift in Shaping Cryptic Diversity of Neotropical Seasonal Dry Forests. Zoologica Scripta. DOI: 10.1111/zsc.12672

Nova espécie de ave da Caatinga é descoberta e tem origem em variações históricas do São Francisco

https://abori.com.br/ambiente/aves-da-caatinga-mudancas-climaticas-nova-especie/