New mesozoic diving beetles (Coleoptera,Dytiscidae) from China

A new subfamily of predaceous diving beetles, Liadytiscinae subfam. nov., including two genera and four species, Liadytiscus gen. nov. (L. cretaceus sp. nov., L. longitibialis sp. nov., and L. latus sp. nov.) and Liadroporus gen. nov. (L. elegans sp. nov.), from the Late Tithonian-Berriasian (Huangbanjigou, Yixian Formation) of China is described. Two new genera, Mesoderus gen. nov. with two species, M. magnus sp. nov. and M. ventralis sp. nov., and Sinoporus gen. nov. with one species, S. lineatus sp. nov., are also described; their position in the system of Dytiscidae remains uncertain. Relationships of the taxa described with Recent and fossil taxa of the same rank and some presumable ecological features of the new taxa are discussed.     

Albertania and Egbenema gen. nov. from Nigeria and the United States,expanding biodiversity in the Oculatellaceae (cyanobacteria)

Knowledge of the tropical terrestrial cyanobacterial flora from the African continent is still limited. Of 31 strains isolated from soil and subaerial samples collected in Lagos State, Nigeria, three were found to be in the Oculatellaceae, including two species in a new genus. Subsequently, isolates from microbial mats in White Sands National Park in New Mexico, United States, and from a rock near the ocean in Puerto Rico, United States, were found to belong to the new genus as well. Cyanobacterial isolates were characterized microscopically, sequenced for the 16S rRNA gene and associated ITS region, and phylogenetically analyzed. Egbenema gen. nov., with three new species, as well as two new species of Albertania were differentiated from all other Oculatellaceae. Both genera belong to a supported clade within the Oculatellaceae that includes Trichotorquatus and Komarkovaea. The two new species of Albertania, A. egbensis and A. latericola, were from the same sample, but were evolutionarily separate based on 16S rRNA gene phylogenies, percent identity below the 98.7% threshold, and ITS rRNA percent dissimilarity >7.0%. Egbenema aeruginosum gen. et sp. nov. was phylogenetically separated from Trichotorquatus and Albertania but was in a clade with other strains belonging to Egbenema. The two Egbenema strains from the United States are here named Egbenema epilithicum sp. nov. and Egbenema gypsiphilum sp. nov. Our results support the hypothesis that further species discoveries of novel cyanobacteria will likely be made in soils and subaerial habitats, as these habitats continue to be studied, both in tropical and temperate biomes.     

Cyanomargarita gen. nov. (Nostocales,Cyanobacteria): convergent evolution resulting in a cryptic genus

Two populations of Rivularia‐like cyanobacteria were isolated from ecologically distinct and biogeographically distant sites. One population was from an unpolluted stream in the Kola Peninsula of Russia, whereas the other was from a wet wall in the Grand Staircase‐Escalante National Monument, a desert park‐land in Utah. Though both were virtually indistinguishable from Rivularia in field and cultured material, they were both phylogenetically distant from Rivularia and the Rivulariaceae based on both 16S rRNA and rbcLX phylogenies. We here name the new cryptic genus Cyanomargarita gen. nov., with type species C. melechinii sp. nov., and additional species C. calcarea sp. nov. We also name a new family for these taxa, the Cyanomargaritaceae.     

New genera and species of Scelionidae (Insecta: Proctotrupoidea) from Rovno amber

Two new genera and three new species of parasitic wasps from the family Scelionidae are described from the Late Eocene Rovno amber: Pseudotelea gracilis Kononova, gen. et sp. nov. (subfamily Scelioninae), Pseudidris striatus Kononova, gen. et sp. nov., and Ceratobaeoides cornutus Kononova, sp. nov. (subfamily Baeinae). The new taxa are compared with representatives of the Recent fauna.     

New bugs of the family Archegocimicidae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera) from the Upper Jurassic of Mongolia

Two new genera and five new species of Archegocimicidae are described from the Upper Jurassic of the Shar-Teg locality in Mongolia: Shartegocimex rasnitsyni, gen. et sp. nov., S. distans, sp. nov., Shartegocorpus paranotalis, gen. et sp. nov., Saldonia formosa, sp. nov., S. insolita, sp. nov.     

Franciscideres gen. nov. – a new,highly aberrant kinorhynch genus from Brazil,with an analysis of its phylogenetic position

A new genus and species of Kinorhyncha, Franciscideres kalenesos gen. et sp. nov., is described from tidal and subtidal sandy habitats in Brazil. The new genus and species is characterized by an extremely flexible trunk without pachycycli that appears perfectly circular in cross-section, segments 1, 2 and 11 consisting of closed rings and 3 to 10 of single, bent plates with midventral articulations, a neck without placids that resembles an additional segment, densely packed scale-like, cuticular hairs, and a terminal segment with a middorsal spine and two sets of lateral terminal spines, but no midterminal spine. Phylogenetic analyses of 18S rRNA of Franciscideres kalenesos gen. et sp. nov. and 47 other kinorhynch ingroup taxa suggest that the new genus is a basal homalorhagid, whereas comparison of morphological characters indicates affinities between the new genus and the peculiar cyclorhagid Cateria.

http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:64E29D97-DE1D-4511-8683-C969DD2EED43     

The lace web spiders (Araneae,Phyxelididae) of Madagascar: phylogeny,biogeography and taxonomy

We briefly review the potential history of Madagascar as either a Darwinian or a Wallacean island, summarize the phylogenetic evidence regarding the biogeography of Madagascar spiders, examine the dispersal history of the Madagascar Phyxelididae, and monograph the family in Madagascar. Molecular phylogenetic analyses for 32 Malagasy phyxelidid exemplars, nine confamilial outgroup taxa, and seven other more distant outgroups are performed for three nuclear markers and one mitochondrial genetic marker (28S, 18S, H3 and COI) utilizing Bayesian, maximum‐likelihood and parsimony methods. These analyses suggest that there are 14 species of Phyxelididae that may be recognized from Madagascar, that these may be divided into three genera, and that the Malagasy phyxelidids form a monophyletic group, probably resulting from a single invasion of the island by an ancestor from Africa. Two new genera, ten new species, and two new combinations are proposed: Manampoka atsimo gen. nov., sp. nov. ; Rahavavy gen. nov. , including R. ida sp. nov. and R. fanivelona (Griswold, 1990) comb. nov. and R. malagasyana (Griswold, 1990) comb. nov. ; and Ambohima andrefana sp. nov. , A. antsinanana sp. nov. , A. avaratra sp. nov. , A. maizina sp. nov. , A. ranohira sp. nov. , A. vato sp. nov. , A. zandry sp. nov. and A. zoky sp. nov. © 2012 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2012, 164 , 728–810.     

Three new anascosporic genera of the Saccharomycotina: Danielozyma gen. nov., Deakozyma gen. nov. and Middelhovenomyces gen. nov

Three new non-ascosporic, ascomycetous yeast genera are proposed based on their isolation from currently described species and genera. Phylogenetic placement of the genera was determined from analysis of nuclear gene sequences for D1/D2 large subunit rRNA, small subunit rRNA, translation elongation factor-1α and RNA polymerase II, subunits B1 and B2. The new taxa are: Deakozyma gen. nov., type species Deakozyma indianensis sp. nov. (type strain NRRL YB-1937, CBS 12903); Danielozyma gen. nov., type species Danielozyma ontarioensis comb. nov. (type strain NRRL YB-1246, CBS 8502); D. litseae comb. nov. (type strain NRRL YB-3246, CBS 8799); Middelhovenomyces gen. nov., type species Middelhovenomyces tepae comb. nov. (type strain NRRL Y-17670, CBS 5115) and M. petrohuensis comb. nov. (type strain NRRL Y-17663, CBS 8173).     

New fossil mantidflies (Insecta: Neuroptera: Mantispidae) from the Mesozoic of north‐eastern China

Abstract:  Three new genera and four new species of the extinct mantidfly subfamily Mesomantispinae (Insecta: Neuroptera: Mantispidae) are described from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation of Liaoning and the Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan Formation of Inner Mongolia: Archaeodrepanicus nuddsi gen. et sp. nov., A. acutus gen. et sp. nov., Sinomesomantispa microdentata gen. et sp. nov., (Yixian Formation) and Clavifemora rotundata gen. et sp. nov. (Jiulongshan Formation). The specimens described herein represent the first Mesozoic mantidfly compression fossils to have body parts preserved, including the specialized raptorial forelegs articulated to the prothorax anteriorly, an autapomorphy of the family. These new taxa further confirm the placement of the subfamily Mesomantispinae within the family Mantispidae; however, the monophyly of Mesomantispinae has not been confirmed, and it is likely that it will prove to be paraphyletic.     

TWO NEW GENERA,FIVE NEW SPECIES AND ONE NEW SUBSPECIES OF FORDINAE (HOMOPTERA: PEMPHIGIDAE) FROM CHINA*

Abstract The present paper describes 2 new genera, viz_:Dimelaphis Zhang, gen. nov and Siciforda Zhang, gen. nov, 5 new species viz: Chaetogeoica ulmidrupa Zhang sp. nov, D. obtusifalcata Zhang, sp. nov., Forda auralenta Zhang et Qiao, sp. nov., F. multicoma Zhang, sp. nov. and S. sexiarticulata Zhang, sp.nov. and 1 new subspecies Paracletus cimiciformis zhanhuanus Zhang, ssp. nov. from China. All type specimens are deposited in the Institute of Zoology, Academia Sinica.     

Molecular phylogeny of the tribe Erotini with description of a new genus from China (Coleoptera: Lycidae)

Erotini is a small tribe of net‐winged beetles known from the northern temperate zone. We investigated relationships and limits of tribes and genera using a molecular phylogeny inferred from rrnL, cox1 and nad5 mtDNA fragments. Lopheros Leconte, 1881 and Pseudaplatopterus Kleine, 1940 were inferred in current molecular analyses as terminal lineages within Erotini. Therefore, we consider Lopherotini Kazantsev, 2012 and Pseudaplatopterina Kazantsev, 2012 as junior synonyms of Erotini Leconte, 1881. The Platycis genus group comprises 19 species representing several genus‐group taxa previously placed in Platycis s. l. Konoplatycis Nakane, 1969 was recovered as a deeply rooted lineage of Erotini and we inferred another independent lineage for which we propose a new genus Sinoplatycis gen. nov. Additionally, we studied the diversity of Platycis s. l. in Asia, found their highest diversity in the temperate forest habitats of Eastern Asia and inferred the paraphyletic character of the subgenus Erotides s. str. Five new species are described from China: Sinoplatycis cardinalis sp. nov. , S. zhani sp. nov. (type species of Sinoplatycis gen. nov. ), Erotides brunnescens sp. nov. , E. pusillus sp. nov. and E. slipinskii sp. nov. The molecular phylogeny shows deep splits of Japanese species with respect to the continental Eurasian fauna and the role of shallow seas and mountain systems in the diversification of the Platycis genus group.     

New mesozoic Ithyceridae beetles (Coleoptera)

A new subfamily, Mongolocarinae subfam. nov. of the family Ithyceridae, from the Middle-Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous of Asia is described. It includes five genera with five species: Palaeocar gen. nov. (with P. princeps sp. nov.), Mongolocar gen. nov. (M. orcinus sp. nov.), Praecar gen. nov. (P. stolidus sp. nov.), Karacar gen. nov. (M. contractus sp. nov.), and Baissacar gen. nov. (B. passarius sp. nov.).     

New click beetles (Coleoptera: Elateridae) from the cretaceous of Russia and Kazakhstan

A new tribe, two new genera, and seven new species of click beetles are described: Pollostelaterini, trib. nov., Pollostelater baissensis, gen. et sp. nov. from the Lower Cretaceous of Transbaikalia (Baisa locality), five new species in the genus Cryptocoelus Dolin et Nel C. sinitshenkovae, sp. nov. (Romanovka locality), C. shcherbakovi, sp. nov., C. baissensis, sp. nov., C. lukashevichae, sp. nov., C. dolini, sp. nov. (all from Baisa locality), and Turonelater giganteus, gen. et sp. nov. from the Turonian of Southern Kazakhstan (Kzyl-Dzhar locality).     

Taxonomy of five species of cyrtophorids (Protozoa: Ciliophora) including consideration of the phylogeny of two new genera

Cyrtophorids are a specialized group of ciliated protozoa with multitudinous morphotypes. In the present work, the morphology and infraciliature of two new and three rarely known species, including two new genera of cyrtophorid ciliates, Heterohartmannula fangi gen. et sp. nov. , Aporthotrochilia pulex (Deroux, 1976) gen. et comb. nov. , Trochilia alveolata sp. nov. , Trochochilodon flavus Deroux, 1976, and Hypocoma acinetarum Collin, 1907, are described. Heterohartmannula gen. nov. is mainly characterized by a combination of features: two circumoral kineties obliquely arranged, podite not surrounded by somatic kineties, and no distinct gap between left and right ciliary field. Aporthotrochilia gen. nov. is diagnosed mainly by: podite present, oral ciliature reduced to two fragments, several kinety fragments positioned on the right posterior of frontoventral kineties and several terminal fragments. Phylogenetic analyses based on the small subunit rRNA (SSU rRNA) gene sequences support the establishment of two new genera and indicate that Heterohartmannula is most closely related to Hartmannula, and Aporthotrochilia is basal to the Cyrtophoria‐Chonotrichia clade. Trochilia alveolata sp. nov. differs from its congeners mainly by having a conspicuous alveolar layer. In addition, detailed live and infraciliature data of Hypocoma acinetarum and Trochochilodon flavus are supplied. © 2012 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2012, 164 , 1–17.