Unexpected High Genetic Diversity at the Extreme Northern Geographic Limit of Taurulus bubalis (Euphrasen, 1786)

The longspined bullhead (Taurulus bubalis, Euphrasen 1786) belongs to the family Cottidae and is a rocky shore species that inhabits the intertidal zones of the Eastern Atlantic since Iceland, southward to Portugal and also the North Sea and Baltic, northward to the Gulf of Finland, with some occurrences in the northern Mediterranean coasts eastward to the Gulf of Genoa. We analysed the phylogeographic patterns of this species using mitochondrial and nuclear markers in populations throughout most of its distributional range in west Europe. We found that T. bubalis has a relatively shallow genealogy with some differentiation between Atlantic and North Sea. Genetic diversity was homogeneous across all populations studied. The possibility of a glacial refugium near the North Sea is discussed. In many, but not all, marine temperate organisms, patterns of diversity are similar across the species range. If this phenomenon proves to be most common in cold adapted species, it may reflect the availability of glacial refugia not far from their present-day northern limits.     

The distribution of brackish water Calanoida (Copepoda) along the coasts of Brazil

The distribution of 18 species of Calanoida Copepoda found in the estuaries of the Brazilian coast is analyzed. A slight tendency of a latitudinal decrease in diversity, from North to South is found. Salinity ranges from the different species are discussed and in some cases interspecific vicariance patterns are found. Two basic types of estuaries of the Brazilian coast are characterized on the basis of environmental parameters and population dynamics.     

Observations on the morphology of some North American nemertines with consequent taxonomic changes and a reassessment of the architectonics of the phylum

A majority of the nemertine species from the western North Atlantic were originally described from life in the nineteenth century. Many of these were established by A. E. Verrill who had ‘an eye for species’ no matter which phylum he was working with, and thus when living nemertines which he described are encountered, they can usually be recognized. The morphology of most of these species has never been reported; some may prove to be species described earlier from the eastern North Atlantic. Morphological observations on the nemertine species from the North East coast of the Pacific are inadequate and have prevented satisfactory comparison with species from Japan and eastern Russia. The morphology of some species collected in the Gulf of Maine and from Cape Cod, as well as a re-examination of some of the slides of type specimens of species from the west coast of North America, indicates that their generic placement must be re-examined. The architectonic plan of the heteronemertines postulated over 100 years ago can not be substantiated and is redescribed. Three new heteronemertean genera are described: Tenuilineus gen.n. Parvicirrus gen.n., Tarrhomyos gen.n.     

Chloroplast phylogenomics of the New World grape species (Vitis,Vitaceae)

Vitis L. (the grape genus) is the economically most important fruit crop, as the source of grapes and wine. Phylogenetic relationships within the genus have been highly controversial. Herein, we employ sequence data from whole plastomes to attempt to enhance Vitis phylogenetic resolution. The results support the New World Vitis subgenus Vitis as monophyletic. Within the clade, V. californica is sister to the remaining New World Vitis subgenus Vitis. Furthermore, within subgenus Vitis, a Eurasian clade is robustly supported and is sister to the New World clade. The clade of Vitis vinifera ssp. vinifera and V. vinifera ssp. sylvestris is sister to the core Asian clade of Vitis. Several widespread species in North America are found to be non‐monophyletic in the plastome tree, for example, the broadly defined Vitis cinerea and V. aestivalis each needs to be split into several species. The non‐monophyly of some species may also be due to common occurrences of hybridizations in North American Vitis. The classification of North American Vitis by Munson into nine series is discussed based on the phylogenetic results. Analyses of divergence times and lineage diversification support a rapid radiation of Vitis in North America beginning in the Neogene.     

Flavonoid distribution patterns in Leucanthemum and related species from North Africa

Flavonoid data is reported for 16 species including eight species of Leucanthemum from North Africa, four from Europe and related species in the Chrysanthemum-Leucanthemum complex. Flavonols, especially quercetin, isorhaamnetin, kaempferol, patuletin and spinacetin, are predominant in the North African species. Flavones, which are common in Leucanthemum species in Europe, are of very rare occurrence in the North African species. The relationship of the species based on the distribution of flavonoid glycosides and aglycones from the ray florets is discussed.     

哈拉哈河上游的鱼类区系和资源现状

哈拉哈河上游的鱼类采集到１４种和亚种,分水于４目６科,其中鲤科８种,占５７．１％。区系组成分归５个区系类群,其中属于全北区的北方山地,北方平原和北极淡水类群鱼类有１０种,占７１．４％,这与该河系具有适于冷水性鱼类栖存的生态条件密切相关。     

OBSERVATIONS ON NITELLA ACUMINATA FROM SOUTHWESTERN UNITED STATES AND NORTHERN MEXICO1

Morphological and cytological analyses of several specimens of the genus Nitella suggest that species described as N. stellaris, N. lindheimeri, N. gollmeriana, and N. mexicana and some forms reported as N. acuminata var. subglomerata represent a single taxon in the N. acuminata species group. Cytological examination revealed a chromosome number of n = 9 in the specimens from the study area but N. acuminata is known to display n = 18 chromosomes in other regions of North America and on oilier continents. Hypotheses regarding the origin and significance of this polyploidy are discussed. The habitats supporting N. acuminata (n = 9) in the study area show some features which are in contrast to those of habitats supporting the species (n = 18) in other areas of North America.     

An investigation of the spatial pattern of zooplankton using the Longhurst-Hardy plankton recorder

The spatial pattern of planktonic ostracods and copepods has been studied using Longhurst-Hardy plankton recorder tows at a depth of 550 m in the North Atlantic. The majority of the more abundant animals were found to be overdispersed. A three parameter contagious distribution described by Skellam was used to fit the observed spatial patterns. The main conclusions are that the patch size did not vary greatly between species and that denser populations were the result of an increase in centres of aggregations rather than the size of the patch or number of animals per patch. Although some species did show broad changes in abundance correlated with temperature, this could not explain the local abundance changes associated with the patches. Other possible causes of the patchiness are discussed.     

Cetaceans in British waters

Most information on the distribution, movements and ecology of cetaceans in the N.E. Atlantic have come from whale catches mainly in the early part of this century, and from strandings records collected by the British Museum (Nat. Hist.). With the formation of the Cetacean Group in 1973, a scheme for recording live cetaceans at sea was started. This paper summarizes the results of about two thousand sightings involving nearly 25,000 individual animals between the years 1958– 1978 (but mainly from the last 10 years), and relates them to existing information collected from other sources. Difficulties of identification and potential sources of bias are discussed. Most large cetaceans are present in British waters as part of a latitudinal feeding migration whereas smaller species may be present in the N.E. Atlantic throughout the year with movements being mainly of an offshore-inshore nature. Some species are clearly very rare probably as a result of over-exploitation in the last century and early part of this century. These include the Right whale, Blue whale and probably Humpback whale. Other species are rarely recorded because their usual range is some distance from British waters. These include narwhal and White whale (from Arctic waters), Pygmy sperm whale, smaller beaked whales and Euphrosyne dolphin (from warm temperate to tropical waters). The Harbour porpoise is by far the most common and widespread species in British waters, occurring mainly in inshore waters, although it has apparently declined in certain regions (e.g. Southern North Sea, English Channel, Irish Sea) in recent years probably as a result of pollution, disturbance and/or over-exploitation of food resources. Bottle-nosed and Risso's dolphins are also widely distributed close to the coast, although the latter is restricted to the west and south coasts and the former is associated particularly with some large estuaries. Common dolphins are relatively abundant and widespread, and are more pelagic than the previous three species. White-sided dolphins have a mainly pelagic distribution centred on the Northern North Sea whilst the White-sided dolphin has a wider distribution which includes all the western seaboard. Of larger cetaceans, the Killer whale is relatively common particularly on the west coasts and the Pilot whale is locally and seasonally abundant at the north and south ends of Britain and Ireland where they probably represent distinct populations. The Bottlenose whale, Minke, Fin and Sei whales are confined to the west and north coasts, all but the Minke whale having a primarily pelagic distribution. Sperm whales although increasingly commonly stranded on British coasts, are rarely sighted in inshore waters. The west coast of Britain and Ireland are the most important regions for cetaceans whereas the Southern North Sea has the smallest number although in previous decades numbers were probably higher. Most cetacean species occur mainly in the summer months, particularly August and September, although some species, e.g. White-sided Dolphin, Pilot whale and Minke whale show peaks later in the year. A number of species show secondary spring peaks, e.g. Bottle-nosed and Common dolphins, Risso's dolphins, and Pilot whales. Present evidence suggests that only the large whales exhibit definite latitudinal migrations, all other species being resident at high latitudes although they may show offshore-inshore or possibly small latitudinal movements. Many of the movements indicated from the present analysis can be linked to the seasonal changes in food availability and to the timing and geographical location of breeding, and these are described in detail. Many concentrations of a particular cetacean species occur regularly in the same area year after year and these may often be related to spawning concentrations of a particular fish species. Variations in herd size are noted between species and within species at different times of the year. These are related to aggregations associated with feeding, breeding, and long-distance movements winch will vary according to the biology and ecology of different cetacean species.     

Can we consider the stocks of alfonsinos Beryx splendens and Beryx decadactylus from the Azores a discrete fishery management unit?

This paper summarises the detailed information on catch, fork length, weight, sex and maturity of alfonsinos Beryx splendens and Beryx decadactylus collected from targeted surveys in Azores waters, complemented by fishery data, over the past c. 20 years. To date, it was not possible to define if the Azorean component of the population can be considered as a discrete local management unit. The reason for this is the lack of available information for these resources covering the entire spatial distribution of the species in the North Atlantic Ocean. Additionally, there are some conflicts between the different genetic results available, poor understanding about the species movements and data from the Azores show some discrepancies in aspects of reproduction. Consequently, there is no analytical assessment for this resource and the stock of Beryx spp. is currently managed based on the precautionary approach. Outputs of recent analyses are presented in this study and possible assumptions and strategies for the assessment are discussed.     

中国与北美苔藓植物区系关系的探讨

关于中国和北美间苔藓植物区系关系的研究是在20世纪90年代开始的。研究表明中国和北美苔类和藓类的种间关系疏远,这一事实说明两个大陆在第三纪后期分离后,由于地质、地理、气候等因素的差异致使苔藓植物区系成分也产生明显分异。虽然它们在科、属方面差异较小,但两个大陆已各自形成地区特有的苔类和藓类的属。已知的中国特有及东亚特有的苔类属有5个,藓类属有22个;而已知北美地区特有的苔类属有4个、藓类属有5个。北美东部和西部形成于不同地质时期,在苔藓植物方面与中国共同分布的科、属和种存在一定差异。从神农架藓类植物研究表明,从共同分布的种来看,北美东部与中国比北美西部与中国的相似性系数高约6％。从两地区间苔类和藓类植物的雌雄同株或雌雄异株及孢子直径大小而论,这两个因素似乎并不是影响苔藓植物在两大地区间分布的主要原因,但对苔藓植物的分布仍然十分重要。本文作者认为结合中国和北美的地史、地理条件及苔藓植物自身的特点,可以认为白令海峡不是阻碍中国和北美苔藓植物交流的绝对自然屏障;中国和北美苔藓植物区系关系目前的状况,是长期多次交流融合和分异的结果。     

七筋姑属种皮形态特征的研究

用扫描电镜对七筋姑属北美全部４个种和东亚七筋姑不同产地的１１个居群进行了种皮微形态特征的观察和研究,结果表明,北美４种中,Ｃｌｉｎｔｏｎｉａ ｕｍｂｅｌｌｕｌａｔａ以其种皮近于平滑、表面分布有大小不等的凹坑而不同于其它各种具条纹状或网穴状的表皮纹饰。北美西部的２个种Ｃ．ｕｎｉｆｌｏｒａ和Ｃ．ａｎｄｒｅｗｓｉａｎａ种皮纹饰相似,关系密切;而北美东部的Ｃ．ｂｏｒｅａｌｉｓ与东亚种Ｃ．ｕｄｅｎｓｉｓ长白     

杭州西湖风景区外来杂草的调查研究

通过野外调查和文献资料的整理分析,确定杭州西湖风景区有外来杂草56种,隶属于21科44属。对西湖风景区外来杂草的种类组成、来源、分布特点进行分析,结果表明:(1)种类较多的科是菊科、苋科、豆科;(2)原产地以来源于北美洲的最多;(3)容易入侵地表裸露较大的生境;(4)发生具有季节差异;(5)种类、分布上呈动态变化。并就外来杂草近二十至三十年的变化进行了讨论。     

Patterns in the geographic ranges of the world's woodpeckers

We used data on the world's woodpeckers to test for patterns in the geographic distributions of a single group of closely related species. The frequency distribution of woodpecker geographic range sizes is approximately lognormal. Most variation in range sizes is explained by differences between species within genera; that is, range size seems to be an evolutionarily labile trait. The largest woodpecker ranges are found in Eurasia, both when absolute differences are compared and when range size is measured as a proportion of estimated available habitat. Notably, there is a negative relationship between the mean range sizes attained by species in a genus or tribe in South America and the mean ranges attained by species in the same tribe or genus in North America. Large-bodied species tend to be more widely distributed and to live at higher latitudes, but both tendencies disappear if the taxonomic relatedness of species is controlled for. Species living at high latitudes also tend to be more widely distributed. This relationship seems largely due to the effect of North American woodpeckers, which show it even when the taxonomic relatedness of species is controlled. Small continents generally have more woodpecker species than do large ones. Woodpecker geographic range sizes are smaller the more woodpecker species inhabit an area. Species show less overlap in their geographic ranges with species of similar than with species of dissimilar body size. The implications of these results for our understanding of patterns in geographic range sizes are discussed.     

北京湿地维管植物区系研究

记录了分布于北京地区的典型湿地维管植物266种7变种1变型,共274个分类群,隶属于58科144属。从种一级的水平对这274个分类群进行分析,可分为14个分布区类型,其中温带性质的种187种,为整个区系成分的主体,另有世界广布种45种,热带性质的种30种,中国特有种12种。就北京湿地维管植物区系特征而言,其种类组成与华北其他地区湿地存在着相似性,温带成分占优势地位,并存在一些古老孑遗种类及特有种。此外,还对区系成分中的受危种和外来种进行了讨论。     

Biogeographical variation in brown algal polyphenolics and other secondary metabolites: comparison between temperate Australasia and North America

Summary Polyphloroglucinol phenolics are the best known example of chemical deterrents against herbivores in temperate marine systems. However, most of the research on these compounds has been done in North America, where phenolic levels in algae are often low. I show here that algae in the Orders Fucales and Laminariales in temperate Australia and New Zealand typically contain very high levels of polyphenolics-much higher than species in these orders in North America. The median value for the distribution of mean phenolic levels for 25 North American species is 1.33% total phenolics (dry wt.); for 37 Australasian species, the median is 6.20%. Significant spatial, temporal, and intraplant variation in phenolic content occurs in a number of species in Australasia, but this does not significantly alter my major conclusion. Phenolic levels in drift algae (an important food source for some herbivores) detached for up to two weeks are also not significantly different from living, attached plants. Many species in the Fucales in Australasia also contain non-polyphenolic secondary metabolites that are not found in North American species. Thus herbivores in Australasia face greater amounts, and a greater range,of putative chemical defenses in brown algae than do herbivores in similar systems in North America. Any general theory for the evolution of marine plant/herbivore interactions must take into account such broad-scale biogeographical (and taxonomic) patterns.     

A phylogeny of Delphinieae (Ranunculaceae) shows that Aconitum is nested within Delphinium and that Late Miocene transitions to long life cycles in the Himalayas and Southwest China coincide with bursts in diversification

The tribe Delphinieae (Ranunculaceae) comprises two species-rich genera, Aconitum and Delphinium, the latter including Consolida and Aconitella. The 650-700 species are distributed in Eurasia and North America; three species occur on tropical African mountains. Maximum likelihood analyses of 2088 aligned nucleotides of plastid and nuclear sequences obtained from up to 185 species of Delphinieae from throughout the geographic range (plus relevant outgroups) show that three short-lived (facultative annual or biennial) Mediterranean species belonging to Delphinium subgenus Staphisagria are the sister clade to all other Delphinieae, implying that Staphisagria needs to be raised to genus status if Delphinium and Aconitum are to become mutually monophyletic. Molecular clock dating suggests an origin of the sampled Delphinieae in the Early Oligocene (c. 32.3 Ma) and expansion to North America of Aconitum and Delphinium around 3.3 and 2.9 Ma ago, respectively; the East African Mts. were reached by long-distance dispersal some 2.4 Ma ago, coincident with the major uplift of the East African Rift system. The ancestral growth form of the Delphinieae could not be reconstructed, but Late Miocene bursts in diversification rates in the Himalayan and southwestern Chinese clades of Aconitum and Delphinium appear to be associated with transitions from short-lived to long-lived life histories.