Five Recent Mya species, including three new species and their fossil connections

Three new species of Mya Linné are described from Greenland. Mya eideri sp. nov. is figured and compared with boreal and fossil species with which it has been confused, and the known distribution of the species is indicated. The validity in Recent faunas of the fossil species M. pseudoarenaria and M. uddevallensis is discussed; two new Recent species, M. neoovata sp. nov. and M. neouddevallensis sp. nov., from Ikka Fjord, southwest Greenland, and Scoresbysund, East Greenland, respectively, are described for Recent material of the comparable two fossil taxa. Accepted: 2 May 1999     

Fissidens monguilloni Thér. in England

Abstract

The 1996 Chagos Expedition provided an opportunity to study the archipelago's bryophyte flora: 25 of the 55 islands were ecologically investigated, some in more detail than others, and lists and representative collections of mosses, hepatics and other cryptogamic plants were assembled for many of them. Although the islands have a low biodiversity for most of these groups, as would be expected in terms of their relatively young age, remoteness and small terrestrial surface areas, those organisms that are present are often found in abundance and play significant ecological roles. Where the status of taxa on islands has been determined, there appears to be a good correlation between bryophyte biodiversity and island size. Epiphytic bryophytes were not host specific and no epiphyllous species was observed. Biogeographic details are provided, where possible, for the 19 taxa recorded, of which four are new to the Indian Ocean and seven are new to the Chagos Archipelago. A new taxon, Cololejeunea planissima var. chagosensis Pócs var. nov. is described, and notes and illustrations of a probably new Lejeunea species are provided.     

The terrestrial arthropod fauna of the Byers Peninsula,Livingston Island,South Shetland Islands

We report the first detailed study of the terrestrial invertebrate fauna of the Byers Peninsula SSSI, Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands. Fourteen micro-arthropod taxa (10 Acari, four Collembola) and two Diptera are recorded, including the first record of the mite Edwardzetes dentifer from the maritime Antarctic. The first record of the midge Belgica antarctica from neighbouring Snow Island is also given. Population composition and density were described in samples from a wide range of terrestrial and freshwater habitats. There was no strong relationship between habitat and microarthropod species occurrence, although comparison of completely vegetated and more stony sites revealed greater population densities at the vegetated sites, and different species proportions at each. Some individual samples contained a wide range of species with none achieving numerical dominance, whilst others from superficially similar sites were dominated by one species. Dipterans were limited to a small number of lakes, streams and seepage areas, where they were sometimes abundant. Population density data and species occurrence are compared with previously published studies from the maritime Antarctic and elsewhere.     

New records of Acari from the sub-Antarctic Prince Edward Islands

Sixty species of Acari are recorded from the sub-Antarctic Marion and Prince Edward Islands (the Prince Edward archipelago). Twenty of the 45 species collected on recent expeditions are new and currently undescribed. Other new taxa include a family of Mesostigmata, four new genera, and the first sub-Antarctic records of Cillibidae (Mesostigmata) and Eryngiopus (Prostigmata). Fifteen of the 31 species previously reported from the islands are confirmed, although eight of the previous accounts remain doubtful. The fauna, which shows a distinction between the shoreline and terrestrial components, comprises endemic, South Indian Ocean Province and sub-Antarctic mite species. Accepted: 18 July 1998     

Forgotten in the ocean: systematics,biogeography and evolution of the Trachylepis skinks of the Socotra Archipelago

Sindaco, R., Metallinou, M., Pupin, F., Fasola, M. & Carranza, S. (2012). Forgotten in the ocean: systematics, biogeography and evolution of the Trachylepis skinks of the Socotra Archipelago. —Zoologica Scripta, 41, 346–362. The Socotra Archipelago, in the north‐west Indian Ocean, is considered to be one of the most remote and most biodiversity rich and distinct islands in the world. Often referred to as the ‘Galapagos of the Indian Ocean’, it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Natural site in 2008. Despite having a very rich and bizarre fauna and flora with a high level of endemicity at both species and generic levels, the taxonomy of most of the groups is still not clear, and their origin and evolution remain unknown. Reptiles constitute the most relevant vertebrate fauna of the Socotra Archipelago, with 90% of the 30 species and 45% of the 12 genera being found nowhere else in the world. The skinks of the endemic species Trachylepis socotrana are the only reptile species in the Archipelago distributed across all four islands (Socotra, Darsa, Samha and Abd Al Kuri). Although the species is very well known from Socotra Island, it was not discovered on Samha until 1999 and on Darsa until 2000, whereas only a few citations and one single Museum specimen exist for the population from Abd Al Kuri. To clarify the systematics, biogeography and evolution of Trachylepis socotrana, we assembled a dataset for Mabuya sensu lato including 904 base pairs (bp) of sequence (392 bp from the 12S and 512 from the 16S rRNA mitochondrial genes) for 115 individuals, including specimens of T. socotrana from all four island populations, numerous representatives of the genus Trachylepis from the Middle East, Africa and Madagascar, plus some individuals from each of the other three genera of Mabuya sensu lato (Chioninia, Eutropis and Mabuya). The results of the phylogenetic analyses indicate that, contrary to what was previously thought, members of the genus Trachylepis have colonized the Socotra Archipelago in two independent events, with the first giving rise to the populations from Socotra, Samha and Darsa and the second to the Trachylepis from Abd Al Kuri Island. According to the calibrations, both colonization events occurred within the last fourteen million years, when the Socotra Archipelago had already drifted away from Arabia, thus ruling out vicariance. Both morphological and genetic data show that the Trachylepis from Abd Al Kuri is a distinct taxon, which is herein described as a new species belonging to the T. brevicollis species complex. On the basis of this evidence, the terrestrial herpetofauna from Abd Al Kuri is composed exclusively of endemic species (one of which, the gecko Pristurus abdelkuri, was introduced into some parts of Socotra).     

Rotifera from Western Australian wetlands with descriptions of two new species

The rotifer fauna of 100 fresh and saline wetlands of southwest Western Australia is documented. A systematic list of 83 recorded taxa is given, with eleven new records for the continent and two new species (Brachionus pinneenaus n. sp. and Lecane boorali n. sp.) described and figured. Species assemblages are distinct from those of eastern Australia, with predominant taxa halophilous or indicative of ephemeral waters. Evolutionary and biogeographical relationships of the Western Australian rotifers are considered.     

Relict distribution of Microhyla (Amphibia: Microhylidae) in the Ryukyu Archipelago: High diversity in East Asia maintained by insularization

The Ryukyu Archipelago, located at the southwestern part of Japan, is known as a group of continental islands and harbours many endemic taxa, supposedly reflecting its fairly long isolation from the Eurasian continent, Taiwan and the Japanese main islands. Microhyla okinavensis has been known as an endemic member of the terrestrial fauna of this archipelago. Molecular phylogenetic analyses using samples from nearly all island populations of the species and representative samples of other east Asian congeneric species revealed that M. okinavensis consists of four distinct subclades, of which the Amami, Okinawa and Miyako subclades, though exhibiting distinct genetic differentiations from each other, formed a monophyletic group (clade A). The remaining Yaeyama subclade was exclusively sister to M. mixtura from inland China, forming another monophyletic group (clade B), rendering M. okinavensis in the current definition paraphyletic. These results, as well as estimated dates of divergence from related taxa, indicate that M. okinavensis actually includes more than one distinct species. The results indicate that M. okinavensis and M. mixtura are relict species with disjunct distributions which had been most probably caused by invasion of M. fissipes in intervening areas.     

Establishing a community‐wide DNA barcode library as a new tool for arctic research

DNA sequences offer powerful tools for describing the members and interactions of natural communities. In this study, we establish the to‐date most comprehensive library of DNA barcodes for a terrestrial site, including all known macroscopic animals and vascular plants of an intensively studied area of the High Arctic, the Zackenberg Valley in Northeast Greenland. To demonstrate its utility, we apply the library to identify nearly 20 000 arthropod individuals from two Malaise traps, each operated for two summers. Drawing on this material, we estimate the coverage of previous morphology‐based species inventories, derive a snapshot of faunal turnover in space and time and describe the abundance and phenology of species in the rapidly changing arctic environment. Overall, 403 terrestrial animal and 160 vascular plant species were recorded by morphology‐based techniques. DNA barcodes (CO1) offered high resolution in discriminating among the local animal taxa, with 92% of morphologically distinguishable taxa assigned to unique Barcode Index Numbers (BINs) and 93% to monophyletic clusters. For vascular plants, resolution was lower, with 54% of species forming monophyletic clusters based on barcode regions rbcLa and ITS2. Malaise catches revealed 122 BINs not detected by previous sampling and DNA barcoding. The insect community was dominated by a few highly abundant taxa. Even closely related taxa differed in phenology, emphasizing the need for species‐level resolution when describing ongoing shifts in arctic communities and ecosystems. The DNA barcode library now established for Zackenberg offers new scope for such explorations, and for the detailed dissection of interspecific interactions throughout the community.     

Biodiversity of Rotifera in some tropical floodplain lakes of the Brahmaputra river basin,Assam (N.E. India)

One hundred and sixteen species of Rotifera are recorded from seven floodplain lakes of the Brahmaputra basin (northeastern India), the highest rotifer biodiversity recorded from these biotopes in the Indian subcontinent to date. The Australasian Brachionus dichotomus reductus and Lecane batillifer; the Oriental Keratella edmondsoni, Lecane blachei and L. acanthinula; the Palaeotropical Lecane braumi, L. lateralis, L. unguitata, Trichocerca tropis, Testudinella greeni and T. brevicaudata; the Pantropical Brachionus donneri and a rather widely distributed Horaella brehmi represent taxa of biogeographical interest. Three species are new additions to the Indian rotifer fauna and eight are new to the N.E. region. Lecanidae > Brachionidae = Colurellidae > Trichocercidae > Testudinellidae comprise the largest fraction (68.0%) of the examined fauna. Comments are made on the general nature and composition of the rotifer taxocoenosis as well as on acidophilic elements, ecology of various taxa and on the species richness of different lakes.     

The lichen generaCatapyrenium andPlacidiopsis in Greenland

Seven species ofCatapyrenium and one ofPlacidiopsis are reported from Greenland. Five taxa, viz.Catapyrenium michelii, C. norvegicum, C. squamulosum, C. waltheri andPlacidiopsis pseudocinerea are new to the area. Taxonomy, distribution and ecology are briefly discussed. A key to species and distribution maps are presented.Catapyrenium norvegicum is described as new.     

Description of three liocranid spider species from Korea (Araneae: Liocranidae)

Three liocranid spider species are described with illustrations: a new species, Agroeca bonghwaensis n. sp. and two species new to Korean spider fauna, Agroeca montana Hayashi, 1986 and Scotina palliardii (Koch, 1881). The occurrence of the genus Scotina Menge, 1873 is also recorded from Korea for the first time.     

A review of Polynesian Carposina Herrich‐Schäffer (Lepidoptera: Carposinidae), with descriptions of four new species

Hawaiian Carposina represent over 17% of the known world fauna of Carposinidae. In contrast, only two species are known for all of French Polynesia in the South Pacific. Here we describe four new species: two from the Hawaiian Islands, C arposina urbanae sp. nov. and C . gagneorum sp. nov. , and two from the Society Islands, C . longignathosa sp. nov. and C . brevinotata sp. nov. We further recognize another new Hawaiian species too worn to describe. Additionally, we present the first phylogeny for Polynesian Carposina, including 19 taxa, using one mitochondrial and two nuclear gene regions. The Hawaiian Carposina sampled thus far form a monophyletic clade. Lastly, we provide a framework to better understand the diversification and phylogeography of this group, and provide a summary of currently known host plant associations. Diversification appears to have resulted from interplay between host switching and geographic isolation across the Hawaiian Archipelago.     

Testate amoebae communities from aquatic habitats in the Arctic

Summary Forty taxa of testate amoebae were found in 15 aquatic samples collected in East Greenland (Angmasssalik Region), Jan Mayen and N.W. Spitsbergen. The number of species per sample is rather small, and the contribution of strictly aquatic species to the fauna is limited. A geographical shift in the importance of some genera can be demonstrated. Centropyxis aerophila and Paraquadrula irregularis are two of the most frequent species. The first-named is characteristic for acidoligotrophic waters, while the latter belongs to an alkaline-mesotrophic community. A third community is named after the commonest species, Trinema lineare. It seems to prefer a somewhat intermediate type of water.     

Recent and long-term acidification of Upper Wallface Pond (N.Y.) as indicated by mallomonadacean microfossils

The postglacial distribution of mallomonadacean scales is described from Upper Wallface Pond, a small, acidic lake in the High Peaks Region of the Adirondack Mountains. Similar to studies in other lake regions, Mallomonadaceae were present at only very low numbers during the pond's early postglacial history, but then populations developed rapidly about 11 000 B.P. The generalist Mallomonas crassisquama dominated the scale assemblage in all but the most recent sediments. Changes in species composition and abundance that occurred prior to this century can be related to events occurring in the pond's catchment, such as successions in terrestrial vegetation. The most striking changes in mallomonadacaean distributions occurred over the last 30 years, with the dominance of taxa tolerant of very acid (pH < 5.0) waters. The most likely cause for this recent decline in lakewater pH is acidic precipitation.     

The bivalved arthropods Isoxys and Tuzoia with soft‐part preservation from the Lower Cambrian Emu Bay Shale Lagerstätte (Kangaroo Island,Australia)

Abstract: Abundant material from a new quarry excavated in the lower Cambrian Emu Bay Shale (Kangaroo Island, South Australia) and, particularly, the preservation of soft‐bodied features previously unknown from this Burgess Shale‐type locality, permit the revision of two bivalved arthropod taxa described in the late 1970s, Isoxys communis and Tuzoia australis. The collections have also produced fossils belonging to two new species: Isoxys glaessneri and Tuzoia sp. Among the soft parts preserved in these taxa are stalked eyes, digestive structures and cephalic and trunk appendages, rivalling in quality and quantity those described from better‐known Lagerstätten, notably the lower Cambrian Chengjiang fauna of China and the middle Cambrian Burgess Shale of Canada.     

Late Ordovician brachiopods from eastern North Greenland: equatorial offshore migration of the Red River fauna

Abstract: Late Ordovician rhynchonelliformean brachiopods, typical of the North American Red River fauna, are found sporadically in the Børglum River Formation of the Centrum Sø area, Kronprins Christian Land, eastern North Greenland. The geographical distribution of this characteristic brachiopod fauna is thus extended to the easternmost extremity of the Laurentian craton. The assemblage compares specifically with the Hiscobeccus brachiopod fauna, based on key taxa such as notably Hiscobeccus gigas (Wang, 1949), and indicates a late Katian age for this part of the succession. For the first time, this typically inland, shallow‐water fauna is found associated with genera like Bimuria, suggesting a transitional marginal facies with outer shelf benthos. The current study describes a Hiscobeccus fauna that lived at the seaward edge of its preferred habitat. Furthermore, an unpublished Hiscobeccus fauna, from the Børglum River Formation of Peary Land, central North Greenland, as well as several occurrences from the Kap Jackson and Cape Calhoun formations in various parts of Washington Land, western North Greenland, are described here. These show a distinct shift from older strata containing H. capax (Conrad, 1842) to younger strata exclusively yielding specimens of H. gigas. As H. gigas occurs in the upper part of the Cape Calhoun Formation in Washington Land, it indicates that the upper boundary of the Cape Calhoun Formation is considerably younger than previous estimates, reaching into the uppermost Katian (middle Cautleyan–Rawtheyan). The Cape Calhoun Formation correlates with the upper member of the Børglum River Formation and further demonstrates that the Hiscobeccus fauna was widespread in Laurentian marginal settings of North Greenland. Even though the Hiscobeccus fauna was pan‐continental during the late Katian (Richmondian), it possesses a strong provincial signal during the later Ordovician. The new occurrences indicate that this fauna extended to the north‐eastern margin of the Laurentian Craton. It lived in close association with cosmopolitan faunal elements that may have been the earliest sign of the succeeding invasion of migrants from Baltica that arrived later during the Hirnantian. The offshore migration of this atypical Hiscobeccus fauna likely demonstrates the path of warm‐water currents as the Centrum Sø locality was located at the equator during the Late Ordovician.     

Heterotrophic amoebae,flagellates and heliozoa from Arctic marine waters (North West Territories,Canada and West Greenland)

Summary Thirty eight taxa of heterotrophic protists (amoebae, flagellates and heliozoa) were encountered in cultures established from marine samples from Disko Bay (West Greenland) and Foxe Basin (N.W.T. Canada). Most species are flagellates representing the choanoflagellates, the euglenids, the kinetoplastids, the bicosoecids, the chrysomonads, the pedinellids and a variety of taxa of uncertain affinities (Protista incertae sedis). A new species of thecate choanoflagellate, Salpingoeca intermedia sp. nov., is described, and 4 new types of triangular scales, representing the genus Thaumatomastix Lauterborn, 1899, are presented.     

New hyaenodonta (Mammalia) from the middle Eocene of Myanmar

The middle Eocene Pondaung Formation in Myanmar has yielded a rich mammalian fauna including several Primate taxa. Hyaenodonta are known by the genera Kyawdawia, Yarshea, Orienspterodon, and two other indeterminate taxa. We describe here new material of Kyawdawia, including some morphological details, a new species of the hypercarnivorous genus Propterodon and an indeterminate species, different from those described earlier in Myanmar, and characterized by a reduction of m3 and would belong to a third lineage with the same evolutionary trend as Galecyon and the Limnocyoninae. The hyainailourines (Orienspterodon) and hyaenodontines (Propterodon) are recorded for the first time in Southeast Asia and these subfamilies appeared in quasi the same time in Europe illustrating probably a profound change in the carnivorous fauna among Laurasia.     

AN EARLY CENOZOIC NEOSELACHIAN SHARK FAUNA FROM THE SOUTHWEST PACIFIC

Abstract: An early Cenozoic shark fauna, comprising at least 16 taxa, is described from Paleocene sedimentary rocks on the South Island of New Zealand. Although representing a remote Southern Hemisphere location, the fauna includes forms closely comparable to contemporary species from the Northern Hemisphere, in addition to the new species Chlamydoselachus keyesi and Centroselachus goordi. Comparison with closely related extant species suggests the fauna may be interpreted as a deep water one, typical of the outer continental shelf and upper slope. However, after palaeogeography, sedimentology and mineralogy of the enclosing rock, and the nature of similar faunas from elsewhere are taken into consideration, the fauna is interpreted to have occupied a mid‐shelf environment.