Morphological variation of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Caloneis schumanniana</Emphasis> species complex (Bacillariophyceae) from different environmental conditions in North American streams

The aim of the present study is to test by molecular DNA data a hypothesis concerned to speciation by allopatry occurring in Mimagoniates microlepis, associated to the Serra do Mar mountain chain (Atlantic Rain Forest hotspot) in Southern Brazil. Overall genetic diversity and mean genetic distances were high, demonstrating both good conservation status and genetic differentiation. Neighbor-Joining (NJ) and parsimony analyses, together with population genetic parameters (Φ_ST, N_m, G_ST, and AMOVA), identified two main vicariant genetic/evolutionary stocks dividing the upper Iguaçu River samples from those of the coastal plains. Other well-supported intrinsic monophyletic clades were also identified, suggesting fast and remarkable speciation processes. In addition, the genetic, evolutionary, geographic, and phylogeographic evidences reinforced an occurring species complex. Moreover, these evolutionarily significant units (species complex) seem to be inside four natural biogeographic areas. Thus, the genesis and evolution of the Serra do Mar complex might be associated to diversification processes of M. microlepis. Such a consideration suggests that the areas including the upper Iguaçu River and the coastal plains of the states of São Paulo, Paraná, and Santa Catarina require distinct conservation policies involving one of the global biodiversity hotspots, namely, the Brazilian Atlantic Rain Forest.     

The Serra da Mantiqueira, south-eastern Brazil, as a biogeographical barrier for fishes

Aim  To present a fish fauna survey from rivers draining the south-western region of the Serra da Mantiqueira, and to investigate the effectiveness of that mountain range as a biogeographical barrier isolating the fish faunas of the Paraíba do Sul basin and the upper Paraná river.
Location  Six drainages from the south-western portion of the Serra da Mantiqueira in the region of Campos do Jordão, Brazil, were studied. They included three drainages belonging to the Paraíba do Sul basin (Piracuama, Grande and Buenos), and three belonging to the Sapucaí basin, Rio Paraná system (Sapucaí-Mirim, upper Sapucaí and Santo Antônio).
Methods  The survey was conducted in two sampling trips supplemented by examination of specimens preserved in museum collections. Parsimony analysis of endemicity (PAE) was used to detect the hierarchy of relationships among the six drainages.
Results  A total of 47 species of fishes was recorded in the six drainages. The main watershed divide is an effective barrier between the two basins, with 28 species occurring exclusively in the Paraíba do Sul versant, and 15 occurring exclusively on the slope of the Sapucaí basin. The PAE of 18 species with cladistically informative distributions and unproblematic taxonomic diagnoses produced a single area cladogram, with complete congruence among 14 species.
Main conclusions  The main Mantiqueira watershed divide is an effective biogeographical barrier isolating the fish faunas of the Paraíba do Sul and the Sapucaí basin (upper Paraná system). Previous hypotheses of a past connection between the upper Paraná and the Paraíba do Sul are not supported by extant species distributions in the Serra da Mantiqueira region. Within-basin drainage differentiation, however, is relatively low.     

Rare canopy species in communities within the Atlantic Coastal Forest in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil

Rare species are one of the principal components of the species richness and diversity encountered in Dense Ombrophilous Tropical Forests. This study sought to analyze the rare canopy species within the Atlantic Coastal Forest in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. Six different communities were examined: Dense Ombrophilous alluvial Forest; Dense sub-montane Ombrophilous Forest; Dense Montane Ombrophilous in Serra do Mar and Serra da Mantiqueira. In each area the vegetation was sampled within forty 10 × 25 m plots alternately distributed along a linear transect. All trees with DBH (1.3 m above ground level) ≥5 cm were sampled. The canopy was characterized using the allometric relationship between diameter and height, and included all trees with BDH ≥10 cm and height ≥10 m. A total of 64 families, 206 genera, and 542 species were sampled, of which 297 (54.8%) represented rare species (less than one individual per hectare). The percentage of rare species varied from 34 to 50% in each of the different communities sampled. A majority of these rare trees belonged to the Rosidae, and a smaller proportion to the Dilleniidae. It was concluded that there was no apparent pattern to rarity among families, that rarity was probably derived from a number of processes (such as gap formation), and that a great majority of the rare species sampled were consistently rare. This indicates that the restricted geographic distribution and high degree of endemism of many arboreal taxa justifies the conservation of even small fragments of Atlantic Forest.     

A protocol for the delimitation of areas of endemism and the historical regionalization of the Brazilian Atlantic Rain Forest using harvestmen distribution data

The concept of areas of endemism (AoEs) has rarely been discussed in the literature, even though the use of methods to ascertain them has recently increased. We introduce a grid‐based protocol for delimiting AoEs using alternative criteria for the recognition of AoEs that are empirically tested with harvestmen species distributions in the Atlantic Rain Forest. Our data, comprising 778 records of 123 species, were analysed using parsimony analysis of endemicity and endemicity analysis on four different grids (two cell sizes and two cell placements). Additionally, we employed six qualitative combined criteria for the delimitation of AoEs and applied them to the results of the numerical analyses in a new protocol to objectively delimit AoEs. Twelve AoEs (the most detailed delimitation of the Atlantic Rain Forest so far) were delimited, partially corroborating the main divisions previously established in the literature. The results obtained with the grid‐based methods were contradictory and were plagued by artefacts, probably due to the existence of different endemism patterns in one cell or to a biogeographical barrier set obliquely to latitudinal and longitudinal axes, for example. Consequently, the congruence patterns found by them should not be considered alone; qualitative characteristics of species and clade distributions and abiotic factors should be evaluated together. Mountain slopes are the main regions of endemism, and large river valleys are the main divisions. Refuges, marine transgressions and tectonic activity seem to have played an important role in the evolution of the Atlantic Rain Forest.     

A new Brazilian species of Petunia (Solanaceae) from the Serra da Mantiqueira

Petunia mantiqueirensis, a new species from the Serra da Mantiqueira, is described, and its morphological distinction from related species and features of the habitats are discussed.     

Trophic ecology of Thoropa miliaris (Anura: Cycloramphidae) in two mountain ranges of south-eastern Brazil

Among populations of the same species, the diet composition varies depending on the environment, given the variation in diversity and abundance of available prey. Since Thoropa miliaris is a habitat specialist in reproduction, we tested the hypothesis that this specialization is also verified in its diet. We carried out the work in 10 localities in Serra do Mar and Serra da Mantiqueira, south-eastern Brazil, where we collected frogs and evaluated prey availability. The environment did not provide significant variation in the diet of T. miliaris, and Formicidae was the prey category selectively consumed in greater volume, frequency and abundance in both mountain ranges. Therefore, we can state that T. miliaris has a selective diet on ants.     

Molecular systematics of the Awaous banana complex (River gobies; Teleostei: Oxudercidae)

Diadromous fishes can exhibit interesting evolutionary and population-level patterns given their use of freshwater and marine environments as part of their life histories. The River goby genus Awaous are prominent members of riverine ichthyofaunas and occur throughout Atlantic and Pacific slopes of the Americas from the southern United States to Ecuador and Brazil. Here we study the widespread and polymorphic Awaous banana complex to assess phylogeographic patterns and test previous hypotheses that all populations of this species in the Americas belong to the same species. Analysis of sequence data based on the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I gene shows multiple clades within the Atlantic and Pacific basins, which correspond to previously described species. Additionally, haplotype analysis demonstrates unique and unconnected networks between these species. Within these clades we document biogeographic patterns that are congruent with results of other co-occurring diadromous species, as well as a novel biogeographic pattern for the region. Our results support the recognition of distinct species of Awaous in the Atlantic (A. banana and A. tajasica) and Pacific (A. transandeanus) basins. These results are concordant with previously established morphological characters permitting the separation of these species.     

Anacroneuria (Plecoptera: Perlidae) from Serra da Mesa,Northern Goiás State,Brazil, with Descriptions of New Species

Anacroneuria (Plecoptera: Perlidae) from the area of the Serra da Mesa reservoir, northern Goiás State, Brazil was studied. A. pastaza (Stark, 2001) is recorded and two new species (A. brandaoi and A. tinga) are described.     

Phenotypic evolution of an Atlantic Forest passerine (Xiphorhynchus fuscus): biogeographic and systematic implications

We studied the phenotypic variation of the Atlantic Forest passerine Xiphorhynchus fuscus (Aves: Dendrocolaptidae) with the broad aim of addressing whether the history and type of forest affected the evolution of endemic taxa. We also tested whether the different subspecies and genetic lineages of X. fuscus could be considered full species. We collected plumage and body size measurements and, in combination with genetic data, used multivariate tests to evaluate the working hypotheses. Our results, combined with previous biogeographic analyses, indicate that vicariant events have been important determinants in the evolution of phenotypic characters of X. fuscus, once genetic isolation was complete. Our analysis also suggests that forest heterogeneity and ecotones are important factors in the early evolution of Atlantic Forest taxa, perhaps via divergent selection. Forest instability during the Pleistocene was critical in the evolution of phenotypic traits. We confirm that the subspecies atlanticus should be considered a full species. Other lineages or populations are also phenotypically differentiated but we do not suggest considering them as full species. They share high levels of gene flow and are part of a continuous latitudinal cline of phenotypic variation. Our study suggests that not all the historic events in the Atlantic Forest that affected the evolution of genetic lineages also influenced the evolution of phenotypic characters in the same direction and intensity. Undoubtedly, natural selection played a major role in the evolution of Atlantic Forest organisms. © 2014 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2014, 113 , 1047–1066.     

Tracking the ice: Subterranean harvestmen distribution matches ancient glacier margins

Biogeographic studies often underline the role of glacial dynamism during Pleistocene (1.806–0.011 Mya) in shaping the distribution of subterranean species. Accordingly, it is presumed that present‐day distribution of most specialized cold‐adapted (cryophilic) cave‐dwelling species should bear the signatures of past climatic events. To test this idea, we modelled the distribution of specialized cold‐adapted subterranean alpine harvestmen (Arachnida: Opiliones: Ischyropsalididae: Ischyropsalis). We found that the distance from the glacier margins during Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; about 22,000 years ago) was the most important predictor of their present‐day distribution. In particular, the peak in the probability of occurrence of alpine subterranean Ischyropsalis was found to be in close proximity to the LGM glacier, with a sharp drop at a distance of 30 km from the ice margin. In light of the role played by past climatic events in determining the species current range, we briefly discuss their biogeographic history and the role played by glacial refugia dynamics in determining the current distribution of these species. We argue that low dispersal harvestmen such as our model species can be used as biological indicators for tracking past glaciations and other similar biogeographic events.     

PYCNOIB: Biodiversity and Biogeography of Iberian Pycnogonids

Biodiversity and biogeographic studies comparing the distribution patterns of benthic marine organisms across the Iberian Atlantic and Mediterranean waters are scarce. The Pycnogonida (sea spiders) are a clear example of both endemicity and diversity, and are considered a key taxon to study and monitor biogeographic and biodiversity patterns. This is the first review that compiles data about abundance and diversity of Iberian pycnogonids and examines their biogeographic patterns and bathymetric constraints using GIS tools. A total of 17762 pycnogonid records from 343 localities were analyzed and were found to contain 65 species, 21 genera and 12 families. Achelia echinata and Ammothella longipes (family Acheliidae) were the most abundant comprising ~80% of the total records. The Acheliidae is also the most speciose in Iberian waters with 15 species. In contrast, the family Nymphonidae has 7 species but is significantly less abundant (<1% of the total records) than Acheliidae. Species accumulation curves indicate that further sampling would increase the number of Iberian species records. Current sampling effort suggests that the pycnogonid fauna of the Mediterranean region may be richer than that of the Atlantic. The Strait of Gibraltar and the Alboran Sea are recognized as species-rich areas that act as buffer zones between the Atlantic and Mediterranean boundaries. The deep waters surrounding the Iberian Peninsula are poorly surveyed, with only 15% of the sampling sites located below 1000 m. Further deep-water sampling is needed mainly on the Iberian Mediterranean side.     

Comparative phylogeography and demographic history of two marsupials of the Atlantic Forest in eastern Brazil

The Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot in eastern South America has been the focus of several phylogeographic studies concerning relationships between populations and areas and how taxa respond to environmental changes. We infer and compare the demographic and biogeographic histories of two didelphid marsupial species, Gracilinanus microtarsus and Marmosops incanus, from the Atlantic Forest of eastern Brazil to determine how these species responded to environmental changes over time, using mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences. We found great intraspecific genetic divergence in both species and a strong geographic structure related to similar and spatially cohesive groups within each species. These groups are consistent with the same topographical barriers, such as mountains and river valleys. Intraspecific clades are very old, dating back to a period of tectonic activities in the Neogene (5.39–8.57 Mya). Changes in the environment over the last 7 million years lead to fairly concordant demographic changes in both marsupial species, including population expansion during the last glacial maximum (ca. 21,000 years ago) or last interglacial (ca. 120,000 years ago) or both. These results do not fit the Pleistocene refuge hypothesis as an explanation of the historical biogeography and diversification of both species in the Atlantic Forest, but are compatible with the Atlantis Forest hypothesis.     

A mid‐Pleistocene rainforest corridor enabled synchronous invasions of the Atlantic Forest by Amazonian anole lizards

Shifts in the geographic distribution of habitats over time can promote dispersal and vicariance, thereby influencing large‐scale biogeographic patterns and ecological processes. An example is that of transient corridors of suitable habitat across disjunct but ecologically similar regions, which have been associated with climate change over time. Such connections likely played a role in the assembly of tropical communities, especially within the highly diverse Amazonian and Atlantic rainforests of South America. Although these forests are presently separated by open and dry ecosystems, paleoclimatic and phylogenetic evidence suggest that they have been transiently connected in the past. However, little is known about the timing, magnitude and the distribution of former forest connections. We employ sequence data at multiple loci from three codistributed arboreal lizards (Anolis punctatus, Anolis ortonii and Polychrus marmoratus) to infer the phylogenetic relationships among Amazonian and Atlantic Forest populations and to test alternative historical demographic scenarios of colonization and vicariance using coalescent simulations and approximate Bayesian computation (ABC). Data from the better‐sampled Anolis species support colonization of the Atlantic Forest from eastern Amazonia. Hierarchical ABC indicates that the three species colonized the Atlantic Forest synchronously during the mid‐Pleistocene. We find support of population bottlenecks associated with founder events in the two Anolis, but not in P. marmoratus, consistently with their distinct ecological tolerances. Our findings support that climatic fluctuations provided key opportunities for dispersal and forest colonization in eastern South America through the cessation of environmental barriers. Evidence of species‐specific histories strengthens assertions that biological attributes play a role in responses to shared environmental change.     

The Portuguese naturalist Correia da Serra (1751–1823) and his impact on early nineteenth-century botany

This paper focuses on the contributions to natural history, particularly in methods of plant classification of the Portuguese botanist, man of letters, diplomat, and Freemason Abbé José Correia da Serra (1751–1823), placing them in their national and international political and social contexts. Correia da Serra adopted the natural method of classification championed by the Frenchman Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu, and introduced refinements of his own that owe much to parallel developments in zoology. He endorsed the view that the classification of plants should be based on the establishment of affinities rather than of differences. The emphasis on affinities went hand in hand with the development of the concept of symmetry. This idea was introduced by Correia da Serra in systematics and was adopted and further developed by his friend, Augustin-Pyramus de Candolle. Correia da Serra also argued that Cryptogamia reproduce sexually, advocated extension of methods of comparative anatomy from zoology to botany, and applied them to the study of fruits. Correia da Serra was one among many of the estrangeirados, Portuguese``Europeanized' intellectuals who traveled extensively abroad in most cases to escape political or religious persecution at home. The estrangeirados were important contributors to 18th and 19th century European thinking. Most of the estrangeirados were pivotal in the introduction, dissemination and propagation of the new sciences in Portugal, but unlike most of his fellow estrangeirados, Correia da Serra was also an innovative man of science in his own right. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Molecular and morphological diversity in species of Kronichthys (Teleostei,Loricariidae) from Atlantic coastal rivers of Brazil

The Neotropical catfish genus Kronichthys contains three species distributed along coastal rivers of southern and southeastern Brazil. Although phylogenetic hypotheses are available, the molecular and morphological diversity and species boundaries within the genus remain unexplored. In this study, the authors generated mitochondrial data for 90 specimens combined with morphometric and meristic data to investigate species diversity, species boundaries and putative morphological signatures in Kronichthys. Phylogenetic and species delimitation results clearly show the presence of four genetic lineages, three within Kronichthys heylandi along the coast from Rio de Janeiro to southern São Paulo and a single lineage encompassing both the nominal species Kronichthys lacerta and Kronichthys subteres from the Ribeira de Iguape basin to Santa Catarina in southern Brazil. Nonetheless, morphological data show overlapped ranges in morphometrics and a definition of only two morphotypes, with clear phenotypic differences in the teeth number: K. heylandi differs from K. subteres + K. lacerta by the higher number of premaxillary teeth (30–52 vs. 19–28) and higher number of dentary teeth (28–54 vs. 17–28). Headwater captures and connections of paleodrainages because of sea-level fluctuations represent the two major biogeographic processes promoting species diversification and lineage dispersal of Kronichthys in the Atlantic coastal range of Brazil.     

Taxonomic review of Bourguyiinae,cladistic analysis,and a new hypothesis of biogeographic relationships of the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest (Arachnida: Opiliones,Gonyleptidae)

The subfamily Bourguyiinae Mello‐Leitão, 1923 (Gonyleptidae) is revised, and both phylogenetic and biogeographic hypotheses are proposed. Bourguyiinae is monophyletic, and is the sister group of the remainder of the Gonyleptidae species used for analysis, except for the Metasarcinae, which collectively is the sister group of Metavononoides orientalis Mello‐Leitão, 1923 (Cosmetidae). Bourguyiinae is divided into two genera: Bourguyia (six species) and Asarcus (four species). The genus‐level synonyms proposed here are as follows: Caldasius, Styloleptes, and Stylopisthos are junior synonyms of Bourguyia; Bogdana, Cnemoleptes, and Opisthoplites are junior synonyms of Asarcus. The species synonyms proposed here are as follows: Afranius amarali Mello‐Leitão, 1934 is a junior synonym of Bourguyia albiornata Mello‐Leitão, 1923 ; Drastus hamatus Roewer, 1943 and Styloleptes conspersus Piza, 1943 are junior synonyms of Bourguyia trochanteralis Roewer, 1930 ; Asarcus corallipes Simon, 1879 , Asarcus lutescens Sørensen, 1884 , Asarcus pallidus Mello‐Leitão, 1923 , and Opisthoplites ypsilon Sørensen, 1884 are junior synonyms of Asarcus longipes Kollar in Koch, 1839 ; Asarcus nigriconspersus Soares & Soares, 1945 is a junior synonym of Asarcus ingenuus Melo‐Leitão, 1940. New species described are: Bourguyia bocaina sp. nov. (Serra da Bocaina, São José do Barreiro, São Paulo), Bourguyia vinosa sp. nov. (E.B. Boracéia, Salesópolis, São Paulo), and Asarcus putunaberaba sp. nov. (Parque Nacional do Caparaó, Alto Caparaó, Minas Gerais). Bourguyiinae is endemic to the Atlantic Rainforest in the Brazilian states of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and Paraná. Based on the modified data matrix of Pinto‐da‐Rocha et al., we propose a new biogeographical hypothesis for the Atlantic Rainforest. We suggest that Bourguyiinae species were originally distributed from the coastal region of Paraná to the north of Rio de Janeiro and south‐east of Minas Gerais, with subsequent dispersals both to northern and southern areas. © 2009 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2009, 156 , 319–362.     

Amphibian‐killing chytrid in Brazil comprises both locally endemic and globally expanding populations

Chytridiomycosis, caused by the fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), is the emerging infectious disease implicated in recent population declines and extinctions of amphibian species worldwide. Bd strains from regions of disease‐associated amphibian decline to date have all belonged to a single, hypervirulent clonal genotype (Bd‐GPL). However, earlier studies in the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil detected a novel, putatively enzootic lineage (Bd‐Brazil), and indicated hybridization between Bd‐GPL and Bd‐Brazil. Here, we characterize the spatial distribution and population history of these sympatric lineages in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. To investigate the genetic structure of Bd in this region, we collected and genotyped Bd strains along a 2400‐km transect of the Atlantic Forest. Bd‐Brazil genotypes were restricted to a narrow geographic range in the southern Atlantic Forest, while Bd‐GPL strains were widespread and largely geographically unstructured. Bd population genetics in this region support the hypothesis that the recently discovered Brazilian lineage is enzootic in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil and that Bd‐GPL is a more recently expanded invasive. We collected additional hybrid isolates that demonstrate the recurrence of hybridization between panzootic and enzootic lineages, thereby confirming the existence of a hybrid zone in the Serra da Graciosa mountain range of Paraná State. Our field observations suggest that Bd‐GPL may be more infective towards native Brazilian amphibians, and potentially more effective at dispersing across a fragmented landscape. We also provide further evidence of pathogen translocations mediated by the Brazilian ranaculture industry with implications for regulations and policies on global amphibian trade.     

Blood parasites, total plasma protein and packed cell volume of small wild mammals trapped in three mountain ranges of the Atlantic Forest in Southeastern Brazil.

A study of blood parasites in small wild non-flying mammals was undertaken in three areas of the Atlantic Forest in Southeastern Brazil: Serra de Itatiaia, RJ, Serra da Bocaina, SP and Serra da Fartura, SP, from June 1999 to May 2001. A total of 450 animals (15 species) were captured in traps and it was observed in 15.5% of the blood smears the presence of Haemobartonella sp. and Babesia sp. in red blood cells. There was no statistically significant difference between parasited and non-parasited specimens regarding total plasma protein, packed cell volume and body weight, which strongly suggests that these specimens might be parasite reservoirs.