New species of alderfly genus Sialis (Megaloptera: Sialidae) from China and Vietnam,with a key to species of Sialis from Asia

The alderfly genus Sialis is the most species‐rich group of the family Sialidae. However, discovery of new Sialis species is becoming difficult because of previous good faunal exploration. In this paper, we describe two new Sialis species from the southern part of East Asia, S. australis and S. jiyuni, based on materials from historical and recent collections. These two species are closely related to the insular species S. kumejimae and are among the early diverged species within Sialis. Presently, 32 species of Sialis are recorded from Asia. A key to all the Sialis species from Asia is provided.     

Carbon stock and its responses to climate change in Central Asia

Central Asia has a land area of 5.6 × 10⁶ km² and contains 80–90% of the world's temperate deserts. Yet it is one of the least characterized areas in the estimation of the global carbon (C) stock/balance. This study assessed the sizes and spatiotemporal patterns of C pools in Central Asia using both inventory (based on 353 biomass and 284 soil samples) and process‐based modeling approaches. The results showed that the C stock in Central Asia was 31.34–34.16 Pg in the top 1‐m soil with another 10.42–11.43 Pg stored in deep soil (1–3 m) of the temperate deserts. They amounted to 18–24% of the global C stock in deserts and dry shrublands. The C stock was comparable to that of the neighboring regions in Eurasia or major drylands around the world (e.g. Australia). However, 90% of Central Asia C pool was stored in soil, and the fraction was much higher than in other regions. Compared to hot deserts of the world, the temperate deserts in Central Asia had relatively high soil organic carbon density. The C stock in Central Asia is under threat from dramatic climate change. During a decadal drought between 1998 and 2008, which was possibly related to protracted La Niña episodes, the dryland lost approximately 0.46 Pg C from 1979 to 2011. The largest C losses were found in northern Kazakhstan, where annual precipitation declined at a rate of 90 mm decade^?1. The regional C dynamics were mainly determined by changes in the vegetation C pool, and the SOC pool was stable due to the balance between reduced plant‐derived C influx and inhibited respiration.     

Multilocus analysis of the evolutionary dynamics of rainforest bird populations in Southeast Asia

Sundaland has a dynamic geographic history because its landmasses were periodically interconnected when sea levels fell during glacial periods. Superimposed on this geographic dynamism were environmental changes related to climatic oscillations. To investigate how tropical taxa responded to such changes, we studied the divergence and demographic history of two co-distributed rainforest passerine species, Arachnothera longirostra and Malacocincla malaccensis. We sampled birds primarily from Borneo and the Malay Peninsula, which straddle the now-submerged Sunda shelf, and analysed multilocus DNA data with a variety of coalescent and gene genealogy methods. Cross-shelf divergence in both species occurred well before the last glacial maximum, i.e., before the most recent land connection. However, post-divergence gene flow occurred, and it was more pronounced in A. longirostra (a highly vagile nectarivore/insectivore) than in M. malaccensis (an understory insectivore). Despite current habitat continuity on Borneo, the population of M. malaccensis in northeastern Borneo is substantially divergent from that on the rest of the island. The NE population experienced dramatic demographic fluctuations, probably because of competition with the other population, which expanded from western Borneo after the mid-Pleistocene. In contrast, the Borneo population of A. longirostra has little structure and appears to have experienced demographic expansion 16 kya, long after it had diverged from the Malay Peninsula population (630-690 kya). Malay Peninsula populations of both species have remained relatively stable. Overall, the most recent glacial period was not the chief determinant of the evolutionary dynamics of our study species, and in this respect, they are different from temperate species.     

First report of the benthic dinoflagellate,Gambierdiscus belizeanus (Gonyaulacales: Dinophyceae) for the east coast of Sabah,Malaysian Borneo

Species of the genus Gambierdiscus Adachi & Fukuyo, in particular G. toxicus Adachi & Fukuyo are known producers of neurotoxins associated with ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP). In this study live samples were collected from seaweed beds of the east coast of Sabah, Malaysian Borneo and a strain of Gambierdiscus was isolated and cultured. Examination of the thecal fine morphology was undertaken using light, epifluorescence, and scanning electron microscopy. Observed morphological features and their associated morphometric information enabled identification to Gambierdiscus belizeanus Faust. This represents the first report for the occurrence of G. belizeanus in the Asia Pacific region.     

Taxonomic notes on Lasioglossum (Lasioglossum) subopacum (Smith) and L. (L.) okinawa Ebmer et Maeta (Hymenoptera, Halictidae) from Asia

Lasioglossum (Lasioglossum) subopacum (Smith) is recorded from the Korean Peninsula for the first time. Lasioglossum (Lasioglossum) okinawa Ebmer et Maeta from Japan is ranked to a subspecies of Lasioglossum (Lasioglossum) subopacum judging from the characteristics of the male. The male of Lasioglossum (Lasioglossum) subopacumokinawa is described for the first time. Some bionomical notes of both subspecies are presented.     

Revision of the pseudo-orbweavers of the genus Fecenia Simon, 1887 (Araneae, Psechridae), with emphasis on their pre-epigyne

The present paper provides a taxonomic revision of the genus Fecenia with emphasis on the characteristics of the pre-epigynes which are integrated for the first time into an identification key. As a result, one species is revalidated, Fecenia protensa Thorell, 1891, stat. n., and two new junior synonyms for Fecenia protensa are recognised: Fecenia sumatrana Kulczyński, 1908, syn. n. and Fecenia nicobarensis (Tikader, 1977), syn. n. New records are reported: Fecenia ochracea (Doleschall, 1859)from Malaysian Borneo, Fecenia macilenta (Simon, 1885) from Sumatra, Indonesia, Fecenia protensa from Thailand and Malaysia, Fecenia travancoria Pocock, 1899 from Sri Lanka and Thailand, and Fecenia cylindrata Thorell, 1895 from Thailand and Laos. Additional information on the biology of Fecenia is provided and the validity of characters for identifying Fecenia species is discussed.     

Discovery of the female of Pyrocoelia prolongata in Taiwan (Coleoptera, Lampyridae)

The female of Pyrocoelia prolongata Jeng & Lai, a diurnal lampyrid species from Taiwan, is described for the first time. A single individual was found in a small, shady, dry streambed at the edge of a mixed forest at 2700 m elevation. The individual glowed in darkness and would move its abdomen up and down when disturbed and as a deterring behavior. A key to the females of the species of Pyrocoelia Gorham in Taiwan is provided. The morphology of photogenic organs of females and the function of bioluminescence of day-active species of Pyrocoelia are discussed.     

The larva of Eustra (Coleoptera, Paussinae, Ozaenini):a facultative associate of ants

Larvae of the ground beetle genus Eustra Schmidt-Goebel are described and illustrated for the first time and some biological notes are reported. One specimen of an unknown Eustra species was collected while excavating a nest of the ant Pachycondyla javana Mayr, in Taiwan, which is the first report of a paussine associated with a member of the ant subfamily Ponerinae. Several larvae and adults of a second species, Eustra chinensis Bänninger, were collected in Shanghai under bark with no association with ants. First instar larvae of the latter species were also reared in the lab. The occurrence of larvae of the genus Eustra both inside and outside ant nests, together with a report of adults collected inside a nest in Taiwan, suggests that members of this genus may be facultative predators or facultative symbionts of ants, an attribute that has never been reported for this genus. The larvae of Eustra show several unique features, including a peculiar bidentate mandibular apex, an extremely long galea, one of two tarsal claws greatly reduced, abdominal setae (including those of terminal disk) elongate and clavate at apex, urogomphi wide and flattened, and inflated sensilla S-I. Larvae were studied by both optical and scanning electron microscopy, their morphological features are compared with those of other described Paussinae larvae, and their potential phylogenetic and functional significance are discussed.     

Molecular systematics and biogeography of Crawfurdia, Metagentiana and Tripterospermum (Gentianaceae) based on nuclear ribosomal and plastid DNA sequences

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The systematic position of the genus Metagentiana and its phylogenetic relationships with Crawfurdia, Gentiana and Tripterospermum have not been explicitly addressed. These four genera belong to one of two subtribes (Gentianinae) of Gentianeae. The aim of this paper is to examine the systematic position of Crawfurdia, Metagentiana and Tripterospermum and to clarify their phylogenetic affinities more clearly using ITS and trnL intron sequences. METHODS: Nucleotide sequences from the internal transcribed spacers (ITS) of nuclear ribosomal DNA and the plastid DNA trnL (UAA) intron were analysed phylogenetically. Ten of fourteen Metagentiana species were sampled, together with 40 species of other genera in the subtribe Gentianinae. KEY RESULTS: The data support several previously published conclusions relating to the separation of Metagentiana from Gentiana and its closer relationships to Crawfurdia and Tripterospermum based on studies of gross morphology, floral anatomy, chromosomes, palynology, embryology and previous molecular data. The molecular clock hypothesis for the tested sequences in subtribe Gentianinae was not supported by the data (P < 0.05), so the clock-independent non-parametric rate smoothing method was used to estimate divergence time. This indicates that the separation of Crawfurdia, Metagentiana and Tripterospermum from Gentiana occurred about 11.4-21.4 Mya (million years ago), and the current species of these three genera diverged at times ranging from 0.4 to 6.2 Mya. CONCLUSIONS: The molecular analyses revealed that Crawfurdia, Metagentiana and Tripterospermum do not merit status as three separate genera, because sampled species of Crawfurdia and Tripterospermum are embedded within Metagentiana. The speciation and rapid radiation of these three genera is likely to have occurred in western China as a result of upthrust of the Himalayas during the late Miocene and the Pleistocene.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Eodiaptomus indawgyi</Emphasis> n. sp., a pelagic calanoid copepod presumed endemic to ancient Lake Indawgyi,Myanmar

The little-known prepleistocene Lake Indawgyi (Myanmar) is shown to harbour an endemic pelagicEodiaptomus species, described herein. The area around the lake is inhabited by another species in the same genus. Related species occur throughout South-East Asia, and a presumed close relative is endemic to a chain of pre-pleistocene lakes in Celebes.