Decouverte de deux ammonites appartenant au genre Semenovites dans les couches albiennes du Kuh-E-Vacha (Iran Central): Consequences paleontologiques,biostratigraphiques et biogeographiques

Authors describe a new, iranian, variety of Semenovites baisunensis (Upper Albian of Turkmenia) and Semenovites aff. michalskii (Upper Albian of Mangyschlak and Kopet-Dag) collected for the first time in the Cretaceous beds of Kuh-E-Vacha chain in Central Iran. This Hoplitid genus permits to incorporate this region in the North-Tethydian Province as it is yet unknown in the mesogean Zaghros Mountains of South Iran.     

Notes on the systematics and distribution of Palaearctic blues (Lepidoptera,Lycaenidae)

Two new species and one new subspecies of blues are described from Central Asia, namely Polyommatus kuronjerus Korb, sp. n. (type locality: Kyrgyzstan, the Suusamyr valley, 7 km E of Suusamyr, 2800 m), Neolycaena turkomana Korb, sp. n. (type locality: Turkmenia, Badkhyz Nature Reserve, the Kyzyldzhar valley) and Satyrium acaudatum balasagyna Korb, ssp. n. (type locality: Kyrgyzstan, the Kyrghyz Mts., Tatyr, Golubinyi Waterfall, 1200 m). A new location for Plebejidea elvira (Eversmann, 1854) is determined for the Boomskoye valley in the Kyrghyz Mts. This new location is related to the late Pleistocene refuge in the Issyk-Kul valley.     

Toxoplasmas of wild warm-blooded animals in Turkmenia

Antibodies to Toxoplasma in the reaction of indirect hemagglutination were found in 8 species of mammals and 2 species of birds. Carriage of antibodies to Toxoplasma in house mouse, common fox, bald coot , and rock-dove was first recorded from Turkmenia . Analysis of the infection with Toxoplasma according to species, habitat of antibodies carriers, their ecology, age, sex and season of investigation is given.     

On the distribution of the genusCousinia (Compositae)

On the basis of new floristic works a distribution map of the genusCousinia is given and discussed. The generic distribution area ofCousinia is nearly identical with the Irano-Turanian Region, but most of the 662 species are concentrated on the Iranian and Turkestanian mountain regions. Here, both in the eastern and in the western parts of the distribution area, four centres of diversity with high numbers of—mostly endemic—species are found: The western Tienshan (61 species), Pamiro-Alaj (169), NE-Afghanistan (80), NW-Afghanistan (44); Kopetdagh (66 in Iran, 33 in Turkmenia), Elburz (66), the northern part of Zagros (44), Azerbaijan (36). The outlines of the generic area are formed by genetic-historical and by climatic factors. The distribution patterns ofCousinia species confirm the close connections between the Iranian and the Turkestanian mountains as centres of origin and conservation of palaeo-xeromorphic mountain floras, contrasting with the Turanian lowland flora.Dedicated to Prof.K. H. Rechinger on the occasion of his 80th birthday.     

Species composition of the parasitic cenoses of gerbils

Complex studies of parasitic cenoses of four species of gerbils were carried out in Turkmenia. Over 60 forms of parasites were found out as follows: three species of blood parasites, 12 species of Coccidia, 8 species of cestodes, 12 species of nematodes, one species of Acanthocephalus, three species of chigger mites, 15 species of gamasid mites, 6 species of ixodid ticks, fleas and lice. The list of species of parasites with regard to their hosts is provided.     

The genus Erechthias Meyrick of Ascension Island,including discovery of a new brachypterous species (Lepidoptera,Tineidae)

One previously named and two new species of the tineid genus Erechthias Meyrick are described and illustrated from the small, remote, mid-Atlantic Ascension Island. With these additions the Lepidoptera fauna of Ascension now totals 38 known species. Little is known regarding the biology of the two new species of Erechthias, and none of the species has been reared from larvae from Ascension. Erechthias minuscula (Walsingham) is a widespread, largely pantropical species first described from the West Indies. Larvae of Erechthias minuscula are known to be scavengers on a wide variety of dead plant material. Erechthias ascensionae,new species, is one of two species of Erechthias now known to be endemic to the island. The other endemic species, Erechthias grayi, new species, is further remarkable in having wing reduction occurring in both sexes. It is one of the few species of Lepidoptera known where this extreme of brachyptery involving both sexes has evolved. The larvae of Erechthias grayi are believed to be lichenivorous, and larval cases suspected to represent this species are illustrated.     

On the status and volume of the late paleocene family Asianthidae (Percoidei)

Autapomorphic and some other morphological characters of percoid fish of the family Asianthidae from the terminal Late Paleocene of Turkmenia are discussed and illustrated. The family Asianthidae and all taxa included in it are recognized as valid. The views of Bannikov and Carnevale (2007) on the volume and status of this group are shown to be inconsistent. Morphological characteristics are verified. The key for genera and species is suggested. Relationships of the asinathids with other percoid fish remain unknown.     

A new species of Labidocera (Copepoda,Calanoida, Pontellidae) collected from Okinawa,southwestern Japan,with establishment of five Indo-West Pacific species groups in the L. detruncata species complex

Labidocera churaumi sp. n. is described from Okinawa, southwestern Japan. The female of the new species differs from other congeners in genital compound somite with right postero-lateral and left antero-lateral processes. The male is distinguished from other congeners by the structure of the fifth leg. This new species is assigned to a newly proposed species group, the Labidocera madurae species group, within the Labidocera detruncata species complex. In this species complex five Indo-West Pacific species groups are recognized (cervi, detruncata, gangetica, madurae, and pavo) and defined on the basis of difference in sexual dimorphism.     

Annotated checklist of the leech species diversity in the Maloe More Strait of Lake Baikal,Russia

In this paper, the very first checklist of the freshwater leeches of Maloe More Strait, a special part of Lake Baikal, is presented. It includes 14 free-living and parasitic species, of which four species belong to endemic Baikal genera – two species from Baicalobdella and one species each from Baicaloclepsis and Codonobdella. The checklist highlights six potentially new morphological species recorded for the first time in the area. The exact systematic position is stated for all leech species. Each species from the list is provided with information on taxonomic synonymy, data on its geographic distribution, and ecological characteristics. New species records are additionally provided with brief morphological characteristics and photos of their external morphology.     

A new genus and species from Borneo and a new species from Java and Sumatra of Cicadini (Hemiptera: Cicadidae)

A new cicada genus and species, Minilomia triquetra, gen. and sp. nov., is described from Borneo. The new genus Minilomia is closely allied to Platylomia Stål and is placed in the subtribe Dundubiina of the tribe Cicadini. Another new cicada species, Pomponia brevicaudata, sp. nov. (subtribe Psithyristriina), is described from Java and Sumatra. The new species belongs to the Pomponia linearis species group and the P. linearis species complex but is distinguished from its congeners by the unusually short male abdomen.     

A new presumably widespread species of Albugo parasitic to Strigosella spp. (Brassicaceae)

White blister rust is one of the most common diseases in Brassicaceae. Recently, molecular approaches revealed that apart from Albugo candida, several other more specialized species of the genus are causing this disease on Brassicaceae and the diversity of this group still remains largely unexplored. All newly described species have so far been sampled only from a limited geographic range, except for Albugo species which followed their invasive host from Europe to other continents. In this study we show that a previously unknown species of Albugo is causing white blister rust disease on two species of Strigosella. This species can be distinguished from other species of the genus Albugo both by its phylogenetic position and its unique oospore ornamentation that might be an adaptation to the harsh environment of the host plants. As a consequence, Albugo arenosa is described and illustrated as a new species, so far known from Strigosella africana in Iran and Spain, and Strigosella brevipes in Iran. Apart from Albugo candida and Albugo lepidii, this is the third hitherto known species of Albugo s. str. with a confirmed native distribution range of several thousand kilometres.     

A complex of the blood fluke genus Psettarium (Digenea: Aporocotylidae) infecting tetraodontiform fishes of east Queensland waters

Seven species of Psettarium (Digenea: Aporocotylidae), including four new species, are reported from tetraodontiform fishes from off coastal east Queensland. Psettarium pandora n. sp. infects the yellow boxfish, Ostracion cubicus (Ostraciidae), the first known aporocotylid to infect this family of fishes. Three new species are reported from pufferfishes of the genus Arothron (Tetraodontidae): Psettarium yoshidai n. sp. infects the map puffer (Arothron mappa), Psettarium hustoni n. sp. infects the black-spotted puffer (A. nigropunctatus) and Psettarium martini n. sp. infects the starry puffer (A. stellatus). We also report three species of Psettarium from Australian waters for the first time. Paracardicola hawaiensis Martin, 1960, the sole species of Paracardicola, is redescribed based on specimens collected from the type-host, the stars-and-stripes puffer, Arothron hispidus. Paracardicola is synonymised with Psettarium and P. hawaiensis is recombined as Psettarium hawaiiense (Martin, 1960) n. comb. Psettarium pulchellum Yong, Cutmore, Bray, Miller, Semarariana, Palm & Cribb, 2016, described from the narrow-lined puffer (Arothron manilensis) from off Bali, Indonesia, is reported from the same fish species at two locations on the Queensland coast, significantly extending the range of this species. Psettarium nolani (Bray, Cribb & Littlewood, 2013), originally described from French Polynesia, is reported from A. hispidus, A. manilensis and A. stellatus, representing both new host and locality records for this species. Molecular phylogenetic analysis shows these species to all be closely related, such that they cannot be considered to represent separate genera despite their differing morphology. Analysis of 28S sequence data for Psettarium anthicum Bullard & Overstreet, 2006, a non-tetraodontiform-infecting species, shows it to be distantly related to all other species of Psettarium for which sequence data are available. The species is re-assigned to a new genus, Cardallagium n. gen., as Cardallagium anthicum (Bullard & Overstreet, 2006) n. comb. We think it likely that the host range of species of Psettarium is limited to tetraodontiform fishes. We assessed the infection biology of two species, P. nolani and P. hawaiiense n. comb. infecting A. hispidus, using histology to assess the pathways of egg release for these species. Eggs of both species were observed in both circulatory and visceral organs of infected hosts, often in high numbers. Eggs were seen trapped in the mucosal layer of the intestine and, in rare instances, causing lesions in the laminar epithelium, providing the strongest evidence yet that they pass through the gut wall and escape the host via the faeces. Lastly, we discuss the biogeographical implications of our findings, noting that some Psettarium species now show very wide geographical distributions.     

An unusual new species of paguroid (Crustacea,Anomura, Paguridae) from deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico

A new hermit crab species of the family Paguridae, Tomopaguropsis ahkinpechensis sp. n., is described from deep waters (780–827 m) of the Gulf of Mexico. This is the second species of Tomopaguropsis known from the western Atlantic, and the fifth worldwide. The new species is morphologically most similar to a species from Indonesia, Tomopaguropsis crinita McLaughlin, 1997, the two having ocular peduncles that diminish in width distally, reduced corneas, dense cheliped setation, and males lacking paired pleopods 1. The calcified figs on the branchiostegite and anterodorsally on the posterior carapace, and the calcified first pleonal somite that is not fused to the last thoracic somite, are unusual paguroid characters. A discussion of the affinities and characters that define this new species is included, along with a key to all five species of Tomopaguropsis.     

New species and records of Charisius Champion from Mexico and Central America (Coleoptera,Tenebrionidae, Alleculinae)

The species of the genus Charisius Champion, from Mexico and Central America are reviewed. The flightless genus Narses Champion, with one included species, N. subalatus Champion, is placed in synonymy with the genus Charisius. Four new species are described and illustrated, C. granulatus and C. punctatus (from Guatemala) and C. apterus and C. howdenorum (from Mexico). Charisius subalatus (Champion) is redescribed and illustrated. The species C. interstitialis Champion is placed in synonymy with C. zunilensis Champion. The genus is redescribed to include the four new species and N. subalatus. New distributional records are presented for all other species of the genus and a revised key is presented for identification of all the species of the genus.     

PCR-Based Identification of MAT-1 and MAT-2 in the Gibberella fujikuroi Species Complex

All sexually fertile strains in the Gibberella fujikuroi species complex are heterothallic, with individual mating types conferred by the broadly conserved ascomycete idiomorphs MAT-1 and MAT-2. We sequenced both alleles from all eight mating populations, developed a multiplex PCR technique to distinguish these idiomorphs, and tested it with representative strains from all eight biological species and 22 additional species or phylogenetic lineages from this species complex. In most cases, either an ~800-bp fragment from MAT-2 or an ~200-bp fragment from MAT-1 is amplified. The amplified fragments cosegregate with mating type, as defined by sexual cross-fertility, in a cross of Fusarium moniliforme (Fusarium verticillioides). Neither of the primer pairs amplify fragments from Fusarium species such as Fusarium graminearum, Fusarium pseudograminearum, and Fusarium culmorum, which have, or are expected to have, Gibberella sexual stages but are thought to be relatively distant from the species in the G. fujikuroi species complex. Our results suggest that MAT allele sequences are useful indicators of phylogenetic relatedness in these and other Fusarium species.     

Repeated Reticulate Evolution in North American Papilio machaon Group Swallowtail Butterflies

Hybridization between distinct populations or species is increasingly recognized as an important process for generating biodiversity. However, the interaction between hybridization and speciation is complex, and the diverse evolutionary outcomes of hybridization are difficult to differentiate. Here we characterize potential hybridization in a species group of swallowtail butterflies using microsatellites, DNA sequences, and morphology, and assess whether adaptive introgression or homoploid hybrid speciation was the primary process leading to each putative hybrid lineage. Four geographically separated hybrid populations were identified in the Papilio machaon species group. One distinct mitochondrial DNA clade from P. machaon was fixed in three hybrid taxa (P. brevicauda, P. joanae, and P. m. kahli), while one hybrid swarm (P. zelicaon x machaon) exhibited this hybrid mtDNA clade as well as widespread parental mtDNA haplotypes from both parental species. Microsatellite markers and morphology showed variable admixture and intermediacy, ranging from signatures of prolonged differential introgression from the paternal species (P. polyxenes/P. zelicaon) to current gene flow with both parental species. Divergences of the hybrid lineages dated to early- to mid-Pleistocene, suggesting that repeated glaciations and subsequent range shifts of parental species, particularly P. machaon hudsonianus, facilitated initial hybridization. Although each lineage is distinct, P. joanae is the only taxon with sufficient evidence (ecological separation from parental species) to define it as a homoploid hybrid species. The repetition of hybridization in this group provides a valuable foundation for future research on hybridization, and these results emphasize the potential for hybridization to drive speciation in diverse ways.