The dead-arm evolution of river systems: A comparison between the information provided by living Copepoda and Cladocera populations and by Bosminidae and Chydroidae remains

Methodological investigations, using remains of Bosminidae and Chydoridae, were undertaken to study the development of ecosystems in former river channels. Four biotopes from two former channels of different ages were used in this work. The Copepoda and Cladocera populations characterized each of the 11 sampling stations in relation to ecological factors, which are linked to the development stage in each ecosystem. Analysis of only the Bosminidae and Chydoridae populations presented practically the same information as an analysis of the total populations of Copepoda and Cladocera. The distribution of Bosminidae and Chydoridae remains taken from the surficial sediments at the deepest point of each former channel strongly resembled the distribution of the living populations sampled at several stations during one full year. Therefore, Bosminidae and Chydoridae remains could provide us with pertinent information concerning each phase of ecological succession that occurs in abandoned river channels.     

A phylogenetic analysis of the Conchostraca and Cladocera (Crustacea, Branchiopoda, Diplostraca)

A computer-assisted cladistic analysis on morphological characters of the Diplostraca (Conchostraca and Cladocera) has been undertaken for the first time. The morphological information has been obtained from literature and transformed into 56 suitable characters. The analysis included 47 ingroup taxa, comprising five conchostracan taxa (four families of the Spinicaudata and the Laevicaudata) and 42 genera of the Cladocera. A detailed character discussion is presented which will be a useful working base for future phylogenetic studies on the group. A number of systematic groups were, with differing degrees of certainty, supported in all 218 equally short trees. These are the Diplostraca, Cladocera, Gymnomera (Onychopoda and Haplopoda), Onychopoda, Podonidae, Cercopagididae, Anomopoda, Daphniidae, Moininae, Scapholeberinae, Chydoridae, Chydorinae and Sididae. The Spinicaudata were only supported on some of the 218 equally short trees while no support was found for the Conchostraca. Two taxa—the Macrothricidae and Aloninae—were relatively strongly indicated to be paraphyletic. A suggested classificatory hierarchy, without indication of absolute rank, is presented.     

Herpetofaunal Richness and Community Structure of Offshore Islands of Sulawesi,Indonesia1

We examined the distribution and broad habitat associations of the herpetofauna on three offshore islands of southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. A total of 74 amphibian and reptile taxa were recorded, comprising 13 frogs, 29 lizards, 29 snakes, 1 freshwater turtle, and 1 crocodile. Of the total taxa, 38 percent were endemic to Sulawesi, 13 were new undescribed taxa. Range extensions were also recorded for one taxon previously not known from Sulawesi. Herpetofauna of these islands is largely derived from that of mainland Sulawesi, and as for Sulawesi generally, is depauperate compared with herpetofaunal assemblages in Borneo, Java, and Thailand. Taxon richness was much higher in minimally disturbed forest and forest habitats with only moderate disturbance levels than in highly modified or disturbed habitats, such as secondary forests, plantations, and villages. Disturbed habitats were characterized by widespread, habitat generalists and human commensals. Forests were characterized by endemic and habitat‐specialist taxa. Little discrimination of taxon composition or endemism was found between minimally and moderately disturbed forest habitats. These results reaffirm the need for more general biological survey and research in this region. Taxa most likely to be displaced by human impacts tend to be endemic taxa, for which there exists little or no ecological information. The similarity in the herpetofaunal community structure between habitats with minimal and moderate disturbance levels has important implications for our understanding of ecological resilience in tropical herpetofaunal communities.     

Succession of microfungal communities on decaying leaves of Castanopsis fissa

A total of 38 fungal taxa were identified on senescent untreated and autoclaved Castanopsis fissa leaves during a 4-month study period. Seventy-six percent of the fungal genera found in this survey have not previously been recorded from Castanopsis. Frequency and time of occurrence of fungal taxa occurring on untreated senescent leaves were clustered into four groups when analyzed by cluster analysis, suggesting the replacement of microfungi in stages of succession on naturally senescent leaves. Autoclaved leaves revealed significantly different fungal communities, with only 26% of overlap with the natural ones and no clear patterns of replacement of fungal communities. Factors regulating the rates of decomposition are also discussed.     

Structure and distribution of the slope fish community in the vicinity of the sub-Antarctic Prince Edward Archipelago

Demersal fish community structure, distribution and trophic relationships on the slope (depth range 200–1500 m) of the sub-Antarctic Prince Edward Islands and surrounding sea rises were investigated during a pilot survey conducted in April 2001 onboard fishing vessel MV Iris . A total of 56 fish taxa were collected during the survey, of which 44 were identified to the species level, seven to the genus level and five to the family level. Among the identified taxa, 36 constituted new records for the area investigated. Total catch per unit effort (cpue) during the survey ranged from 1·1 to 241·2 individuals h⁻¹. Both average fish diversity and total cpue positively correlated with trawling depth. Overall, mean sampling depth and near-bottom temperature explained 56% of total fish cpue. Hierarchal cluster analysis identified three distinct fish assemblages with pronounced dominant species. Major shifts in fish community composition occurred at 500–600 m and 800–900 m depth strata and could probably be a result of physical and biological vertical zonation. Analysis of the diet of selected fish species showed that they were generalist feeders, consuming predominantly pelagic, including epipelagic, meso- and benthopelagic, prey. Diets of six species and nitrogen stable isotope signatures of 22 species revealed that with a few exceptions most fishes occupied the fourth trophic level and were tertiary consumers. Wide variability in carbon isotopic signatures is discussed with respect to alternative, e.g . possible importance of high Antarctic and chemoautotrophic v . photoautotrophic sub-Antarctic primary production, organic matter sources at the base of deep-sea food webs.     

Vegetation of Tsokar lake and Puga valley,Trans-Himalaya

The alpine zones of Ladakh are floristically and geobotanically very interesting. In the past these were poorly known botanically because of the ruggedness and inaccessibility of the area. The varied climatic conditions and habitat types have a main role to play in establishing the vegetation of these zones. A total of 122 taxa were identified from collections made during the summer months (July, August and September) of the year 1976. These areas fall in an altitudinal range of 4000 to 5000 m. Fifteen taxa are reported as new records for this region. Six different habitat types were recognised on the basis of local distribution of these taxa, viz. 1. Rocky and gravelly sites; 2. Alkaline swamps; 3. Silty and clay sites; 4. Stream sites; 5. Meadow and shrub fields and 6. Cultivated field sites. A comprehensive inventory of the flowering plants of this region is given in the paper.     

Age, area and avian diversification

Using coarse resolution data on the spatial distribution of the entire New World avifauna, we test for phylogenclic patterns in the mean and total geographic range sizes of taxa. The analyses reveal that (i) the species-range size distribution is only approximately normalized, and remains significantly left-skewed, under logarithmic transformation. Most variance in range sizes is explained at the level of species within genera; (ii) there is no effect of the age of taxa on mean clade range size, although older taxa are more likely to have larger total range sizes; (iii) there is some evidence that taxa comprising more species have larger total range sizes; (iv) there is little or no evidence for a relationship between rate of cladogenesis and range size. The results suggest that geographic range size is a labile trait, at least for New World birds, and that the influence of evolutionary history is only weakly detectable in the range size variation of extant taxa, at least at the scale of analysis used here. In addition to these conclusions, two general and important procedural issues emerge.     

A new approach to the Namib Region

For a new approach to the phytogeography of the Namib region three sets of data are analyzed, (a) distribution data of ca. 1700 taxa, (b) habitat informations of a large number of taxa, collected in course of an extensive phytosociological survey, (c) distribution data of characteristic life form spectra and plant formations.In this paper, as a first step of a comprehensive phytochorological analysis, phytochoria and their limits are proposed as derived from frequently observed areas of distribution, while a numerical analysis of the complete flora of these phytochoria is in preparation.     

Filamentous algal communities related to pH in streams in The Trossachs, Scotland

• 1 A survey of acidified streams in the Loch Ard area of The Trossachs, Scotland, was carried out between 1986 and 1988, to determine the influence of physical and chemical factors on the distribution of benthic algae. Samples were taken on thirty-five occasions from fifteen sites on ten streams. Forty-nine operational taxa of filamentous algae were distinguished. Relative abundance of taxa in samples was scored on a seven-point scale. Estimates of standing crop were made by pigment extraction and ash-free dry weight (AFDW) determination from biomass developed on artificial substrata.
• 2 No evidence was found for seasonality in standing crop, nor for an increase in standing crop with a decrease in pH. Seasonality in relative abundance was evident for few taxa. Species richness and diversity were highly correlated with pH and correlated chemical variables.
• 3 Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) carried out using the CANOCO program ordinates species and sites and relates them directly to environmental variables. The most important variable was found to be pH (or an acidification-related variable that is highly correlated with pH), with percentage forest cover and total oxidized nitrogen being of secondary importance. The effect of subdividing the data set, using data based on presence-absence as well as estimated relative abundance, was tested. A comparison of the effects on the distribution of site and species values on the pH vector showed that the results are robust, confirming the value of this semi-quantitative sampling method for use with a difficult algal group. It was possible to infer pH from algal community structure using CANOCO.
• 4 The pH ranking of species derived from CCA revealed that larger cell diameter taxa do not predominate at low pH, implying that reduction of invertebrate grazing was not an important determinant of algal community composition.

     

On Mellitella stokesii and Amphipholis geminata (Echinodermata), from an intertidal flat in the upper Gulf of Nicoya estuary, Pacific, Costa Rica

Information on changes over time in the biodiversity and ecology of tropical systems is of increasing importance against the background of local, regional, and global dynamics. This study aimed to contribute with long-term data on the abundance fluctuations of two species of echinoderms from a tropical tidal flat. From February 1984 to December 1986, March 1985 to April 1987, and July 1994 to September 1996 (total: 76 dates), core samples (17.7 cm2, 15 cm deep) were collected at low tide at a mud-sand flat in the mid upper Gulf of Nicoya estuary, Costa Rica, as part of a survey of the benthic community. Among more than 100 taxa, the burrowing brittle star, Amphipholis geminata, and the sand dollar, Mellitella stokesii, consistently appeared in the samples over the study period. A total of 63 M. stokesii and 149 A. geminata were collected. The 43 sand dollars found during 1984-1985, give an approximate density of 35 ind./m2, which is within the range reported for this species. M. stokesii was almost absent from 1994 to 1996, while A. geminata had its peak of abundance at the end of 1995. Low abundances of the sand dollar during the rainy seasons (May-November) and slight increments in dry seasons (December-April) cores, also agrees with a report from the region. A. geminata also presented an irregular pattern of abundance, with slight increases at the end of the rainy seasons or during the dry seasons, when higher salinities are more suitable for echinoderms. The patchy spatial distribution of both species makes difficult the detection of patterns with a corer. Nevertheless, this information is unique due to its extensive time coverage and provides a baseline for future surveys designed specifically for the study of tropical intertidal estuarine echinoderms.     

A study of summer mortality factors for natural populations of Chydoridae (Cladocera)

In order to test the hypothesis that predation controls summer population growth of the Chydoridae in Lake Itasca, Minnesota two types of in situ predator-exclusion experiments were conducted. The first series of experiments excluded all predators from chydorid populations by enclosing the chydorids within clear plexiglass chambers suspended in their natural habitat. The second series of experiments excluded fish, but not invertebrates, from chydorids by placing polyethylene exclosures directly on the submerged vegetation. The concomitant abundance of natural chydorid populations was monitored by pattern sampling adjacent vegetation. Populations of Chydoridae that were protected from all predation increased exponentially, while natural populations remaining exposed to predation decreased dramatically. Populations protected from predation by fish but not invertebrates were not significantly different from unprotected control populations. Thus predation by fish and invertebrates combined was sufficient to limit chydorid density. The hypothesis that the predation was due primarily to fish was not supported. It is suggested that because chydorids are smaller and less accessible than preferred prey items, fish are able to significantly utilize them only during periods of high chydorid abundance.     

A Checklist of Metazoan Parasites from Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

An extensive literature survey on metazoan parasites from rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss has been conducted. The taxa Monogenea, Cestoda, Digenea, Nematoda, Acanthocephala, Crustacea and Hirudinea are covered. A total of 169 taxonomic entities are recorded in rainbow trout worldwide although few of these may prove synonyms in future analyses of the parasite specimens. These records include Monogenea (15), Cestoda (27), Digenea (37), Nematoda (39), Acanthocephala (23), Crustacea (17), Mollusca (6) and Hirudinea (5). The large number of parasites in this salmonid reflects its cosmopolitan distribution.     

Fossil fish otoliths from the Chibanian Miyata Formation,Kanagawa Prefecture,Japan, with comments on the paleoenvironment

The Paleo-Tokyo Bay (Kanto Plateau) that persisted during the transgression periods in the Middle-Late Pleistocene is known for its rich marine fauna that accommodated both the warm and cold water taxa brought by the Kuroshio and Oyashio Currents, respectively. However, little is known on the paleoichthyofauna in this area and the processes shaping the marine ichthyofauna of modern southern Kanto. We used fossil fish otoliths and teeth discovered in the Sha’ana Tuffaceous Sand Member belonging to the Chibanian Miyata Formation, exposed at Sha’ana-dai, Miura City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, to reconstruct the paleoichthyofauna and its associated paleoenvironment and explore the content of fish assemblages during this period. The Sha’ana Tuffaceous Sand Member was composed of upper sandy mud and lower muddy sand horizons at the exposure. A total of 1,675 fish remains were collected from this site, of which 1,389 were assigned to 62 distinct taxa (20 orders, 31 families). The taxonomic composition revealed taxa from various environments, including shallow continental shelf, epi- to meso-pelagic settings, and the majority were from a generally temperate climatic zone. Paleoenvironmental analyses suggested that the fish assemblages were from the continental shelf (approximate depth of 100–200 m) in a temperate sea where both warm Kuroshio and cold Oyashio Currents had an influence on the biota. The analysis also showed that two boreal fishes, namely Clupea pallasii and Theragra chalcogramma, once had a wider distribution that extended to the southwestern areas of the Paleo-Tokyo Bay. This study provides a more complete view of the related paleobiogeography of marine fishes during the Chibanian and is essential for reconstructing the evolutionary processes of the rich ichthyofauna in the southern Kanto.     

Macroinvertebrates along the Serbian section of the Danube River (stream km 1429–925)

Results of the investigation of the aquatic macroinvertebrate fauna along a 504 km stretch of the Danube River in Serbia are presented. A total of 74 macroinvertebrate taxa were observed during a 2001 survey. Oligochaeta and Mollusca were the principal components of the community with regard to species richness and abundance. Based on data on the qualitative composition of the macroinvertebrate fauna, a correspondence analysis divided the investigated stretch in three sectors — upper (Pannonian), Iron Gate sector and entrance sector to the Iron Gate stretch. The distribution patterns of certain species supported the division of sectors defined by correspondence analysis.     

Paleocene-Early Eocene ostracodes from the Southern Galala Plateau (Eastern Desert, Egypt): Taxonomy, impact of paleobathymetric changes

Ostracode faunas obtained from nine sections spanning the Paleocene-Early Eocene interval from a platform-basin transect in the Southern Galala Plateau area (Eastern Desert, Egypt) have been investigated. The study focuses on taxonomy and biostratigraphy of the ostracode assemblages across the P/E boundary, with supporting comments on paleoecology and paleobiogeography. The studied nine sections yielded 60 taxa belonging to 39 genera. Five species are new. The P/E transition is characterized by the appearance of new taxa rather than extinctions. During the Early and early Late Paleocene, the ostracode assemblages throughout the study area are largely similar, being dominated by middle-outer neritic taxa. In the late Late Paleocene and Early Eocene, changes in the paleobathymetry from deeper marine environments in the distal area in the south to shallower marine environments in the proximal area in the north become pronounced. Many of the recorded taxa have a wide geographic distribution throughout the Middle East and North Africa. Similarities with basins of West Africa are also found, reflecting faunal exchanges between this area and southern Tethys during the Paleocene and Early Eocene.     

Succession of cladocerans in a northern Italian ricefield

The seasonal succession of cladocerans was studied in an experimental ricefield (never treated with biocides) located on the Po River Plain (Province of Reggio Emilia) in 1982, the first year of rice cultivation, and in two later years, 1984 and 1986. A total of 26 species were identified; some of them were found in Northern Italy for the first time. The finding of Latonopsis australis Sars is discussed in detail. A trend of increasing specific diversity during the rice cultivation season was not recurrent every year. The most significant trends emerge when the three years are compared. The total number of species was 14 in 1982, 16 in 1984, and 20 in 1986. Diversity, too, increased strongly over the years: this trend was sustained chiefly by the increase in richness of Chydoridae species associated with the growth and decomposition of a large biomass of weeds and microalgae during the summer.     

Further observations on the scaled Chrysophycean and Synurophycean flora of the Ocala National Forest, Florida, U.S.A.

The distributions of silica-scaled chrysophytes in 30 freshwater ponds located in the Ocala National Forest, Florida, U.S.A., relative to chemical gradients are described. Phytoplankton, periphyton, and surface sediments from each of the 30 sites were collected in March of 2000 and later analyzed extensively with both scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and light microscopy (LM) for scaled chrysophytes. In addition, water samples were used to measure a suite of chemical characteristics, including specific conductance, pH, alkalinity, total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll- a , chloride, sulfate and base cation concentrations. Overall, waterbodies included in this study are oligotrophic, dilute, poorly buffered and low in pH. Including six previously described species which are largely known only from the Ocala National Forest, we have identified forty-nine taxa of silica-scaled Chry-sophyceae and Synurophyceae, 23 of which were present in 5 or more waterbodies, indicating that lakes in this region are quite diverse and abundant in scaled chrysophytes. The most important species included Synura petersenii, S. echinulata and one recently reported new species from this region, Mallomonas wujekii , which was found in 73% of the lakes in this survey. The number of taxa found per lake ranged from 2 to 23 and observations include new records of several rarely reported species. Although the flora includes species commonly found in more northern regions, it also includes a group of taxa that appear to be endemic to the region and others commonly found in more tropical regions. Lastly, a new form found in ten ponds, Mallomonas transsylvanica f. curvata , is described.     

Asexuality alone does not explain the success of clonal forms in insects with geographical parthenogenesis

Asexual forms of invertebrates are relatively common. They are often more successful than their sexual progenitors. Especially in insects, the pattern called geographical parthenogenesis shows that asexuality is important in speciation and ecological adaptation. In geographical parthenogenesis the clones have a wider distribution than the sexual forms they originate from. This indicates that they have a broader niche they may utilize successfully. The cause of this apparent success is, however, hard to come by as the term asexuality covers separate phenomena that are hard to disentangle from the mode of reproduction itself. Asexual insects are often polyploid, of hybrid origin, or both and these phenomena have been argued to explain the distribution patterns better than clonality. In this study we survey the literature on arthropods with geographical parthenogenesis in an attempt to clarify what evidence there is for the different phenomena explaining the success of the clonal forms. We focus on the few species where knowledge of distribution of different ploidy levels allows for a distinction of contributions from different phenomena to be made. Our survey support that asexuality is not the only factor underlying the success of all asexuals. Evidence about the importance of a hybrid origin of the clones is found to be meagre as the origin of clones is unknown in the majority of cases. Asexuality, hybridity and polyploidy are intertwined phenomena that each and all may contribute to the success of clonal taxa. Polyploidy, however, emerges as the most parsimonious factor explaining the success of these asexual invertebrate taxa.     

Testing the directionality of evolution: the case of chydorid crustaceans

Although trends are of central interest to evolutionary biology, it is only recently that methodological advances have allowed rigorous statistical tests of putative trends in the evolution of discrete traits. Oligomerization is one such proposed trend that may have profoundly influenced evolutionary pathways in many types of animals, especially arthropods. It is a general hypothesis that repeated structures (such as appendage segments and spines) tend to evolve primarily through loss. Although largely untested, this principle of loss is commonly invoked in morphological studies of crustaceans for drawing conclusions about the systematic placements of taxa and about their phylogeny. We present a statistical evaluation of this hypothesis using a molecular phylogeny and character matrix for a family of crustaceans, the Chydoridae, analysed using maximum likelihood methods. We find that a unidirectional (loss-only) model of character evolution is a very poor fit to the data, but that there is evidence of a trend towards loss, with loss rates of structures being perhaps twice the rates of gain. Thus, our results caution against assuming loss a priori, in the absence of appropriate tests for the characters under consideration. However, oligomerization, considered as a tendency but not a rule, may indeed have had ramifications for the types of functional and ecological shifts that have been more common during evolutionary diversification.     

Alewife planktivory controls the abundance of two invasive predatory cladocerans in Lake Michigan

1. We sampled along a nearshore transect (10-m bathymetric contour) in Lake Michigan to determine diet, 24-h feeding periodicity, daily ration and food requirements of an invasive fish, the alewife, Alosa pseudoharengus , relative to zooplankton abundance and production. Our objective was to determine whether the alewife controls the abundance of two invasive, predatory cladocerans, Bythotrephes longimanus and Cercopagis pengoi .
2. Bosminidae was the most abundant prey taxon and Chydoridae, Leptodora , Chironomidae and Bythotrephes were the least abundant. Neither Bythotrephes nor Cercopagis were important prey for small alewives (≤100 mm). Bythotrephes was eaten by over 50% of large alewives (>100 mm) and accounted for 10–27% of the diet weight. Cercopagis was eaten by about 30% of the large alewives but only accounted 1% of the diet weight.
3. Food weight in stomachs was highest early in the night for small alewives and lowest at night for large alewives. Chironomidae and large Chydoridae were the preferred prey of small alewives. Bythotrephes and large Chydoridae were the preferred prey for large alewives.
4. Food requirements of alewife were much less than production for most prey taxa, although the consumption of Bythotrephes greatly exceeded production on both dates. Alewives consumed only 3% of Cercopagis production. High selectivity and food requirements of alewife for Bythotrephes , and low selectivity and food requirements for Cercopagis , probably explain the difference in abundance between these two invasive cladocerans at our nearshore site in Lake Michigan.