The ontogeny of the Late Permian terebratulids (Brachiopoda) Gruntelasma Smirnova, Grigorjevaelasma Smirnova, and Campbellelasma Smirnova and their taxonomic position

A specific type of ontogenetic change combining elements of dielasmoid and angustothyridid stages of brachidium development is established for the Late Permian genera Gruntelasma Smirnova, 2004, Grigorjevaelasma Smirnova, 2004, and Campbellelasma Smirnova, 2004 from the Russian Platform. On this basis, these genera are assigned to the superfamily Compositelasmatoidea Smirnova, family Compositelasmatidae.     

Taxonomic and structural similarities in soil oribatid communities

We examined the taxonomic and structural concordance between oribatid mite communities at different sites from around the world using meta-analysis. The study explored similarities in the taxonomie composition and species abundance distributions among oribatid mite communities using 25 published species lists from Africa, Australia, Europe. Japan. Malaysia, New Zealand and the United States, The final data set contained 253 genera from 97 families in 43 superfamilies, A second data set, which included only studies where trees were present at the sites, contained 234 genera, 93 families and 41 superfamilies. Composition was analysed at taxonomic levels higher than species. Only two families and four superfamilies were present in > 90% of all studies. Two genera, six families and seven superfamilies were found in all sites with trees. Common families were different among habitats suggesting that habitat preferences may be expressed at the family level. There were very strong relationships between oribatid mite species richness and richness at higher taxonomic levels with r² values for regression relationships > 0.8. Few species at a site were from the same genus, family or superfamily. Species abundance distributions were remarkably consistent between studies with the three most dominant species each constituting > 10% of the oribatid individuals. Overall, similar factors may determine the relative proportions of soil-dwelling oribatid species at a site.     

西藏羌塘中部地区Polydiexodina(竹蜓)类动物群

描述了采自西藏羌塘中部地区筵类化石的一部分,计7属13种,分属4科,两超科。其中Polydiexodina5种,含2新种。筵类动物群面貌与Neoschwagerina带相当,确定产Polydiexodina地层的形成时代属中二叠世茅口期。扩大了Polydiexodina的分布范围,为较大区域性地层的划分、对比提供了生物依据,也为研究古生物地理分区提供了新资料。     

New upper permian superfamily compositelasmatoidea (Brachiopoda, Terebratulida) from the east of the Russian platform: The specificity of ontogenetic transformations

A previously unknown type of ontogeny is discussed that unites features of two different types of loop development: the ancient dielasmoid type, which is typical of Upper Paleozoic terebratulids, and the angustothyridid type, which is typical of the Lower Mesozoic terebratulids. A new superfamily, Compositelasmatoidea, and a new family, Compositelasmatidae, with its type genus Compositelasma gen. nov., are established based on their unique ontogenetic changes.     

Review of the Permian family Permulidae nomen novum pro Aliculidae Storozhenko, 1997 (Grylloblattida)

A new replacement name Permulidaenom. n. is proposed for the Permian family Aliculidae Storozhenko, 1997 (Insecta: Grylloblattida). A review of Permulidae is given. All genera and species are redescribed and illustrated. A key to genera of Permulidae is given. New taxa of Permulidae are described: Permula edemskiisp. n., Sojanopermula rasnitsynisp. n., Kazanalicula reductagen. et sp. n., Mezenalicula connatagen. et sp. n., all from the Soyana locality (Middle Permian, Kazanian Stage; Arkhangelsk Region, Russia), and Mezenalicula conjunctasp. n. from the Isady locality (Upper Permian, Severodvinian Stage; Vologda Region, Russia). New combinations are proposed: Permula minor (Aristov, 2004), comb. n. for Sojanopermula minor Aristov, 2004; Permula tshekardensis (Aristov, 2004), comb. n. for Sojanopermula tshekardensis Aristov, 2004. A new genus Acropermulagen. n. (type species: Permula acra Kukalová, 1964, from the Lower Permian of Czech Republic) is established in the family Ideliidae. Neraphidia Novokshonov & Novokshonova, 1997 is transferred from Aliculidae to the order Eoblattida as a genus of uncertain taxonomic position inside this order.     

The Permian/Triassic mass extinction among brachiopods in the Northern Caucasus (northern Palaeo-Tethys): A tentative assessment

A palaeontological record of the Northern Caucasus provides new data to evaluate the influence of the Permian/Triassic mass extinction on brachiopod communities. The study region is currently located in the southwest of Russia; it laid on the northern margin of the Palaeo-Tethys Ocean during the late Paleozoic-early Mesozoic. A total of 168 genera and 36 superfamilies are known from the Changhsingian-Bajocian deposits of this region. The total diversity of brachiopods was very high in the Changhsingian (57 genera and 19 superfamilies), but these organisms disappeared entirely at the Permian/Triassic boundary. Three genera and three superfamilies existed in the Induan, but brachiopods perished again in the Olenekian. A recovery began in the Anisian, but the Changhsingian diversity was never reached again. No genera crossed the Permian/Triassic boundary, whereas 4 superfamilies became able to do this. Ambocoelioidea was a “dead clade walking” and went extinct in the Induan, whereas three other superfamilies (Dialasmatoidea, Rhynchonelloidea, and Wellerelloidea) were more successful. Survivors included no less than 20% of genera during the entire Induan-Bajocian time interval. The Changhsingian-Anisian interval is dominated by just one type of facies in the studied region, which may explain differences in the post-extinction diversity patterns between the Northern Caucasus, South China, and other parts of the World. Use of the alternative Triassic time scale does not change the absolute duration of the post-extinction stress (5.1 myr), whereas it highlights higher rates for the Anisian recovery (appearance of 0.9 superfamilies and 2.8 genera per myr).     

Cladistic revision of talitroidean amphipods (Crustacea, Gammaridea), with a proposal of a new classification

This paper reports the results of a cladistic analysis of the Talitroidea s.l. , which includes about 400 species, in 96 genera distributed in 10 families. The analysis was performed using paup and was based on a character matrix of 34 terminal taxa and 43 morphological characters. Four most parsimonious trees were obtained with 175 steps (CI = 0.617, RI = 0.736). A strict consensus tree was calculated and the following general conclusions were reached. The superfamily Talitroidea is elevated herein as infraorder Talitrida, which is subdivided into three main branches: a small clade formed by Kuria and Micropythia (the Kurioidea), and two larger groups maintained as distinct superfamilies (Phliantoidea, including six families, and Talitroidea s.s ., including four). Within the Talitroidea s.s. , the following taxonomic changes are proposed: Hyalellidae and Najnidae are synonymized with Dogielinotidae, and treated as subfamilies; a new family rank is proposed for the Chiltoniinae.     

New gammaroid family, genera and species from subterranean waters of Japan, and their phylogenetic relationships (Crustacea: Amphipoda)

Luciobliviidae, a new family in the superfamily Gammaroidea (Amphipoda: Crustacea), is described on the basis of species in the genus Lucioblivio gen. nov. from subterranean waters of Japan. Mesogammaridae Bousfield, 1977 is rediagnosed; Octopupilla gen. nov. from subterranean waters of Japan is described and Eoniphargus (Uéno, 1955) from subterranean waters of Japan and Korea is included. The members of Lucioblivio , Octopupilla and Eoniphargus share several characters, including reduced eyes, a setose body, reduced coxae, feeble appendages and pedunculate coxal gills. To elucidate the phylogeny of the three genera among others, a sequence analysis of the 28S rRNA gene was conducted for 14 species in six families, including the three genera, from the superfamilies, Gammaroidea, Crangonyctoidea and Hadzioidea. The tree from a neighbour-joining analysis and the strict consensus tree from a maximum-parsimony analysis indicate monophyly of Mesogammaridae. Luciobliviidae is embedded within a clade of taxa belonging to the superfamily Gammaroidea. These results and the occurrence of gammarid-type calceoli in species of the new family indicate that Luciobliviidae should be placed within the superfamily Gammaroidea. © 2007 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2007, 149 , 643–670.     

Eptingiacea and Saturnaliacea (Radiolaria) from the middle Carnian of Turkey and some late Ladinian to early Norian samples from Oman and Alaska

This article is a taxonomic study of the radiolarian species of the superfamilies Eptingiacea and Saturnaliacea occurring in the middle Carnian fauna from the Köseyahya section, near the town of Elbistan, southeastern Turkey. This fauna is characteristic of the Tetraporobrachia haeckeli Radiolarian Zone as defined in Austria and later found also in Turkey and Oman. It comes from an 8 m thick succession of clayey/cherty limestones from the lower part of the section. In addition, a few species from the late Ladinian and Carnian from Oman and the early Norian from Alaska have also been included in this study, in order to improve some generic diagnoses and to show the diversity and evolutionary trends of some genera. 32 radiolarian species of which 22 are new are described and illustrated, and assigned to 16 genera of which three are new (Capnuchospyris, Veleptingium, and Triassolaguncula). The diagnoses of some species, genera, subfamilies and families have been revised, and the family Eptingiidae has been raised to the rank of superfamily.     

贵州紫云晒瓦群中放射虫Neoalbaillella动物群的发现

首次报道贵州紫云晚二叠世晒瓦群顶部硅质岩中Neoalbaillella动物群,计12种,5未定种,归属于12属9科4超科2亚目,其中1新属（Spongosphaeradiscus gen.nov.）,2新种（Spongosphaeradiscus chaiwaensis sp.nov.和Copicyntra shaiwaensis sp.nov.）。根据这个动物群建立Neoalbaillella ornithoformis-Spongosphaeradiscus shaiwaen-sis带,与东亚和美国西海岸长兴期的Neoalbaillella ornithoformis带对比。     

Evolutionary relationships among scyphozoan jellyfish families based on complete taxon sampling and phylogenetic analyses of 18S and 28S ribosomal DNA

A stable phylogenetic hypothesis for families within jellyfish class Scyphozoa has been elusive. Reasons for the lack of resolution of scyphozoan familial relationships include a dearth of morphological characters that reliably distinguish taxa and incomplete taxonomic sampling in molecular studies. Here, we address the latter issue by using maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships among all 19 currently valid scyphozoan families, using sequence data from two nuclear genes: 18S and 28S rDNA. Consistent with prior morphological hypotheses, we find strong evidence for monophyly of subclass Discomedusae, order Coronatae, rhizostome suborder Kolpophorae and superfamilies Actinomyariae, Kampylomyariae, Krikomyariae, and Scapulatae. Eleven of the 19 currently recognized scyphozoan families are robustly monophyletic, and we suggest recognition of two new families pending further analyses. In contrast to long-standing morphological hypotheses, the phylogeny shows coronate family Nausithoidae, semaeostome family Cyaneidae, and rhizostome suborder Daktyliophorae to be nonmonophyletic. Our analyses neither strongly support nor strongly refute monophyly of order Rhizostomeae, superfamily Inscapulatae, and families Ulmaridae, Catostylidae, Lychnorhizidae, and Rhizostomatidae. These taxa, as well as familial relationships within Coronatae and within rhizostome superfamily Inscapulatae, remain unclear and may be resolved by additional genomic and taxonomic sampling. In addition to clarifying some historically difficult taxonomic questions and highlighting nodes in particular need of further attention, the molecular phylogeny presented here will facilitate more robust study of phenotypic evolution in the Scyphozoa, including the evolution characters associated with mass occurrences of jellyfish.     

Cancrinella and Costatumulus (Brachiopoda) from the Permian of South Mongolia and South China: Their morphology,biostratigraphy and distribution

Two brachiopod genera, Cancrinella Fredericks and Costatumulus Waterhouse, are studied from the Permian of South Mongolia and South China. Many of the specimens previously described as Cancrinella are revised and assigned to Costatumulus. The new data presented in this paper indicate that these two genera are similar to each other, but are distinguishable by different features in relation to their morphology. Several species of both genera are described here, providing critical new information on the morphology and taxonomy of Cancrinella and Costatumulus. The reported biostratigraphical information reveals that species of Cancrinella are present from the Lower Carboniferous (Tournaisian) to Middle Permian (Capitanian), whereas species of Costatumulus are mostly restricted to the Lower Permian (Sakmarian) to Upper Permian (Changhsingian). An analysis of the palaeogeographical distribution of Cancrinella and Costatumulus reveals that Cancrinella was more commonly distributed in the Northern Transitional Zone and the Boreal Realm, in contrast to Costatumulus, which tended to be more common in the Southern Transitional Zone and Gondwanan Realm.     

Molecular phylogeny of grapsoid crabs (Decapoda, Brachyura) and allies based on two mitochondrial genes and a proposal for refraining from current superfamily classification

Grapsoid and ocypodoid crabs receive a lot of attention in the literature due to their predominance and important role as primary and secondary consumers in intertidal as well as supratidal marine habitats. They are especially species‐rich in the tropics, where they have been found to repeatedly invade terrestrial and freshwater habitats. However, the systematics of the crabs belonging to these two superfamilies is still not settled, despite recent steps clarifying phylogenetic relationships and introducing new taxa. In this study, a molecular phylogeny of grapsoid crabs primarily based on East African representatives is constructed based on DNA sequences of the mitochondrial small and large ribosomal subunits (12S and 16S rRNA), thus complementing previous molecular taxonomic studies that had been carried out with the American and East Asian fauna. In addition, selected representatives of all ocypodoid families and subfamilies were included. The monophyly of Grapsidae, Ocypodidae (sensu stuctu), Sesarmidae and Varunidae is well confirmed, if the genera Cyclograpsus, Helice are considered Varunidae and Euchirograpsus a Plagusiidae, as previously suggested. The monophyly of the family Gecarcinidae cannot be supported with our data. The family Plagusiidae in its present composition is polyphyletic. Special attention was given to the large family Sesarmidae, which has many endemic genera in the Indo‐West Pacific. According to this study, two of the most speciose genera, Chiromantes and Parasesarma, are not monophyletic and need to be redefined. On the higher taxonomic level, it becomes evident that both superfamilies, Grapsoidea and Ocypodoidea, are not monophyletic in their current composition, as exemplified by a proposed sister group relationship of Varunidae and Macrophthalmidae. These results confirm those from previous molecular studies and we therefore propose to refrain from the traditional use of the Grapsoidea and Ocypodoidea as monophyletic superfamilies and treat the constituent families separately.     

SUPFAM—a database of potential protein superfamily relationships derived by comparing sequence-based and structure-based families: implications for structural genomics and function annotation in genomes

Members of a superfamily of proteins could result from divergent evolution of homologues with insignificant similarity in the amino acid sequences. A superfamily relationship is detected commonly after the three-dimensional structures of the proteins are determined using X-ray analysis or NMR. The SUPFAM database described here relates two homologous protein families in a multiple sequence alignment database of either known or unknown structure. The present release (1.1), which is the first version of the SUPFAM database, has been derived by analysing Pfam, which is one of the commonly used databases of multiple sequence alignments of homologous proteins. The first step in establishing SUPFAM is to relate Pfam families with the families in PALI, which is an alignment database of homologous proteins of known structure that is derived largely from SCOP. The second step involves relating Pfam families which could not be associated reliably with a protein superfamily of known structure. The profile matching procedure, IMPALA, has been used in these steps. The first step resulted in identification of 1280 Pfam families (out of 2697, i.e. 47%) which are related, either by close homologous connection to a SCOP family or by distant relationship to a SCOP family, potentially forming new superfamily connections. Using the profiles of 1417 Pfam families with apparently no structural information, an all-against-all comparison involving a sequence-profile match using IMPALA resulted in clustering of 67 homologous protein families of Pfam into 28 potential new superfamilies. Expansion of groups of related proteins of yet unknown structural information, as proposed in SUPFAM, should help in identifying ‘priority proteins’ for structure determination in structural genomics initiatives to expand the coverage of structural information in the protein sequence space. For example, we could assign 858 distinct Pfam domains in 2203 of the gene products in the genome of Mycobacterium tubercolosis. Fifty-one of these Pfam families of unknown structure could be clustered into 17 potentially new superfamilies forming good targets for structural genomics. SUPFAM database can be accessed at http://pauling.mbu.iisc.ernet.in/~supfam.     

A new tribe of dictyoclostid brachiopods from the Lower Permian of the Tarim Basin,north-west China

Several finely capillated brachiopod genera are re-examined based on new material obtained from the Lower Permian of the Tarim Basin, north-western China and previously published information. A new genus, Tarimoplecta, is proposed. Comparison with other related genera reveals that Liraplecta Jin and Sun and Tarimoplecta gen. nov. represent a new tribe, Liraplectini, of the Dictyoclostidinae Stehli. The stratigraphical and geographical distributions of both LiraplectaTarimoplecta indicate that they are restricted to the Sakmarian to Kungurian (Lower Permian) of the Tethyan Realm. Four species are described herein: Liraplectapaojianggouensis sp. nov., L. richthofeni (Chao), L. apsera (Wang), and Tarimoplecta tarimensis gen. et sp. nov.     

Microbilobata,a new genus of earliest terebratulid brachiopod from the lower Silurian of Northwestern Canada: Implications for the origin of higher taxa

Microbilobata avalanchensis n. gen. and n. sp. from the Lower Silurian (upper Wenlock) carbonate rocks of the lower Delorme Group in the Avalanche Lake area, northwestern Canada, is described here as the earliest known terebratulid brachiopod. These small shells (less than 2 mm long) are subtriangular, anteriorly emarginate, possibly punctate, with both valves being sulcate at their anterior halves, the ventral sulcus bearing one prominent plica, and the dorsal sulcus marked by two plicae. Internally, M. avalanchensis has a centronelliform loop extending for about three fifths of the total shell length. The shells are silicified in carbonate rocks of mid to outer shelf origin. M. avalanchensis is relatively rare, with about 40 specimens so far found from samples collected at 58–60 m above the base of section AV5 in the Avalanche Lake area. Its presence in rocks of Wenlock age extends the earliest known terebratulids back about 16 million years from the oldest previously recorded terebratulids (earliest Devonian age). The small size and simple form of the new species suggest that heterochrony (progenesis) could have played a role in the origin of the Terebratulida. M. avalanchensis serves as a good example of Cope's Rule, indicating that the terebratulids evolved from a very small, unspecialized ancestor. The unusually small size of this taxon also offers one explanation as to why some ancestors or transitional forms of major taxonomic groups are extremely difficult to find in the fossil record.     

Convergent evolution of shell shape in freshwater limpets: the African genus Burnupia

Convergent evolution of shell shape is a well known phenomenon in gastropods that has caused much confusion in taxonomic and systematic studies. A paradigm is the patelliform shell shape in several taxa of the order Basommatophora. Historically, most freshwater limpets were assigned to the family Ancylidae. Based on anatomical data, some taxa were subsequently moved to different families. However, there are still doubts about the monophyly of the remaining ancylids. This is also true for the African limpets and particularly for species of the genus Burnupia Walker, 1912. In the present paper, two independent molecular markers (COI, 18S rRNA) are used to (a) infer the position of Burnupia within the Basommatophora and (b) to test whether the shell shape of Burnupia evolved independently. Bayesian and maximum likelihood analyses of 12 genera of limnic Basommatophora indicate that Burnupia not only appears to be distinct from the Ancylidae, but also from all other representatives of the superfamily Planorboidea studied here. Based on a generally well-supported phylogeny and preliminary anatomical data, it is concluded that patelliform shell shapes evolved at least three times in the taxa studied here and that the shell shape of Burnupia represents another case of convergent evolution. Previously proposed functional and evolutionary scenarios for the evolution of patelliform shell and their relevance for freshwater limpets are discussed.  © 2004 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2004, 140 , 577–586.     

福建永安丰海二叠系上部及三叠系底部的双壳类动物群*

系统研究了闽西永安丰海地区二叠系上部及三叠系下部的双壳类动物群面貌、层位及组合,并与国内外相当的地层进行了对比,阐明了该双壳动物群在二叠-三叠系界线划分中的地层意义.描述了15属24种(其中5新种)、5未定种.     

利用线粒体16S rRNA基因全序列分析直翅目主要类群的系统发生关系

为了构建稳健的直翅目主要类群间的系统发生关系并探讨16S rRNA基因序列在构建直翅目昆虫不同分类阶元系统发生关系时的可行性、功效以及性能,文章测定了直翅目4总科9科18种昆虫的16S rRNA基因全序列,联合已知该基因全序列的其他40种昆虫,构建了直翅目主要类群之间的系统发生关系,并分析了16SrRNA基因全序列的系统发生性能和功效。结果表明,直翅目昆虫的16S rRNA基因全长平均为1 310 bp;除生活方式特化的蚤蝼总科和蝼蛄总科的地位无法确定外,直翅目其他主要类群系统发生关系比较稳定;蝗总科下除了斑翅蝗科和槌角蝗科外,剑角蝗科、斑腿蝗科、网翅蝗科都不是单系群,且用不同的方法构建的系统发生树中聚类情况完全一致,各科间遗传距离差异不大,建议将其合为一科;锥头蝗科、瘤锥蝗科和癞蝗科间的遗传距离差异也不大;在构建系统发生树时,16S rRNA基因环区的信息量要比茎区的大;16S rRNA基因可以构建可靠的直翅目属与种水平和目与亚目高级阶元的系统发生关系,但对科和总科阶元缺乏足够的分辨力。     

基于GC-MS的异翅亚目臭腺分泌物化学分类学分析

【目的】探讨异翅亚目(Heteroptera)昆虫不同类群间臭腺分泌物化学组分的差异,为该类昆虫寻找新的分类特征并为各类群间的相互关系提供新的证据。【方法】我们采用固相微萃取(solid phase microextraction, SPME)偶联气相色谱-质谱仪(GC-MS)对采自中国的异翅亚目8个总科32个种的臭腺分泌物进行了测定分析;采用典型判别分析法、非参数多元方差分析法、典型变量分析法进行了高级阶元分泌物的化学分类学分析。【结果】典型判别分析结果表明,异翅亚目,尤其是蝽次目中不同总科间的臭腺分泌物具显著差异性,可作为总科间的分类特征;非参数多元方差分析结果支持臭腺分泌物在总科间的显著差异性;结合典型判别分析结果和典型变量分析的结果找到划分异翅亚目8个总科32个种的主要特征性化合物有6类共30种,包括酸类［己酸(hexanoic acid)、丁酸(butanoic acid)、2-己烯酸(2-hexenoic acid)］,醇类｛2-丁基-1-辛醇(2-butyl-octan-1-ol)、2-己基-1-辛醇(2-hexyl-octan-1-ol)、2-己炔-1-醇(2-hexyn-1-ol)、3,7-二甲基-2-辛烯-1-醇(3,7-dimethyl-2-octen-1-ol)、4,8-二甲基-1-壬醇(4,8-dimethyl-1-nonanol)、2-癸烯-1-醇(2-decen-1-ol)、1-己醇(1-hexanol)、高蒎醇(cis-pinene hydrate)、2-茨醇(borneol)、冰片(2-bornanol)、丙二醇甲醚(1-methoxy-propan-2-ol)、2-乙基1-己醇(2-ethyl-hexan-1-ol)、(6Z, 9Z)-十五烷-1-醇［(6Z, 9Z)-pentadecadien-1-ol］、(E)-9-十六碳烯-1-醇［(E)-9-hexadecen-1-ol］、(S)-3-乙基-4-甲基-1-戊醇［(S)-3-ethyl-4-methyl-pentan-1-ol］、异葑醇(isofenchol)、斯巴醇(spathulenol)｝,醛类｛(E)-2-辛烯醛［(E)-2-octenal］、十二醛(dodecanal)、(Z)-3-己烯醛［(Z)-3-hexenal］、(E)-2-癸烯醛［(E)-2-decenal］、(E, E)-2,4-癸二烯醛［(E, E)-2,4-decadienal］｝,烷类［2-甲基己烷(2-methyl-hexane)、2,21-二甲基二十二烷(2,21-dimethyl-docosane)］,环类［糠醛(furfural)］和萜类［二氢香芹醇(neodihydrocarveol)、二氢松油醇(dihydroterpineol)］。【结论】本研究从异翅亚目8个总科32个物种臭腺分泌物中鉴定的30种特征性化合物在一定程度上可作为异翅亚目总科级阶元的分类特征并为其相互关系提供依据。