“Meganthropus” cranial fossils from Java

There are now twelve significant hominid cranial fossils from the Lower and Middle Pleistocene of Java, all but two being from the Sangiran site. Most of this material is well-known in the literature, but three skulls, possibly representing “Meganthropus” are here described in detail for the first time. Most scholars have assigned them all toHomo erectus, while others have suggested that they represent as many as four different hominoid taxa. The author argues that they represent two possible species of hominids. “Meganthropus” I, II, and III are more massive than any of the knownH. erectus specimens. They are also relatively higher vaulted, apparently smaller brained, and have unusually thick lower occipital planes. “Meganthropus” may represent a species that separated fromH. erectus upon its arrival to Java.     

Two new labdane diterpenoids and one new β-lactam from the aerial parts of Roylea cinerea

Two new labdane diterpenoids cinereanoid C (1), cinereanoid D (2), a new β-lactam, cinerealactam E (3) as well as six known flavonoid glycosides (4–9) were isolated from the aerial parts of Roylea cinerea (Lamiaceae). The structures of (1–9) were all determined by MS, IR and NMR spectroscopy. The structure of cinereanoid D (2) was further proven by single crystal X-ray diffraction. Six known flavonoid glycosides (4–9) were also isolated for the first time from this plant. 2, 5, 6 and 7 were found to significantly inhibit the ATP binding of a tumour growth-promoting heat shock protein, Hsp90.     

Two new “flagship” ciliates (Protozoa,Ciliophora) from Venezuela: Sleighophrys pustulata and Luporinophrys micelae

Sleighophrys pustulata nov. gen., nov. spec. and Luporinophrys micelae nov. gen., nov. spec. were discovered in a slightly saline mud and soil sample from some flat, dry puddles in the Maracay National Park on the north coast of Venezuela. Their morphology was studied in vivo, in protargol preparations, and in the scanning electron microscope. The new genera are monotypic and belong to the trachelophyllid haptorids. They are characterized by the unique shape of the epicortical scales (lepidosomes). Sleighophrys pustulata, which has a size of about 180×23 μm, possesses type I and unique type V lepidosomes which are hat-shaped and about 7×7 μm in size. Luporinophrys micelae, which has a size of about 200×35 μm, possesses types I, II, and unique type VI lepidosomes which are narrow, about 10 μm high cones composed of fibrous stripes connected by polygonal meshes. The conspicuous body size and the richly structured, comparatively large lepidosomes make S. pustulata and L. micelae biogeographic flagships which may help to cast some light on the pending question whether or not microorganisms have biogeographies. The available data suggest that both species have a restricted geographic distribution, not only because they were not described previously, but mainly because they were absent in about 2000 freshwater samples from central Europe and in about 1000 soil samples collected globally.     

Two new motile phototrophic consortia: “Chlorochromatium lunatum” and “Pelochromatium selenoides”

Two new phototrophic consortia, “Chlorochromatium lunatum” and “Pelochromatium selenoides”, were observed and collected in the hypolimnion of several dimictic lakes in Wisconsin and Michigan (USA). The two consortia had the same morphology but different pigment composition. The cells of the photosynthetic components of the consortia were half-moon-shaped. This morphology was used to differentiate them from the previously described motile phototrophic consortia “Chlorochromatium aggregatum” and “Pelochromatium roseum”. These phototrophic cells did not resemble any described unicellular green sulfur bacteria. The predominant pigments detected were bacteriochlorophyll d and chlorobactene for the green-colored “Clc. lunatum”, and bacteriochlorophyll e and isorenieratene for the brown-colored “Plc. selenoides”. Their pigment compositions and the presence of chlorosomes attached to the inner face of the cytoplasmic membrane in both kinds of photosynthetic cells confirmed this new half-moon-shaped morphotype as a green sulfur bacterium. Both consortia were found thriving in lakes with low concentrations of sulfide (< 60 μM), below the layers of “Clc. aggregatum” and “Plc. roseum”. The green consortia were observed in lakes where the oxic-anoxic interface was located at shallow depths (2–7 m), while the brown consortia were found at greater depths (8–16 m). The two newly described consortia were never detected together at the same depth in any lake. Received: 30 April 1997 / Accepted: 17 January 1998     

Two new moth‐flies (Diptera,Psychodidae) from South America

Tonnoiriella mirabilis sp. n. and Caenobrunettia echinoflagellata gen. n. et. sp. n. from the neotropical region are described.     

Two new species of the genus Hedyotis (Rubiaceae) from China

Two new species of the genus Hedyotis L. (Rubiaceae) from southern China, H. wangii and H. yazhouensis, are described and illustrated.     

Two new species of Entomobryidae (Collembola) of?Taibai Mountain from China

Taibai Mountain is the highest peak of Qinling Mountain Ridge, a climate and geographical demarcation of the southern and northern China. Collembolan species of family Entomobryidae are reported from this region for the first time in this paper. Two new species, Homidia taibaiensissp. n. and Sinella trisetasp. n. of Entomobryinae are described. Illustrations and differences with similar species are provided.     

Two new theropod egg sites from the Late Jurassic Lourinhã Formation,Portugal

Two new Late Jurassic (uppermost Late Kimmeridgian) dinosaur eggshell sites are described, Casal da Rola and Porto das Barcas, both near Lourinhã, central-west Portugal. Casal da Rola yields eggshells with an obliquiprismatic morphotype comparable to those from a nest with the associated fossil embryos from Paimogo, tentatively assigned to the theropod Lourinhanosaurus antunesi. The Porto das Barcas eggshells have a dendrospherulitic morphotype with a prolatocanaliculate pore system. This morphotype was also recognised in eggshells from a clutch with associated Torvosaurus embryos at the Porto das Barcas locality. A preliminary cladistic analysis of eggshell morphology suggests theropod affinities for the Casal da Rola eggs, but is unable to resolve the phylogenetic position of the Porto das Barcas eggs. The eggshells at both sites are preserved in distal flood plain mudstones and siltstones. Carbonate concretions within the deposits indicate paleosol development.     

Two new Species of Lasiohelea from Sichuan,China(Diptera,Ceratopogonidae)

1. Lasiohelea aeschrodenta, sp. nov Female Head with eyes bare, AR 2.09;maxillary palp with a sensory pore on segment 3. Buccal armature has about 10 teeth which separated irregulary in the cibarium;clypeus with about 16 setae. Wing about 0.86 mm. long, with bare areas along veins. TR 1.74 in hind leg, with narrow scales on each tarsus. Spermatheca round and small, with abroad basical pore. Holotype:♀ Dukou, Sichuan, 1979 X. 10-11; Paratypes: 2♀♀Sichuan,Xichang, 1979 X. 5.     

Two new biting midges from Pará, Brazil (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae)

Two new species of Culicoides Latreille of the subgenus Haematomyidium Goeldi are described and illustrated based on female specimens from Pará, Brazil. The new species are compared with their similar congeners.     

Two new species of Hartigia Schidte from China(Hymenoptera:Cephidae)

Two new species of Hartigia Schidte, 1838 from China are described: H. maculothoracica sp. nov. from Xinjiang and H. fuscicosta sp. nov. from Jilin. A diagnosis of Hartigia and a key to Hartigia maculothoracica and its relatives are provided.     

Two new species ofPseudopetigurus (Trilobita) from the Arenig — Llanvirn of South China

Two new species ofPseudopetigurus are described from northern Hunan Province, China.P. deprati n. sp. is abundant in the upper Zitai Formation (upper Arenig) of Shuanghong, Baiyun, Shimen County, andP. expansus n. sp. occurs throughout the Jiuxi Formation (Arenig — lower Llanvirn) of Panjiazui, Taoyuan County. These formations represent outer shelf facies from the Jiangnan Transitional Belt of the South China Plate, close to the southeast margin of the Yangtze Platform. BothP. deprati andP. expansus show similarities to Upper Ordovician species ofPseudopetigurus recorded from South China. Other species ofPseudopetigurus are known almost entirely from cranidia, but pygidia and librigenae are also described for both new species, and the first known hypostome assigned to the genus is described forP. expansus. These two species are ecologically important members of offshore trilobite faunas during the Arenig — Llanvirn and define the outer shelfPseudopetigurus Association of South China. Despite being a deep-water genus,Pseudopetigurus is biogeographically restricted to the western margin of the Gondwanan craton and neighbouring regions of Baltica.      

Two new species of caddisflies from East Asia （Trichoptera： Philopotamidae, Psychomyiidae）

A new species of Kisaura Ross （Philopotamidae） from Japan and a new species of Psychomyia Latreille （Psychomyiidae） from Russia are described. Kisaura imparis n. sp. is closest to Kisaura aurascens （Martynov, 1934）, but the lateral processes of tergum X are asymmetrical and the apex of tergum X is different. Psychomyia poltavkaensis n. sp. resembles Psychomyia n. sp., but the shape of tergum IX＋X is more rounded, the apex of the basoventral process of each preanal appendage is unforked, and the inferior appendages are branched.     

Sangiran 5,(“Pithecanthropus dubius”), homo erectus, “Meganthropus,” orPongo?

There are now eleven known mandibular remains from the Lower and Middle Pleistocene of Java, all but one being from the Sangiran site. All of these have been assigned toHomo erectus by most workers, while others have suggested as many as four different hominoid taxa. The author finds that the jaws cannot be a homogeneous sample. Morphologically, they are a mixture of undoubtedH. erectus, “H. meganthropus,” and possibly a pongid. If the jaws are allH. erectus then they have a sexual dimorphism exceeding that of modern gorillas. The case of“Pithecanthropus dubius” (Sangiran 5) is even less certain; even its hominid status is disputed. If it is indeedHomo it must be placed with the other“H. meganthropus” specimens. Its size and morphology are well beyond the known range anyH. erectus.     

Two new species of Campomanesia (Myrtaceae) from Espírito Santo and Bahia, Brazil

Campomanesia macrobracteolata andC. anemonea, apparently closely related species from Espírito Santo and Bahia, Brazil, are described as new and are illustrated. Comparisons are made with two other similar species.     

Two new substituted polychiral 5, 6-dihydro-α-pyrones from Orthosiphon diffusus and molecular docking studies

Chemical investigation on Orthosiphon diffusus lead to isolation of two new substituted polychiral 5, 6-dihydro-α-pyrones, orthodiffenes E-F (5-6) which were characterized from the detailed studies of their 1D and 2D NMR spectra. Isolated molecules orthodiffenes E-F (5-6) along with previously isolated, reported orthodiffene A-D (1-4) molecules were subjected to in silico studies and analysed for anticancer target Topoisomerse I-B − DNA complex. Orthodiffene D and E are giving noteworthy observations while all isolated molecules are showing a pattern of binding in active pocket similar to each other however, different from Camptothecin, an anticancer agent. Orthodiffene A-C have comparable cytotoxicity to Camptothecin, which we have earlier reported.     

Two new species of Tornidae (Caenogastropoda,Rissooidea) from Espírito Santo,Brazil

Two new species of shallow water Tornidae are found in Espírito Santo state, Brazil, formally described herein. They belong to a complex group of tiny gastropods, in such the taxonomy is very confused. Cyclostremiscus mohicanussp. n. is characterized by three well-developed spiral, equidistant carinas, working as base of three series of tall, aligned periostracal rods. Episcinia itanhunasp. n. has as single sculpture a series of pustules in periphery, but the periostracum bears three series of peripheral fringes with irregular rods. The new species are compared with the allies, showing a close relation with Caribbean fauna, but possessing worthy differences. These similarities have raised misidentifications.     

Early crop diversity: A “new” glume wheat from northern Greece

At three Neolithic sites and one Bronze Age site in northern Greece, spikelet bases of a new type of glume wheat have been recovered. These spikelet bases are morphologically distinct from the typicalTriticum monococcum L. (einkorn),T. dicoccum Schübl. (emmer) andT. spelta L. (spelt) types previously recorded from Greece and they have also been observed at Neolithic and Bronze Age sites in Turkey, Hungary, Austria and Germany. their taxonomic identification remains uncertain but it seems likely that they are tetraploid, and they have morphological features in common withT. timopheevi Zhuk. Various possibilities exist for the origin of this type but, whatever its origin and exact identity, its cultivation has ceased over large geographical areas since the Bronze Age. At the northern Greek sites, at least, the new type may have been cultivated as a maslin (mixed crop) with einkorn.     

Two new species of Caryospora Léger, 1904 (Apicomplexa,Eimeriidae) from accipitrid raptors

Two new species of Coccidia (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) are described from European accipitrid raptors (Falconiformes: Accipitridae). Oöcysts of Caryospora aquilae n. sp. found in faeces of the gold eagle Aquila chrysaetos are subspherical to broad ellipsoidal and measure 43 (40–49) × 37.5 (34–39) m. Polar granule, oöcyst residuum and micropyle are absent. Each oöcyst contains one spherical to subspherical slightly polygonal sporocyst measuring 23.8 (23–25) × 23.3 (22–25) m. Stieda and substieda bodies are absent. The sporocyst residuum is composed of numerous small granules less than 0.5 m in diameter dispersed randomly among the sporozoites. Sporulated oöcysts of Caryospora circi n. sp. from faeces of the marsh harrier Circus aeruginosus are widely oval, measuring 24.5 (23–25) × 21.8 (21–24) m. A polar granule, oöcyst residuum and micropyle are absent. Each oöcyst contains one spherical to subspherical sporocyst measuring 16.2 (15–17) × 15.6 (15–17) m. A compact granular, spherical to subspherical sporocyst residuum, 10.4 (10–11) × 8.5 (7–9), was present in 76% of measured sporocysts. In 24% of sporocysts the granules of sporocyst residuum were scattered among the sporozoites.