Liste inédite des Reptiles et Amphibiens récoltés par Alcide dˈOrbigny en Amérique méridionale

The complete list of Reptiles and Amphibians collected by dˈOrbigny in South America (Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia) is published for the first time. The list consists of six species of Chelonians, 26 of Saurians, 22 of Ophidians and 16 of Amphibians (one Gymnophiona and 15 Anura). In this list, 31 species were new and are still valid. The plates were published separately and prior to the publication of the ‘Reptiles’ chapter in the Voyage dans lˈAmérique méridionale, and sometimes before the corresponding volume of the Erpétologie générale of Duméril and Bibron 〚3〛. The publication dates of the plates change the known name, author(s) and dates of the several figured species.     

Genetic variability in sunflower (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Helianthus annuus</Emphasis> L.) and in the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Helianthus</Emphasis> genus as assessed by retrotransposon-based molecular markers

The inter-retrotransposon amplified polymorphism (IRAP) protocol was applied for the first time within the genus Helianthus to assess intraspecific variability based on retrotransposon sequences among 36 wild accessions and 26 cultivars of Helianthus annuus L., and interspecific variability among 39 species of Helianthus. Two groups of LTRs, one belonging to a Copia-like retroelement and the other to a putative retrotransposon of unknown nature (SURE) have been isolated, sequenced and primers were designed to obtain IRAP fingerprints. The number of polymorphic bands in H. annuus wild accessions is as high as in Helianthus species. If we assume that a polymorphic band can be related to a retrotransposon insertion, this result suggests that retrotransposon activity continued after Helianthus speciation. Calculation of similarity indices from binary matrices (Shannon’s and Jaccard’s indices) show that variability is reduced among domesticated H. annuus. On the contrary, similarity indices among Helianthus species were as large as those observed among wild H. annuus accessions, probably related to their scattered geographic distribution. Principal component analysis of IRAP fingerprints allows the distinction between perennial and annual Helianthus species especially when the SURE element is concerned.     

L'Ichthyofaune des marnes messiniennes des environs de senigallia (Marche,Italie): Signification paleoecologique et paleogeographique

The revision of the fish fauna from the Messinian marls of Senigallia (Marche, Italy) leads to the reduction of the faunal list of the fossil Fishes found in this locality to only four species. One new genus is created: Cryptolebias new. gen.. This fish fauna characterizes an environment with a variable salt content: it may have been more or less temporarily connected with the sea, although it was also exposed to noticeable continental influences, as demonstrated by the occurrence of Amphibians and Reptiles (Ophidians).     

Molecular differentiation and taxonomy of the sunwatcher toad-headed agama species complex <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phrynocephalus</Emphasis> superspecies <Emphasis Type="Italic">helioscopus</Emphasis> (Pallas 1771) (Reptilia: Agamidae)

Lizards of the sunwatcher toad-headed agama species complex Phrynocephalus superspecies helioscopus, mostly distributed in Central Asia and Middle East, were examined using analysis of variation at the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase c subunit I gene fragment and fingerprint analysis of nuclear DNA (inter-SINE PCR technique). A total of 86 individual tissue samples from 53 populations, to the full extent representing different parts of the species complex range, were subjected to molecular genetic examination, and surprisingly deep differentiation was revealed. The populations analyzed split into 12 isolated phylogroups, many of which were characterized by a narrow range and genetic isolation. Monophyly of sunwatcher (Ph. helioscopus) and Persian (Ph. persicus) toad-headed agamas was confirmed. However, both of these species probably represent the species complexes. Zoogeography of Central Asiais discussed.     

Transcriptomic analysis of the venom gland of the red-headed krait (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Bungarus flaviceps</Emphasis>) using expressed sequence tags

Background  

The Red-headed krait (Bungarus flaviceps, Squamata: Serpentes: Elapidae) is a medically important venomous snake that inhabits South-East Asia. Although the venoms of most species of the snake genus Bungarus have been well characterized, a detailed compositional analysis of B. flaviceps is currently lacking.     

Virtual brain endocast of Antifer (Mammalia: Cervidae), an extinct large cervid from South America

A diverse fossil record of Cervidae (Mammalia) has been documented in the South American Pleistocene, when these animals arrived during the Great American Biotic Interchange. Using computed tomography-scanning techniques, it is possible to access the endocranial morphology of extinct species. Here, we studied the brain endocast of the extinct late Pleistocene cervid Antifer ensenadensis from southern Brazil, one of the largest forms that lived on this continent, using comparative morphology, geometric morphometrics, and encephalization quotients. The analyzed endocasts demonstrate that A. ensenadensis had a gyrencephalic brain, showing a prominent longitudinal sinus (=sagittal superior sinus), which is also observed in the large South American cervid Blastocerus dichotomus. The encephalization quotient is within the variation of extant cervids, suggesting maintenance of the pattern of encephalization from at least the late Pleistocene. Geometric morphometric analysis suggested a clear and linear allometric trend between brain endocast size and shape, and highlights A. ensenadensis as an extreme form within the analyzed cervids regarding brain morphology.     

Problems of body-weight estimation in fossil primates

Body-weight estimates of fossil primates are commonly used to infer many important aspects of primate paleobiology, including diet, ecology, and relative encephalization. It is important to examine carefully the methodologies and problems associated with such estimates and the degree to which one can have confidence in them. New regression equations for predicting body weight in fossil primates are given which provide body-weight estimates for most nonhominid primate species in the fossil record. The consequences of using different subgroups (evolutionary “grades”) of primate species to estimate fossil-primate body weights are explored and the implications of these results for interpreting the primate fossil record are discussed. All species (fossil and extant) were separated into the following “grades”: prosimian grade, monkey grade, ape grade, anthropoid grade, and all-primates grade. Regression equations relating lower molar size to body weight for each of these grades were then calculated. In addition, a female-anthropoid grade regression was also calculated for predicting body weight infernales of extinct, sexually dimorphic anthropoid species. These equations were then used to generate the fossil-primate body weights. In many instances, the predicted fossil-primate body weights differ substantially from previous estimates.     

Foliar nutrient concentrations of small Chamaecyparis in Taiwan

Summary Seedlings ofChamaecyparis lawsoniana, C. formosensis andC. taiwanensis were grown in a forest nursery in Taiwan. Native saplings of the latter two species were sampled in a clearcut and in the forest understory. Foliar nutrient concentrations were mostly in the mid-range of values for other conifers. However, Ca (.59–1.5%) and Cu (7–20 ppm) were almost always high. Concentrations of N, P, and K in field saplings in Taiwan were low enough (.7–1.5%, .07–.15%, .47–.60%, respectively) to indicate that these elements are probably limiting growth.Among the three species,C. lawsoniana usually had the lowest foliar nutrient values. When a difference among the species from Taiwan occurred,C. taiwanensis usually was lower. Foliar nutrient concentration varied among provenances, especially withinC. formosensis. Seasonal variability did not occur consistently; nutrients which did change increased their concentrations from the dormant to the growing season, except for K which decreased.     

The ZW sex chromosomes of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Gekko hokouensis</Emphasis> (Gekkonidae,Squamata) represent highly conserved homology with those of avian species

Populations of the gecko lizard Gekko hokouensis (Gekkonidae, Squamata) on Okinawajima Island and a few other islands of the Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan, have the morphologically differentiated sex chromosomes, the acrocentric Z chromosome and the subtelocentric W chromosome, although the continental representative of this species reportedly shows no sex chromosome heteromorphism. To investigate the origin of sex chromosomes and the process of sex chromosomal differentiation in this species, we molecularly cloned the homologues of six chicken Z-linked genes and mapped them to the metaphase chromosomes of the Okinawajima sample. They were all localized to the Z and W chromosomes in the order ACO1/IREBP–RPS6–DMRT1–CHD1–GHR–ATP5A1, indicating that the origin of ZW chromosomes in G. hokouensis is the same as that in the class Aves, but is different from that in the suborder Ophidia. These results suggest that in reptiles the origin of sex chromosomes varies even within such a small clade as the order Squamata, employing a variety of genetic sex determination. ACO1/IREBP, RPS6, and DMRT1 were located on the Z long arm and the W short arm in the same order, suggesting that multiple rearrangements have occurred in this region of the W chromosome, where genetic differentiation between the Z and W chromosomes has been probably caused by the cessation of meiotic recombination.     

Early hominid body weight and encephalization

The body weight of the Plio-Pleistocene hominids of Africa is estimated by predicting equations derived from the Terry Collection of human skeletons with known body weights. About 50% of the variance in body weight can be accounted for by vertebral and femoral size. Predicted early hominid weights range from 27.6 kg (61 lb) to 54.3 kg (119 lb). The average weight for Australopithecus is 43.2 kg (95 lb) and for Homo sp. indet. from East Rudolf, Kenya, is 52.8 kg (116 lb). These estimates are consistent even if pongid proportions are assumed. Indices of encephalization show that the brain to body weight ratio in Australopithecus is above the great ape averages but well below Homo sapiens. The Homo sp. indet. represented by the KNM-ER 1470, O.H. 7 and O.H. 13 crania have encephalization indices above Australopithecus despite the greater body weight of the former.     

Brain size diversity in adaptation and speciation of subterranean mole rats

We have tested brain size diversity and encephalization in the actively speciating subterranean mole rats of the Spalax ehrenbergi superspecies in Israel. Our sample involved 171 individuals comprising 12 populations and 4 chromosomal species (2n = 52, 54, 58 and 60) distributed parapatrically from the northern Mediterranean region southward (2n = 52, 54→+58→60) into increasingly more arid and unpredictable climatic regimes, approaching the Negev Desert. Our results indicate that relative brain size and encephalization are highest in 2n = 60 as compared with 2n = 52, 54 and 58. We hypothesize that this pattern is adaptive and molded by natural selection. Brain evolution and higher encephalization in the S. ehrenbergi complex appears to be associated with increasing ecological stresses of aridity and climatic unpredictability.     

The generation of diversity in systems of patches and ranked dominance

Aim Mac Nally and Lake proposed a statistic (η) for determining whether the diversity in archipelagos is better generated by several small patches (SS‐dominance) or by a few large patches (SL‐dominance). The η statistic improves the study of the generation of diversity in systems of patches, but the dependence of η on a particular species–area relationship may reduce its effectiveness. In this paper we show that η may be affected by the criterion used to distinguish between large and small patches. We propose alternative measures (ranked m‐dominance indices) for the detection of SS/SL dominance, which separate the effects of each class of patch size on the generation of diversity. Location We use previously published species lists from three archipelagos: lizard species on 25 islands in the Gulf of California; non‐introduced species of reptiles of the Canary Islands (order Squamata); and finch species from 19 islands of the West Indies. We also use one artificial data set. Methods Presence–absence data and the rank order of patch areas are used to define the m‐dominance indices, interpreted as measures of preferential size of patches occupied by m species. A Monte Carlo procedure is implemented for testing the significance of the observed indices. Row and column totals in the simulated presence–absence matrices are kept fixed in order to maintain differences in species richness among sites and differences in occurrence frequencies among species, but the allocation of each occurrence to a specific ranked area is randomized. The analyses are exemplified with the three published data sets taken from the literature, and a hypothetical patch system neither SS‐ nor SL‐dominated. Results The new m‐dominance indices identified correctly the hypothetical patch system, while η was positive, suggesting an incorrect SL‐dominant result. For the lizard data set, the standardized ranked m‐dominance was significantly large for small m, confirming an SL‐dominated system. Islands of varying size in the Canary archipelago hosted restricted reptile species, but matrix sparseness seems to have caused the non‐significant results for the m‐dominance indices in this case. The overall pattern of the West Indies system shows that medium‐large islands are dominant, but most Monte Carlo analyses were not significant, also possibly as a result of matrix sparseness. Main conclusions The m‐dominance indices have the virtue of summarizing composition–area relationships, and including Monte Carlo procedures for testing whether patch size and the type of species distribution (species restricted to m patches, m = 1,…,s) are random or not. When m is as low as 1 or 2, the m‐dominance indices may typify the role of restricted species on the generation of diversity in the system of patches. The procedure developed here can be generalized to include other ordinal properties of patches, such as isolation or habitat heterogeneity.     

Traits associated with naturalization in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Anolis</Emphasis> lizards: comparison of morphological,distributional, anthropogenic,and phylogenetic models

The worldwide spread of invasive species affects native biodiversity and causes economic loss, but also allows better understanding of historical biogeographic patterns. Prediction of likely invaders facilitates economic and conservation decisions and gives insight into characteristics that have allowed natural colonization over evolutionary time. However, it is not clear what types of characters best predict naturalization or even whether naturalization is predictable at all. Squamate reptiles have been understudied subjects for invasion biology. Lizards of the genus Anolis have been highly successful colonizers both recently and over evolutionary time. Nineteen of the approximately 350 described species of Anolis have established naturalized populations. We constructed models of naturalization using morphological, distributional, anthropogenic, and phylogenetic characters and compared these single character class models to each other and to a composite model incorporating all four classes. We show that (1) each class of variables significantly predicts invasion, (2) a composite model significantly outperforms each of the submodels, and (3) the final composite model displays extraordinary ability to objectively identify naturalized species of Anolis.     

Encephalization in Gobioidei (Teleostei)

We have measured the brain and body weight and determined the encephalization index for 180 species of fishes belonging to six families of the suborder Gobioidei. Within the Teleostei, these fishes exhibit a remarkably broad range in the values of their encephalization indices, but most values are in the low to middle range. Within the Gobioidei there is relatively little difference in the degree of encephalization among the different families and subfamilies except the Kraemeriidae and Amblyopinae which have low encephalization indices and the Oxudercinae (including Periophthalmus) and Rhyacichthyidae which are highly encephalized. We have shown that the form of the body has an effect on the degree of encephalization. Elongate fishes have low values, probably because of the excessive mass of their body skeleton which raises the body weight relative to the brain size. The environment in which the fishes live is correlated, in general, with their relative brain size. The values of the encephalization index arranged from low to high by habitat are as follows: muddwelling fishes, freshwater fishes, brackishwater fishes, burrowing marine fishes, freeliving marine fishes, torrent fishes and amphibious fishes. The low values of the Amblyopinae and Kraemeriidae can be explained in terms of their being both mud-dwelling and elongate.     

Sesamoid bones in tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) investigated with X‐ray microtomography,and implications for sesamoid evolution in Lepidosauria

Sesamoids bones are small intra‐tendinous (or ligamentous) ossifications found near joints and are often variable between individuals. Related bones, lunulae, are found within the menisci of certain joints. Several studies have described sesamoids and lunulae in lizards and their close relatives (Squamata) as potentially useful characters in phylogenetic analysis, but their status in the extant outgroup to Squamata, tuatara (Sphenodon ), remains unclear. Sphenodon is the only living rhynchocephalian, but museum specimens are valuable and difficult to replace. Here, we use non‐destructive X‐ray microtomography to investigate the distribution of sesamoids and lunulae in 19 Sphenodon specimens and trace the evolution of these bones in Lepidosauria (Rhynchocephalia + Squamata). We find adult Sphenodon to possess a sesamoid and lunula complement different from any known squamate, but also some variation within Sphenodon specimens. The penultimate phalangeal sesamoids and tibial lunula appear to mineralize prior to skeletal maturity, followed by mineralization of a sesamoid between metatarsal I and the astragalocalcaneum (MTI‐AC), the palmar sesamoids, and tibiofemoral lunulae around attainment of skeletal maturity. The tibial patella, ulnar, and plantar sesamoids mineralize late in maturity or variably. Ancestral state reconstruction indicates that the ulnar patella and tibiofemoral lunulae are synapomophies of Squamata, and the palmar sesamoid, tibial patella, tibial lunula, and MTI‐AC may be synapomorphies of Lepidosauria. J. Morphol. 278:62–72, 2017. ©© 2016 Wiley Periodicals,Inc.     

The effects of prey species on food conversion efficiency and growth of an insectivorous lizard

Little is known about the effects of different prey species on lizard growth. We conducted a 6‐week study to determine the relative effects of prey species on growth parameters of hatchling western fence lizards, Sceloporus occidentalis. Lizards were fed house cricket nymphs, Acheta domesticus, or mealworm larvae, Tenebrio molitor. The effects of prey species on growth were determined by measuring prey consumption, gross conversion efficiency of food [gain in mass (g)/food consumed (g)], gain in mass, and gain in snout–vent length. Lizards grew well on both the prey species. However, lizards that fed on crickets consumed a significantly higher percentage of their body mass per day than those fed mealworms. Nevertheless, lizards that consumed mealworms ingested significantly more metabolizable energy, had significantly higher food conversion efficiencies, significantly higher daily gains in mass, and significantly greater total growth in mass than lizards that fed on crickets. Zoo Biol 27:181–187, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Endocranial Volume of Mid-Late Eocene Archaeocetes (Order: Cetacea) Revealed by Computed Tomography: Implications for Cetacean Brain Evolution

The large brain of modern cetaceans has engendered much hypothesizing about both the intelligence of cetaceans (dolphins, whales, and porpoises) and the factors related to the evolution of such large brains. Despite much interest in cetacean brain evolution, until recently there have been few estimates of brain mass and/or brain–body weight ratios in fossil cetaceans. In the present study, computed tomography (CT) was used to visualize and estimate endocranial volume, as well as to calculate level of encephalization, for two fully aquatic mid-late Eocene archaeocete species, Dorudon atrox and Zygorhiza kochii. The specific objective was to address more accurately and more conclusively the question of whether relative brain size in fully aquatic archaeocetes was greater than that of their hypothesized sister taxon Mesonychia. The findings suggest that there was no increase in encephalization between Mesonychia and these archaeocete species.     

The secrets of lemur teeth

New tools are available for teasing out aspects of life‐history variation among extinct species. Here we summarize research on the life histories of the extinct lemurs of Madagascar. There is a wide range of variation in dental developmental timing among these species, from among the most accelerated (Palaeopropithecus) to among the most prolonged (Hadropithecus) within the Order Primates. Rather than reflecting variation in body size, this diversity appears to relate to niche characteristics and encephalization.     

Encephalization of Bathyergidae and comparison of brain structure volumes between the Zambian mole-rat Fukomys anselli and the giant mole-rat Fukomys mechowii

Encephalization indices were calculated for Fukomys anselli and Fukomys mechowii by using interspecific allometric lines of Tenrecinae (recent Eutheria with the smallest brains) and average Rodentia to compare brain sizes independent of body size influence. These were contrasted with corresponding indices of other Bathyergidae and additionally with other rodents. The Bathyergidae species had indices within the variation of some Cricetidae and Muridae and thus do not differ in encephalization. F. anselli, however, had a clearly higher encephalization index than the sister species F. mechowii. The sizes of diverse structures were measured in the brains of these two species by help of the serial section method. No differences were found in relative composition. The lower encephalization of F. mechowii is discussed as a special phenomenon of gigantism during phylogenetic radiation which similarly was documented for other forms.