Annotated checklist of Iranian Hydrophilidae (Coleoptera: Polyphaga: Hydrophiloidea)

This checklist comprises all species of Hydrophilidae (Coleoptera: Hydrophiloidea) quoted in the literature referring to Iran and confirmed by our study. In total, 104 species within 17 genera and five subfamilies, Hydrophilinae (eight genera, 63 species), Chaetarthriinae (three genera, five species), Enochrinae (single genus, 20 species), Acidocerinae (single genus, three species) and Sphaeridiinae (four genera, 13 species), are listed for the fauna of Iran. Three species are endemic; four species are recorded here for the first time from Iran, and nine species are excluded from Iranian fauna.     

Length‐weight relationships for five nemacheilian loaches (Teleostei: Nemacheilidae) from Iran

Length‐weight relationships were estimated for five nemacheilian loaches of Iran. Three of these species are endemic to Iran and the L‐W parameters of three species are given for the first time.     

Length–weight relationships of six freshwater cyprinid fishes of Iran

Length–weight relationships were estimated for six cyprinid species of Iran. One of these species is endemic to Iran and the L–W parameters for three of the species are given for the first time.     

The Herpetofauna of Iran: Checklist of Taxonomy,Distribution and Conservation Status

We present an annotated checklist for a total 241 reptiles and 22 amphibians including 5 frogs, 9 toads, 7 newts and salamanders, 1 crocodile, 1 worm lizard, 148 lizards, 79 snakes and 12 turtles and tortoises, includes the most scientific literature up to August 2014 and also based on several field surveys conducted in different Provinces of Iran from 2009 to 2014. We present an up-to-dated checklist of reptiles and amphibians in Iran. We provide a comprehensive listing of taxonomy, names, distribution and conservation status of all amphibians and reptiles of Iran. This checklist includes all recognized named taxa, English names for classes, orders, families, species, subspecies along with Persian names for species, including indication of native and introduced species. For the first time we report two non-native introduced reptiles from natural habitats of Iran. Of the total 22 species of amphibians in Iran, 6(27.2%) are endemic and of the total 241 species of reptiles, 55(22.8%) are endemic. Of the 22 amphibians species in Iran, 3(13%) are Critically Endangered, 2(9%) are Vulnerable and of the 241 reptile species 3(1.2%) are Critically Endangered, 4(1.6%) are Endangered and 10(4.1%) are Vulnerable. Accordingly, this paper combines significant aspects of taxonomy, common names, conservation status and distribution of the Iranian herpetofauna.     

Astragalus sect. Astragalus (Fabaceae) in Iran, complementary notes with a key to the species

Astragalus zarreianus. is described and illustrated from Iran. It belongs to section Astragalus. This new species confined to western part of Iran (Prov. Illam) from only one location. A key to the species of the section known from Iran is prepared. Differences between the section and the closely related sections are discussed. On the basis of some important trends, an informal grouping is undertaken for yellow flower Astragali. Moreover, A. pseudo-orthocarpus is considered as a valid species in this treatment and differences with its closest relatives are described.     

The freshwater snails (Gastropoda) of Iran, with descriptions of two new genera and eight new species

Using published records and original data from recent field work and revision of Iranian material of certain species deposited in the collections of the Natural History Museum Basel, the Zoological Museum Berlin, and Natural History Museum Vienna, a checklist of the freshwater gastropod fauna of Iran was compiled. This checklist contains 73 species from 34 genera and 14 families of freshwater snails; 27 of these species (37%) are endemic to Iran. Two new genera, Kaskakia and Sarkhia, and eight species, i.e., Bithynia forcarti, Bithynia starmuehlneri, Bithynia mazandaranensis, Pseudamnicola georgievi, Kaskakia khorrasanensis, Sarkhia sarabensis, Valvata nowsharensis and Acroloxus pseudolacustris are described as new to science; Ecrobia grimmi (Clessin & Dybowski, 1888), Heleobia dalmatica (Radoman, 1974) and Hippeutis complanatus (Linnaeus, 1758) are reported for the first time from Iran. Additional field work is highly desirable for a more appropriate evaluation of the extant freshwater snail biodiversity in Iran.     

Length‐weight relationships for nine nemacheilian loaches (Teleostei: Nemacheilidae) from Iran

Length‐weight relationships were estimated for 9 nemacheilian loaches of Iran. Four of these species are endemic to Iran and the L‐W parameters of six species are given for the first time. Significant length‐weight relationships with high correlation coefficient were found for all species. The value of parameter b ranged from 2.81 to 3.12.     

Migratory waterfowls as indicators to assess the protection efficiency in Iran

There are high numbers of endangered birds in Iran. Birds also are indicators of biodiversity in different landscapes and using birds as indicator give us a complete overview about the ecological status of the landscape. In the present study migratory waterfowls were used to identify biodiversity hotspots in Iran. Iran is an interesting place for ornithologists because it is in fact a crossroads of flyways for migratory waterfowls coming from Europe, southern Asia, and Siberia. We predicted the habitat distributions for 27 bird species of Anseriformes in Iran using an ensemble forecasting framework to identify biodiversity hotspots. Moreover, we measured the percentage of overlap between hotspots and protected areas including Ramsar sites. The results showed that suitable habitats for different bird species greatly varied among different ecosystems and they showed dissimilar responses to environmental variables. However, for most species digital elevation model (DEM) was the most important variable in predicting suitable habitats. Our study also revealed that 36.02% of Iran can be considered as suitable habitats for the species and the highest suitability belongs to areas along Zagros and Alborz mountain ranges. Furthermore, the suitable habitats had 7.10% overlap with protected areas and 75% with Ramsar sites. The low overlap between hotspots and protected areas demonstrated the shortage of biodiversity protection in Iran. Therefore, it is essential to select new protected areas based on biodiversity hotspots, and to develop a network of protected areas within those hotspots in Iran.     

Little owl (Athene noctua) around human settlements and agricultural lands: Conservation and management enlightenments

Ecological studies have been focused on large, rare or endangered species but species which are adapted to traditional agroecosystems or rural environments received less attention. For example, Little owl is a typical inhabitant of agricultural lands and its population had greatly reduced due to the mechanized agriculture. In this paper, we built the first country level habitat suitability map for the little owl and identified the most influential environmental predictor of its distribution in Iran. We used species presence data (177 distribution points) and eight uncorrelated environmental variables to model the species suitable habitats using the maximum entropy approach (Maxent). Results showed that suitable habitats for this species are located in the northwest, parts of north east and southwest of Iran. Distance to forests, distance to human settlements and distance to agricultural lands are the most important determinants of the little owl distribution in Iran. Human migrations from rural areas to the cities and availability of many vacant human settlements surrounded by traditional and semi-modern agricultural landscapes produce suitable habitats for little owl in Iran.     

Taxonomic composition of algae and its indicator role in the ecosystem of the Zayandehrud River,Iran

Data on the species composition of the algal flora of the Zayandehrud River (central Iran) are given. A total of 201 species represented by 212 infraspecific taxa are recorded, five of them new to Iran. Saprobic indexes are calculated and the quality of water is estimated for different areas of the river in different seasons on the basis of the saprobity of indicator species and physicochemical parameters. It is proposed to use as indicators 93 species of algae, for which saprobic valences and indicator weights are calculated in light of the peculiar features of the watercourse.     

Phytoseiid mites (Acari: Mesostigmata) associated with tea gardens in north of Iran

Predator mites of Phytoseiidae family are among the most important biocontrol agents in the world. These beneficial mites are considered as natural enemies of many pests and herbivore mites, and can feed on different growth stages of pests (egg, larva or nymph). Five species of Phytoseiidae mites were found during a survey conducted on tea plants, Camellia sinensis (Theaceae), in the Mazandaran and Guilan Provinces in the north of Iran, on the coast of the Caspian Sea, the major tea-growing region of Iran. Some of these species are recorded for the first time in tea gardens of Iran.     

Identification of the areas of endemism (AOEs) of the genus Acantholimon (Plumbaginaceae) in Iran

Abstract

This study was conducted to identify areas of endemism for Acantholimon species using parsimony analysis of endemicity (PAE) and to detect endemic species richness of the genus in the region. The results obtained from the two methods used in this study were used in determining the priorities for the conservation of Acantholimon species in Iran. The distribution database of 62 endemic species belonging to this genus was formed by 1250 georeferenced observations in Iran. The study area was divided into 1?×1? grids of operative geographical units (OGUs) and the species?×?area matrix including presence/absence data was created. The endemic species richness was calculated using circular neighborhood with a radius of 50?km in 10?×?10?km² raster cells using DIVA-GIS software. The results of PAE analysis have shown four areas of endemism (AOEs) in Iran. AOE1: including Alborz and Zagros mountains, the mountains of central Iran. AOE2 and AOE3 are located in Khorassan subregion and AOE4 contains parts of western Iran. The map of endemic species richness indicated that the highest number of endemic species occurs in central Alborz region as well as Kerman, Chahar-Mahal and Bakhtiari, and Isfahan provinces.     

Taxonomic study of Astragalus sect Erioceras (Fabaceae) in Iran Additional notes and key to the species

A key to and new findings on the Astragalus sect. Erioceras, are given for the 10 species of this section, which occur within the area covered by the flora of Iran. One species, Astragalus neo-sytinii , is described as a new species. A. sympileicarpus is reported as a new record for the flora of Iran. A. viridis is transferred from A. sect. Erioceras to sect. Xiphidium Sect. Acantherioceras is reduced to the level of subsection. The differences between that section and closely related sections are discussed.     

An introduction to Iranian Collembola (Hexapoda): an?update to the species list

The Collembola fauna of Iran is little known and no comprehensive examination of this group of Hexapoda is available for this region. The only notable work on Collembola was carried out by Cox (1982). Recently, studies on the Collembola fauna have started in several regions. In this paper, publications by different researchers are documented and the species that have been found in different regions of Iran until January 2013 are listed. At present, 112 species, belonging to 18 families and 57 genera are known from Iran.     

Taxonomic revision and phytogeographic studies in Euphorbia (Euphorbiaceae) in the Khorassan provinces of Iran

This study is focused on the genus Euphorbia L. in a part of northeast Iran, viz. the three Khorassan provinces. Since there are many taxa of Euphorbia in Iran which are used in different industries and have significant effects on human and non‐human life it is important to revise their taxonomy. With about 90 species, following Turkey with 91 species, Iran is the second richest country for Euphorbia in Asia. Of these, 30 species are distributed in the Khorassan provinces. This is the first comprehensive work on the genus in this region. According to ‘Flora Iranica’, there are 17 species of Euphorbia in northeast Iran, while according to our results, there are 30 species of Euphorbia in the Khorassan provinces alone. In addition to various new taxonomic and biogeographic results, a new species, viz. E. chamanbidensis, is described. Euphorbia chamanbidensis is closely related to E. aucheri, but seed micro‐morphological characters differentiate them. Two identification keys to the Euphorbia species of the studied area are provided, one based on macro‐morphological characters and another based on seed micro‐morphological characters. Phytogeographic analysis and distribution maps for all species are also presented.     

A survey of running crab spiders (Araneae: Philodromidae) in Iran

Nine species and four genera of Philodromidae are identified and recorded from various parts of Iran including Pulchellodromus medius (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872) (genus and species new to Iran) and Thanatus setiger (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872) (new to Iran). The male of Rhysodromus hierosolymitanus (Levy, 1977), which was previously known only from females, is described and diagnosed here.     

A contribution to the knowledge of Agathidinae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from Iran with description of a new species

The subfamily Agathidinae was studied in parts of northern Iran. Six species were collected and identified. Among them, Cremnops desertor (L., 1758) is recorded for the first time from Iran. Lytopylus persicus Farahani & Talebi sp. n. is described and illustrated. A key to the West Palaearctic species of the genus Lytopylus Förster and an updated checklist of Iranian Agathidinae are provided.     

Zur Süßwasserfauna des Gilan (Iran)

Abstract

A report is presented on freshwater animals collected in 1993 in the Sefid Rud catchment area and the basin of Anzali (Gilan, Iran). Some species are recorded for the first time for Iran. There is a considerable number of species of North American origin (neophytes, neozoans), e.g. Gambusia holbrooki, Rhithropanopeus harrisii, and Azolla sp.