Species novae generisEremostachys (Labiatae)

Five new species are described:Eremostachys codonocalyx from NE. Iran (related toE. subspicata),E. stenocalycina from NE. Afghanistan (related toE. alberti andE. hissarica),E. salangensis from NE. Afghanistan (close toE. bamianica),E. freitagii from E. Afghanistan (similar but not closely related toE. vulnerans), andE. andersii from E. Afghanistan (similar but not closely related toE. vulnerans), andE. andersii from NE. Afghanistan of isolated systematic position.

Florae Iranicae praecursores 5–9.     

Polymorphism of hordein-coding loci in cultivated barley (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Hordeum vulgare</Emphasis> L.) in Afghanistan

Polymorphism of hordeins encoded by the Hrd A, Hrd B, and Hrd F loci was analyzed in 84 accessions of local barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) varieties from major agricultural regions of Afghanistan using starch gel electrophoresis. Forty alleles of the Hrd A locus with the frequencies from 0.12 to 32.73%, 62 alleles of the Hrd B locus with the frequencies from 0.12 to 14.29%, and five alleles of the Hrd F locus with the frequencies from 0.59 to 32.15% have been identified. The conclusion about genetic similarity of barley populations from different regions of Afghanistan is made on the basis of cluster analysis of the matrix of allele frequencies in barley populations from 31 localities. The local barley populations form four unequal clusters. The largest cluster I includes populations from 14 localities of Afghanistan. The second largest cluster IV consists of populations from ten localities, and clusters II and III comprise populations from four and three localities, respectively. Each of the four clusters includes populations from different regions of northern and southern Afghanistan. Based on our results, we conclude that the diversity of hordein-coding loci and the distribution of their alleles among different regions of Afghanistan are the consequences of introduction of barley landraces and their distribution over trade routes.     

Identification of the host-range DNA which allows Rhizobium leguminosarum strain TOM to nodulate cv. Afghanistan peas

Summary The special ability of Rhizobium leguminosarum strain TOM to nodulate cv. Afghanistan peas had previously been shown to be determined by the symbiotic plasmid, pRL5JI, of this strain. A region of pRL5JI, 2.0 kb in size, was found to confer the ability to nodulate cv. Afghanistan peas when transferred to strains of R. leguminosarum which normally fail to nodulate this host. This region of pRL5JI, responsible for the extension of host-range, was closely linked to, but did not include, the genes required for root hair curling. Although extensive homology has been found between the R. leguminosarum nod genes on pRL5JI and those on the normal symbiotic plasmid pRL1JI, a fragment from the 2.0 kb region involved in nodulation of cv. Afghanistan has been identified, which was not homologous to DNA in strains which do not nodulate cv. Afghanistan.     

Characterization of Sym plasmids of Rhizobium leguminosarum strains able to nodulate Pisum sativum cv Afghanistan

Rhizobium leguminosarum strains that can form nodules on Pisum sativum cv. Afghanistan have been reported as uncommon in Europe, North America and Africa [11, 12]. The organization of the nodulation regions of the symbiotic plasmids of five strains of R. leguminosarum originating from Denmark [9], which can nodulate P. sativum cv. Afghanistan, was compared with that of a Turkish strain (TOM [18]) by DNA hybridizations. Four of the five Danish strains were found to be very similar to the Turkish strain with respect to the overall organizations of their respective nodulation regions.     

A cercopithecid primate from the late miocene of Molayan,Afghanistan, with remarks onMesopithecus

The first fossil primate discovered in Afghanistan comes from the Late Miocene of Molayan, Khurdkabul Basin. The materials consist of an almost-complete juvenile mandible and an isolated P₃. These two specimens do not significantly differ from thePikermi Mesopithecus pentelicus and are assigned to this species. The primate mandible from the Late Miocene of Maragheh, Iran, which has always been referred by all authors toM. pentelicus, differs from the Pikermi and Molayan materials. It must be assigned to another taxon, probably a new one. The geographic range ofM. pentelicus turns out to be considerably wider in view of the discovery of the species in Molayan, eastern Afghanistan.     

Cloning and mutagenesis of nodulation genes from Rhizobium leguminosarum TOM, a strain with extended host range

Summary Some primitive pea lines, e.g. cultivar Afghanistan, are resistant to nodulation by most strains of Rhizobium leguminosarum. However the Turkish strain TOM can nodulate cv. Afghanistan in addition to commercial pea varieties, and this extended host range is a property of its symbiotic plasmid, pRL5JI. A gene bank was constructed using DNA from a strain of R. leguminosarum containing pRL5JI. Following transfer to a strain of R. leguminosarum that had been cured of its symbiotic plasmid, two derivatives were isolated that contained cloned nodulation determinants, and were able to nodulate both cv. Afghanistan and a commercial pea variety. In addition, these clones conferred the ability to nodulate peas to a strain of R. phaseoli that had been previously cured of its symbiotic plasmid. One of these clones was subjected to mutagenesis with transposon Tn5, and 11 mutants were identified that were affected in nodulation ability. The sites of Tn5 insertions were mapped using restriction endonucleases and all were found to be within a region of 5 kb. The mutants fell into three classes on the basis of their map positions and their phenotypes on the two different pea lines tested. One class of mutants was affected in gene functions that were common to the nodulation of both pea hosts; a second class was impaired specifically in the nodulation of the commercial pea variety; a third class of mutant failed to confer on a normal strain of R. leguminosarum the supplementary ability to nodulate cv. Afghanistan.     

Wildlife trade products available to U.S. military personnel serving abroad

Military personnel and affiliates have significant buying power that can influence demand for wildlife products. Purchase and transport of certain wildlife products violates United States laws, military regulations, and national country laws where the items were purchased. We surveyed military bazaars (n = 4) in Kabul, Afghanistan from June 2007 to March 2009 to observe which species were available to soldiers. In June 2008, we conducted a pilot survey of U.S. Army personnel (n = 371) stationed at Fort Drum, New York, USA, who had been deployed or stationed overseas including in Afghanistan and Iraq. Soldiers reported skins of wild felids and gray wolf Canis lupus as most commonly observed wildlife products available for sale in Afghanistan. Forty percent of respondents said they had either purchased or seen other members of the military purchase or use wildlife products. The U.S. military was willing to assist in curtailing supply and demand for wildlife products in order to protect soldiers from unknowingly breaking the law and to conserve wildlife in the countries where they serve. Regular, focused training of military personnel should be considered an important step to reducing trade in wildlife products by addressing both demand and market supply.     

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci in the mosquito Anopheles stephensi Liston (Diptera: Culicidae)

The mosquito Anopheles stephensi is an important malaria vector in India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan. Differences in egg morphology and chromosomal characters have been described between urban and rural forms of this mosquito but the population genetic structure remains unclear. In India this species is mainly urban, rural populations are largely zoophilic and not thought to transmit malaria. In eastern Afghanistan and the Punjab and Northwest Frontier Province, Pakistan, it is the major malaria vector. We have developed primers for 16 microsatellite loci to assist in defining the population structure and epidemiological importance of this mosquito.     

Two new species ofConsolida (Ranunculaceae) from the Flora Iranica area

Two species ofConsolida are described as new:C. lorestanica is distributed in W. Iran (Lorestan), andC. kandaharica is endemic to S. Afghanistan.Dedicated to Hofrat Prof. DrK. H. Rechinger on the occasion of this 80th birthday.     

Drei parasitische Flechten aufCaloplaca polycarpoides

No less than 3 different parasitical lichens were found on the corticolous lichenCaloplaca polycarpoides in Afghanistan. Partly, they also grow on closely allied species of the sect.Xanthoriella. Lecania triseptata begins and ends as a typical parasite, and does not form a thallus outside of its host.L. diplococca andRinodina afghanica, both described as new species, have a similar appearance; they are parasitic in the beginning, but form their own thalli outside the host later on. The 3 species are members of the small group of parasitical lichens growing on corticolous hosts. Possibly, the slow degeneration of cortices under the arid climatical conditions, has allowed the evolution of parasitic lichens of this rare type in Central Asia.

Dedicated to Hofrat Univ.-Prof. DrK. H. Rechinger on the occasion of his 80th birthday. Flechten aus Afghanistan III; Beitrag II in Nova Hedwigia42, 213–236 (1986).     

Variability and phylogenetic relationships of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cucumis sativus</Emphasis> L. species inferred from NBS-profiling and RAPD analysis

Genetic variability of the Cucumis sativus species and its phylogenetic relationsips with other species of the genus were studied on the basis of RAPD marking and analysis of intra- and interspecific polymorphism of the nucleotide sequences of the NBS-LRR gene family in species of the genus Cucumis with the use of the NBS-profiling method. According to RAPD analysis, cucumber cultivars from different geographic regions are highly similar, except for accessions k-3835 and k-3833 from Afghanistan. NBS-profiling analysis revealed phylogenetically most distinct accessions expected to be characterized by specificity of resistance: k-3845 from Uzbekistan, k-3851 from Kyrgyzstan, line 701, k-3835 and k-3833 from Afghanistan, k-2757 and k-3079 from Netherlands, vr.k. 908 from Canada, k-2926 from Bulgaria, Russian cultivars Monastyrskii, Izyashchnyi, and Lel’. Three essentially different groups of species were distinguished, and the C. sativus species (subgenus Cucumis) was found to be distant from the species belonging to the subgenus Melo.     

Comparative analyses of RFLP diversity in landraces of Triticum aestivum and collections of T. tauschii from China and Southwest Asia

 Chinese accessions of Triticum tauschii and T. aestivum L. from the Sichuan white (SW), Yunnan hulled (YH), Tibetan weedrace (TW), and Xinjiang rice (XR) wheat groups were subjected to RFLP analysis. T. tauschii and landraces of T. aestivum from countries in Southwest Asia were also evaluated. For T. tauschii, a west to east gradient was apparent where the Chinese accessions exhibited less diversity than those from Southwest Asia. Compared to the Southwest Asian gene pool, the Chinese T. tauschii was highly homogeneous giving a low frequency of polymorphic bands (16%) and banding patterns (1.33 per probe) with 75 RFLP probe-HindIII combinations. Accessions of T. tauschii from Afghanistan and Pakistan were genetically more similar to the Chinese T. tauschii than those from Iran. Of 368 bands found for 39 Chinese hexaploid wheat accessions with 63 RFLP probe-HindIII combinations, 28.3% were polymorphic with an average of 2.6 banding patterns per probe and 5.0 bands per genotype. The individual Chinese landrace wheat groups revealed less variation than those from Afghanistan, Iran, and Turkey. When classified into country based groups, however, the diversity level over all Chinese landraces was greater than that of some Southwest Asian landraces, especially those from Afghanistan and Iran . The XR wheat group was genetically distinct from the other three Chinese landrace groups and was more related to the Southwest Asian landraces. The TW group was genetically similar to, but more diverse than, the SW and YH groups. The Chinese landraces had a higher degree of genetic relatedness to the Southwest Asian T. tauschii, particularly to accessions from Iran, rather than to the Chinese T. tauschii. ‘Chinese Spring’ was most related to ‘Chengdu-guang-tou’, a cultivar from the SW wheat group. Received: 13 May 1997 / Accepted: 19 September 1997     

Bromus salangensis sp. nov. (Gramineae), a perennial brome grass from Afghanistan

During work on a new synopsis on the genus Bromus L. for the ‘Flora Iranica’ region, an Afghan perennial brome grass previously identified as the Caucasian B. biebersteinii Roem. & Schult., was found to be a new species. It is described here as B. salangensis sp. nov. This discovery rejected the record of B. biebersteinii for Afghanistan.     

Modelling the potential distribution of Mesalina watsonana (Stoliczka, 1872) (Reptilia: Lacertidae) on the Iranian Plateau

The Persian Long-tailed Desert Lizard, Mesalina watsonana, is one of the most common and most widely distributed lizards on the Iranian Plateau extending from Iran to Pakistan and Afghanistan. The species is frequently encountered in various types of habitats. We collected over 600 distributional records from available literature, museum collections, and our own field work and used bioclimatic and land cover characteristics to develop a model of potential distribution for M. watsonana. According to the model, the most important factors limiting the distribution of M. watsonana are: precipitation in wettest quarter exceeding 250–300 mm, precipitation in coldest quarter lower than 40 mm and exceeding 250 mm, altitudes above 2500 m and slopes steeper than 10.5°. The model suggests that most of the Iranian Plateau is suitable for the species except for some isolated areas such as the Dasht-e Kavir and Dasht-e Lut deserts in Iran, Helmand basin in Afghanistan, the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan, the western Chagai-Kharan deserts of Pakistani Balochistan, and Thar and Cholistan deserts in eastern Pakistan. The most important factor in these regions appears to be the extremely low rainfall during coldest quarter of the year. The outer boundary of the distribution of M. watsonana follows important biogeographic barriers that are also clearly delimited by climatic conditions.     

Phenotype frequencies for four serum proteins in Afghanistan: Two “new” albumin variants

Summary Albumin, haptoglobin, Gc and transferrin phenotype frequencies for 251 related Pushtoons from Afghanistan are presented. Two new albumin variants, albumins Afghanistan and Pushtoon, have been identified.

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Zusammenfassung Es werden die Häufigkeiten von Albumin,-Haptoglobin,-Gc,-und Transferrin-Phänotypen für 251 miteinander verwandte Pushtoons aus Afghanistan vorgelegt. Es wurden zwei neue Albuminvarianten, Albumin Afghanistan und Pushtoon, neu identifiziert.

     

Zwei Jahre Vogelbeobachtungen an stehenden Gew?ssern bei Kabul in Afghanistan

Zusammenfassung Von August 1964 bis September 1966 wurden in meist ein- bis zweiwöchigen Abständen die Vögel zweier Seen bei Kabul in Afghanistan registriert und ihre jeweilige Zahl abgeschätzt.Etwa die Hälfte der 160 festgestellten Arten waren Wasservögel, von denen nur 6 auch an den Seen brüteten. Zwei von ihnen,Podiceps nigricollis undAythya ferina, sind als Brutvögel neu für Afghanistan.Namentlich bei den häufigeren Arten ergaben die Beobachtungen erste genauere Unterlagen über Dauer und Intensität des Durchzuges zwischen den gewöhnlich in Rußland liegenden Brut- und den indischen Wintergebieten. Da Kabul in einem zum Hindukusch hinführenden Taltrichter liegt, sind die Durchzügler hier fast ausschließlich Arten, die die mindestens 3000 m hohe Gebirgskette regelmäßig überwandern. Diese besonderen topographischen Verhältnisse sind vermutlich auch der Grund dafür, daß viele Arten im Frühjahr deutlich überwiegen. Ein Vergleich des Durchzuges an beiden Seen, von denen der eine ein oligotropher, fischreicher Stausee, der andere ein eutropher, fischfreier Flachsee ist, zeigt an den oft recht unterschiedlichen Durchzugskurven, wie weit kleinräumige, ökologische Unterschiede das Bild zu beeinflussen vermögen.Eine Folge der starken, vertikalen Gliederung Afghanistans sind die recht beträchtlichen Unterschiede im Überwinterungsverhalten je nach der Strenge des Winters.

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Summary From August 1964 till September 1966 the birds of two lakes near Kabul in Afghanistan were recorded every one or two weeks, and their approximate numbers were estimated.Nearly half of the 160 species noted there were water birds, six of which were proven as breeding there, two of them,Podiceps nigricollis andAythya ferina, are recorded for the first time as breeding in Afghanistan.Especially in the more common species the observations resulted in the first exact knowledge of time and intensity of migration between the breeding grounds normally situated in a funnel-shaped valley leading towards the Hindu Kush, the passage migrants are nearly all species which cross this mountain chain of at least 3000 m altitude. These special topographic conditions are probably the reason that in many species more birds are noted in spring than in autumn. The comparison of migration at the two lakes, one of which is an oligotroph barrage with fish, the other a eutroph, shallow pond without fish, demonstrates how different ecological conditions in neighbouring places may strongly influence the pattern of migration.Great differences in wintering behaviour according to the severeness of winter result in strong vertical differences.

     

Trachyspermum reginei sp. nov. (Apiaceae) from southwest Iran

Trachyspermum reginei Ajani & Mozzaff. sp. nov., is described and illustrated as a new species from Chaharmahale Bakhtiari province, SW Iran. The new species differs from its closest relative T. confusum, endemic to Afghanistan, mainly by stem, leaf and fruit morphological characters. Its taxonomic relationships with T. podlechii and T. ammi are also discussed. The new species is threatened by different factors and its protection is recommended.     

Phylogeny,Diversity, Distribution,and Host Specificity of Haemoproteus spp. (Apicomplexa: Haemosporida: Haemoproteidae) of Palaearctic Tortoises

A complex wide‐range study on the haemoproteid parasites of chelonians was carried out for the first time. Altogether, 811 samples from four tortoise species from an extensive area between western Morocco and eastern Afghanistan and between Romania and southern Syria were studied by a combination of microscopic and molecular‐genetic methods. Altogether 160 Haemoproteus‐positive samples were gathered in the area between central Anatolia and eastern Afghanistan. According to variability in the cytochrome b gene, two monophyletic evolutionary lineages were distinguished; by means of microscopic analysis it was revealed that they corresponded to two previously described species—Haemoproteus anatolicum and Haemoproteus caucasica. Their distribution areas overlap only in a narrow strip along the Zagros Mts. range in Iran. This fact suggests the involvement of two different vector species with separated distribution. Nevertheless, no vectors were confirmed. According to phylogenetic analyses, H. caucasica represented a sister group to H. anatolicum, and both of them were most closely related to H. pacayae and H. peltocephali, described from South American river turtles. Four unique haplotypes were revealed in the population of H. caucasica, compared with seven haplotypes in H. anatolicum. Furthermore, H. caucasica was detected in two tortoise species, Testudo graeca and Testudo horsfieldii, providing evidence that Haemoproteus is not strictly host‐specific to the tortoise host species.     

Sclerorhachis rechingeri (Asteraceae-Anthemideae), a new species from N. Khorasan

Sclerorhachis rechingeri Iranshahr, sp. n., from N. Khorasan is closely related to the Afghanistan speciesS. caulescens (Aitch. & Hemsl.)Rech. f. andS. polysphaera Rech. f. It differs from both in the thicker and woolly collar and the much larger capitulum.Vorarbeiten zuK. H. Rechinger, Flora Iranica, Nr. 21.