Acceptance of Liochlaena Nees and Solenostoma Mitt., the systematic position of Eremonotus Pearson and notes on Jungermannia L. s.l. (Jungermanniidae) based on chloroplast DNA sequence data

Nucleotide sequence variation of the chloroplast rbcL gene of 78 representatives of Jungermanniales suborders Jungermanniineae and Cephaloziineae and five outgroup species is analysed using maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood. Jungermannia s.l. is resolved in three independent lineages corresponding to Jungermannia subgen. Jungermannia, Liochlaena and Solenostoma (incl. subgen. Plectocolea). Based on the outcome of the phylogenetic analyses we adopt a narrow generic concept of Jungermannia and accept the genera Liochlaena and Solenostoma. Contrary to proposed hypotheses, the monospecific genus Eremonotus is not nested in Scapaniaceae, Gymnomitriaceae, Cephaloziellaceae or Cephaloziaceae but placed in a clade together with Jungermannia s.str., Liochlaena, Delavayella and Leiocolea. These genera possess female involucres consisting solely of leaf tissue (perianths). Related clades comprise genera with female involucres originating at least partly from stem tissue. We propose to include Delavayella, Eremonotus, Jungermannia s.str., Leiocolea and Liochlaena in Jungermanniaceae based on the phylogenetic reconstructions of cpDNA variation and the distribution of perianths in Jungermanniales suborder Jungermanniineae.     

Transfer of Gottschelia grollei, G. patoniae and Scaphophyllum speciosum to Solenostoma based on chloroplast DNA rbcL sequences

Maximum parsimony and Bayesian analyses of a chloroplast DNA rbcL dataset indicate a position of Gottschelia schizopleura in Scapaniaceae (Jungermanniales suborder Cephaloziineae). Gottschelia grollei, G. patoniae and Scaphophyllum speciosum are nested in Solenostoma (Solenostomataceae, Jungermanniales suborder Jungermanniideae) and are transferred to this genus. Accessions of G. schizopleura from Africa and Asia are separated by long branches.     

On some species of microfossils from the Torgin formation of the Neoproterozoic of the Berezov Depression (Southern Siberian Platform)

A new genus, Soktokuta (Rhodophyta), and new species S. sporifera, Talakania diversa, Torgia munientis, and T. ellipsoidea are described. The diagnosis of the genus Torgia Grigorieva et Kolosov is emended. The genus Torgia is classified within the Chlorophyta. The Late Riphean (Neoproterozoic) beds of the South Urals and Siberia contain ellipsoidal unicellular fronds (Chlorophyta) with polar structures (dense and frequently spiny terminations).     

Mesoptychia chinensis Bakalin,Vilnet & Xiong sp. nov. (Jungermanniaceae,Marchantiophyta) and comments on the distribution of Mesoptychia south of the boreal zone in Asia

Abstract

Morphologically unique specimens of Mesoptychia (Lindb.) A.Evans recently collected in Guizhou Province, China were sequenced and analysed using a combined trnL-F+trnG-intron cpDNA dataset from 10 known taxa of Mesoptychia. Using a combination of morphological and molecular data, Mesoptychia chinensis Bakalin, Vilnet & Xiong sp. nov. is described as new to science. Mesoptychia polymorpha subsp. pakistanica Bakalin & Vilnet subsp. nov. is established based on morphological data only. Mesoptychia ussuriensis is newly recorded for China. New molecular data for species delimitation within Mesoptychia distributed in southern and south-east Asia are provided.     

The Root-Knot Nematode Producing Galls on Spartina alterniflora Belongs to the Genus Meloidogyne: Rejection of Hypsoperine and Spartonema spp.

Root-knot nematodes are a major group of plant-parasitic nematodes, but their sister group within the Tylenchida remains to be identified. To find the sister group and for any investigation of the evolutionary biology of the genus Meloidogyne, it would be useful to identify the most basal species within Meloidogyninae. Meloidogyne spartinae, a root-knot nematode parasitic on cordgrass (Spartina spp.), constitutes a potentially interesting early diverging (or at least highly divergent) root-knot nematode because it was originally described in a different genus, Hypsoperine (and later Spartonema), due to its unique anatomy and biology (although it was later put in synonymy by some, but not all, taxonomists). We have sequenced the whole 18S rDNA of this species and compared it to other sequences of this region that are available in GenBank for numerous Meloidogyne species. Phylogenetic analysis unambiguously locates the branch corresponding to M. spartinae as a lately diverging species, more closely related to M. maritima, M. duytsi or the M. ardenensis-hapla group. Thus, the distinction of a separate genus (Hypsoperine or Spartonema) for this species is not justified.     

Molecular phylogeny and new taxa in the Archaeosporales (Glomeromycota): Ambispora fennica gen. sp. nov., Ambisporaceae fam. nov., and emendation of Archaeospora and Archaeosporaceae

The AM fungal family Archaeosporaceae and the genus Archaeospora are rendered paraphyletic by the relationship with the Geosiphonaceae. This problem led to a more detailed study of the Archaeosporales. Members of the Archaeosporaceae were described as forming both glomoid and acaulosporoid spores, or solely acaulosporoid spores. However, we found that Glomus callosum fell into the same phylogenetic clade as A. leptoticha and A. gerdemannii, but exclusively formed glomoid spores. To resolve these inconsistencies, a genus, Ambispora gen. nov., typified by Ambispora fennica sp. nov., is erected based on morphological evidence and SSU and ITS region rDNA data. Ambispora contains three species known to produce both acaulosporoid and glomoid spores: A. fennica, A. leptoticha comb. nov. (basionym G. leptotichum), and A. gerdemannii comb. nov. (basionym G. gerdemannii). Another species, A. callosa comb. nov. (basionym G. callosum), is known only from glomoid spores. Ambispora is placed in a new family, the Ambisporaceae fam. nov. The Archaeosporaceae is maintained with the type species, Archaeospora trappei (basionym Acaulospora trappei), along with Intraspora schenckii (basionym Entrophospora schenckii). Acaulospora nicolsonii, known only from acaulosporoid spores, is discussed and is considered likely to belong in the Ambisporaceae, but is retained within its present genus because of inadequate morphological information and a lack of molecular data.     

Sesquiterpenes of nine european liverworts from the genera, Anastrepta,bazzania, jungermannia,lepidozia and Scapania

The essential oils of fourteen liverwort specimens from nine species of the Jungermanniales have been examined as to their sesquiterpenes. The barbatenes prove to be present in detectable amounts in all but one species. Bazzanene is frequently found with the barbatenes and new chemical evidence does not support the previously assigned structure but is consistent with a structure diastereomeric to trichodiene. This is consistent with a biogenetic rationale for the barbatene skeleton. Anasterptene, a novel crystalline tetracyclic hydrocarbon, has been found in numerous oils, and chemical degradation established a common skeleton with myliol. The samples of genus Scapania elaborate sesquiterpenes of the enantiomeric humulene-longifolene sequence. New members of this group found are (?)-β-longipinene, (?)-longipipanol, and (+)-γ-himachalene. The related germacrene series is represented by a cadinene, (?)-α-ylangene, and (?)-sativene. A series of cis-fused selinenes have also been found, which are more closely allied to the germacrene-sativene group than to typical trans-fused selinenes. One of these selinenes is shown to be the same as the material previously designated as sibirene. Scapania undulata also elaborates (+)-α- and β-chamigrene, and a number of novel hydrocarbons of still unknown structure.     

A New Marine Species of Miracula (Oomycota) Parasitic to Minidiscus sp. in Iceland†

Obligate endoparasitic oomycetes are known to ubiquitously occur in marine and freshwater diatoms, but their diversity is still largely unexplored. Many of these parasitoids are members of the early-diverging oomycete lineages (Miracula, Diatomophthora), others are within the Leptomitales of the Saprolegniomycetes (Ectrogella, Lagenisma) and some have been described in the Peronosporomycetes (Aphanomycopsis, Lagenidium). Even though some species have been recently described and two new genera were introduced (Miracula and Diatomophthora), the phylogeny and taxonomy of most of these organisms remain unresolved. This is contrasted by the high number of sequences from unclassified species, as recently revealed from environmental sequencing, suggesting the presence of several undiscovered species. In this study, a new species of Miracula is reported from a marine centric diatom (Minidiscus sp.) isolated from Skagaströnd harbor in Northwest Iceland. The morphology and life cycle traits of this novel oomycete parasite are described herein, and its taxonomic placement within the genus Miracula is confirmed by molecular phylogeny. As it cannot be assigned to any previously described species, it is introduced as Miracula islandica in this study. The genus Miracula thus contains three described holocarpic species (M. helgolandica, M. islandica, M. moenusica) to which likely additional species will need to be added in the future, considering the presence of several lineages known only from environmental sequencing that clustered within the Miracula clade.     

Molecular phylogeny of Anaphalis (Asteraceae, Gnaphalieae) with biogeographic implications in the Northern Hemisphere

Anaphalis is the largest Asian genus in the tribe Gnaphalieae (Asteraceae) and has its greatest species diversity in the eastern Himalayas. The nuclear internal and external transcribed spacers were sequenced for Anaphalis species, with an emphasis on the eastern Himalayan taxa to examine the monophyly and construct the phylogenetic relationships of and within the genus. The results suggest that all species of Anaphalis are nested with Helichrysum, showing a close relationship with a Mediterranean–Asian group of Helichrysum. Although the monophyly of Anaphalis is only weakly supported, two clades within the genus are well recognized, each consisting of two subgroups. The inferred phylogenetic relationships within Anaphalis correspond to the shape of leaf base, rather than the morphology of the capitula and phyllaries that are usually used for species delimitation and classification in the genus. All four subgroups of Anaphalis are common and diversified in the eastern Himalayas with multiple dispersals out of this region. The sole North American species of Anaphalis is best hypothesized to be the result of long-distance dispersal or overland migration via Bering land bridge from Asia. Our analyses suggest that the extant distribution of Anaphalis has most likely resulted one radiation into the eastern Himalayas followed by repeated independent dispersals and/or radiations mostly into eastern Asia but also into the western Himalayas, North America, and southeast Asia.     

Towards a new classification of the Arthoniales (Ascomycota) based on a three-gene phylogeny focussing on the genus Opegrapha

A multi-locus phylogenetic study of the order Arthoniales is presented here using the nuclear ribosomal large subunit (nuLSU), the second largest subunit of RNA polymerase II (RPB2) and the mitochondrial ribosomal small subunit (mtSSU). These genes were sequenced from 43 specimens or culture isolates representing 33 species from this order, 16 of which were from the second largest genus, Opegrapha. With the inclusion of sequences from GenBank, ten genera and 35 species are included in this study, representing about 18 % of the genera and ca 3 % of the species of this order. Our study revealed the homoplastic nature of morphological characters traditionally used to circumscribe genera within the Arthoniales, such as exciple carbonization and ascomatal structure. The genus Opegrapha appears polyphyletic, species of that genus being nested in all the major clades identified within Arthoniales. The transfer of O. atra and O. calcarea to the genus Arthonia will allow this genus and family Arthoniaceae to be recognized as monophyletic. The genus Enterographa was also found to be polyphyletic. Therefore, the following new combinations are needed: Arthonia calcarea (basionym: O. calcarea), and O. anguinella (basionym: Stigmatidium anguinellum); and the use of the names A. atra and Enterographa zonata are proposed here. The simultaneous use of a mitochondrial gene and two nuclear genes led to the detection of what seems to be a case of introgression of a mitochondrion from one species to another (mitochondrion capture; cytoplasmic gene flow) resulting from hybridization.     

A fluorometric method for the discrimination of harmful algal bloom species developed by wavelet analysis

An in vivo 3D fluorescence discrimination technique for ten harmful algal bloom (HAB) species that belong to eight genera of four divisions was developed by wavelet analysis. Daubechies-7 (db7) was employed as the mother wavelet. The fifth scale domains were selected as the discriminant characteristic spectra (DCS). Based on the DCS, The phytoplankton species at different growth stages were classified correctly at both the division and the genus level by Bayesian discriminant analysis (BDA). Based on the reference spectra of the DCS, the discrimination method of the phytoplankton species was established by the nonnegative least squares (NNLS) method. The correct discrimination ratios (CDRs) for samples of the single species were 96.1% with 0% blank noise and 93.3% with 10% noise at the genus level, while the CDRs were both 100% with 0% or 10% blank noise at the division level. When blank noise was up to 20%, the CDRs were down to 85.2% at the genus level and 98.0% at the division level. For the mixture samples, the CDRs of the dominant species were 98.3% and 96.3%, respectively, at the division level and at the genus level. As dominant species, Prorocentrum minimum (Pm), Gymnodinium simplex (Gs), Scrippsiella trochoidea (Sc), Skeletonema costatuma (Sk), Chaetoceros (Cu and De), Phaeocystis globosa (Cg) and Chlorella pynnoidosa (Ch) can be correctly discriminated at both the division level and the genus level.     

Notes on the morphology of the robber flies (Diptera, Asilidae)

The position of antennae in the ventral part of head in the species of the genus Eremodromus Zimin is considered. It is different in the three species: the antennae are situated close to the mystacal bristles (E. noctivagus), distant from them (E. gracilis), and near the border between dorsal and ventral parts of head (E. zimini). All three species have reduced pulvilli. It is shown that both species of Theurgus Richter have a single straight apical anteroventral spur on the middle tibia.     

The Diversity of Coolia spp. (Dinophyceae Ostreopsidaceae) in the Central Great Barrier Reef Region

Background

Dinoflagellates are important primary producers, crucial in marine food webs. Toxic strains, however, are the main causative agents of non-bacterial seafood poisoning, a major concern for public health worldwide. Despite their importance, taxonomic uncertainty within many genera of dinoflagellates is still high. The genus Coolia includes potentially harmful species and the diversity within the genus is just starting to become apparent.

Methodology/Principal Findings

In the current study, cultures were established from strains of Coolia spp. isolated from the central Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Cultures were identified based on thecal plate morphology and analyses of sequences (18S, ITS and 28S) from the nuclear rRNA operon. We report that the central GBR harbors a high diversity of Coolia species, including two species known to be capable of toxin production (C. tropicalis and C. malayensis), as well as the non-toxic C. canariensis. The strain of C. canariensis isolated from the GBR may in fact be a cryptic species, closely related but nevertheless phylogenetically distinct from the strain on which the holotype of C. canariensis was based. We also found evidence of the occurrence of a cryptic species morphologically very similar to both C. malayensis and C. monotis. The consequences of taxonomic confusion within the genus are discussed.

Conclusion/Significance

The central GBR region harbors a previously unreported high diversity of Coolia spp., including two species known to potentially produce toxins. The presence of a cryptic species of unknown toxicity highlights the importance of cryptic diversity within dinoflagellates.     

Evidence for Cryptic Speciation in Directly Transmitted Gyrodactylid Parasites of Trinidadian Guppies

Cryptic species complexes are common among parasites, which tend to have large populations and are subject to rapid evolution. Such complexes may arise through host-parasite co-evolution and/or host switching. For parasites that reproduce directly on their host, there might be increased opportunities for sympatric speciation, either by exploiting different hosts or different micro-habitats within the same host. The genus Gyrodactylus is a specious group of viviparous monogeneans. These ectoparasites transfer between teleosts during social contact and cause significant host mortality. Their impact on the guppy (Poecilia reticulata), an iconic evolutionary and ecological model species, is well established and yet the population genetics and phylogenetics of these parasites remains understudied. Using mtDNA sequencing of the host and its parasites, we provide evidence of cryptic speciation in Gyrodactylus bullatarudis, G. poeciliae and G. turnbulli. For the COII gene, genetic divergence of lineages within each parasite species ranged between 5.7 and 17.2%, which is typical of the divergence observed between described species in this genus. Different lineages of G. turnbulli and G. poeciliae appear geographically isolated, which could imply allopatric speciation. In addition, for G. poeciliae, co-evolution with a different host species cannot be discarded due to its host range. This parasite was originally described on P. caucana, but for the first time here it is also recorded on the guppy. The two cryptic lineages of G. bullatarudis showed considerable geographic overlap. G. bullatarudis has a known wide host range and it can also utilize a killifish (Anablepsoides hartii) as a temporary host. This killifish is capable of migrating overland and it could act as a transmission vector between otherwise isolated populations. Additional genetic markers are needed to confirm the presence of these cryptic Gyrodactylus species complexes, potentially leading to more in-depth genetic, ecological and evolutionary analyses on this multi-host-parasite system.     

Genome-Wide SNPs Clarify a Complex Radiation and Support Recognition of an Additional Cat Species

Phylogenetic reconstruction and species delimitation are often challenging in the case of recent evolutionary radiations, especially when postspeciation gene flow is present. Leopardus is a Neotropical cat genus that has a long history of recalcitrant taxonomic problems, along with both ancient and current episodes of interspecies admixture. Here, we employ genome-wide SNP data from all presently recognized Leopardus species, including several individuals from the tigrina complex (representing Leopardus guttulus and two distinct populations of Leopardus tigrinus), to investigate the evolutionary history of this genus. Our results reveal that the tigrina complex is paraphyletic, containing at least three distinct species. While one can be assigned to L. guttulus, the other two remain uncertain regarding their taxonomic assignment. Our findings indicate that the “tigrina” morphology may be plesiomorphic within this group, which has led to a longstanding taxonomic trend of lumping these poorly known felids into a single species.     

Small and overlooked: Phylogeny of the genus Trigonodactylus (Squamata: Gekkonidae), with the first record of Trigonodactylus arabicus from Jordan

Geckos of the genus Trigonodactylus are widely distributed in the sand deserts of the Arabian Peninsula. Three species of this genus are currently recognized, with a fourth one, Stenodactylus pulcher, which placement within Trigonodactylus has been tentatively suggested, but not yet confirmed. We present a phylogenetic analysis of the genus Trigonodactylus with new specimens collected in central Saudi Arabia and southern Jordan. New genetic data has been generated from three mitochondrial markers to investigate the phylogenetic relationships of all species of the genus and to assess the putative generic assignment of S. pulcher. Our results confirm that S. pulcher indeed belongs within Trigonodactylus, branching as a sister lineage to all other species of the genus. The new samples cluster within Trigonodactylus arabicus, thus confirming the genetic homogeneity of the species across its large and seemingly inhospitable range. The new specimen collected in southern Jordan represents the first record for the country and a considerable range extension to the northwest from all previously reported localities. Our findings and discovery of a new species for Jordan highlight the need of more field surveys to be carried out in the underexplored parts of Jordan and northern Saudi Arabia, as these places still hold a potential for new discoveries and are crucial for understating the biogeography of the Arabian herpetofauna.     

The origin of bird pollination in Macaronesian Lotus (Loteae, Leguminosae)

The four red-flowered, apparently bird-pollinated Lotus species from the Canary Islands have previously been classified in their own genus, Rhyncholotus. Currently, they are considered as a separate section within genus Lotus, distinct from other herbaceous Canarian congeners which are yellow-flowered and bee-pollinated. A combined analysis of four nuclear regions (including ITS and three homologues of CYCLOIDEA) and three plastid regions (CYB6, matK and trnH-psbA) nests the four bird-pollinated species within a single extant species of bee-pollinated Lotus (L. sessilifolius), in a very extreme example of species paraphyly. Therefore, our data compellingly support the hypothesis that the Macaronesian Lotus species with a bird pollination syndrome are recently derived from entomophilous ancestors. Calibration of the phylogenetic trees using geological age estimates of the most recent islands (La Palma and El Hierro) together with oldest ages of Fuerteventura indicates that bird pollination evolved ca. 1.7 Ma in the Canarian Lotus. These four bird-pollinated species share a most recent common ancestor (MRCA) with L. sessilifolius that dates to about 2.2 Ma. Our analyses further suggest that the evolution of the bird pollination syndrome was likely triggered by the availability of new niches in La Palma and Tenerife as a result of recent volcanic activity.     

Le genre Postepithyris makridin (térébratulidés,brachiopodes) dans l'oxfordien et le kimméridgien Français

The questions relating to the type-species of genus PostepithyrisMakridin and to its systematic position within Terebratulids are discussed.The French species are described: besides the type-species P. cincta (Cotteau) from Upper Oxfordian, two species from Inferior Kimmeridgian can be included in this genus: P. minor (Douvillé) and P. dubisensis nov. sp.A new subspecies P. cincta mosensis nov., recently discovered in Oxfordian from East of the Paris Basin, can also be assigned to the genus.Postepithyris did not evolve through a single special facies: the species could supported different environmental conditions.