Albaillellaria from the New England orogen, Eastern NSW, Australia

Radiolarian data provide important age constraints on the development of terranes within the New England orogen and have implications for existing tectonic models. Most radiolarian assemblages recovered from the orogen are of Late Devonian to Early Carboniferous ages. Albaillellaria comprise a minor proportion of the faunas present but have major biostratigraphic significance.Holoeciscus Foreman,Helenifore Nazarov and Ormiston,Circulaforma Cheng,Ceratoikiscum Deflandre,Protoalbaillella Cheng, andAlbaillella Deflandre, two new genera and three new species are found at various stratigraphic levels. Eleven radiolarian assemblages are recognised. In stratigraphic order these are theHelenifore laticlavium-Ceratoikiscum planistellare, Protoholoeciscus hindea, Holoeciscus formanae, Paraholoeciscus bingaraensis,Ceratoikiscum umbraculum, Protoalbaillella anaiwanensis, Albaillella paradoxa, Albaillella undulata-Albaillella indensis,Albaillella indensis-Albaillella furcata, Albaillella cartalla-Albaillella thomasi andCirculaforma omicron assemblages. There is an apparent biostratigraphic succession amongst the Albaillellaria in the New England orogen in whichProtoholoeciscus hindea n. gen. n. sp. is transitional betweenCeratoikiscum Deflandre andHoloeciscus Foreman andParaholoeciscus bingaraensis n. gen. n. sp. is transitional betweenHoloeciscus Foreman and theAlbaillella paradoxa Deflandre group.     

Silurian radiolarians from the Jenolan Caves region,New South Wales,Australia

Moderately-preserved Silurian radiolarians have been recovered from the Jenolan Caves region, eastern NSW, Australia. Radiolarians were first reported from this area in the late 19th Century by T.W. Edgeworth David, but were not described in detail, neither were they illustrated. Nearly 120 years later, the first images of these fossils are presented. The radiolarians reported include: ?Futobari cf. solidus Furutani, ?Zadrappolus sp., Haplentactiniid gen. and sp. indet, Borisella sp., ?Palaeoephippium sp., ?Insolitignum vivanima MacDonald and ?Helenifore speciosus (Furutani). The fauna is similar to others described from Upper Silurian strata in Japan.     

Biostratigraphy and paleoceanographic significance of Paleocene radiolarians from offshore eastern New Zealand

A 100-m-thick Paleocene sequence of mainly pelagic sediments at ODP Site 1121, on the eastern flanks of the Campbell Plateau, contains few to common radiolarians of relatively low diversity in the lower 40 m (Early to early Late Paleocene) and abundant, diverse radiolarian assemblages in the upper 60 m (mid-Late Paleocene). The 150 taxa recorded from the entire Paleocene interval are thought to under-represent the actual species diversity by at least one half as many morphotypes have not been differentiated below the level of genus. Assemblages in the lower 40 m are similar to those described from onland New Zealand and DSDP Site 208 (northern Lord Howe Rise); they are correlated with South Pacific radiolarian zones RP4 and RP5. Assemblages in the upper 60 m differ from other known Late Paleocene assemblages in the great abundance of plagiacanthids and cycladophorids. Similarities are noted with later Cenozoic cool-water assemblages. This upper interval is correlated with South Pacific zone RP6, as revised herein, based on comparison with faunas from Site 208 and Marlborough, New Zealand. The interval is also correlated with the upper part of North Atlantic zone RP6 (RP6b–c) based on the presence of Aspis velutochlamydosaurus, Plectodiscus circularis and Pterocodon poculum. Other species, such as Buryella tetradica and Buryella pentadica, are valuable for local correlation but exhibit considerable diachroneity between the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans. An age model for the Paleocene interval at Site 1121, based on well-constrained nannofossil and radiolarian datums, indicates that the rate of compacted sediment accumulation doubles from 15 to 30 mm/ka at the RP5/RP6 zonal boundary. In large part this is due to a sudden and pronounced increase in accumulation rates for all siliceous fossils; radiolarians and larger diatoms increase from <100 to >10 000 specimens/cm²/ka. This apparent increase in biosiliceous productivity is age-equivalent to a mid-Paleocene cooling event (57–59 Ma) identified from global stable isotope records that is associated with the heaviest δ¹³C values for the entire Cenozoic.     

New records of marine benthic algae from New South Wales, eastern Australia

Twenty‐four species of marine macroalgae are recorded from the mainland coast of New South Wales for the first time. One species, Laurencia platyclada Boergesen, represents a new record for Australia and the Pacific Ocean. Included in these new records is the introduced, invasive and cold‐tolerant strain of the green alga Caulerpa taxifolia, which was formerly known only as native, non‐invasive populations from Lord Howe Island. Based on published accounts, the composition of the marine benthic algae for the state of New South Wales now stands at 131 green, 140 brown and 449 red macroalgae. This baseline information adds significantly to our knowledge of the overall marine biodiversity of the state, as well as to the phycogeography of the southwestern Pacific region.     

New bryozoans from the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary beds of Transcaucasia

New species of Transcaucasian bryozoans are described: Primorela remota and Pseudoascopora subtilis (order Rhabdomesida) from the Upper Famennian and Anisotrypa hamata (order Trepostomida), Paranicklesopora stupenda, Euthyrhombopora barbara, Primorella testata, Ipmorella clara (order Rhabdomesida), and Taeniodictya vermiculata (order Cryptostomida) from the Tournaisian.     

A palaeogeographic link between Australia and eastern North America: a New England connection?

Abstract. This research tests the hypothesis that Australia and eastern North America met in rotational collision during the Palaeozoic with the corollary that the New England fold belt of Australia, rather than the Reguibat promontory of Africa, collided with the Alleghanian orogen in the central Appalachians. Identical Lancefieldian-stage, zone 1 (Early Ordovician) graptolites of the Anisograptid family are found in identical environments in Newfoundland, Norway, and the Lachlan fold belt of Australia. Palaeozoic granites are consistent with a tectonic model in which the Lachlan fold belt caused mechanical deformation of the Canadian Appalachians. The Lachlan and New England fold belts of Australia and the Alleghanian orogen of North America are tectonically consistent with the east coast hypothesis. Major deformations and magmatic episodes are coeval from Silurian to Permian. The tectonic, palaeontologic, lithologic, and geometric evidence for this position is more abundant and precise than the stratigraphic evidence for a west coast location of Australia relative to North America.     

The distribution of Austrocrangonyx new species (Crustacea: Amphipoda) on the eastern New England plateau, Australia, with reference to riparian clearing

The amphipod Austrocrangonyx n.sp. livesin forested streams above 1165m on the easternNew England plateau in NSW. Classification andRegression Tree (CART) analysis and principalcomponent biplots showed low streamtemperatures and high levels of coarseparticulate organic matter (CPOM), among manyenvironmental factors measured, were the mainfactors associated with its distribution andabundance. Riparian clearing, which increaseswater temperature and greatly reduces CPOM, isassociated with local extinction ofAustrocrangonyx. Secondary reafforestation isnot accompanied by return of the amphipod.     

Chromodorid nudibranchs from eastern Australia (Gastropoda, Opisthobranchia)*

Collections of nudibranch gastropods made in 1968 and 1969 are described. All the 11 eastern Australian species of Casella, Hypselodoris and Chromodoris obtained are fully illustrated by line diagrams, photographs and water-colours. Two species new for Australia are described, and nine others are re-described. A list of the chromodoridiform species reliably recorded from Australian waters concludes the paper.     

Dorid nudibranchs from eastern Australia (Gastropoda, Opisthobranchia)

Collections of nudibranch gastropods made in 1968 are described. All the 18 eastern Australian species of doridaceans (excluding chromodoridiform species) obtained are illustra-ed and investigated anatomically, often for the first time since their original discovery over a century ago. A list of the dorid nudibranches reliably recorded from Australian waters (compiled by R. Burn) supplements the paper.     

Historical interdrainage dispersal of eastern rainbowfish from the Atherton Tableand, north-eastern Australia

The widespread distribution of the eastern rainbow fish Melanotaenia splendida splendida throughout the isolated headwaters of the rivers on the Atherton Tableland, north-eastern Australia, suggests multiple colonization events from the eastern lowlands via each respective river channel, or a single colonization event on to the tableland with subsequent dispersal between the headwaters. To explore the likely processes that resulted in the current distribution on the tableland, two models of gene flow were tested: (a) the hierarchical gene flow model that tests the hypothesis for contemporary gene flow via stream channels and (b) the stepping stone model that tests for dispersal between streams. Neither of these models explained the observed genetic structure, adequately. However, there is support for extensive historical dispersal across the headwaters of the isolated drainages. If this dispersal followed a single colonization event, the subsequent range expansion could have facilitated a rapid rise in population size due to an increase in suitable habitat. The genetic data indicates an eight-fold increase in population size c. 100 thousand years ago.     

New radiolarians from the earliest Cretaceous of the Sultanate of Oman (Wahrah Formation,Jebel Buwaydah)

In a section from the central Oman Mountains (Wahrah Formation, Jebel Buwaydah) well preserved radiolarians were extracted. Stratigraphically they represent typical earliest Cretaceous species (Bernasian). Besides well known Tethyan species allowing an exact age determination, unknown morphotypes are common in some samples. Some of these represent new species, which are described herein. The composition and diversity of the faunas hints to a depositional environment in the lower bathyal.     

Grassland responses to multiple disturbances on the New England Tablelands in NSW,Australia

Disturbances have played a significant role in shaping vegetation patterns following European settlement and agricultural development in Australia, particularly over the last 100 years. However, little is known about the temporal dynamics of plant communities in relation to disturbances and their interactions. In this study we examined the response and recovery of temperate grassland communities to disturbance, using a multi-factorial experiment involving grazing exclusion (absent and present), fire (absent and present), soil cultivation (none, 5 and 20 cm) and soil amendment (none, fertiliser and fertiliser plus clover seeds) on the New England Tablelands in NSW, Australia. Temporal patterns of plant communities were analysed using detrended correspondence analysis for eight surveys over 24 months. Vegetation patterns at each survey were analysed using principal components analysis. The effects of treatments on malleability (Bray–Curtis dissimilarity) of plant communities were analysed using a linear mixed model, and the relationships between malleability and plant species groups were depicted using a generalised additive model and further analysed using a linear model. Perennial native grasses and a non-native forb (Hypochaeris radicata) initially dominated the vegetation, but after the disturbances H. radicata and other non-native species dominated. Compositional changes from the initial states were greatest in the first spring (7 months after treatment application), and then the vegetation tended to recover towards its original state. Soil cultivation resulted in the greatest deviation in community composition, followed by soil amendment, fire, with grazing exclusion the least. The recovery process and rate of recovery varied with treatment reflecting the dominance of soil cultivation and its interactions with other forms of disturbances. Soil amendment and grazing exclusion tended to reduce the effects of soil cultivation. Malleability was negatively related to perennial native grasses; positively to other non-native species, annual native grasses and perennial native sedges/rushes; and negatively to H. radicata when its cover was below 18%, but positively when above 18%. The degree of malleability reflected the high resilience of the vegetation to disturbance, and was mainly due to the recovery of perennial native grasses and H. radicata. This resilience demonstrated that the small-scale disturbances did not cause vegetation to cross an ecological threshold and that the present vegetation is resilient to common disturbances occurring at small scales. The results also suggest (1) that the present vegetation has developed mechanisms to adapt to these disturbances, (2) the importance of disturbance scale or (3) that the ecological threshold had already been crossed and the present vegetation is in a degraded state compared with its original state before the end of the 19th century.     

New species of Mycosphaerella from Myrtaceae in plantations and native forests in eastern Australia

The majority of Mycosphaerella species from eucalypts (Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Angophora) in Australia have been recorded only from trees growing in plantations. This illustrates a bias in research in the past two decades toward commercial enterprise, and it emphasises a lack of understanding of the occurrence of these important fungi under natural conditions. Surveys of foliar fungi in native forests in eastern Australia, as well as adjacent plantations, thus have been initiated in recent years. In this study we describe four new species of Mycosphaerella from Eucalyptus spp. as well as other Myrtaceae. Mycosphaerella tumulosa sp. nov. (anamorph: Pseudocercospora sp.) was found on more than seven species of Eucalyptus and Corymbia in native forests and plantations in northeastern New South Wales and southeastern Queensland and appears to be relatively common, although not damaging to these trees. Mycosphaerella multiseptata sp. nov. was recorded from several locations on species of Angophora in native forests and amenity plantings. Mycosphaerella pseudovespa sp. nov. was found in one location in native forest on E. biturbinata. The first species of Mycosphaerella to be described from Syncarpia, M. syncarpiae sp. nov., was found in native forests in numerous locations from Sydney through to northeastern New South Wales and appears to be relatively common.     

Biological characteristics of grass geminiviruses from eastern Australia

Two serotypes of chloris striate mosaic virus (CSMV), paspalum striate mosaic virus (PSMV) and geminiviruses infecting Bromus catharticus and Digitaria didactyla were investigated. Their field occurrence and experimental hosts are listed. Serial transmission data for CSMV by single Nesoclutha pallida show a minimum latent period of 12–14 h, and regular transmission with occasional breaks for up to 50 days. Cicadulina bimaculata did not transmit any isolates after plant feeding acquisition, but transmitted CSMV inefficiently after insect injection. The vector of PSMV was found to be a specific biotype of N. pallida which bred only on Paspalum spp. The rate of transmission of CSMV with the Chloris biotype of N. pallida and of PSMV with the Paspalum biotype reached c. 50% with single insects, but only when freshly-infected source plants were used. Geminate particles were found in thin sections of leaf tissue infected with all four viruses, and partially purified preparations were made of three of these. In gel diffusion tests, the virus from Microlaena stipoides produced a spur reaction with CSMV, when reacted with CSMV antiserum. The B. catharticus and D. didactyla isolates failed to react serologically with CSMV, maize streak or Vanuatu digitaria streak viruses.     

Helminth communities of pademelons, Thylogale stigmatica and T. thetis from eastern Australia and Papua New Guinea

Gastrointestinal helminths were collected from pademelons of the genus Thylogale (Marsupialia: Macropodidae) in eastern Australia and Papua New Guinea. Examined were 12 Thylogale stigmatica stigmatica and 13 T. s. wilcoxi, the latter subdivided into eight specimens from the northern limit of their distribution and five from southern areas, all from eastern Queensland, Australia, one T. s. oriomo from Papua New Guinea and ten T. thetis from southeastern Queensland and northern New South Wales, Australia. Six species of cestodes and 40 species of nematodes were found. The helminth community of T. s. stigmatica was similar to that found in northern specimens of T. s. wilcoxi, while differences from the helminth community present in southern T. s. wilcoxi could be accounted for by parasites acquired from sympatric T. thetis. Thylogale thetis harboured a community of helminths distinct from but related to that in T. stigmatica. The evidence suggests that all subspecies of T. stigmatica examined share a common helminth community, but that in areas of sympatry, T. stigmatica and T. thetis share some of their parasites.     

New radiolarians from the Devonian of the southern Ural Mountains: 2. Middle-Late Devonian

Middle-Late Devonian Radiolarians are recorded for the first time in the southern Ural Mountains in Bashkortostan, in a section of Kariukmas Mountain (Upper Eifelian) and on the southern slope of Argagan Mountain (Middle Frasnian). The new Late Eifelian assemblage is composed of 17 species of 11 genera, and Middle Frasnian radiolarians comprise 13 species of 7 genera of spherical, discoidal, pylomate, and spiny radiolarians. A new species, Primaritripus kariukmasensis, sp. nov., is described. The prevalence of discoidal forms in the oryctocenosis suggests shallow marine conditions in the Late Eifelian and Middle Frasnian basins. Two new biostratons, the Upper Eifelian beds with Primaritripus kariukmasensis and Middle Frasnian beds with Primaritripus chuvashovi, are established based on radiolarians.     

Multivalvulid myxozoans from eastern Australia: three new species of Kudoa from scombrid and labrid fishes of the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia

Three new species of Kudoa, each having 6 polar capsules, are described from the somatic muscle of fishes collected on the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia. Kudoa grammatorcyni n. sp. was observed in the shark mackerel Grammatorcynus bicarinatus. Spores are stellate in apical view, width (all measurements in microm) 8.62 (8.03-8.95); thickness 8.14 (7.63-8.68); suture width 7.7 (7.24-8.16); length 6.54 (6.32-6.71); polar capsule length 3.68 (3.55-3.82); polar capsule width 1.72 (1.65-1.84). Kudoa scomberomori n. sp. is described from the Spanish mackerel Scomberomorus commerson. Spores are stellate in apical view, width 7.56 (6.84-8.16); thickness 6.79 (6.18-7.63); suture width 5.92 (5.26-6.32); length 5.43 (5.00-6.18); polar capsule length 3.24 (3.03-3.55); polar capsule width 1.37 (1.25-1.51). Kudoa thalassomi n. sp. is described from the moon wrasse Thalassoma lunare. Spores are stellate in apical view, width 10.66 (9.47-11.84); thickness 9.37 (8.55-10.79); suture width 7.98 (6.84-8.82); length 6.65 (6.18-7.11); polar capsule length 4.92 (4.74-5.00); polar capsule width 2.12 (2.04-2.24). All 3 species differ in spore morphology from the 1 previously described myxozoan with 6 polar capsules, Hexacapsula neothunni from yellowfin tuna Neothunnus macropterus, which has since been reassigned to Kudoa.     

Assemblages of Pisidium species (Bivalvia, Sphaeriidae) from localities in eastern England

Collections of Pisidium spp, were made from a large number of sites and a diversity of habitats, The concurrence of the different species was examined, An ordination of the assemblages showed no marked clusters, but could be related to habitat.     

A polypharyngeal marine flatworm (Platyhelminthes, Proseriata, Archimonocelididae) from eastern Australia

Archimonocelis medusa sp. nov. is described from eastern Australia. The species is characterized by numerous (15–25) pharynges, as well as by details of sclerotized organs and karyotype. It is the first polypharyngeal marine flatworm known, and the first record of polypharyngy outside the Tricladida. Polypharyngy is interpreted as a disruption of the processes of pharyngeal induction and inhibition during development. Its possible adaptiveness is discussed.     

Pigment dynamics and autumn leaf senescence in a New England deciduous forest,eastern USA

The leaves of woody plants at Harvard Forest in Central Massachusetts, USA, changed color during senescence; 70% (62/89) of the woody species examined anatomically contained anthocyanins during senescence. Anthocyanins were not present in summer green leaves, and appeared primarily in the vacuoles of palisade parenchyma cells. Yellow coloration was a result of the unmasking of xanthophyll pigments in senescing chloroplasts. In nine red-senescing species, anthocyanins were not detectable in mature leaves, and were synthesized de novo in senescence, with less than 20µg cm^–2 of chlorophyll remaining. Xanthophyll concentrations declined in relation to chlorophyll to the same extent in both yellow- and red-leaved taxa. Declines in the maximum photosystemII quantum yield of leaves collected prior to dawn were only slightly less in the red-senescing species, indicating no long-term protective activity. Red-leaved species had significantly greater mass/area and lower chlorophylla/b ratios during senescence. Nitrogen tissue concentrations in mature and senescent leaves negatively correlated to anthocyanin concentrations in senescent leaves, weak evidence for more efficient nitrogen resorption in anthocyanic species. Shading retarded both chlorophyll loss and anthocyanin production in Cornus alternifolia, Acer rubrum, Acer saccharum, Quercus rubra and Viburnum alnifolium. It promoted chlorophyll loss in yellow-senescing Fagus grandifolia. A reduced red:far-red ratio did not affect this process. Anthocyanins did not increase leaf temperatures in Q.rubra and Vaccinium corymbosum on cold and sunny days. The timing of leaf-fall was remarkably constant from year to year, and the order of senescence of individual species was consistent.