A primitive ceratomorph (Perissodactyla, Mammalia) from the early Tertiary of Europe

Hyracotherium cuniculus Owen, 1842, from Palaeocene–Eocene boundary strata in NW Europe, was formerly considered to be an equoid. It is here placed in Cymbalophus gen. nov. , in the perissodactyl suborder Ceralomorpha, which comprises tapiroids and rhinocerotoids, as one of its most primitive and earliest members. This revised classification is based on an evaluation of its advanced versus primitive character states, and comparison with a variety of other primitive perissodactyls. Cheek tooth occlusal relationships in the early stages of ceratomorph evolution are discussed and contrasted with the fundamental perissodactyl morphotype as represented in Hyracotherium. It is suggested that the Lophiodontidae (formerly considered to be ceratomorphs; may be more closely related to chalicotheres; that the Isectolophidae may be the sister-group of chalicotheres and lophiodonts plus ceratomorplis; and that Cymbalophus is the most primitive known member of the newly restricted Ceratomorpha. Cymbalophus is placed tentatively in the family Helaletidae.     

Pilgrimella, a promitive Asiatic perissodactyl

The genus Pilgnmella , known from the medial Eocene of Pakistan and northwest India, is a primitive perissodactyl, not an artiodactyl as previously identified. Upper cheek teeth of Pilgrimella , when compared with those of primitive representatives of the Equoidea, Brontotherioidea, Chalicotherioidea, Tapirioidea and Rhinocerotoidea, suggest, however, that Pilgnmella cannot on present evidence be referred to any of the five accepted perissodactyl superfamilies. Pilgrimella may represent a short-lived and hitherto unknown perissodactyl lineage.     

Quo vadis eohippus? The systematics and taxonomy of the early Eocene equids (Perissodactyla)

The systematics and taxonomy of early Eocene equids are investigated. A paraphyletic sequence of equid taxa is recovered from a phylogenetic analysis of 40 taxa and 121 characters. This analysis supports the identification of Hyracotherium as a primitive equoid and its restriction to the genotype, Hyracotherium leporinum . Sifrhippus gen. nov. is erected for the sister taxon of all other equids, Hyracotherium sandrae Gingerich. Minippus gen. nov., the next more-derived equid clade, is erected for two small equids, M. index Cope and M. jicarillai nov. species. Arenahippus gen. nov. is erected for the next three sequentially more-derived equid taxa, A. grangeri Kitts, A. aemulor Gingerich, and A. pernix Marsh. The genus Xenicohippus , which is the next more-derived equid clade, is redefined to include X. craspedotum Cope. Eohippus Marsh, the next more-derived equid taxon, is resurrected for E. angustidens Cope. Pliolophus , the only early Eocene equid from Europe, is identified as the sister taxon to Protorohippus , a sequence of successively more-derived equid taxa consisting of P. montanum Wortman and P. venticolum Cope. Protorohippus venticolum is identified as the sister taxon of Orohippus . Systemodon Cope is resurrected for S. tapirinum Cope. This taxon has historically been placed within Hyracotherium yet this analysis allies it with Cymbalophus near the base of the perissodactyl radiation. © 2002 The Linnean Society of London. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 134 , 141–256.     

陷胸茎蜂亚科(昆虫纲)化石在我国辽西上侏罗统的发现及其系统演化

描述产自辽宁北票上园地区黄半吉沟上侏罗统义县组下部膜翅目昆虫化石1新属新种Trematothoracoides liaoningensis gen. et sp. nov., 归入葬茎蜂科(Sepulcidae)中的陷胸茎蜂亚科(Trematothoracinae)。这是首次在我国发现可靠的陷胸茎蜂化石,也是该亚科在侏罗纪的首次报道。分支分析结果表明Trematothoracinae为一单系类群。Thoracotrema与Prosyntexis进化程度较高,构成一对姊妹群,同时又是Trematothorax的姊妹群;Trematothoracoides最为原始,为Thoracotrema+Prosyntexis+Trematothorax的姊妹群。     

Revision and cladistic analysis of the jumping spider genus Onomastus (Araneae: Salticidae)

The jumping spider genus Onomastus Simon, 1900 is revised. Four new species: Onomastus indra sp. nov. , Onomastus kaharian sp. nov. , Onomastus pethiyagodai sp. nov. , and Onomastus rattotensis sp. nov. are described. Parsimony analysis of 26 morphological characters supported the monophyly of Onomastus. Lyssomanes is sister to Onomastus. Onomastus separates into two clades: the widespread South‐East Asia clade and the South Asia clade. The South Asia clade is restricted to the Sri Lanka–Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot. Species of the South Asia clade appear to be spot endemics, highly in danger of extinction because of habitat loss and climate change. Male palps are complex and species‐specific, suggesting rapid divergent evolution. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2010, 159 , 711–745.     

Phylogeny and infrageneric classification of Symplocos (Symplocaceae) inferred from DNA sequence data

Symplocos comprises ～300 species of woody flowering plants with a disjunct distribution between the warm-temperate to tropical regions of eastern Asia and the Americas. Phylogenetic analyses of 111 species of Symplocos based on the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and the chloroplast genes rpl16, matK, and trnL-trnF yielded topologies in which only one of the four traditionally recognized subgenera (Epigenia; Neotropics) is monophyletic. Section Cordyloblaste (subgenus Symplocos; eastern Asia) is monophyletic and sister to a group comprising all other samples of Symplocos. Section Palura (subgenus Hopea; eastern Asia) is sister to a group comprising all other samples of Symplocos except those of section Cordyloblaste. Symplocos wikstroemiifolia (eastern Asia) and S. tinctoria (southeastern United States), both of subgenus Hopea, form a clade that groups with S. longipes (tropical North America) and the species of subgenus Epigenia. The remaining samples of subgenus Hopea (eastern Asia) form a clade. Section Neosymplocos (subgenus Microsymplocos; Neotropics) is well nested within a clade otherwise comprising the samples of section Symplocastrum (subgenus Symplocos; Neotropics). Section Urbaniocharis (subgenus Microsymplocos; Antilles) groups as sister to the clade comprising Symplocastrum and Neosymplocos. The data support the independent evolution of deciduousness among section Palura and S. tinctoria. The early initial divergence of sections Cordyloblaste and Palura from the main group warrants their recognition at taxonomic levels higher than those at which they are currently placed. An inferred eastern Asian origin for Symplocos with subsequent dispersal to the Americas is consistent with patterns from other phylogenetic studies of eastern Asian-American disjunct plant groups but contrary to a North American origin inferred from the earliest fossil occurrences of the genus.     

Phylogenetic and biosystematic relationships in four highly disjunct polyploid complexes in the subgenera Ceterach and Phyllitis in Asplenium (Aspleniaceae)

Phylogenetic studies using DNA sequences of two chloroplast regions, rbcL and trnL-F, demonstrate that the proposed genus Ceterach is a small clade within the large genus Asplenium, and sister to the Phyllitis clade. The Ceterach clade is characterised by irregular anastomosing veins and often densely scaled leaf blades. Its taxonomic status as a group nested within Asplenium is confirmed, and it is accepted here as a subgenus with seven species. The Ceterach clade comprises four lineages that correspond to disjunct polyploid complexes: the A. aureum clade forming a polyploid complex (4×, 6×, 8×) in Macaronesia, the A. ceterach clade forming a polyploid complex (2×, 4×, 6×) in the Mediterranean Basin, the A. paucivenosum clade (4×, 6×) in central Asia, and the A. dalhousiae clade (2×) with a disjunct distribution in the Himalaya, Yemen and Eritrea, and southwestern North America. Asplenium paucivenosum is sister to all other members of the Ceterach clade, whereas A. dalhousiae is sister to the A. aureum clade that includes tetraploid A. aureum, hexaploid A. lolegnamense, and octoploid A. parvifolium. Asplenium ceterach and its variations – including the hexaploid A. ceterach subsp. mediterraneum subsp. nov. first described below – form a monophyletic unit, sister to a clade consisting of A. aureum and A. dalhousiae. Asplenium cordatum from Africa and A. haugthonii from the isolated atlantic island of St. Helena are not members of the Ceterach clade, which suggests that leaf blades with dense indumenta have evolved at least twice within asplenioid ferns. The allotetraploid species A. hybridum has the chloroplast DNA from A. ceterach, and therefore the latter species is the maternal ancestor of the former. The other parent of this hybrid species is A. sagittatum that is nested within the sister clade of Ceterach, the Phyllitis clade comprising A. sagittatum and A. scolopendrium. The findings suggest that the current distribution of Ceterach is either the result of long-distance dispersal or represents fragmented relicts of a previously more widely distributed species.     

A new mite superfamily Cloacaroidea and its position within the Prostigmata (Acariformes)

The external morphology of 2 closely related mite families, Cloacaridae and Epimyodicidae (Acari: Prostigmata), comprising highly specialized endoparasites of vertebrates, is analyzed. These mites exhibit strong regression of many structures ancestrally present in other Prostigmata as a consequence of their endoparasitic mode of life. The relationships of these 2 families with other taxa in the infraorder Eleutherengona are still not clear. Our reinterpretation of the chelicerae as unfused precludes inclusion of this lineage in the Cheyletoidea as proposed previously. A new superfamily, Cloacaroidea superfam, nov., incertae sedis, within the infraorder Eleutherengona is established for these 2 families, and their host-parasite relationships are briefly discussed. A new cloacarid species, Caminacarus dawsoni n. sp., from Graptemys pseudogeographica (Testudines: Emydidae) from the United States is also described.     

Planomonadida ord. nov. (Apusozoa): ultrastructural affinity with Micronuclearia podoventralis and deep divergences within Planomonas gen. nov

Gliding zooflagellates previously misidentified as Ancyromonas sigmoides, Metopion or Heteromita constitute a new genus Planomonas. Three new Planomonas species (marine P. micra and P. mylnikovi: freshwater P. limna) have extremely divergent 18S rRNA and subtly but consistently different light microscopic morphology, distinguishable from P. (=Ancyromonas) melba comb. nov. and P. (=Bodo) cephalopora comb. nov. Ultrastructurally, P. micra and P. mylnikovi have a sub-plasma membrane dense pellicular layer (except in the ventral feeding pocket whose rim is supported by microtubules), kinetocysts, and flat mitochondrial cristae. Centrioles, connected at approximately 80 degrees by short fibres, have a dense amorphous distal plate below a double axosome and four microtubular roots. Microbody, mitochondrion, and dictyosomes associate with the nucleus. Longitudinal cytokinesis is slow and peculiar; ciliary transformation is from anterior to posterior as in other bikonts. Planomonads, like the non-flagellate Micronuclearia (here grouped with planomonads as Hilomonadea cl. nov.), have an indistinguishable single dense pellicular layer, not a double layer like apusomonads (comprising emended class Thecomonadea, phylum Apusozoa). We also sequenced 18S rDNA for Planomonas howeae sp. nov. and Micronuclearia podoventralis, plus actin genes of P. micra, Micronuclearia, Amastigmonas marina. All were analysed phylogenetically; the Planomonas clade is ancient, diverse and robust: it sometimes groups weakly as sister to Micronuclearia.     

The beginning of the equoid radiation

With the benefit of newly collected material, primitive equoids are analysed cladistically to determine the detailed relationships of the families Equidae and Palaeotheriidae. The most primitive equid is shown to be Pliolophus. Cymbalophus cuniculus and 'Hyracotherium' sandrae are closely related stem equoids. The Pachynolophidae are not equoids, but most closely related to the primitive tapiromorph family Isectolophidae. Hallensia is sister to these two and therefore also not an equoid. Hyracotherium is restricted to the type species H. leporinum Owen, part of whose lower dentition is made known for the first time. It is closest to a restricted genus Propachynolophus within the family Palaeotheriidae. The original concept of Propachynolophus is polyphyletic. Using the cladogram, newly extended stratigraphic ranges and palaeogeography, an attempt is made to reconstruct the very early speciation and biogeographical history of the group. 'Cymbalophus' hookeri Godinot is recombined in the genus Pachynolophus and 'H.' pernix in Pliolophus. Hallensia louisi sp. nov. and Propachynolophus level sp. nov. are described.     

Molecular phylogeny of the Cobitoidea (Teleostei: Cypriniformes) revisited: position of enigmatic loach Ellopostoma resolved with six nuclear genes

Molecular variation in six nuclear genes provides substantive phylogenetic evidence for the recognition of a new cypriniform family, the Ellopostomatidae, to include the enigmatic Southern Asia loach genus Ellopostoma. The current six loach families form a monophyletic group, with the Nemacheilidae as the sister group to Ellopostomatidae; Vaillantellidae forms the sister group to all families exclusive of Botiidae. While the superfamily Cobitoidea includes eight families, the monophyly of this large clade within the Cypriniformes remains a vexing problem despite extensive molecular analyses and is in need of further investigation.     

New fossil species of ommatids (Coleoptera: Archostemata) from the Middle Mesozoic of China illuminating the phylogeny of Ommatidae

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Ommatidae is arguably the "most ancestral" extant beetle family. Recent species of this group are only found in South America and Australia, but the fossil record reveals a much broader geographical distribution in the Mesozoic. Up to now, thirteen fossil genera with more than 100 species of ommatids have been described. However, the systematic relationships of the extant and extinct Ommatidae have remained obscure. RESULTS: In this study, four new species, Pareuryomma ancistrodonta sp. nov., Pareuryomma cardiobasis sp. nov., Omma delicata sp. nov., and Tetraphalerus decorosus sp. nov., are described. Based on well-preserved fossil specimens and previously published data the phylogenetic relationships of extant and extinct lineages of Ommatidae were analyzed for the first time cladistically. Based on the results we propose a new classification with six tribes of Ommatidae: Pronotocupedini, Notocupedini, Lithocupedini, Brochocoleini, Ommatini and Tetraphalerini. These taxa replace the traditional four subfamilies. CONCLUSION: There is good support for the monophyly of the ingroup. Notocupedini, as defined by Ponomarenko, are paraphyletic. Notocupoides + Eurydictyon are the sister group of the remaining fossil and extant ommatids. Together they form the clade Pronotocupedini. Notocupedini and Lithocupedini are the next two branches. The tribe Brochocoleini is the sister group of a clade comprising Tetraphalerini and Ommatini.     

The road to the Janiroidea: Comparative morphology and evolution of the asellote isopod crustaceans

This paper presents a new phylogenetic estimate of isopod crustaceans of the suborder Asellota with the aim of clarifying the evolution of the superfamily Janiroidea, a large and diverse group inhabiting all aqueous habitats. The phylogenetic analysis is based on a morphological evaluation of characters used in past classifications, as well as several new characters. The evolutionary polarity of the characters was determined by outgroup analysis. The characters employed were from the pleopods, the copulatory organs, the first walking legs, and the cephalon. The resulting character data set was analyzed with numerical phylogenetic computer programs to find one most parsimonious clado-gram, which is translated into a classification using the sequencing convention. The new phylogenetic estimate is significantly more parsimonious than previous trees from the literature, and several of its monophyletic groups have robust confidence limits. The superfamily Stenetrioidea belongs to the clade including the Janiroidea, not with the Aselloidea as previously suggested. The sister group of the Janiroidea is the family Pseudojaniridae, which is elevated to superfamily rank. The clade including the families Gnathostenetroididae and Protojaniridae is not the sister group of the Janiroidea, and is derived earlier in janiroidean evolution than the Stenetrioidea. Within the Janiroidea, the family Janiridae is not the most primitive taxon as previously believed. The clade including the families Munnidae and Pleurocopidae contains the earliest derived janiroideans. The data also indicate that the unusual sexual morphology of the Janiroidea did not appear suddenly but developed as a series of independent steps within the Asellota.     

A new genus of Elateriform beetles (Coleoptera,Polyphaga) from the Jurassic of Daohugou,China

A new coleopteran genus, Parelateriformius, gen. nov., comprising the species P. communis, sp. nov., P. villosus, sp. nov., P. capitifossus, sp. nov., and P. mirabdominis, sp. nov., is described from Daohugou deposits, Inner Mongolia, China, and is assigned to the infraorder Elateriformia. The systematic position of the new genus within the suborder Polyphaga is discussed.     

Phylogeny of Decapoda using two nuclear protein-coding genes: origin and evolution of the Reptantia

The phylogeny of Decapoda is contentious and many hypotheses have been proposed based on morphological cladistic analyses. Recent molecular studies, however, yielded contrasting results despite their use of similar data (nuclear and mitochondrial rDNA). Here we present the first application of two nuclear protein-coding genes, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase and sodium-potassium ATPase alpha-subunit, to reconstruct the phylogeny of major infraorders within Decapoda. A total of 64 species representing all infraorders of Pleocyemata were analyzed with five species from Dendrobranchiata as outgroups. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference reveal that the Reptantia and all but one infraorder are monophyletic. Thalassinidea, however, is polyphyletic. The nodal support for most of the infraordinal and inter-familial relationships is high. Stenopodidea and Caridea form a clade sister to Reptantia, which comprises two major clades. The first clade, consisting of Astacidea, Achelata, Polychelida and three thalassinidean families (Axiidae, Calocarididae and Eiconaxiidae), corresponds essentially to the old taxon suborder Macrura Reptantia. Polychelida nests within Macrura Reptantia instead of being the most basal reptant as suggested in previous studies. The high level of morphological and genetic divergence of Polychelida from Achelata and Astacidea justifies its infraorder status. The second major reptant clade consists of Anomura, Brachyura and two thalassindean families (Thalassinidae and Upogebiidae). Anomura and Brachyura form Meiura, with moderate support. Notably thalassinidean families are sister to both major reptant clades, suggesting that the stem lineage reptants were thalassinidean-like. Moreover, some families (e.g. Nephropidae, Diogenidae, Paguridae) are paraphyletic, warranting further studies to evaluate their status. The present study ably demonstrates the utility of nuclear protein-coding genes in phylogenetic inference in decapods. The topologies obtained are robust and the two molecular markers are informative across a wide range of taxonomic levels. We propose that nuclear protein-coding genes should constitute core markers for future phylogenetic studies of decapods, especially for higher systematics.     

Ultrastructure and LSU rDNA-based phylogeny of Peridinium lomnickii and description of Chimonodinium gen. nov. (Dinophyceae)

Several populations of Peridinium lomnickii were examined by SEM and serial section TEM. Comparison with typical Peridinium, Peridiniopsis, Palatinus and Scrippsiella species revealed significant structural differences, congruent with phylogenetic hypotheses derived from partial LSU rDNA sequences. Chimonodinium gen. nov. is described as a new genus of peridinioids, characterized by the Kofoidian plate formula Po, cp, x, 4', 3a, 7', 6c, 5s, 5', 2', the absence of pyrenoids, the presence of a microtubular basket with four or five overlapping rows of microtubules associated with a small peduncle, a pusular system with well-defined pusular tubes connected to the flagellar canals, and the production of non-calcareous cysts. Serial section examination of Scrippsiella trochoidea, here taken to represent typical Scrippsiella characters, revealed no peduncle and no associated microtubular strands. The molecular phylogeny placed C. lomnickii comb. nov. as a sister group to a clade composed of Thoracosphaera and the pfiesteriaceans. Whereas the lack of information on fine structure of the swimming stage of Thoracosphaera leaves its affinities unexplained, C. lomnickii shares with the pfiesteriaceans the presence of a microtubular basket and the unusual connection between two plates on the left side of the sulcus, involving extra-cytoplasmic fibres.     

淡水豚类分子系统发生的研究

测定了白暨豚和恒河豚细胞色素ｂ基因３０７ｂｐ的ＤＮＡ序列,并与其它鲸类的相应序列合并,分析了淡水豚类（恒河豚、印河豚、白暨豚、亚河豚和弗西豚）的系统学位置和系统发生。淡水豚类不同属间的序列差异已达到或超过了其它齿鲸类科间的差异水平,因此它们分别归属于不同的科,即恒河豚科、白暨豚科、亚河豚科和弗西豚科。系统发生分析支持淡水豚类和海豚类之间具有下述的关系：（恒河豚科（（白暨豚科（亚河豚科,弗西豚科））海豚总科））。即淡水豚的４个科中,恒河豚科是最早分化的一支,其次是白暨豚科,然后是亚河豚科和弗西豚科的分化。白暨豚科和亚河豚科＋弗西豚科组成海豚总科的姊妹群,并与海豚总科一同组成海豚下目。恒河豚与其它淡水豚类间无直接的亲缘关系。淡水豚类是并系的。把恒河豚类独立为恒河豚总科是合理的。初步认为有理由把白暨豚类也作为一个总科级的支系。恒河豚和印河豚间的序列差异极小,两者可能只是同一个种的２个亚种。