A revision of the Solatium sessile species group (section Geminata pro parte: Solanaceae)

KNAPP, S., 1991. A revision of the Solatium sessile species (sectio Geminata pro parte : Solanaceae ). The taxonomy of the Solanum sessile species group (a part of the large and unwieldy section Geminata) is reviewed, based on detailed field and herbarium studies. Members of the group are found from Mexico to Bolivia in a variety of habitats. Ten species are recognized: S. obovalifolium, S. sessile, S. monadelphum, S. turgidum, S. triste, S. chlamydogynum, S. rovirosanum, S. palmillae, S. oppositifolium and conferliseriatum.     

Novelties in Mascagnia (Malpighiaceae)

Seven new species ofMascagnia are described:M. tomentosa from southern Mexico and Central America;M. arenicola from the Guianas;M. riparia, M. tucuruensis, andM. velutina from Brazil;M. boliviana from Bolivia; andM. australis from Argentina and Paraguay. These novelties were previously included in the “M. sepium-complex,” an omniumgatherum comprising superficially similar yellow-flowered taxa.     

The freshwater zooplankton of Central America and the Caribbean

So far mainly sporadic studies have been made on the freshwater zooplankton of this region. We studied material from Costa Rica, Cuba, Bahamas, El Salvador, Haiti and Trinidad and listed unpublished species data from Jamaica. In all 183 species of Rotifera; 104 of Cladocera; 64 Calanoida and Cyclopoida and a few Ostracoda are known from the region which includes Central America, the Caribbean Islands from the Bahamas to Trinidad and the islands off South America and Central America. Records from individual countries are generally low except for Cuban Cladocera and Copepoda. The total number of Copepoda and Cladocera recorded for the whole regions appears to be reasonably comprehensive. Daphnia is rare or absent from the equatorial regions and it is likely that the low species diversity may be due partly to the lack of a range of habitat types.     

A new golden frog species of the genus Diasporus (Amphibia, Eleutherodactylidae) from the Cordillera Central, western Panama

We describe the frog species Diasporus citrinobapheussp. n. from the Cordillera Central of western Panama. The new species differs from all other species in its genus in coloration, disk cover and disk pad shape, skin texture, advertisement call, and size. It is most similar to Diasporus tigrillo, from which it differs in dorsal skin texture, relative tibia length, number of vomerine teeth, ventral coloration, dorsal markings, and relative tympanum size, and to Diasporus gularis, from which it can be distinguished by the lack of membranes between the toes, adult size, posterior thigh coloration, and position of the choanae. We provide data on morpho- logy, vocalization, and distribution of the new species, as well as brief information on its natural history.     

A new Costa Rican species of Drosophila visiting inflorescences of the hemi-epiphytic climber Monstera lentii (Araceae)

Drosophila monsterae sp. nov. is described from 11 males and 13 females collected from the inside of closed inflorescences of Monstera lentii (Araceae) at 1810 m altitude in the Forest Reserve of Cerro de La Carpintera, Canton La Unión, Province of Cartago, Costa Rica. Although flies have been seen wandering and copulating inside the floral chambers of closed inflorescences during the floral female phase, eggs or larvae have not yet been found either in the spathe or in the fleshy spadix. The new species is related to Drosophila tristani Sturtevant, 1921, from San José, Costa Rica, from which it differs mainly by having smaller slightly circular compound eyes, distinctly broader genae (cheek index ca. 2.4 vs 5 in D. tristani), and the inner capsule of spermathecae with an unusual folded duct at basal half of its very wide introvert. This is the eighth species to be included in the New World, essentially Neotropical, subgenus Phloridosa. Photomicrographs of male and female terminalia are also provided.     

A new species of Lamproderma (Myxomycetes) from Costa Rica

Lamproderma magniretisporum, a new species of myxomycete from Costa Rica, is described and illustrated. This new species is characterized by its lignicolous habitat, long stalk, dark radial capillitium, large spores, and reticulate spore ornamentation. The stability of the taxonomic characters of L. magniretisporum is supported by two well-developed collections. The morphology of the sporocarp was subjected to detailed study with both the light microscope and the scanning electron microscope. Micrographs of all relevant features are presented. Taxonomic novelty Lamproderma magniretisporum G. Moreno, C. Rojas, S.L. Stephenson & H. Singer     

Cladistic biogeography of the Mexican transition zone

Biogeographic relationships among nine montane areas of endemism across the transition zone between North and South America are analysed cladistically based on phylogenetic hypotheses of thirty‐three resident monophyletic taxa of insects, fish, reptiles, and plants. Areas of endemism include the Arizona mountains (AZ), Sonoran Desert (SD), Sierra Madre Occidental (OCC), southern Sierra Madre Occidental (SOC), Sierra Madre Oriental (ORI), Sierra Transvolcanica (TRAN), Sierra Madre del Sur (SUR), Chiapan‐Guatemalan Highlands (CGH), and Talamancan Cordillera (TC). Area relationships are summarized using Brooks Parsimony Analysis and Assumption 0, with the former resulting in more defensible biogeographic hypotheses. Areas of endemism are dividable into two monophyletic groups; a northern group including AZ, SD, OCC, and ORI, and a southern group consisting of TC, CGH, TRAN, SUR, and the isolated southern regions of the Sierra Madre Occidental (SOC). The northern set of areas are characterized by recent, probably Pleistocene, isolation and prevalent widespread species, whereas the southerly areas probably diverged after Pliocene closure of the Panamanian isthmus. The southern areas are redundantly represented on many of the taxon‐area cladograms by endemic species, indicative of much higher levels of endemism in the Sierra Transvolcanica and further south. Use of a general area cladogram in such a transition zone permits explicit exploration of biogeographic patterns and establishes a predictive framework for taxonomy and conservation prioritization.     

Reproductive traits of the symbiotic pea crab Austinotheres angelicus (Crustacea,Pinnotheridae) living in Saccostrea palmula (Bivalvia,Ostreidae), Pacific coast of Costa Rica

Pea crabs of the family Pinnotheridae exhibit a symbiotic life style and live associated with a variety of different marine organisms, especially bivalves. Despite the fact that pea crabs can cause serious problems in bivalve aquaculture, the available information about the ecology of these crabs from Central America is extremely limited. Therefore, the present study aimed to describe different reproductive features of the pinnotherid crab Austinotheres angelicus associated with the oyster Saccostrea palmula in the Golfo de Nicoya, Pacific coast of Costa Rica. Monthly sampling was conducted from April to December 2012. Average carapace width (CW) of the 47 analyzed ovigerous females was 7.62 mm. The species produced on average 2677 ± 1754 recently -extruded embryos with an average volume of 0.020 ± 0.003 mm³; embryo volume increased during embryogenesis by 21%, but did not vary significantly between developmental stages. Brood mass volume varied greatly (between 11.7 and 236.7 mm³), and increased significantly with female CW. Females invested on average 76.7% (minimum: 21.7%; maximum: 162.8%) of their body weight in brood production, which confirms a substantially higher energy allocation for embryo production in pinnotherid crabs compared to free-living decapods.     

A preliminary survey of the Chironomidae (Diptera) of Costa Rica,with emphasis on the lotic fauna

Extensive collections of Chironomidae were made in Costa Rica, Central America, during 1986 and 1987. Fifty-five genera and at least 148 species belonging to the subfamilies Podonominae, Tanypodinae, Orthocladiinae and Chironomidae were found. Chironominae and Orthocladiinae predominated. Only one species of Podonominae was collected. Tanypodinae was represented by many genera, but species richness was low.Cricotopus was the most widespread and diverse genus of Orthocladiinae. Among the Chironominae the generaPolypedilum, Pseudochironomus, Tanytarsus andRheotanytarsus showed high species richness. Several species were collected that could not be assigned to genus. A number of range extensions were recorded for taxa found in the Neotropical region for the first time and for Neotropical taxa recorded outside of South America for the first time. The Costa Rican chironomid fauna consists of cosmopolitan, holarctic and neotropical components. There is probably an endemic Central American chironomid fauna at the species level.