A cladistic analysis of the genera in the subfamily Pudicinae (Nematoda, Trichostrongyloidea, Heligmonellidae).

A parsimony analysis was performed on 37 specific taxa belonging to the subfamily Pudicinae (family Heligmonellidae), which contains parasites mainly from South American caviomorph rodents. Thirteen characters were used from the synlophe (rotation of axis, presence of carene, carene asymmetry, presence of comaretes, single ventral comarete length, ridge discontinuity, ventral ridge numbers, presence of a peculiar posterior synlophe, presence of supernumerary spines) and the male caudal bursa (relative length of rays 9 and 10, caudal bursa type, division of the dorsal ray, divergence of the 10th rays). The cladogram shows a consistency index of 1.0. The subfamily Pudicinae has two synapomorphies. Two suprageneric groups are recognized. Suprageneric group 1 shows one synapomorphy and contains Heligmostrongylus, Fuellebornema, Sciurodendrium and Pseudoheligmosomum; suprageneric group 2 shows two synapomorphies and contains Pudica, Acanthostrongylus, Justinema and Durettestrongylus. Five genera are defined on the basis of synapomorphies. The genera Heligmostrongylus, Sciurodendrium and Pudica which are considered paraphyletic, however, are retained due to lack of knowledge as to their relationships.     

Phylogeny of the Nemertodermatida (Acoelomorpha, Platyhelminthes). A cladistic analysis

The Nemertodermatida is a small group of worms, regarded as an order of the Platyhelminthes. The group is of special systematic interest because of its putative basal phylogenetic position in the Platyhelminthes. The phylogeny of the Nemertodermatida was estimated using paup 4.0 software for parsimony analysis. The analysis was based on 72 structural parsimony-informative characters totalling 184 different character states. All eight well described species of nemertodermatids were included in the ingroup. As outgroup were chosen species of the Acoela, Catenulida, Macrostomida and Xenoturbellida. A single most parsimonious tree was obtained with 140 steps and a consistency index (CI) of 0.80. The Nemertodermatida, Ascoparidae and Nemertodermatidae are shown as monophyletic taxa in the tree. The species Nemertoderma psammicola does not group with the other members of the genus Nemertoderma , hence criteria of phylogenetic taxonomy imply that N. psammicola should be renamed. A suggested new name is Sterreria psammicola gen. n .     

The spermatogenesis of Dictyocaulus filaria (Nematoda, Trichostrongyloidea)

A cytological study was carried out, using male Dictyocaulus filaria, that revealed the diploid number of chromosomes was 2n = 11 and the sex determining mechanism was XO. The behaviour of the chromosomes in the different stages of meiosis was also investigated. Cross, open ring and rod bivalents were observed in diakinesis. The chromosomes appeared to be acrocentric since they acquired a radial disposition in Metaphase-II. The chiasma frequency was 1 and the nucleolus-organizing region was located at the ends of the chromosomes.     

Synlophe patterns of the Haemonchinae of ruminants (Nematoda: Trichostrongyloidea)

The pattern of longitudinal ridges (synlophe) on the external cuticular surface of trichostrongylid nematodes has been shown to be of value for distinguishing species and determining relationships among higher taxa. In the process of studying Mecistocirrus digitatus, the large stomach worm of bovids of Asia that has been imported and established in the Americas, we observed remarkably similar synlophe patterns to those described for 3 species of Haemonchus and to those we examined in a species of Ashworthius. In all 3 genera, the synlophe is absent from the posterior part of the body. Only in Haemonchus does the synlophe extend beyond midbody. In both M. digitatus and Ashworthius sidemi, the synlophe extends posteriorly only about 1/4 of body length. In all 3 genera, the synlophe consists of about 30 ridges in the region of the esophagus with variation among species in specific areas, including additional pairs of subventral and subdorsal ridges and different lengths of sublateral ridges. This information is useful for identifying species and determining relationships among these large stomach worm parasites of cattle, sheep, goats, and farmed and wild cervids.     

A cladistic analysis ofDipsacaceae (Dipsacales)

A cladistic study ofDipsacaceae (Asteridae, Dipsacales) was undertaken, based mainly on morphological and palynological characters, obtained by investigations of herbarium material and from the literature. Outgroups includedMorinaceae, Triplostegiaceae, and a subset ofValerianaceae. The consensus tree resulting from three equally parsimonious cladograms shows thatDipsacaceae are divided into two major clades, one withDipsacus andCephalaria, the other including the remaining genera. Within the latter clade,Knautia is the sister group of the rest of the taxa. This study is a reappraisal ofDipsacaceae phylogeny, and the results broadly match previous evidence.     

石蒜属植物分支系统学分析

基于37个形态学、解剖学、孢粉学和细胞学性状及解剖学性状之外的28个形态学、孢粉学和细胞学性状,分别对石蒜属进行分支系统学分析,试图建立石蒜属种间的系统发育关系。利用PAUP^*软件分别构建了最大简约树(MP),所得树的拓扑结构是一致的。同时,基于解剖学9个性状,对石蒜、换锦花、忽地笑、江苏石蒜、长筒石蒜、乳白石蒜、夏水仙、红兰石蒜、安徽石蒜、短蕊石蒜、中国石蒜11个种进行系统发育树构建,其结果也是支持上述系统发育树的。系统发育树结构结果表明,石蒜属16种明显聚为两大类:石蒜、玫瑰石蒜、稻草石蒜和江苏石蒜;广西石蒜、红兰石蒜、换锦花、香石蒜、夏水仙、长筒石蒜、安徽石蒜、中国石蒜、忽地笑、乳白石蒜、短蕊石蒜和陕西石蒜。除换锦花、红兰石蒜及江苏石蒜系统发育位置不同之外,大类群的划分与RAPD指纹图谱基本一致。类群一均属于石蒜亚属(Lycoris亚属)。类群二又可以聚为两小类:广西石蒜、红兰石蒜、换锦花、香石蒜、夏水仙归为一类;长筒石蒜、安徽石蒜、中国石蒜、忽地笑、乳白石蒜、短蕊石蒜和陕西石蒜归为一类。前一子类群除广西石蒜外,都属于整齐花亚属(Symman thus亚属)。后一子类群除长筒石蒜与安徽石蒜外,均属于石蒜亚属(Lycoris亚属)。因此,花冠整齐与否是一个重要的分类特征,但作为石蒜属植物亚属的划分依据,没有得到本研究支持。而在本文中,雄蕊与花被片的位置关系可以作为大分类群划分依据,能否依此来对石蒜属植物亚属进行划分,仍需探讨。另外研究表明叶微形态特征在研究种间亲缘关系时,具有一定的作用。而在种间亲缘关系鉴定时,出叶期不应成为重要的依据。同时研究还表明中国石蒜与忽地笑具有非常近的亲缘关系,与形态学研究一致。     

A cladistic analysis of the cornutes (stem chordates)

At the root of the calcichordate controversy is the problem of recognizing homologous similarity. Only when a criterion or set of criteria for hypothesizing homologies is established can the calcichordate theory be tested against its main rival—the Stylophoran theory—by applying the principle of parsimony. The criterion of topological similarity is applied to a three-laxon problem involving a mitrate, the crown-group Echinodermata and the crown-group Chordata. The mitrate shares more features with extant chordates than with extant echinoderms and the calcichordate theory is supported by a simple parsimony analysis. In a cladistic analysis of the cornutes, four monophyletic families are recognized (Cothurnocystidae, Scotiaecystidae, Phyllocystidae and Hanusiidae) and their interrelationships resolved using Hennig86 and the successive-weighting procedure of Farris. Because the known fossil record of cornutes and mitrates is very poor, the correlation between the cladogram produced for cornutes and their order of appearance in the geological record is weak. All of the cornute families must have originated in the Lower Cambrian at the latest.     

A cladistic analysis of the genus Lopezia (Onagraceae)

Lopezia, a genus of 22 species largely restricted to Mexico, forms a monophyletic group defined by the possession of two stamens in tetramerous flowerS. A cladistic analysis of the genus was performed using 16 characters from morphology, anatomy and embryology. Twenty of the 22 species were considered the terminal taxa. Polarity of the characters was based on the outgroup comparison method, using three alternative outgroups: the genus Fuchsia, Onagraceae excluding Ludwigia, and Epilobieae-Onagreae. Using Fuchsia as outgroup, 29 equally parsimonious cladograms were produced, each with 24 steps and a consistency index of 0.75. A successive weighting procedure was applied, resulting in 15 cladograms with consistency index of 0.85. The strict consensus cladogram defines eight monophyletic groups and supports most of the current sectional classification of Lopezia, with the exception that no synapomorphy defines section Jehlia. The larger sections Lopezia and Pelozia, although well-defined as clades, are not fully resolved internally. All cladograms support section Riesenbachia as monophyletic. The two alternative hypotheses for outgroups produced similar results: 61 most parsimonious trees, reduced after the successive weighting procedure to 15, which are identical to those produced with Fuchsia as outgroup. These results are discussed in the context of data on cytology and pollination biology.     

A cladistic analysis of the anomalocystitid mitrates

A cladistic analysis of the anomalocystitid mitrates is presented. A neutral terminology for the anomalocystitid skeleton is proposed, independent of the zoological interpretation of the fossils as echinoderms or as craniates. The anomalocystitid monophyly is supported by parsimony, although the instability of several basal taxa makes it difficult to ascertain the sequence in which characters were acquired or modified in the transition from the mi-trocystitids to the anomalocystitids. The genus Barrandeocarpus falls outside the anomalocystitids as traditionally defined in the literature, and is either polyphyletic or monophyletic. Diamphidiocystis drepanon is either a basal anomalocystitid or the sister taxon to the group ( Enoploura popei + Allanicytidiidae). Ateleocystites guttenbergensis is placed either at the base of the anomalocystitids or as the sister taxon to a group including mainly boreal forms, the only non-boreal members being the South African Bokkeveldia oosthuizeni and the Australian Victoriacystis wilkinsi.     

A cladistic analysis ofAnisopappus (Asteraceae: Inuleae)

A cladistic analysis of the genusAnisopappus (Asteraceae: Inuleae) has been undertaken. A hypothesis of species interrelationships in the genus is presented for the first time. The analysis also includedArctotis (Arctoteae), used as outgroup, and five additional genera from theInuleae: Geigeria, Calostephane, Asteriscus, Buphthalmum, Pulicaria, andInula. It is concluded thatAnisopappus is a monophyletic group situated at the base of the tribe, diagnosed by, e.g., their obtuse stylar sweeping-hairs. The species with acute sweeping-hairs were found to be derived within the genus. Problems concerning species delimitation, biogeography and character evolution in the genus are briefly discussed.     

A cladistic analysis of Scinax (Anura: Hylidae)

The hylid frog genus Scinax ranges from southern Mexico to eastern Argentina. The 84 recognized species are currently arranged in five groups: the Scinax rubra , Scinax rostrata , Scinax catharinae , Scinax staufferi , and Scinax perpusilla species groups. Although a few species groups are distinctive, compelling evidence of monophyly is lacking for three groups, and their interrelationships remain virtually unknown. With the objective of testing the monophyly of the species groups and exploring their interrelationships, a cladistic analysis was performed, employing 86 characters from osteology, myology, adult and larval external morphology, reproductive biology, and karyotypes taken from 36 representative species of the five species groups plus eight outgroup taxa. The analysis of the resulting data matrix shows moderately well-supported (as assessed through Bremer support and parsimony jackknifing) S. catharinae and S. rostrata species groups. The S. staufferi species group is polyphyletic, as currently composed, given that some of its species are nested within the S. catharinae species group. The only representative of the S. perpusilla species group is the sister species of the S. catharinae species group. Although weakly supported, the representatives of the S. rostrata and S. staufferi species groups are nested, separately, within the S. rubra species group. In order to have a taxonomy consistent with these results, it is proposed not to recognize the S. rubra group but to recognize a more inclusive rubra clade that includes all studied exemplars of the former S. rubra group, plus some of the S. staufferi group and all of the S. rostrata group. Similarly, a catharinae clade is recognized, within which all studied exemplars of the S. catharina e group (that now includes Scinax berthae and Scinax agilis ) and the one studied representative of the S. perpusilla group are included.     

Interaction between the nematophagous fungus Duddingtonia flagrans and infective larvae of Haemonchus contortus (Nematoda: Trichostrongyloidea)

The interaction between Duddingtonia flagrans and infective larvae of Haemonchus contortus was studied in vitro under optical and scanning electron microscopy. Trap formation by the fungus started 9 hours after inoculation and first larvae were found 11 hours after larval inoculation on colonies grown on the surface of dialysis membranes. Scanning electron micrographs were taken 12, 24, 36 and 48 h after larval predation. Details of predation structures and fungus-larvae interaction are described. A mucilaginous substance occurred at the points of adherence of traps to nematode cuticle. Bacteria were also found at some points of interaction between fungus and larval cuticle. Cuticle penetration by fungus hyphae occurred only 48 h after predation.     

A cladistic analysis of the nomadine bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea)

Abstract. This study compares the results of Rozen's cladistic analysis of the larvae of fifteen genera of cleptoparasitic bees in the subfamily Nomadinae with an independent data set of adult characters for the same genera. Adult characters exhibited considerably higher levels of homoplasy and poorer resolution of cladistic relationships, with multiple equally parsimonious cladograms. However, comparison of a Nelson consensus tree based on adult characters with the cladogram based on larval characters reveals three components consistently supported in both analyses (the tribes Epeolini and Ammobatini, and Neopasites + Neolarra) , one component supported only by adult characters (Isepeolus + Protepeolus) , and one terminal component supported only by larval characters (Nomada + Ammobatini), as well as several more inclusive groupings based on larval characters that are difficult to compare with the adult consensus tree because it shows so much less resolution. When adult and larval characters are combined in a single data matrix, the resulting cladogram closely resembles the cladogram based on larval characters alone, although levels of homoplasy are considerably higher than in the larval analysis.
A preliminary analysis of adult characters for thirty-four genera in the Nomadinae also exhibited high levels of homoplasy and very large numbers of equally parsimonious cladograms. Nevertheless, certain consistent monophyletic groupings, most notably the Epeolini and Ammobatini, were also supported in this analysis. The one currently recognized tribe whose monophyly has received no support from any analysis is the Nomadini.
The relevance of these phylogenetic hypotheses to our understanding of host associations and variable features of egg morphology and oviposition behaviour in nomadine bees is briefly discussed.     

Similarities between species of the Ostertagiinae (Nematoda: Trichostrongyloidea) in relation to host-specificity and climatic environment

Multivariate analyses of similarities between species of the Ostertagiinae were performed on the data from 585 publications. The environmental factors were 12 climates and host-specificity in ruminants (40 species) for 16 species of ostertagiines. This approach can be a useful tool for distinguishing morphs from species. The following pairs (species and its possible morph) of ostertagiines are proposed: Ostertagia ostertagi — O. lyrata, O. leptospicularis — O. kolchida, O. gruehneri — O. arctica, Teladorsagia circumcincta — T. trifurcata, Marshallagia marshalli — M. occidentalis, Spiculopteragia boehmi — S. mathevossiani, and S. asymmetrica — S. quadrispiculata.     

Two new species of the Trichostrongylidae (Nematoda: Trichostrongyloidea), parasitic in Gorilla gorilla beringei in Uganda

Two new species of trichostrongylid parasites of a mountain gorilla in Uganda are described. Paralibyostrongylus kalinae n. sp. is characterised by a short dorsal ray, a dorsal oesophageal tooth and two median longitudinal ridges in the vulvar region. The species is more closely related to leporid parasites than to P. hebrenicutus, another species known from the gorilla. A “transfuge” phenomenon, i.e. transfer to a new host without speciation is suggested. Hyostrongylus kigeziensis n. sp. has several specific morphological characteristics and in particular a synlophe with many strong ridges, rays 4 and 5 divergent at the apex, and the dorsal ray with two branches. Hyostrongylus appears to be an Ethiopian genus which has radiated in many archaic mammals. With the technical collaboration of Mrs. N. Caillaud and Mr R. Tchesprakoff. With the technical collaboration of Mrs. N. Caillaud and Mr R. Tchesprakoff.     

A cladistic analysis of the subfamily Philanthinae (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae)

Abstract. The Philanthinae, as treated here, contains the eight valid genera Aphilanthops Patton, Cerceris Latreille, Clypeadon Patton, Eucerceris Cresson, Philanthinus Beaumont, Philanthus Fabricius, Pseudoscolia Radoszkowski and Trachypus Klug. Listropygia Bohart is synonymized with Clypeadon , syn.n. The genera Eremiasphecium Kohl and Odontosphex Arnold are removed from the Philanthinae and regarded as genera incertae sedis within Sphecidae. Analysis of the genera of this redefined subfamily Philanthinae finds two major clades whose monophyly is strongly supported: ( Philanthinus + ( Philanthus + Trachypus )) [= Tribe Philanthini] and ( Pseudoscolia + ( Cerceris + Eucerceris )) [= Tribe Cercerini]. There is some evidence for the monophyly of Clypeadon + Aphilanthops [= Tribe Aphilanthopini]. Cerceris and Philanthus are inferred to be paraphyletic with respect to Eucerceris and Trachypus , respectively. Philanthinus is removed from the tribe Aphilanthopini and placed in the tribe Philanthini, and the monotypic tribe Pseudoscoliini is synonymized with Cercerini.     

安徽黄精属(Polygonatum)植物的分支分析

以形态学为依据 ,结合细胞分类学、叶表皮和花粉形态的研究成果 ,用分支分析的方法探讨了安徽产黄精属 11种植物的种间演化关系。在分支分析中 ,选择万寿竹属、舞鹤草属和竹根七属作为复合外类群。根据复合外类群比较原则和一般演化规律 ,确定性状极性。结果表明 :( 1)琅琊黄精与长苞黄精为姊妹群 ,并与其余 9种黄精明显分为 2大支 ;( 2 )另一支 9种黄精中 ,玉竹、长梗黄精和金塞黄精亲缘关系密切并与其余 6种再分为 2支 ;( 3)剩下 6种黄精中 ,距药黄精和多花黄精 2种互生叶黄精极为密切并与 4种轮生叶黄精分为 2组 ;( 4 ) 4种轮生叶黄精中 ,黄精、轮叶黄精和安徽黄精亲缘关系最为密切