A New Species of the Aphidiid-Wasp Genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Dyscritulus</Emphasis> Hincks, 1943 (Hymenoptera,Aphidiidae) from the Caucasus

A new species, Dyscritulus trjapitzinisp. n., is described from the Western Caucasus (Abkhazia). It is closely related to D. planiceps (Marshall, 1896), from which differs in the following features: the antennae of the female are 22-segmented, the metacarpus of the forewing is shorter, and the ovipositor sheaths are strongly narrowed towards the apices.     

Contributions to the knowledge of the fauna of Palaearctic Latridiidae (Coleoptera)

A new species, Dienerella kerzhneri, was described from Kazakhstan. Four species are recorded from new localities: Enicmus atriceps Hansen (recorded from Belarus), Melanophthalma sericea (Mann.) and Migneauxia crassiuscula (Aubé) (the Ukraine), and Corticarina obfuscata Strand (the Caucasus).     

Chromosomes of Temnocephala minor,an ectosymbiotic turbellarian on Australian crayfish found in Kagoshima Prefecture,with karyological notes on exotic turbellarians found in Japan

Records of exotic turbellarian species found in Japan are reviewed from taxonomic and karyological viewpoints. Temnocephala minor Haswell, 1888, an ectocommensal on a freshwater crayfish of Australia, was found from culture ponds of Cherax tenuimanus (introduced from W. Australia) in Kagoshima Prefecture. T. minor had the chromosome number of 2x = 18 (2sm + 2m + 2m + 2sm + 2m + 2m + 2m + 2sm + 2m). The following 3 species of exotic freshwater triclads were recorded from tanks and ponds used for tropical fish culture: Dugesia austroasiatica Kawakatsu, 1985 (2x = 16), Dugesia tigrina (Girard, 1850) (2x = 16) and Rhodax? sp. (3x = 24; 3x = 24 &; 3x + 1LB + 1SB = 25 + 1SB). The following 3 species of exotic terrestrial triclads were recorded: Bipalium nobile Kawakatsu et Makino, 1982 (2x = 10), Bipalium kewense Moseley, 1878 (2x = 18), and Platydemus manokwari de Beauchamp, 1962 (n = 6, 2x = 12). An extensive occurrence of P. manokwari in the Southwest Islands of Japan may be due to an unexpected introduction of the animal in very recent years.     

A revision of the genus Catomus Allard, 1876 and the allied genera (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae) from the Caucasus, Middle Asia, and China

The genus Catomus Allard and the allied genera of the fauna of Kazakhstan, Middle Asia, the Caucasus, and China are revised. The subgenus Stenomacidius Seidlitz, 1896 is synonymized with the genus Cylindronotus Faldermann, 1837. A new genus, Eustenomacidius gen. n., with the type species Helops luridus Ménétriés, 1848 is described. The following new combinations are proposed: Cylindronotus (s. str.) acutangulus (Seidlitz, 1896), Odocnemis anatolicus (Kaszab, 1961), Eustenomacidius hirtipennis (Seidlitz, 1896), Eustenomacidius turcmenicus (Medvedev, 1964), Eustenomacidius mongolicus (Kaszab, 1968), and Eustenomacidius wagnae (Ren, 1999). The following new subgenera are described: Montanocatomus, Sinocatomus (genus Catomus), and Caucasohelops (genus Eustenomacidius). The name Catomodontus Koch, 1935 is considered invalid. A new genus Xanthohelops closely related to Eustenomacidius is described from the Kara Kum Desert (Turkmenistan). The following new species and subspecies are described: Catomus (s. str.) noctivagus, C. (s. str.) indubitatus, C. (Montanocatomus) fabiani, C. (Sinocatomus) solitarius, Eustenomacidius (Caucasohelops) svetlanae with a new subspecies E. (Caucasohelops) svetlanae araxi subsp. n., Xanthohelops karakumicus Nabozhenko et Medvedev, spp. n. The following new synonyms are established: Cylindronotus Faldermann, 1837 = Stenomacidius Seidlitz, 1896; Eustenomacidius luridus (Ménétriés, 1848) = Stenomax laevicollis Kraatz, 1882, = Stenomax lucidicollis Kraatz, 1882, = Catomus (Stenomacidius) provocator Reitter, 1922; Catomus (Montanocatomus) reinigi (Schuster, 1931) = Catomus (Stenomacidius) alaensis G. Medvedev, 1970; Catomus fragilis (Ménétriés, 1848) = Catomus subniger Reitter, 1901; Catomus karakalensis G. Medvedev, 1964 = Catomus dolini G. Medvedev, 2004. Lectotypes are designated for the following species: Cylindronotus acutangulus (Seidlitz, 1896); Eustenomacidius hirtipennis (Seidlitz, 1896); Catomus fragilis (Ménétriés, 1848); Catomus reinigi (Schuster, 1931); Catomus provocator Reitter, 1922; Catomus subniger Reitter, 1901; Catomus niger (Kraatz, 1882) and Catomus antoniae Reitter, 1890. Morphological adaptations of species to particular environmental conditions, relationships of the new taxa and their positions in the tribe Helopini are considered. Keys to genera of the tribe Helopini of the Caucasus, Middle Asia, and Kazakhstan, and to subgenera and species of Catomus and Eustenomacidius of the Caucasus, Middle Asia, Kazakhstan, and China are given.     

Identification of diacylglycerol-O-(N,N,N-trimethyl)-homoserine in the halotolerant alga, Dunaliella parva

An unusual zwitterionic polar lipid component isolated from the halotolerant alga, Dunaliella parva Lerche, has been identified as 1(3),2-diacylglyceryl-3(1)-O-4′-(N,N,N-trimethyl) homoserine by means of infrared spectrometry, ¹H- and ¹³C-NMR spectrometry and field desorption mass spectrometry of the intact lipid, as well as by its TLC mobilities and staining behaviour. Mass spectrometry of this lipid indicated the presence of the following major molecular species: 16:0–18:0 (24%); 18:3–18:3 (19%); 16:0–18:2 (16%); 16:0–18:1 (8%).     

Phylogenetic analysis of the Cenozoic family Sieblosiidae (Insecta: Odonata), with description of new taxa from Russia, Italy and France

We describe the following Sieblosiidae: an unamed “gen. and sp. A” from the Miocene of Italy, Miostenolestes zherikhini nov. gen., nov. sp., Paraoligolestes stavropolensis nov. sp., Stenolestes fasciata nov. sp. (all from the Miocene of North Caucasus), Stenolestes (?) adygeianensis nov. sp. (Oligocene of North Caucasus), and Stenolestes cerestensis nov. sp. (Oligocene of France). The genus Sieblosia Handlirsch, 1906 is restored. A new phylogenetic analysis of the Sieblosiidae is proposed. The two taxa “gen. and sp. A” and Oligolestes fall in most inclusive positions in the same clade with the Sieblosiidae. Within the Sieblosiidae sensu stricto, the two clades (Paraoligolestes + (Parastenolestes + Stenolestes)) and (Parastenolestes + Stenolestes) are the best supported. The family Sieblosiidae seems to be restricted to the Oligocene-Miocene of Europe.     

New and little known species of the dance-fly subgenus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Xanthempis</Emphasis> Bezzi,genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Empis</Emphasis> L. (Diptera,Empididae), from the Caucasus

Five new species of the subgenus Xanthempis Bezzi are described from the Caucasus: Empis (Xanthempis) annae sp. n. (Russia: Krasnodar Territory), E. (X.) grichanovi sp. n. (Russia: Krasnodar Territory; Georgia), E. (X.) pseudoconcolor sp. n. (Russia: Krasnodar and Stavropol territories; Georgia: Abkhazia), E. (X.) teberdaensis sp. n. (Russia: Karachay-Cherkessia), and E. (X.) zamotajlovi sp. n. (Russia: Krasnodar Territory and Adygea). The females of E. (X.) alanica Shamshev and E. (X.) kovalevi Shamshev are described for the first time. New data on the distribution of some previously described species are reported. The geographical distribution of Xanthempis is discussed. A key to Xanthempis species from the Caucasus is compiled.     

Discovery of Middle Jurassic (Bajocian) Radiolaria from the sedimentary cover of the Vedi ophiolite (Lesser Caucasus,Armenia)

The Vedi ophiolite, situated southeast of Yerevan (Armenia), represents part of the Neotethyan oceanic lithosphere preserved in the Lesser Caucasus. This ophiolite unit constitutes a large tectonic klippe, a result of obduction during the Upper Cretaceous (Coniacian–Santonian). Relatively well-preserved Radiolaria extracted from radiolarites overlying ophiolitic lavas along the Vedi River consist of Middle Jurassic (Bajocian, U.A.Z. 3–4) species, typical of the Tethyan tropical bioprovince. Assemblages are dominated by Nassellaria and characterised by the presence of species Cyrtocapsa mastoidea, Hexasaturnalis hexagonus, Laxtorum (?) hichioense, Stichocapsa japonica and Striatojaponocapsa plicarum s.l. This microfauna provides evidence for the oldest age available so far for the sedimentary cover of the Vedi ophiolite.     

Expansion of Harmonia axyridis Pallas (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) to European Russia and adjacent regions

An invasive alien species, the harlequin ladybird Harmonia axyridis (Pallas, 1773), has quickly expanded its distribution in Eastern Europe. Records of H. axyridis from 31 localities in Lithuania, Latvia, the Ukraine, European Russia, and the Northern Caucasus are summarized and mapped. Within the last few years this species has established in south Latvia, on the Baltic Sea shore (Kaliningrad oblast and Lithuania), in the western and central Ukraine, Crimea, and in the Northern Caucasus. Besides that, individual specimens have been found in 4 more localities in European Russia. The species is recorded from Lipetsk oblast (European Russia), Crimea, and Nikolaev oblast (the Ukraine) for the first time.     

Taxonomic survey of fossil isocrinids with a list of the species found in the USSR

The taxonomic scheme of the two families of the order Isocrinida (Isocrinidae and Pentacrinidae) is given. The first family is divided at five subfamilies: Balanocrininae, Isocrininae, Metacrininae, Diplocrininae and Isselicrininae. Six genera are included in subfamily Balanocrininae: Balanocrinus (four species found in USSR), Laevigatocrinus (USSR: 3 species), Margocrinus (USSR: 4 species), Percevalicrinus (USSR: 5 species), Singularocrinus nov. gen. (monotypic) and Terocrinus nov. gen. (USSR: 1 species). Five fossil genera are included in subfamily Isocrininae: Chariocrinus (USSR: 1 species), Chladocrinus (USSR: 4 species), Isocrinus (USSR: 6 species), Raymondicrinus nov. gen. (Oligocene of USA : 2 species) and Tyrolecrinus nov. gen. (6 triassic species). Fossil representatives of three genera, namely, Metacrinus (Miocene-Recent), Nielsenicrinus (USSR: 4 species) and Cainocrinus (USSR: 1 species) are noted in subfamily Metacrininae. Five genera are included in subfamily Isselicrininae: Austinocrinus (USSR: 5 species), Buchicrinus (USSR: 5 species), Doreckicrinus (USSR: 1 species?), Isselicrinus (USSR: 4 species) and Praeisselicrinus (USSR: 1 species). Two genera are included in family Pentacrinidae: Pentacrinus (USSR: 1 species) and Seirocrinus (USSR: 4 species). Besides, the localities of 24 isocrinid species, systematic position of which is unknown, are listed (from Triassic upon Cretaceous). Three erroneous attributions to Isocrinida in USSR are pointed out. In the conclusion an outline of the phylogeny of the Isocrinida is discussed. For a majority of the wide-spread species in USSR figures are given.     

A contribution to the knowledge of the weevils of the subgenus Nubidanus Rtt., allied to Otiorhynchus impexus Schh. (Coleoptera, Curculionidae)

Results of the investigation of the subgenus Nubidanus Rtt. (sensu Reitter) of the genus Otiorhynchus are reported. The impexus species-group of the subgenus Nubidanus comprises 5 species from the Caucasus: O. impexus, O. juvenilis, O. poricollis, O. jarpachlinus, and O. hajastani. Morphological diagnoses and detailed distribution patterns of the species are given. Lectotypes of O. poricollis and O. jarpachlinus are designated. A new synonymy is established: O. poricollis Schoenherr, 1832 = O. breviusculus Stierlin, 1875, syn. n. Variants of the genesis scenario of the impexus species-group in the eastern part of the Caucasus are discussed.     

Anomeric specificity of the monosaccharide carrier in yeasts and yeast-like organisms

The anomeric specificity of monosaccharide uptake was investigated in 42 species of yeasts and related mycelium-forming fungi. Differences in the uptake of anomers were determined by the following methods. (1) Shift of anomeric equilibrium in the outer medium caused by preferential uptake of one of the anomeric forms was monitored polarimetrically as induced mutarotation. (2) The uptake of 1¹⁴C-D-glu-cose by cells was examined after addition of freshly prepared solutions of α-or β-D-glucose. Most of the organisms examined display theSaccharomyces-type preference for the α-anomers of glucose and xylose which is caused by the higher affinity of the monosaccharide carrier for the α-pyranose configuration. The following genera show this type of preference (the number of species is given in parentheses):Saccharomyces (5),Schizosaccharomyces (1),Endomycopsis (2),Eremascus (1),Endomyces (1),Pichia (1),Hansenula (1),Debaryomyces (2),Lipomyces (1),Willia (1),Nematospora (1),Kluyveromyces (2),Candida (6),Torulopsis (5),Cryptococcus (1). No anomeric specificity was shown by the following genera:Nadsonia (1),Dipodascus (2),Rhodotorula (5),Sporobolomyces (2),Bullera (1),Rhodosporidium (1). A parallel investigation of the concentration dependence of glucose uptake indicates that most yeasts possess a constitutive monosaccharide carrier characterized by the following features: a high maximum rate of uptake, a relatively low affinity, and preference for α-anomers. Besides this carrier the majority of these microorganisms possess a glucosetransporting carrier with a higher affinity and a lower capacity.     

Two new species of families Priacanthidae and Reproprcidae (Perciformes) from the upper part of lower Oligocene of the Northern Caucasus

Two new species, Pristigenys geminus and Reproprca surcula spp. n. were described from the lower part of Morozkina Balka Horizon (Upper Part of Lower Oligocene) of the Northern Caucasus. It is found that all fossil species of Priacanthidae from Maikop Deposits of the Caucasus except “P.” artis Dan. should be referred to as belonging to genus Pristigenys Ag. The synonymy of Apscheronichthys bogatshovi Prok. and Peproprca sumgaitica Bann. should be rejected.     

Morphological analysis of alpine communities of the north-western Caucasus

The species composition of four alpine communities in the north-western Caucasus was subjected to a morphological analysis. The communities are an alpine lichen heath type (ALH), aFestuca varia grassland type (FVG), aGeranium-Hedysarum meadow type (GHM) and a snowbed community (SBC). Eighty-two species were studied, using the following morphological parameters: vegetative mobility, presence of rosettes, architectural model, life form according toRaunkiaer and life form according toSerebryakov. Representation spectra were calculated on the basis of species presence, above-ground phytomass proportion and species frequency. The results show that most alpine species have a low vegetative mobility; a semi-rosette growth form; a sympodial semi-rosette model of shoot formation and that they are characterised by the prevalence of hemicryptophytes. Differences between the four communities were found in the following features: tap-rooted and short-rhizome plants dominate in ALH and, moreover, dense-tussock plants are dominant in the phytomass; short-rhizome (species presence) and dense- tussock plants (phytomass) are dominant in FVG; short-rhizome and loose-tussock plants dominant in GHM; semi-shrub (phytomass basis) and loose-tussock plants are dominant of SBC. Tuberiferous, bulbiferous and monocarpic plants are not important in any of the communities. *** DIRECT SUPPORT *** A02DO006 00008     

New and little known species of gray moths (Lepidoptera,Gelechioidea, Blastobasidae) from Eurasia

Some additional data on the taxonomy of Blastobasidae are reported. Four new Palaearctic species are described: Blastobasis ponticella sp. n. from the Crimea, North-Western Caucasus, and Transcaucasia; B. centralasiae sp. n. from Central Asia; Hypatopa ibericella sp. n. from the Iberian Peninsula, and Pseudohypatopa beljaevi sp. n. from the Russian Far East (Primorskii Territory). Based on examination of the type material, the following new synonymies are established: Blastobasis phycidella (Zeller, 1839) [= B. roscidella (Zeller, 1847), syn. n.]; Hypatopa inunctella (Zeler, 1839) [= Hypatima haliciella Klemensiewicz, 1898; =Hypatima fuscella Klemensiewicz, 1898, syn. n.]. Blastobasis magna Amsel, 1852, stat. n., originally described as a subspecies of B. roscidella, is considered a distinct species with the range extending throughout the Western Mediterranean.     

Chromosomal and molecular studies of cryptic species of the subgenus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Terricola</Emphasis> (Rodentia,Arvicolinae, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Microtus</Emphasis>) in the Caucasian region: Analysis of new records

Using chromosomal and molecular (cytb) markers, the specific identity of 78 individuals of cryptic species of voles of the subgenus Terricola was ascertained. The animal samples were obtained at 13 localities of the Caucasian region, from Krasnodar krai to North Ossetia in the Greater Caucasus and in the Stavropol Upland (forest island in the steppe) in Ciscaucasia, which had not been covered earlier in genetic studies. In the total sample, two chromosomal forms (cryptic species), namely, Microtus (Terricola) majori (2n = 54, NF = 60) and M. (T.) daghestanicus (2n = 54, NF = 58), were identified. The specific identity of most animals tested was confirmed by karyological means, and for individuals from two localities on the south slopes of the Greater Caucasus (Adlerskii district of Krasnodar krai), it was confirmed exclusively by means of molecular (cytb) markers. The last two records were used for evaluation of the differential role of sibling-species of the subgenus Terricola in circulation of the pathogen in mountain loci of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) in the Western Caucasus. For the first time, using the example of M. (T.) majori from the Ciscaucasia, which was compared with those of the mountain part of the species’ natural habitat, the role of isolation factors in morphogenesis of the subgenus Terricola was studied. As a whole, the results obtained specify the character of the geographical distribution and biotope attachment of cryptic species of the subgenus Terricola in the Caucasian region.     

Beauvericin Production by Fusarium Species

Beauvericin is a cyclohexadepsipeptide mycotoxin which has insecticidal properties and which can induce apoptosis in mammalian cells. Beauvericin is produced by some entomo- and phytopathogenic Fusarium species (Fusarium proliferatum, F. semitectum, and F. subglutinans) and occurs naturally on corn and corn-based foods and feeds infected by Fusarium spp. We tested 94 Fusarium isolates belonging to 25 taxa, 21 in 6 of the 12 sections of the Fusarium genus and 4 that have been described recently, for the ability to produce beauvericin. Beauvericin was produced by the following species (with the number of toxigenic strains compared with the number of tested strains given in parentheses): Fusarium acuminatum var. acuminatum (1 of 4), Fusarium acuminatum var. armeniacum (1 of 3), F. anthophilum (1 of 2), F. avenaceum (1 of 6), F. beomiforme (1 of 1), F. dlamini (2 of 2), F. equiseti (2 of 3), F. longipes (1 of 2), F. nygamai (2 of 2), F. oxysporum (4 of 7), F. poae (4 of 4), F. sambucinum (12 of 14), and F. subglutinans (3 of 3). These results indicate that beauvericin is produced by many species in the genus Fusarium and that it may be a contaminant of cereals other than maize.     

New species of the primitive oribatid mite families Brachychthoniidae and Phthiracaridae (Acariformes, Oribatida) from the Caucasus

Seven new species and a new subspecies of the families Brachychthoniidae Thor, 1934 and Phthiracaridae Perty, 1841 from the Caucasus are described: Liochthonius murtazalievi sp. n., Sellnickochthonius ilyinae sp. n., Atropacarus achmedovi sp. n., A. kremenitsai sp. n., A. yarovenkoi sp. n., A. chernovae sp. n., A. obesus minimus ssp. n., and Steganacarus (Tropacarus) adelaidae sp. n., and also the species Synchthonius elegans Forsslund, 1957, Atopochthonius maimaensis Grishina, 1971, and Atopochthonius artiodactylus Grandjean, 1949 from the Caucasus are figured.     

New data on the changes in the abundance and distribution of several species of beetles (Coleoptera) in European Russia and the Caucasus

Changes in the abundance and distribution of selected species of beetles in European Russia and in the Caucasus are reported. Most of these species have been recorded from the Northwestern Caucasus in the last 10–15 years. The abundance and distribution during the last two years have changed most sharply in the introduced species, the Harlequin lady beetle Harmonia axyridis and two East Asian bruchids, Megabruchidius dorsalis and M. tonkineus. In 2016, the latter has been found in Georgia for the first time, and Harmonia axyridis was found in St. Petersburg. Abundance of the weevil Alcidodes karelinii with the range situated mostly east of the Caucasus and Volga River remains in Northwestern Caucasus at about the previous level. The flea-weevil species, a leaf miner on Ulmus pumila, misidentified previously as Orchestes mutabilis, is described in this paper as Orchestes steppensis sp. n. based on the material from Russia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Northern China; no its further distribution westward in 2015–2016 has been found. This species, rapidly widening its range in North America in the recent decade, is misidentified there as Orchestes alni. A key for differentiation of Orchestes alni, O. mutabilis and O. steppensis sp. n. is provided with photographs of adults of all three species. Magdalis armigera has increased abundance in Northwestern Caucasus in 2016 and was for the first time found in Northwestern Russia (Pskov Province) in 2015. Regular faunistic surveys during several decades provide a possibility of recording considerable changes in the abundance of some common species of Coleoptera, often associated with changes in their distribution.     

A new halfbeak species (Beloniformes,Hemiramphidae) from the Lower Sarmatian of the Krasnodar Region

A new halfbeak species (Beloniformes, Hemiramphidae), Hyporhamphus tatjanchenkoi sp. nov., is described from the Lower Sarmatian fish-bearing deposits cropping out along the Pshekha River (Northern Caucasus). Comparative osteological analysis of this new fossil and extant representatives of Hyporamphus seem to indicate that Hyporhamphus tatjanchenkoi sp. nov. is in some ways related to the Indo–Pacific species H. affinis (Günther) and H. gamberur (Rüppell).