Reproduction and larval development of the gastropod <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cryptonatica janthostoma</Emphasis> (Gastropoda: Naticidae)

The larval morphology of the gastropod Cryptonatica janthostoma inhabiting the Northwest Pacific was described for the first time. Hatched planktotrophic veligers of C. janthostoma had shells 250 μm in height with 0.8 whorls, a bilobate velum with a dark brown pigmentation band shaped along its edge, pair of eye spots, tentacles and statocysts. The surface of the embryonal shell (protoconch 1) was covered with fine granules extended at the dorsal side and rounded at lateral surfaces. Concentric crests and growth lines occurred on part of the shell of late free-swimming larvae (protoconch 2) The velum of the C. janthostoma larvae remained bilobate during the pelagic stage of development, whereas it was divided in 4 lobes during larval development in most of the other species of the Naticidae family. The veliger of C. janthostoma was similar to that of Natica montagu from Danish waters [16] by its shape, pigmentation, shell sculpture and velum structure.     

Effect of excretory-secretory products of some fouling organisms on settling and metamorphosis of the larvae of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Styela rustica</Emphasis> (Ascidiae)

The effect of the excretory-secretory products of some fouling animals on the settling and metamorphosis of larvae of the solitary ascidian Styela rustica was assessed. The substances secreted by the sponge Halichondria panicea stimulated settling of larvae, but concurrently blocked their metamorphosis. The excretory-secretory products of the mussel Mytilus edulis and the ascidian Molgula citrine did not affect settling of the S. rustica larvae but impeded their subsequent development. Water conditioned by the bivalve Hiatella arctica, stimulated settling and, apparently, metamorphosis of the larvae of S. rustica. The chemical substances produced by adult individuals of S. rustica facilitated settling of conspecific larvae but slightly delayed their metamorphosis.     

Toxicity and kinetics of spinosad in different developmental stages of the endoparasitoid <Emphasis Type="Italic">Hyposoter didymator</Emphasis> (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) and its host <Emphasis Type="Italic">Spodoptera littoralis</Emphasis> larvae (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

The toxicity of spinosad was evaluated using the RaPID Assay^® Spinosad immunosorbent assay in different developmental stages of the parasitoid, Hyposoter didymator, and in its host, fourth-instar larvae of the cotton leafworm Spodoptera littoralis. Spinosad was applied directly to pupae and adults of H. didymator (ingestion or topical application) or to the immature stages of the parasitoid via the host larvae. Low amounts of spinosad were recovered from S. littoralis host larvae after topical treatment, and the compound was mainly retained in the hemolymph. Amounts of spinosad detected in third-instar larvae of H. didymator, pulled out from the hemolymph of parasitized S. littoralis larvae, were 85 pg (3.57 ng a.i./g body weight) in dead larvae, and 82 pg (3.42 ng a.i./g body weight) in alive individuals. After topical treatment of H. didymator cocoons, most of the compound was retained in the silken cocoon, preventing contamination of the pupa. Also in the parasitoid adults, relatively low amounts of spinosad were accumulated in the body overall, but half of all the insecticide recovered was found in the ovaries. The kinetic results obtained help to better understand the toxicity of spinosad in the complex S. littoralis–H. didymator, and to ascertain the compatibility between spinosad and the parasitoid for optimizing the control of lepidopteran pests.     

Morphofunctional characterization of the reproductive system of the gastropods <Emphasis Type="Italic">Littorina brevicula,L. mandshurica</Emphasis>, and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Nucella heyseana</Emphasis> from uncontaminated and contaminated areas of Peter the Great Bay,Sea of Japan

The structure and state of the reproductive system were studied in the periwinkles Littorina brevicula and L. mandshurica from the coastal area of Vladivostok and in the dogwhelk Nucella heyseana from the protected area of Vostok Bay and from contaminated sites in Amursky Bay. These species were investigated for the presence of imposex and intersex (pathological changes caused by endocrine disruption under the influence of toxic substances). The pathological changes revealed in the gonads of Littorina were oocyte resorption and lipofuscin accumulation; an intersex condition was not found. Imposex specimens (with penis formation) were found among Nucella females from Amursky Bay. The relative penis length in females was 25% of the penis length in males. This kind of pathology was not found in Nucella from clean waters of Vostok Bay.     

Comparative morphology of larvae of coastal crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Varunidae)

The larval development of three crabs of the Varunidae family, (Hemigrapsus sanguineus, H. penicillatus, and H. longitarsis), widely spread in Russian waters of the Sea of Japan, were studied under laboratory conditions. At a temperature of 20–22°C and a salinity of 32‰ about 30% of larvae a complete developmental cycle, including five zoeal stages and megalopa, took from 22 to 30 days. All larval stages are illustrated and described in detail. Zoea I and zoea II of the studied crabs are not distinguishable. Zoea III–V of these species differ in the number of dorsomedial setae on the abdominal somite I and in the number of setae on the posterodorsal arch. The megalopae of three Hemigrapsus species possess a different number of segments, aesthetascs and setae on the antennular exopod. In spite of the great similarity of larvae of genera Hemigrapsus and Eriocheir, the latter possesses a number of distinctive features in all developmental stages, supporting the separation of these genera.     

Genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Eckhardites</Emphasis> Mitta (Cardioceratidae,Ammonoidea) from the Lower Callovian of the subboreal Jurassic

The genus Eckhardites Mitta 1999, with the type species Macrocephalites pavlowi Smorodina, 1928 is discussed and its diagnosis and assignment to the family Cardioceratidae are substantiated. Eckhardites is compared to the genus Macrocephalites Zittel (family Sphaeroceratidae), to which some workers presently assign the type species of Eckhardites. Three species of Eckhardites are recorded from the basal Callovian elatmae Zone of the Russian Platform, one of which (E. menzeli (Mönnig)) was originally described from the synchronous beds in Germany. A new species E. dietli sp. nov. is described.     

Brachiopods of the suborder Delthyridina Ivanova (order Spiriferida) from the Lower and Middle Devonian of northeastern Russia

New brachiopods of the suborder Delthyridina Ivanova (order Spiriferida) from the Lower and Middle Devonian of northeastern Russia, Ivanothyris costatus sp. nov. (subfamily Delthyridinae), Eoreticularia lata sp. nov., Yania gen. nov. with the type species Y. tumida sp. nov. (subfamily Eoreticulariinae), Reticulariopsis equitans Modzalevskaya, and R. (?) borealis sp. nov. (subfamily Reticulariopsinae) are described.     

Gorgonians (Anthozoa: Octocorallia) of the northwestern Sea of Japan

Three species of gorgonians (Primnoa pacifica, Calcigorgia japonica, and Thouarella superba) are reported as new records for the northwestern Sea of Japan; one of them (Calcigorgia japonica sp. n.) has been described as a new species. Variations of colony morphology in some species are described; the taxonomical value of specific characters is discussed. The geographical range of Primnoa pacifica in the northwestern Pacific is shown to be wider than was considered earlier. Variations of sclerite morphology (number of marginal plates, presence of additional basal plates, and number of marginal spines on the basal plate) are regarded as intracolonial or intraspecific variability. The distribution range of Thouarella superba described earlier from the Aleutian Islands (Nutting, 1912) was shown to extend into the low-boreal part of the boreal Pacific. An examined specimen of Paragorgia sp. differed from all known species and appeared similar only to P. regalis Nutting, 1912 reported from the eastern coast of Japan. The most distinctive characters of Calcigorgia japonica sp. n. were the shape of polyp, with a thin lower part looking like folded podia (in fixed specimens) and the presence of two types of clubs scattered among the sclerites of the polyp.     

Free-living nematodes of the genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Alaimella</Emphasis> Cobb 1920 (Nematoda: Leptolaimidae): A description of <Emphasis Type="Italic">A. macramphis</Emphasis> sp. n. from the White Sea and a revision of the genus

Alaimella cincta Cobb 1920 and Alaimella macramphis sp. n. are described and illustrated. Both the species were first recorded for the White Sea in northern Russia. A. cincta occurs in the shells of the agglutinated foraminiferan Reophax curtus, as well as freely in bottom sediments. A. macramphis sp. n. is described from a single male sampled from bottom sediments. A. macramphis sp. n. is distinguished from two previously known species of Alaimella (A. cincta Cobb 1920 and A. truncate Cobb 1920) by having a longer body, longer cephalic setae, and a wide amphid equal to the respective body diameter. The new species also differs from A. truncate by the distinct striation of the cuticular annulations. The Alaimella species are additionally characterized by having a posterior glandular widening of the esophagus. An emended diagnosis of the genus Alaimella Cobb 1920 and a key for species identification are provided.     

Somatic organic content of the ctenophores <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mnemiopsis leidyi</Emphasis> (Ctenophora: Lobata) and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Beroe ovata</Emphasis> (Ctenophora: Beroida) in early ontogenetic stages

The organic matter content in the eggs and early larvae of the ctenophores Mnemiopsis leidyi and Beroe ovata from the Black Sea was determined using the adapted microtechnique of dichromate oxidation. The content of organic matter in the eggs of M. leidyi (0.25 μg/indiv.) was 5 times less than in B. ovata (1.28 ± 0.29 μg/indiv.). The somatic content of organic matter was 0.25 ± 0.09 μg/indiv. (25.1 ± 8.3 μg/mg, wet wt) for 2-day-old larvae of M. leidyi (0.2–0.3 mm in body length) and 1.37 ± 0.19 μg/indiv. (67.1 ± 5.7 μg/mg wet wt) for larvae of B. ovata (0.4 mm in body length). The specific organic content of larvae of both species steadily decreased with an increase in ctenophore body size and weight, approaching 3–4 μg/mg of wet weight for 2 mm specimens of M. leidyi and 3–5 μg/mg of wet weight for 6 mm B. ovata. The specific organic content of early larvae was 20–30 times higher than that of adult ctenophores. The results of this investigation could be useful in the evaluation of the energy budget for somatic growth and generative production in these species. Calculations indicate that with specific wet weight growth rates of 0.43/day for M. leidyi larvae and 0.29/day for B. ovata larvae, their true organic increases are respectively 30 and 38% less, i.e., no more than 0.31/day for the former and 0.18/day for the latter species.     

New species of stenolaemate bryozoans from the Jurassic of the Moscow and Saratov Regions (Russia)

Three new species of the Middle Jurassic stenolaemate bryozoans of the genera Reptomultisparsa d’Orbigny and Microeciella Taylor et Sequeiros are described: R. saratovensis sp. nov. and M. seltseri sp. nov. from the Lower Bathonian and the Upper Callovian of the Saratov Region, respectively, and R. stupachenkoi sp. nov. from the Middle Callovian of the Moscow Region. Some specific features of their astogeny and colonial morphology are discussed.     

Construction of flavocytochrome <Emphasis Type="Italic">b</Emphasis><Subscript>2</Subscript>-overproducing strains of the thermotolerant methylotrophic yeast <Emphasis Type="Italic">Hansenula polymorpha</Emphasis> (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pichia angusta</Emphasis>)

L-Lactate cytochrome c oxidoreductase (flavocytochrome b ₂, FC b ₂) from the thermotolerant methylotrophic yeast Hansenula polymorpha (Pichia angusta) is, unlike the enzyme form baker’s yeast, a thermostable enzyme potentially important for bioanalytical technologies for highly selective assays of L-lactate in biological fluids and foods. This paper describes the construction of flavocytochrome b ₂ producers with over-expression of the H. polymorpha CYB2 gene, encoding FC b ₂. The HpCYB2 gene under the control of the strong H. polymorpha alcohol oxidase promoter in a plasmid for multicopy integration was transformed into the recipient strain H. polymorpha C-105 (grc1 catX), impaired in glucose repression and devoid of catalase activity. A method was developed for preliminary screening of the transformants with increased FC b ₂ activity in permeabilized yeast cells. The optimal cultivation conditions providing for the maximal yield of the target enzyme were found. The constructed strain is a promising FC b ₂ producer characterized by a sixfold increased (to 3 μmol min^?1 mg^?1 protein in cell-free extract) activity of the enzyme.     

Polymorphism of <Emphasis Type="Italic">yellow</Emphasis> locus in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Drosophila melanogaster</Emphasis> mutants from natural populations

We have studied the molecular characteristics of the yellow locus (y; 1–0.0), which determines the body color of phenotypically wild-type and mutant alleles isolated in different years from geographically distant populations of Drosophila melanogaster. According to the Southern blot, data restriction maps of the yellow locus of all examined strains differ from one another, as well as from Oregon stock. FISH analysis shows that, in the neighborhood of the yellow locus in the X chromosome, neither P nor hobo elements are found in y^1–775 stock, while only hobo is found in these region in y^1–859 and y^1–866 stocks, only the P element is found in y⁺sn⁸⁴⁹ stock, and both elements are found in y^1–719 stock. Thus, all yellow mutants studied are of independent origin. Locus yellow located on the end of X chromosome (region 1A5–8 on the cytologic map) carries significantly more transposon than retrotransposon induced mutations compared to the white locus (region 3C2). It is possible that, at the ends of Drosophila melanogaster chromosomes, transposons are more active than retrotransposons.     

Ticks collected on birds in the state of São Paulo,Brazil

The present study reports a collection of Amblyomma spp. ticks in birds from several areas of the state of São Paulo, Brazil. A total of 568 tick specimens (404 larvae, 164 nymphs) were collected from 261 bird specimens. From these ticks, 204 (36%) specimens (94 larvae, 110 nymphs) were reared to the adult stage, being identified as Amblyomma longirostre (94 larvae, 90 nymphs), Amblyomma calcaratum (13 nymphs), Amblyomma nodosum (2 nymphs), and Amblyomma cajennense (5 nymphs). Additionally, 39 larvae reared to the nymphal stage and 8 nymphs that died before reaching the adult stage were identified as A. longirostre according to peculiar characters inherent to the nymphal stage of this species: scutum elongate, and hypostome pointed. The remaining 271 larvae and 46 nymphs were identified as Amblyomma sp. Ticks were collected from 51 species of birds distributed in 22 bird families and 6 orders. The order Passeriformes constituted the vast majority of the records, comprising 253 (97%) out of the 261 infested birds. Subadults of A. longirostre were identified from 35 species of Passeriformes, comprising 11 families (Cardinalidae, Dendrocolaptidae, Fringillidae, Furnariidae, Parulidae, Pipridae, Thamnophilidae, Thraupidae, Turdidae, Tyrannidae, and Vireonidae), and from 1 species of a non-passerine bird, a puffbird (Bucconidae). Subadults of A. calcaratum were identified from 5 species of Passeriformes, comprising 5 families (Cardinalinae, Conopophagidae, Pipridae, Thamnophilidae and Turdidae). Subadults of A. nodosum were identified from 2 species of Passeriformes, comprising two bird families (Thamnophilidae and Pipridae). Subadults of A. cajennense were identified from 2 species of non-passerine birds, belonging to 2 different orders (Ciconiiformes: Threskiornithidae, and Gruiformes: Cariamidae). Birds were usually infested by few ticks (mean infestation of 2.2 ticks per bird; range: 1–16). Currently, 82 bird species are known to be infested by immature stages of A. longirostre, with the vast majority [74 (90%)] being Passeriformes. Our results showed that Passeriformes seems to be primary hosts for subadult stages of A. longirostre, A. calcaratum, and A. nodosum. However, arboreal passerine birds seem to be the most important hosts for A. longirostre whereas ground-feeding passerine birds seem to be the most important for both A. calcaratum and A. nodosum. In contrast, the parasitism of birds by subadults of A. cajennense has been restricted to non-passerine birds.     

Spatial distribution of algae in the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ahnfeltia tobuchiensis</Emphasis> bed in Amursky Bay (Sea of Japan)

Horizontal and vertical distribution of algae in Ahnfeltia tobuchiensis beds was studied in the area of Mt. Stolovaya in Amursky Bay, Sea of Japan. Thirty-four species of macroalgae (2 species of Chlorophyta, 26 Rhodophyta, and 6 Ochrophyta) were found in the area of study. Two fields of the unattached alga Ahnfeltia were located opposite Mt. Stolovaya; they differed in area, macrophyte stock, number and biomass of attendant species, hydrochemical and light conditions. A monodominant Ahnfeltia tobuchiensis community formed in the southern field and a bidominant community of Ahnfeltia tobuchiensis + Ahnfeltiopsis flabelliformis developed in the northern field. It is suggested that the horizontal distribution of common macrophyte species in the Ahnfeltia beds at Mt. Stolovaya is conditioned by the amount of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) reaching the surface of the algal bed. Differences in tolerance of Ahnfeltia and attendant species to shadowing and in light conditions across the alga stratum define the vertical distribution of algae within the bed. Chondrus armatus and Ptilota filicina were found mainly in the upper layer of the algal bed. A. tobuchiensis, A. flabelliformis, Chaetomorpha linum, and Coccotylus orientalis extended across the entire thickness of the bed.     

Three new species of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Davilla</Emphasis> (Dilleniaceae) from Bahia,Brazil

Three new species of Davilla (Davilla sessilifolia, Davilla minutifolia and Davilla aymardii) from Bahia, Brazil, are described and illustrated. Affinities and diagnostic characteristics of each species are discussed. The new species belong to Davilla sect. Homalochlaena.     

The Edible Mushrooms of Madagascar: An Evolving Enigma

The Edible Mushrooms of Madagascar: An Evolving Enigma. This paper on the most significant edible wild mushrooms of Madagascar is organized in the following four categories: (1) mushrooms of introduced eucalypt plantations, (2) mushrooms of introduced pine plantations, (3) mushrooms of native forests and woodlands, and (4) mushrooms found in fields, agricultural waste and other altered, non–forest habitats. Eucalyptus robusta plantations yield by far the bulk of edible mushrooms that are sold, especially species of Russula and Cantharellus. Some Suillus species of northern hemisphere origin have been introduced with pine plantations and are locally important, forming the basis of a small canning industry. In native woodland areas on the central plateau, several ectomycorrhizal mushrooms—very similar to those on the African mainland—are collected and consumed. With the exception of the widely marketed Cantharellus platyphyllus ssp. bojeriensis, these are only of local importance in the villages and smaller markets of the area. Denser forests in the mountains or on the east coast as well as manmade habitats such as fields, pastures, and agricultural wastes are searched for saprobic mushrooms of various types. Some of these saprobic mushrooms show considerable potential for cultivation. The variety of ectomycorrhizal mushrooms found in eucalypt plantations is unprecedented outside of Australia and, for the most part, do not appear to be of Australian origin. Possible reasons for this are briefly discussed. Two economically important species, Russula prolifica sp. nov. and R. edulis sp. nov., are newly described.