Dickinsonia from the Ediacaran Dengying Formation in the Yangtze Gorges area,South China

Dickinsonia is an iconic fossil of the Ediacara biota (~575–539 Ma). It was previously known from siliciclastic successions of the White Sea assemblage in Australia, Baltica, and possibly India. Here we describe Dickinsonia sp. from the terminal Ediacaran Shibantan Member limestone (ca. 551–543 Ma) of the Dengying Formation in the Yangtze Gorges area of South China. The stratigraphic distribution of Ediacara-type fossils in the Shibantan Member indicates that this biota uniquely preserves both the White Sea and Nama assemblages in stratigraphic succession. The new data presented here suggests that Dickinsonia had wider paleogeographic and paleoenvironmental distributions, implying its strong dispersal capability and environmental tolerance.     

云南常绿阔叶林的植被地理研究

云南具有极其丰富的生物多样性和以常绿阔叶林为优势的植被类型。该研究利用6个基于样方层面的1 hm²样地资料, 以及通过对整个植被类型的植物区系的调查, 对云南常绿阔叶林植被型的3个植被亚型(季风常绿阔叶林、半湿润常绿阔叶林和中山湿性常绿阔叶林)的生态外貌特征、植物区系组成及其生物地理演化进行了研究。在样方层面, 尽管这3个常绿阔叶林在树种组成上优势种均为壳斗科、樟科和山茶科植物, 但它们在种类组成、多样性、生态外貌和生物地理特征上呈现多样化。分布在南部及西南部的季风常绿阔叶林物种组成极其丰富, 具有热带森林的生态外貌, 并以热带亚洲分布种为优势种。主要分布在云南高原的半湿润常绿阔叶林和云南中部和北部山地的中山湿性常绿阔叶林具有亚热带常绿阔叶林的生态外貌特征和以中国-喜马拉雅及中国特有种占优势, 是中国西南独特的植被类型。在植被亚型层面, 这3个常绿阔叶林的植物区系(包括所有生活型的种子植物)中种数最多的科, 按地理成分均为世界分布型的科, 含种数较少的科则为其他各种分布型的科。半湿润常绿阔叶林和中山湿性常绿阔叶林的植物区系, 热带分布属分别占总属数的44.91%和44.04%, 温带分布属占46.29%和48.19%, 其中北温带分布属比例最高, 分别为18.36%和19.95%。季风常绿阔叶林植物区系则显示了不同的地理成分格局: 热带分布属占总属数的78.05%, 并以热带亚洲分布属占最高比例。通过对这3个常绿阔叶林的比较发现, 半湿润常绿阔叶林和中山湿性常绿阔叶林除生态外貌特征有一定区别外, 在植物区系组成和地理成分上很接近, 它们在种的组成上, 与季风常绿阔叶林的类似性仅为17.1%和15.4%。季风常绿阔叶林因其在植物区系和生态外貌上与后二者区别明显, 建议在云南植被分类上划分一个独立的植被型, 它是东南亚低山常绿阔叶林分布在中国西南部热带北缘山地的一个植被类型。结合云南的地质历史和古植物学资料, 认为云南的常绿阔叶林及其植物区系受晚中新世以来的地质历史事件深刻影响。半湿润常绿阔叶林是中国西南独特而特有种丰富的植被类型, 由于严重的人为干扰破坏, 现已片段化或成为萌生灌丛状, 应给予优先保护。     

A lonely dot on the map: Exploring the climate signal in tree-ring density and stable isotopes of clanwilliam cedar,South Africa

Clanwilliam cedar (Widdringtonia cedarbergensis; WICE), a long-lived conifer with distinct tree rings in Cape Province, South Africa, has potential to provide a unique high-resolution climate proxy for southern Africa. However, the climate signal in WICE tree-ring width (TRW) is weak and the dendroclimatic potential of other WICE tree-ring parameters therefore needs to be explored. Here, we investigate the climatic signal in various tree-ring parameters, including TRW, Minimum Density (MND), Maximum Latewood Density (MXD), Maximum Latewood Blue Intensity (MXBI), and stable carbon and oxygen isotopes (δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C) measured in WICE samples collected in 1978. MND was negatively influenced by early spring (October-November) precipitation whereas TRW was positively influenced by spring November-December precipitation. MXD was negatively influenced by autumn (April-May) temperature whereas MXBI was not influenced by temperature. Both MXD and MXBI were negatively influenced by January-March and January-May precipitation respectively. We did not find a significant climate signal in either of the stable isotope time series, which were measured on a limited number of samples. WICE can live to be at least 356 years old and the current TRW chronology extends back to 1564 CE. The development of full-length chronologies of alternative tree-ring parameters, particularly MND, would allow for an annually resolved, multi-century spring precipitation reconstruction for this region in southern Africa, where vulnerability to future climate change is high.     

Hidden areas of endemism: Small units in the South-eastern Neotropics

This study aimed to establish if the Lower Río de la Plata Basin (LRPB) wetlands can be considered a biogeographic unit. The species of this area were compiled and segregated according to the habitat, selecting only 87 endemic taxa restricted to the LRPB and linked to wetlands. Distributional data of species obtained from the literature, web databases, biological collections, and field trips were georeferenced. The areas of endemism were established as those areas where the distribution of two or more taxa overlaps in groups of rivers’ sections with geographic continuity and were tested with a cluster analysis. This congruence is due to ecological, geomorphological, and historical factors. Four areas of endemism were found: a broad area that comprises the whole study area (Riverine district), which is divided into three nested smaller areas (Paraguay–Paraná Flooding Valleys, Uruguay Basin, and Paraná Delta subdistricts). Then, we analysed 170 taxa distributions to evaluate the relationship between the study area and the neighbouring biogeographic units. According to the results, the study area belongs to the Paraná biogeographic province. Some areas of endemism are hidden inside broader areas and are hardly detected with the currently used biogeographic grid-methods. We propose to combine the information about ecological requirements of each taxon with its georeferenced records to estimate their areas of distribution as a primary step for searching areas of endemism in intracontinental studies.     

Molecular phylogenetic diversity in the widespread lizard Cercosaura ocellata (Reptilia: Gymnophthalmidae) in South America

For a long time, Cercosaura ocellata was considered polytypic, with three subspecies: C. ocellata ocellata, C. ocellata petersi and C. ocellata bassleri. Recently, C. ocellata bassleri was elevated to full species, based on analysis of a few molecular samples from Peru. This species complex is widely distributed in South America, occurring in Amazonia, Cerrado, Atlantic forest and Pampa biomes. The monophyly and species diversity of C. ocellata are still unstudied. Here, we infer phylogenetic relationships and species diversity of this group analysing 2326 base pairs of three mitochondrial (12S, 16S, and ND4) and one nuclear (c-mos) genes. Our taxon sampling of 115 specimens includes 72 samples of C. ocellata and sequences of other Cercosaura species and closely related Cercosaurinae. Maximum likelihood phylogenetic analysis recovered the monophyly of Cercosaura and that of C. ocellata with strong support. Our analyses suggest that C. ocellata is a complex of cryptic species, which possibly started diversifying in Amazonia.     

Three new species of the genus Probles F?rster (Hymenoptera,Ichneumonidae, Tersilochinae) from?South Korea

Three closely related species of the genus Probles Förster, P. fulgida sp. n., P. korusa sp. n. and P. rukora sp. n., belong to the subgenus Euporizon Horstmann and differ from other Palearctic species of the genus by a combination of long and apically weakly sinuate ovipositor and short temple. These three species are assigned to a newly designated fulgida species-group, and a portion of the key for identification of this species-group is provided. Based on the shape of the ovipositor apex, the fulgida species-group resemble members of the subgenus Microdiaparsis Horstmann but are distinct in having a much shorter temple.