Marine insects: genital morphology, phylogeny and evolution of sea skaters, genus Halobates (Hemiptera: Gerridae)

Five species of sea skaters, genus Halobates Eschscholtz, are the only insects to have successfully colonized the open ocean. In addition, 36 species are found in sheltered coastal waters throughout tropical Indo-Pacific. The taxonomy of the genus is relatively well known, but reliable hypotheses about phylogenetic relationships are required if the biogeography and evolution of sea skaters is to be discussed in a meaningful way. This work presents the results of a study of new characters from the genital segments, especially those of the male phallus and the female gynatrial complex, and a reinterpretation for several other characters. In total 64 characters were scored for 26 species of Halobates , two species ofAsclepios and one species of Metrocoris. With Asclepios and Metrocoris species as outgroups, the character state sets were analysed cladistically using the computer program Hennig86. After critical evaluations of both characters and clades, a phylogeny for Halobates is presented and its taxonomic implications are discussed. A number of monophyletic species groups are delimited. One genus-level synonymy and three species-level synonymies are suggested. The evolution of Halobates is discussed in the light of the reconstructed phylogeny and present knowledge of the ecology and behaviour of sea skaters. A hypothesis of ecological evolution in halobatine water striders is proposed and tested.     

Contributions to the systematic position of Hydrolea (Hydroleaceae) based on floral development

In the flower of Hydrolea palustris, unusually orientated with one sepal abaxially, organogenesis starts in following sequence: five sepals (2/5 sequence), five simultaneously initiated alternating petals, five episepalous stamens, two (seldom three) carpels forming a coenocarpous septate gynoecium. The two carpels are orientated rather in the diagonal floral plane than in the median one. Petal primordia fuse very late by forming interprimordial bridges (late sympetaly!). Many ovules develop on considerably widened placentas. On the very basis of the superior ovary a five-humped nectary disk is formed.Within Solanales (APG II 2003) late sympetaly, an intrastaminal disk and a 2-carpellate, septate, superior ovary are found in Hydroleaceae, Convolvulaceae, and Solanaceae. Enlarged axile placentas characterize Hydrolea, Solanaceae, and Sphenocleaceae but Sphenocleaceae differ considerably by early sympetaly. Montiniaceae differ by having a choripetalous corolla. Nearly diagonal orientation of the carpels seems to relate Hydrolea close to Solanaceae, but the orientation of the calyx is different.     

On the necessity of an archetypal concept in morphology: With special reference to the concepts of “structure” and “homology”

Morphological elements, or structures, are sorted into four categories depending on their level of anatomical isolation and the presence or absence of intrinsically identifying characteristics. These four categories are used to highlight the difficulties with the concept of structure and our ability to identify or define structures. The analysis is extended to the concept of homology through a discussion of the methodological and philosophical problems of the current concept of homology. It is argued that homology is fundamentally a similarity based concept rather than a phylogenetic concept, and a proposal is put forth to return to a comparative context for homology. It is shown that for both the concepts of structure and homology ana priori assumption of stable underlying patterns (i.e. archetypes) is essential.     

Detection of cellular responses to toxicants by dielectrophoresis

The dielectrophoretic (DEP) crossover method has been applied to the detection of cell responses to toxicants. Time and dose responses of the human cultured leukemia (HL-60) line were measured for paraquat, styrene oxide (SO), N-nitroso-N-methylurea (NMU) and puromycin. These toxicants were chosen because of their different predominant mechanisms of action, namely membrane free radical attack, simultaneous membrane and nucleic acid attack, nucleic acid alkylation, and protein synthesis inhibition, respectively. For all treatments, the specific membrane capacitance (C_mem) of the cells decreased while the specific membrane conductance (G_mem) increased in dose- and time-dependent manners. The DEP responses correlated sensitively with alterations in cell surface morphology, especially folds, microvilli, and blebs, observed by scanning electron microscopy. The DEP method was more sensitive to agents that had a direct action on the membrane than to agents for which membrane alterations were secondary. The responses to paraquat and SO, which directly damaged the cell membrane, could be detected 15 min after exposure, while those for puromycin and NMU, which acted on intracellular targets, could be detected after 30 min. The detection times and dose sensitivity results showed that the DEP method is much faster and more sensitive than conventional cell and higher organism viability testing techniques. The feasibility of producing small instruments for toxicity detection and screening based on cellular dielectric responses is discussed.     

SEX-RATIO BIAS WITH ASYMMETRIC EXCHANGE OF POLLEN BETWEEN DEMES

In a patch of hermaphroditic plants, with a low level of pollen migration between patches, a prevailing wind creates a gradient, within the patch, in the strength of local competition among pollen for reproductive success. This leads to a sex ratio gradient, with a male (pollen) bias in downwind individuals, which can be quite strong even for large patches. The effect can be understood as follows: downwind individuals have relatively low reproductive value and respond by putting more resources into the gamete (pollen) with the best long-range (extra-patch) reproductive success.     

Sperm ultrastructure of five species of the Neotropical ant genus Pseudomyrmex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

The seminal vesicles of adult males of five species of Pseudomyrmex were prepared for light and transmission electron microscopy. The Pseudomyrmex spermatozoa are long and slender with similar morphology. The head region has an acrosome and a nucleus. In all the studied species, two morphologically distinct types of acrosomal vesicles were observed, a long structure, as observed in all known ants, and a pear‐shaped one, never before observed in ants. The nucleus is elongated and both condensed and loose chromatin are present. The flagellum has an axoneme, a centriolar adjunct, two mitochondrial derivatives and two accessory bodies. The centriolar, the mitochondrial derivatives and the accessory bodies are similar to observations in most ant species that have been studied. The axoneme presents an uncommon 9 + 9 + 1 microtubule arrangement and the central microtubule has 13 protofilaments. The acrosomal dimorphism and the different levels of chromatin organization are exclusive characteristics of Pseudomyrmex. Furthermore, the 9 + 9 + 1 microtubule arrangement is different from all Hymenoptera, as well as from most insects, which present a 9 + 9 + 2 arrangement. These new morphological characters that are specific to Pseudomyrmex, are valuable synapomorphies of the genus and can be used in taxonomic characterization of the Pseudomyrmecinae subfamily and in phylogenetic analyses in Formicidae family.     

Pollen–plant–climate relationships in sub-Saharan Africa

Aim  To demonstrate that incorporating the bioclimatic range of possible contributor plants leads to improved accuracy in interpreting the palaeoclimatic record of taxonomically complex pollen types.
Location  North Tropical Africa.
Methods  The geographical ranges of selected African plants were extracted from the literature and geo-referenced. These plant ranges were compared with the pollen percentages obtained from a network of surface sediments. Climate-response surfaces were graphed for each pollen taxon and each corresponding plant species.
Results  Several patterns can be identified, including taxa for which the pollen and plant distributions coincide, and others where the range limits diverge. Some pollen types display a reduced climate range compared with that of the corresponding plant species, due to low pollen production and/or dispersal. For other taxa, corresponding to high pollen producers such as pioneer taxa, pollen types display a larger climatic envelope than that of the corresponding plants. The number of species contained in a pollen taxon is an important factor, as the botanical species included in a taxon may have different geographical and climate distributions.
Main conclusions  The comparison between pollen and plant distributions is an essential step towards more precise vegetation and climate reconstructions in Africa, as it identifies taxa that have a high correspondence between pollen and plant distribution patterns. Our method is a useful tool to reassess biome reconstructions in Africa and to characterize accurately the vegetation and climate conditions at a regional scale, from pollen data.