Simacauda dicommatias (Meyrick, 1931) (Lepidoptera: Incurvariidae), a South American species established in Cornwall, new to the British Isles and unknown in mainland Europe, with first details of its biology

Oceanic and temperate rainforest climates and their epiphyte indicators in Britain

Worldwide, arthropod-borne disease transmission represents one of the greatest threats to public and animal health. For the British Isles, an island group on the north-western coast of continental Europe consisting of the United Kingdom (UK) and the Republic of Ireland, physical separation offers a barrier to the introduction of many of the pathogens that affect animals on the rest of the continent. Added to this are strict biosecurity rules at ports of entry and the depauperate vector biodiversity found on the islands. Nevertheless, there are some indigenous arthropod-borne pathogens that cause sporadic outbreaks, such as the tick-borne louping ill virus, found almost exclusively in the British Isles, and a range of piroplasmid infections that are poorly characterized. These provide an ongoing source of infection whose emergence can be unpredictable. In addition, the risk remains for future introductions of both exotic vectors and the pathogens they harbor, and can transmit. Current factors that are driving the increases of both disease transmission and the risk of emergence include marked changes to the climate in the British Isles that have increased summer and winter temperatures, and extended the period over which arthropods are active. There have also been dramatic increases in the distribution of mosquito-borne diseases, such as West Nile and Usutu viruses in mainland Europe that are making the introduction of these pathogens through bird migration increasingly feasible. In addition, the establishment of midge-borne bluetongue virus in the near continent has increased the risk of wind-borne introduction of infected midges and the inadvertent importation of infected cattle. Arguably the greatest risk is associated with the continual increase in the movement of people, pets and trade into the UK. This, in particular, is driving the introduction of invasive arthropod species that either bring disease-causing pathogens, or are known competent vectors, that increase the risk of disease transmission if introduced. The following review documents the current pathogen threats to animals transmitted by mosquitoes, ticks and midges. This includes both indigenous and exotic pathogens to the UK. In the case of exotic pathogens, the pathway and risk of introduction are also discussed.

This report presents an up-to-date review of the British Isles (BI) Mean Sea Level (MSL) data set obtained from tide gauges, and of the long-term secular trends in BI MSL. The data are of mixed quality, and not as copious as one would like for scientific analysis given the complexity of long-term sea and land level changes around BI coasts. Nevertheless, the small number of very long records can be studied effectively, and indicate that twentieth century secular trends in BI MSL are consistent with those obtained from NW Europe as a whole and with the bottom range of estimates for global average MSL change during the past 100 years. Century-timescale low-frequency 'accelerations' in MSL of the order of 0.4–0.8 mm yr−1 century−1 are obtained from the three longest records, which are also similar to estimates from mainland Europe. 'Sea level indices' for the BI are constructed which can provide responsible agencies with a guide to the 'average state' of BI sea level. Combined ocean tide and storm surge ('tide+surge') numerical modelling is demonstrated to be a valuable tool in understanding part of the variability of MSL around the BI, although modelling of long-term changes is limited at present by the lack of adequate meteorological data sets from before 1955. Nevertheless, it is shown that, even if a complete meteorological modelling data set were available, it would not be able to account for all of the MSL variability. Finally, recommendations are made for the development of tide gauge and Global Positioning System (GPS) recording in the BI for the purpose of long-term MSL monitoring in the next century.

Only 10% of the earth’s biota has been described despite250 yearsoftaxonomicresearch(Wilson2000).Thisisinlargepart a reflection of the extent and complexity of biologicaldiversity,butitisalsotruethattraditionaltaxonomictechniquesare labourious and highly specialised, and taxonomic expertiseis very thinly spread across the myriad groups of life (Scotland

Newcastle disease (ND), caused by virulent strains of avian paramyxovirus type-1 (APMV-1), is one of the most important poultry diseases globally due to its economic impact and endemicity in lower- and middle-income countries. A variant of APMV-1 is endemic in Columbiformes (pigeons and doves) worldwide and is commonly termed pigeon paramyxovirus-1 (PPMV-1). Since its initial detection in the 1980s, PPMV-1 has caused numerous ND outbreaks in poultry, including in high-income countries, and was the causative agent for the last ND outbreak in the British Isles in 2006. Here, we have undertaken sequencing of PPMV-1 isolates between 1983 and 2023 and define three distinct genotypes of PPMV-1 being present in the British Isles. Analysis of the contemporary VI.2.1.1.2.2 genotype, demonstrated likely incursion from mainland Europe, whilst this genotype has subsequently spread across China, with detections also occurring in Australia. The presence of a virulent fusion-gene cleavage site in sequences highlights the continued risk to poultry from PPMV-1 genotypes, which were detected in pigeons and doves across the British Isles.

Bristol rock cress is among the few plant species in the British Isles considered to have a Mediterranean-montane element. Spatiotemporal patterns of colonization of the British Isles since the last interglacial and after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) from mainland Europe are underexplored and have not yet included such floristic elements. Here we shed light on the evolutionary history of a relic and outpost metapopulation of Bristol rock cress in the south-western UK. Amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs) were used to identify distinct gene pools. Plastome assembly and respective phylogenetic analysis revealed the temporal context. Herbarium material was largely used to exemplify the value of collections to obtain a representative sampling covering the entire distribution range. The AFLPs recognized two distinct gene pools, with the Iberian Peninsula as the primary centre of genetic diversity and the origin of lineages expanding before and after the LGM towards mountain areas in France and Switzerland. No present-day lineages are older than 51 ky, which is in sharp contrast to the species stem group age of nearly 2 My, indicating severe extinction and bottlenecks throughout the Pleistocene. The British Isles were colonized after the LGM and feature high genetic diversity. The short-lived perennial herb Arabis scabra, which is restricted to limestone, has expanded its distribution range after the LGM, following corridors within an open landscape, and may have reached the British Isles via the desiccated Celtic Sea at about 16 kya. This study may shed light on the origin of other rare and peculiar species co-occurring in limestone regions in the south-western British Isles.

One manifestation of the glaring lack of equality, diversity, and inclusion in higher education relates to the underrepresentation of certain individuals and/or regions in the scholarly publication process. Here, we analyse the affiliations of editorial board members in 126 Geography journals. Specifically, we examine editorial board membership by region and determine the extent to which the regional representation of editorial board members is associated with journal impact factor as a measure of journal reach and quality. Of the 5,202 editorial board members examined, almost 80% are located in mainland Europe, North America, and the British Isles, while roughly five percent are located in Central America, South America, the Middle East, and Africa combined. Moreover, editorial board members located in these four regions from the Global South are most often editorial board members of journals in the lowest quartile (by impact factor). These findings highlight the outdated and exclusionary practices that pervade the scholarly publication process in science in general, and Geography specifically.

SHIPS AND SEAFARING

Biological invasions may combine the genetic effects of population bottlenecks and selection and thus provide valuable insight into the role of such processes during novel environmental colonizations. However, these processes are also influenced by multiple invasions, the number of individuals introduced and the degree of similarity between source and receiving habitats. The amphipod Gammarus tigrinus provides a useful model to assess these factors, as its invasion history has involved major environmental transitions. This species is native to the northwest Atlantic Ocean, although it invaded both brackish and freshwater habitats in the British Isles after introduction more than 65 years ago. It has also spread to similar habitats in Western Europe and, most recently, to Eastern Europe, the Baltic Sea, and the Laurentian Great Lakes. To examine sources of invasion and patterns of genetic change, we sampled populations from 13 native estuaries and 19 invaded sites and sequenced 542 bp of the mitochondrial COI gene. Strong native phylogeographical structure allowed us to unambiguously identify three allopatrically evolved clades (2.3-3.1% divergent) in invading populations, indicative of multiple introductions. The most divergent clades occurred in the British Isles and mainland Europe and were sourced from the St Lawrence and Chesapeake/Delaware Bay estuaries. A third clade was found in the Great Lakes and sourced to the Hudson River estuary. Despite extensive sampling, G. tigrinus did not occur in freshwater at putative source sites. Some European populations showed reduced genetic diversity consistent with bottlenecks, although selection effects cannot be excluded. The habitat distribution of clades in Europe was congruent with the known invasion history of secondary spread from the British Isles. Differences in salinity tolerance among lineages were suggested by patterns of habitat colonization by different native COI clades. Populations consisting of admixtures of the two invading clades were found principally at recently invaded fresh and brackish water sites in Eastern Europe, and were characterized by higher genetic diversity than putative source populations. Further studies are required to determine if these represent novel genotypes. Our results confirm that biological invasions need not result in diminished genetic diversity, particularly if multiple source populations, each with distinctive genetic composition, contribute to the founding populations.

Origins of the fauna in Iceland is controversial, although the majority of modern research supports the postglacial colonization of this island by terrestrial invertebrates rather than their long-term survival in glacial refugia. In this study, we use three bumblebee species as a model to test the hypothesis regarding possible cryptic refugia in Iceland and to evaluate a putative origin of recently introduced taxa. Bombus jonellus is thought to be a possible native Icelandic lineage, whereas B. lucorum and B. hortorum were evidently introduced in the second half of the 20th century. These phylogeographic analyses reveal that the Icelandic Bombus jonellus shares two COI lineages, one of which also occurs in populations on the British Isles and in mainland Europe, but a second lineage (BJ-02) has not been recorded anywhere. These results indicate that this species may have colonized Iceland two times and that the lineage BJ-02 may reflect a more ancient Late Pleistocene or Early Holocene founder event (e.g., from the British Isles). The Icelandic populations of both Bombus lucorum and B. hortorum share the COI lineages that were recorded as widespread throughout Eurasia, from the European countries across Russia to China and Japan. The findings presented here highlight that the bumblebee fauna of Iceland comprises mainly widespread ubiquitous lineages that arrived via natural or human-mediated dispersal events from the British Isles or the mainland.

Phylogeographical research has revealed several paradigm patterns of postglacial range expansion from the Mediterranean peninsulas to more northern parts of Europe. These range expansions have consequences for the genetic constitution of populations. Although many studies have been performed in mainland Europe, the colonization history of the British Isles is relatively poorly studied; the genetic consequences of the last glacial readvances and the climate optimum conditions, as well as the implications of the recent climatic conditions on the population genetic structures, are little understood. Therefore, we selected the common blue butterfly Polyommatus icarus as a model species for understanding more generally the colonization patterns of the British Isles and the genetic dynamics on these islands. Allozyme analyses of this butterfly show a rather high genetic diversity over continental Europe without major genetic differentiation. The situation on the British Isles is completely different. Here, populations show a much lower genetic diversity compared to mainland Europe. The genetic constitution is well differentiated from that observed on the European mainland, and the genetic differentiation among populations in Britain is stronger than at the European scale. These results support the hypothesis that a relatively cold-tolerant species such as the common blue could have colonized the British Isles early during the late glacial period and survived the last glacial readvances in small refugia in the South. The retraction of this species in small isolated populations could have caused the genetic impoverishment found. The subsequent forest climax during the climate optimum possibly restricted further expansion of this early succession species to small pockets all over the British Isles, resulting in the genetic patchwork that is still observed. Additionally, the relatively cool and rainy conditions one these islands might have caused bottlenecks, possibly enforcing these genetic patterns.

Oxyurid nematodes (Syphacia spp.) from bank (Myodes glareolus) and field/common (Microtus spp.) voles, from disparate geographical sites in the British Isles, were examined morphologically and genetically. The genetic signatures of 118 new isolates are provided, based primarily on the rDNA internal transcribed spacers (ITS1-5.8S-ITS2) region and for representative isolates also on the small subunit 18S rDNA region and cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox-1) gene locus. Genetic data on worms recovered from Microtus spp. from the European mainland and from other rodent genera from the Palaearctic, North America and West Africa are also included. We test historical hypotheses indicating that S. nigeriana is a generalist species, infecting a range of different rodent genera. Our results establish that S. nigeriana is a parasite of both bank and field voles in the British Isles. An identical genotype was also recorded from Hubert's multimammate mouse (Mastomys huberti) from Senegal, but Mastomys spp. from West Africa were additionally parasitized by a related, although genetically distinct Syphacia species. We found no evidence for S. petrusewiczi in voles from the British Isles but isolates from Russia and North America were genetically distinct and formed their own separate deep branch in maximum likelihood molecular phylogenetic trees.

A description is provided for Crutarndina petractoides , reported from living bark of smooth-barked trees, especially Corylus avellana . Some information on its associated organisms and substrata, habitat, dispersal and transmission, and conservation status is given, along with details of its geographical distribution (Africa (South Africa), North America (Bahamas, Canada (British Columbia), USA (Alabama, California, Florida, Louisiana, North Carolina, Tennessee)), South America (Ecuador), Asia (Singapore), Atlantic Ocean (Portugal (Madeira), Spain (Canary Islands)), Europe (France, Ireland, Lithuania, Norway, UK)). This species is routinely used in the British Isles and Norway as an indicator when making ecological assessments, particularly temperate rain forest, and specifically as an indicator of ecological continuity, particularly in the west of Ireland and the west of Scotland.

DNA barcoding is emerging as a useful tool not only for species identification but also for studying evolutionary and ecological processes. Although plant DNA barcodes do not always provide species-level resolution, the generation of large DNA barcode data sets can provide insights into the mechanisms underlying the generation of species diversity. Here, we study evolutionary processes in taxonomically complex British Euphrasia (Orobanchaceae), a group with multiple ploidy levels, frequent self-fertilization, young species divergence and widespread hybridization. We use a phylogenetic approach to investigate the colonization history of British Euphrasia, followed by a DNA barcoding survey and population genetic analyses to reveal the causes of shared sequence variation. Phylogenetic analysis shows Euphrasia have colonized Britain from mainland Europe on multiple occasions. DNA barcoding reveals that no British Euphrasia species has a consistent diagnostic sequence profile, and instead, plastid haplotypes are either widespread across species, or are population specific. The partitioning of nuclear genetic variation suggests differences in ploidy act as a barrier to gene exchange, while the divergence between diploid and tetraploid ITS sequences supports the polyploids being allotetraploid in origin. Overall, these results show that even when lacking species-level resolution, analyses of DNA barcoding data can reveal evolutionary patterns in taxonomically complex genera.

A constructive step towards selecting a DNA barcode for fungi