Characterization Of Biodiversity Research Articles

Hydrodynamic and Soil Biodiversity Characterization in an Active Landslide

Landslides are common in the Northern Apennines (Italy) and their resulting changes in soil structure affect edaphic fauna biodiversity, whose activity has concurrent impacts on soil structural stability and water-holding capacity. The aim of this study was to characterise landslide evolution and assess potential relationships between its hydrogeological features and soil fauna. The landforms of the study area, located in the River Taro valley, were mapped and the hydraulic head fluctuations and groundwater electrical conductivity profiles were measured. The soil arthropod community was studied in seven sites, one subject to earth flow and six to rotational slide; the last ones were divided into the main scarp of the slide, and five sites characterized by different land use: three grassland, a wheat cultivated field and an overgrown area. Soil organic matter (SOM) and pH measurements were performed. Hydrogeological results suggest unexpected rapid percolation of relatively low-salinity waters through the unsaturated zone. Both lower SOM content and arthropod biodiversity were found in earth flow area, while higher values were found in grasslands. Fauna composition appears to be a good indicator of soil degradation processes, linked to the hydraulic features, and contributes to the evaluation of the soil condition in landslide areas for further agricultural purposes.

Spatio‐temporal scaling of biodiversity in acoustic tropical bird communities

Automated analysis of acoustic communities is a rapidly emerging approach for the characterization and monitoring of biodiversity. To evaluate its utility, we should verify that such ‘bioacoustics’ can accurately detect ecological signal in spatiotemporal acoustic data. Targeting the ‘Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project’ sites in Brazil, we ask: What is the relative contribution of the spatial, temporal and habitat dimension to variation in bird acoustic communities in a previously fragmented tropical rainforest? Does the functional diversity of bird communities scale similarly to space and time as does species diversity, when both are recorded by bioacoustics means? Overall, is the imprint of landscape fragmentation 30 years ago still audible in the present‐day soundscape? We sampled forty‐four sites in secondary forest and 107 sites in old‐growth forest, resulting in 11 000 h of audio recordings. We detected 60 bird species with satisfactory precision and recovered a linear log–log relation between sampling time and species diversity. Sites in primary forest host more species than sites in secondary forest, but the difference decreased with sampling time, as the slope was slightly higher in secondary than primary forests. Functional diversity, as exposed by vocalizing birds, accumulates faster than does species diversity. The similarity among local communities decreases with distance in both time and space, but stability in time is remarkably high: two acoustic samples from the same site one year (or more) apart prove more similar than two samples taken at the same time but from sites situated just a few hundred meters apart. These findings suggest that habitat modification can be heard as a long‐lasting imprint on the soundscape of regenerating habitats and identify soundscape–area and soundscape–time relations as a promising tool for biodiversity research, applied biomonitoring and restoration ecology.

Characterization of fungal biodiversity and communities associated with the reef macroalga Sargassum ilicifolium reveals fungal community differentiation according to geographic locality and algal structure

Marine environments abound with opportunities to discover new species of fungi even in relatively well-studied ecosystems such as coral reefs. Here, we investigated the fungal communities associated with the canopy forming macroalga Sargassum ilicifolium(Turner) C. Argardh (1820) in Singapore. We collected eight S. ilicifolium thalli from each of eight island locations and separated them into three structures—leaves, holdfast and vesicles. Amplicon sequencing of the fungal internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) and subsequent analyses revealed weak but significant differences in fungal community composition from different structures. Fungal communities were also significantly different among sampling localities, even over relatively small spatial scales (≤ 12 km). Unsurprisingly, all structures from all localities were dominated by unclassified fungi. Our findings demonstrate the potential of marine environments to act as reservoirs of undocumented biodiversity that harbour many novel fungal taxa. These unclassified fungi highlight the need to look beyond terrestrial ecosystems in well-studied regions of the world, and to fully characterize fungal biodiversity in hotspots such as Southeast Asia for better understanding the roles they play in promoting and maintaining life on our planet.

Spatial heterogeneity of climate explains plant richness distribution at the regional scale in India.

IntroductionKnowledge of species richness patterns and their relation with climate is required to develop various forest management actions including habitat management, biodiversity and risk assessment, restoration and ecosystem modelling. In practice, the pattern of the data might not be spatially constant and cannot be well addressed by ordinary least square (OLS) regression. This study uses GWR to deal with spatial non-stationarity and to identify the spatial correlation between the plant richness distribution and the climate variables (i.e., the temperature and precipitation) in a 1° grid in different biogeographic zones of India.MethodologyWe utilized the species richness data collected using 0.04 ha nested quadrats in an Indian study. The data from this national study, titled ‘Biodiversity Characterization at Landscape Level’, were aggregated at the 1° grid level and adjudged for sampling sufficiency. The performances of OLS and GWR models were compared in terms of the coefficient of determination (R2) and the corrected Akaike Information Criterion (AICc).Results and discussionA comparative study of the R2 and AICc values of the models showed that all the GWR models performed better compared with the analogous OLS models. The climate variables were found to significantly influence the distribution of plant richness in India. The minimum precipitation (Pmin) consistently dominated individually (R2 = 0.69; AICc = 2608) and in combinations. Among the shared models, the one with a combination of Pmin and Tmin had the best model fits (R2 = 0.72 and AICc = 2619), and variation partitioning revealed that the influence of these parameters on the species richness distribution was dominant in the arid and the semi-arid zones and in the Deccan peninsula zone.ConclusionThe shift in climate variables and their power to explain the species richness of biogeographic zones suggests that the climate–diversity relationships of plants species vary spatially. In particular, the dominant influence of Tmin and Pmin could be closely linked to the climate tolerance hypothesis (CTH). We found that the climate variables had a significant influence in defining species richness patterns in India; however, various other environmental and non-environmental (edaphic, topographic and anthropogenic) variables need to be integrated in the models to understand climate–species richness relationships better at a finer scale.

The evolutionary history of the Cape hare (Lepus capensis sensu lato): insights for systematics and biogeography.

Inferring the phylogeography of species with large distributions helps deciphering major diversification patterns that may occur in parallel across taxa. Here, we infer the evolutionary history of the Cape hare, Lepus capensis sensu lato, a species distributed from southern Africa to Asia, by analyzing variation at 18 microsatellites and 9 DNA (1 mitochondrial and 8 nuclear) sequenced loci, from field and museum-collected samples. Using a combination of assignment and coalescent-based methods, we show that the Cape hare is composed of five evolutionary lineages, distributed in distinct biogeographic regions-north-western Africa, eastern Africa, southern Africa, the Near East and the Arabian Peninsula. A deep phylogenetic break possibly dating to the Early Pleistocene was inferred between the African and Asian L. capensis groups, and the latter appear more closely related to other Eurasian hare species than to African Cape hares. The inferred phylogeographic structure is shared by numerous taxa distributed across the studied range, suggesting that environmental changes, such as the progressive aridification of the Saharo-Arabian desert and the fluctuations of savannah habitats in Sub-Saharan Africa, had comparable impacts across species. Fine-scale analyses of the western Sahara-Sahel populations showed rich fragmentation patterns for mitochondrial DNA but not for microsatellites, compatible with the environmental heterogeneity of the region and female philopatry. The complex evolutionary history of L. capensis sensu lato, which possibly includes interspecific gene flow, is not reflected by taxonomy. Integrating evolutionary inference contributes to an improved characterization of biodiversity, which is fundamental to foster the conservation of relevant evolutionary units.

Comprehensive biodiversity analysis via ultra-deep patterned flow cell technology: a case study of eDNA metabarcoding seawater

The characterization of biodiversity is a crucial element of ecological investigations as well as environmental assessment and monitoring activities. Increasingly, amplicon-based environmental DNA metabarcoding (alternatively, marker gene metagenomics) is used for such studies given its ability to provide biodiversity data from various groups of organisms simply from analysis of bulk environmental samples such as water, soil or sediments. The Illumina MiSeq is currently the most popular tool for carrying out this work, but we set out to determine whether typical studies were reading enough DNA to detect rare organisms (i.e., those that may be of greatest interest such as endangered or invasive species) present in the environment. We collected sea water samples along two transects in Conception Bay, Newfoundland and analyzed them on the MiSeq with a sequencing depth of 100,000 reads per sample (exceeding the 60,000 per sample that is typical of similar studies). We then analyzed these same samples on Illumina’s newest high-capacity platform, the NovaSeq, at a depth of 7 million reads per sample. Not surprisingly, the NovaSeq detected many more taxa than the MiSeq thanks to its much greater sequencing depth. However, contrary to our expectations this pattern was true even in depth-for-depth comparisons. In other words, the NovaSeq can detect more DNA sequence diversity within samples than the MiSeq, even at the exact same sequencing depth. Even when samples were reanalyzed on the MiSeq with a sequencing depth of 1 million reads each, the MiSeq’s ability to detect new sequences plateaued while the NovaSeq continued to detect new sequence variants. These results have important biological implications. The NovaSeq found 40% more metazoan families in this environment than the MiSeq, including some of interest such as marine mammals and bony fish so the real-world implications of these findings are significant. These results are most likely associated to the advances incorporated in the NovaSeq, especially a patterned flow cell, which prevents similar sequences that are neighbours on the flow cell (common in metabarcoding studies) from being erroneously merged into single spots by the sequencing instrument. This study sets the stage for incorporating eDNA metabarcoding in comprehensive analysis of oceanic samples in a wide range of ecological and environmental investigations.

Oceanographic moorings as year-round laboratories for investigating growth performance and settlement dynamics in the Antarctic scallop Adamussium colbecki (E. A. Smith, 1902).

BackgroundOceanographic moorings (OMs) are standard marine platforms composed of wires, buoys, weights and instruments, and are used as in situ observatories to record water column properties. However, OMs are also comprised of hard substrates on which a variety of invertebrates can settle when they encounter these structures along their dispersal routes. In this contribution, we studied the fouling communities found on two OMs deployed in the Ross Sea (Antarctica). Furthermore, a cage containing the Antarctic scallop Adamussium colbecki (E. A. Smith, 1902) was incorporated in the OM. The growth of the caged A. colbecki were evaluated after 1 year and their shells used as biological proxy for seawater temperature and salinity.MethodsA variety of settlers were collected from two different OMs deployed in the Ross Sea (Antarctica) and species identified using a combination of morphological and genetic (mainly through DNA barcoding) characteristics. Caged scallops were individually marked with permanent tags and their growth studied in terms of size-increment data (SID). Cages were specifically designed to prevent damage to individuals due to water drag during OM deployment and retrieval. Growth parameters from the caged individuals were applied to the A. colbecki juveniles that had settled on the mooring, to trace the likely settlement period.ResultsThe growth performance of caged A. colbecki was similar to that from previous growth studies of this species. The remarkable survival rate of caged specimens (96.6%) supports the feasibility of caging experiments, even for a species with a fragile shell such as the Antarctic scallop. Some of the new recruits found on the mooring were A. colbecki, the same species we put into special cages fixed to it. The settlement of the A. colbecki juveniles started during the Austral spring with a peak in summer months and, remarkably, coincided with seasonal changes in water temperature and flow direction, which were recorded by the mooring’s instruments. Genetic data from other settlers provided new information about their larval ecology and connectivity.DiscussionOceanographic moorings are expensive and complex experimental platforms that, at present, are strictly used for the acquisition of physical and biogeochemical data. Their use for in situ ecological experiments on model organisms suitable for caging and to study fouling species has yet to be fully explored. We present the outcomes of a study, which represents a baseline for the characterization of Antarctic fouling biodiversity. We hope that in the near future an internationally coordinated systematic study of settlers could be initiated around the Antarctic continent. This could utilize “new generation OMs” equipped with standardized settlement structures and agreed sampling protocols for the study of fouling communities.

BOX-PCR fingerprinting for molecular typing of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Enteritidis strains originated from humans, dairy cattle, and broiler chickens

Salmonellosis is a global zoonotic infection of domestic animals and poultry with serious consequences on public health. Globally one of the most prevalent and common Salmonella enterica serotypes is serovar Enteritidis. Our goal in this research was a molecular characterization and evaluation of biodiversity and relatedness of different Salmonella isolates. Sixty-four Salmonella Enteritidis isolates which were gathered and cultured from various hosts and locations including dairy cows, broiler chicken, and patients with diarrhea of Tehran and Kerman provinces were typed by BOX-PCR assay. Dendrograms were produced by NTSYS computer software version 2.0. PCR products with different sizes from 250 to 3000 bps and the number of 5–14 bands visualized by agarose gel electrophoresis and 28 molecular patterns detected. By cluster analysis, chicken and human isolates were more similar (77.6%) than dairy cow isolates (44%). The results showed that the BOX-PCR assay is a beneficial and applicative molecular method with high discriminatory power (92.91%) for typing of the Salmonella strains and detection of heterogeneity and genetic diversity (90.52%) calculated by Shannon-Wiener index.

Plant invasion correlation with climate anomaly: an Indian retrospect

Plant invasion is highly responsive to rising temperature, altered precipitation and various anthropogenic disturbances. Therefore, climate anomalies might provide opportunities to identify the relationship of past climate in deriving the distribution of invasive species and to detect their probable future distribution. In this work, we studied the correlation of climate anomaly i.e. temperature and precipitation with an indicative map of plant invasive species (1° grid) of India. The indicative map was generated through the plant data available from the project ‘Biodiversity Characterization at Landscape Level’. Climate anomaly was calculated and represented by average temperature and precipitation using ‘Climate Research Unit’ data for the period of 1901 to 2000. A comparison of local geographically weighted regression (GWR) model and a global ordinary least square regression (OLS) model was carried out for statistical analysis to depict the correlation at 1° spatial grids. Overall, 20,501 records with a total of 9112 unique plots and 161 unique invasive species were recorded in the database that shows a maximum of 15 invasive species in a 0.04 ha nested quadrat. Cumulative analysis showed a maximum of 53 invasive species at 1° grid. Individually, GWR could reveal a significant correlation with invasive species distribution for temperature anomaly (r2 = 0.73, AIC= 2206) and precipitation anomaly (r2 = 0.74, AIC= 2221), while OLS model did not offer a good correlation (r2 2400) compared to GWR. Combination of temperature and precipitation anomaly (shared model) showed an improved spatial correlation (r2 > 0.75) using GWR. Variation partitioning revealed the dominant influence (> 0.40 of variation) of temperature anomaly over Deccan Peninsula, Himalaya and North East zone. Influence of precipitation anomaly was more prominent over arid and semi-arid zone explaining > 0.35 of variation. Results revealed the strength of GWR to see the interaction of invasive plant species w.r.t. climate anomalies that explain the influence of spatial variation due to heterogeneity at varying neighbour distances. The significant correlation of invasive species with both the anomalies revealed the affinity of invasive species towards warmer, drier and wet places. This gives an indication that the distribution of invasive species could be triggered by climate anomaly. The use of other predictor variables (i.e. edaphic and anthropogenic) could be an inclusive input in a future perspective.

Cross-incompatibility in the cultivated almond (Prunus dulcis): Updating, revision and correction

Most almond cultivars are self-incompatible, and so to obtain a yield they need to be pollinated with cross-compatible cultivars. For an efficient use of these cultivars in growing and breeding, over the years many have been S-genotyped. This information has been included in consecutive tables of cross-incompatibility groups, which are essentially an update of the previously proposed. However, the information of these tables has not always been reconciled and their inconsistencies have not been corrected. In this work the S-genotypes of 15 Spanish almond local cultivars, included in a research program for the preservation of almond biodiversity, were determined for the first time. For this, PCR with consensus primers for the Prunus S-RNases, PCR using S-RNase allele specific primers designed herein, and also cloning and sequencing were performed. As a result, a new S-RNase allele numbered as S53 could be identified, and a compilation table of almond cross-incompatibility groups is provided including the information from this and previous studies. In this novel Table, twelve new cross-incompatibility groups have been established, two former groups were omitted, and those cultivars with inconsistent genotypes have been removed. The information of this table will facilitate the use of a very high number of almond cultivars in research and breeding. Determination of the S-genotype might be considered as an important addition to a set of identity markers of almond genetic resources, what is of particular interest in the characterization of the agricultural biodiversity.

Choice of DNA extraction method affects DNA metabarcoding of unsorted invertebrate bulk samples

Characterisation of freshwater benthic biodiversity using DNA metabarcoding may allow more cost-effective environmental assessments than the current morphological-based assessment methods. DNA metabarcoding methods where sorting or pre-sorting of samples are avoided altogether are especially interesting, since the time between sampling and taxonomic identification is reduced. Due to the presence of non-target material like plants and sediments in crude samples, DNA extraction protocols become important for maximising DNA recovery and sample replicability. We sampled freshwater invertebrates from six river and lake sites and extracted DNA from homogenised bulk samples in quadruplicate subsamples, using a published method and two commercially available kits: HotSHOT approach, Qiagen DNeasy Blood & Tissue Kit and Qiagen DNeasy PowerPlant Pro Kit. The performance of the selected extraction methods was evaluated by measuring DNA yield and applying DNA metabarcoding to see if the choice of DNA extraction method affects DNA yield and metazoan diversity results. The PowerPlant Kit extractions resulted in the highest DNA yield and a strong significant correlation between sample weight and DNA yield, while the DNA yields of the Blood & Tissue Kit and HotSHOT method did not correlate with the sample weights. Metazoan diversity measures were more repeatable in samples extracted with the PowerPlant Kit compared to those extracted with the HotSHOT method or the Blood & Tissue Kit. Subsampling using Blood & Tissue Kit and HotSHOT extraction failed to describe the same community in the lake samples. Our study exemplifies that the choice of DNA extraction protocol influences the DNA yield as well as the subsequent community analysis. Based on our results, low specimen abundance samples will likely provide more stable results if specimens are sorted prior to DNA extraction and DNA metabarcoding, but the repeatability of the DNA extraction and DNA metabarcoding results was close to ideal in high specimen abundance samples.

BIODIVERSITICAL CHARACTERIZATION AND BIOCHEMICAL EVALUATION OF NATURALIZED SHRUB, ATI BALA (ABUTILON INDICUM) IN AGRA (UP) INDIA

For the study of Biodiversity characterization and Biochemical analysis, the natural herb was transplanted at Botanical Garden, R.B.S. College, Agra. For the study of species diversity at four natural sites of Agra district, four formulae were used to study the maximum and minimum diversity of species at its natural sites. Shannon Wienner’s Index, Menhinick’s Index, Margalef’s Index value at four different sites was given in Table -1. These values determined the biodiversity variation at natural sites in Abutilon indium. The values of Moisture contents (%), Oil content (%) and Protein concentration (μ”/ml) in Abutilon indicum were also determined with variation at biochemical level Table -2. With the help of SDS-PAGE, in four samples of seeds of Abutilon indicum from four natural sites ( Bichpuri site -Lane 1, Kailash site -Lane 2, Kheria site - Lane 3, Chhalesar site - Lane 4). The total no. of protein bands showed diversity in Abutilon indicum plant in Table: 3. Shannon- Wiener’s Index, Menhinick’s Index, Margalei’s Index and Similarity Index (S) were applied to determine the distribution patterns and concentrations of wild species to pinpoint the diversity built-up and variation in the gene pool and identifying sites for in-situ conservation. The present work determined the status of diversity of experimental herb at particular four sites the need to conserve this diversity for current and future use.

DNA metabarcoding of littoral hard-bottom communities: high diversity and database gaps revealed by two molecular markers.

Biodiversity assessment of marine hard-bottom communities is hindered by the high diversity and size-ranges of the organisms present. We developed a DNA metabarcoding protocol for biodiversity characterization of structurally complex natural marine hard-bottom communities. We used two molecular markers: the “Leray fragment” of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase (COI), for which a novel primer set was developed, and the V7 region of the nuclear small subunit ribosomal RNA (18S). Eight different shallow marine littoral communities from two National Parks in Spain (one in the Atlantic Ocean and another in the Mediterranean Sea) were studied. Samples were sieved into three size fractions from where DNA was extracted separately. Bayesian clustering was used for delimiting molecular operational taxonomic units (MOTUs) and custom reference databases were constructed for taxonomic assignment. Despite applying stringent filters, we found high values for MOTU richness (2,510 and 9,679 MOTUs with 18S and COI, respectively), suggesting that these communities host a large amount of yet undescribed eukaryotic biodiversity. Significant gaps are still found in sequence reference databases, which currently prevent the complete taxonomic assignment of the detected sequences. In our dataset, 85% of 18S MOTUs and 64% of COI MOTUs could be identified to phylum or lower taxonomic level. Nevertheless, those unassigned were mostly rare MOTUs with low numbers of reads, and assigned MOTUs comprised over 90% of the total sequence reads. The identification rate might be significantly improved in the future, as reference databases are further completed. Our results show that marine metabarcoding, currently applied mostly to plankton or sediments, can be adapted to structurally complex hard bottom samples. Thus, eukaryotic metabarcoding emerges as a robust, fast, objective and affordable method to comprehensively characterize the diversity of marine benthic communities dominated by macroscopic seaweeds and colonial or modular sessile metazoans. The 18S marker lacks species-level resolution and thus cannot be recommended to assess the detailed taxonomic composition of these communities. Our new universal primers for COI can potentially be used for biodiversity assessment with high taxonomic resolution in a wide array of marine, terrestrial or freshwater eukaryotic communities.

The preservation and characterization of Apulian olive germplasm biodiversity

The preservation and characterization of Apulian olive germplasm biodiversity

Viable Cell Culture Banking for Biodiversity Characterization and Conservation.

Because living cells can be saved for indefinite periods, unprecedented opportunities for characterizing, cataloging, and conserving biological diversity have emerged as advanced cellular and genetic technologies portend new options for preventing species extinction. Crucial to realizing the potential impacts of stem cells and assisted reproductive technologies on biodiversity conservation is the cryobanking of viable cell cultures from diverse species, especially those identified as vulnerable to extinction in the near future. The advent of in vitro cell culture and cryobanking is reviewed here in the context of biodiversity collections of viable cell cultures that represent the progress and limitations of current efforts. The prospects for incorporating collections of frozen viable cell cultures into efforts to characterize the genetic changes that have produced the diversity of species on Earth and contribute to new initiatives in conservation argue strongly for a global network of facilities for establishing and cryobanking collections of viable cells.

Biodiversity of Duckweeds in Eastern China and Their Potential for Bioremediation of Municipal and Industrial Wastewater

Duckweed is a group of aquatic plants with the potential of wastewater remediation and fast accumulation of biomass. The accumulated biomass, rich in cellulose, starch and protein, can be used for biofuel, bio-fertilizer, animal feed and human food. Characterization of natural biodiversity of duckweed species is essential for the germplasm preservation and various practical applications. We have collected samples of duckweed in eastern China and characterized species biodiversity by genotyping, using chloroplast (atpF-atpH and psbK-psbI spacers). Spirodela polyrhiza was revealed as a clear dominant duckweed species in all locations of the area. Other duckweed species were identified as Landoltia punctata, Lemna aequinoctialis and Lemna turionifera. Selected isolates of these four species were used in the experiments to estimate their potential in removing nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients from municipal and industrial wastewater sampled at the local sewage plants. Duckweed was able to reduce the concentration of nitrogen up to 98% and phosphorus up to 96%. The presented data demonstrates high efficiency of the local duckweed isolates for bioremediation of different types of wastewater and the great potential of duckweed for wastewater treatment when incorporated into the purification chain.

Estimación de la riqueza de coleópteros epigeos de la Reserva Nacional Pingüino de Humboldt (Regiones de Atacama y Coquimbo, Chile)

The estimate of the richness is an essential element in the characterization of biodiversity, so that regional inventories of certain groups of taxa as epigean coleopterans are important for planning conservation efforts in protected natural areas. By using accumulation curves and non-parametric estimators, the quality of various samples on estimating the richness of epigean coleopterans of the Pinguino Humboldt National Reserve (Atacama and Coquimbo Regions, Chile) was evaluated. The asymptotic models tested showed theoretical species richness close to that observed in the Choros and Damas islands, however in Chanaral Island no clear asymptote was observed, suggesting an incomplete inventory. All estimators evaluated showed richness values greater to the observed values for all the studied islands, however its accumulation curves did not stabilize in any island except for ICE and Jack 2 in Choros and Damas. We propose to conduct additional sampling in particular habitats of this reserve, as well as to include other seasons of the year and different years in order to register rare species not recorded to date by our sampling.

Relationship Between Field-Based Plant Species Richness and Satellite-Derived Biophysical Proxies in the Western Ghats, India

Remote sensing offers fast and reliable technique to map the variation in plant diversity and distribution at different scales. Using 891 geo-tagged ground sampled point collected for the Western Ghats, India from a national level study on biodiversity characterization. We analyzed the distribution of plant species with respect to the satellite derived vegetation indices. The moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer derived vegetation products, i.e., normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), enhanced vegetation index (EVI), fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (fPAR), leaf area index (LAI), and surface reflectance (SR-645nm and SR-858nm) were fitted to suitable regression curves with respect to plant species richness where NDVI demonstrated the best fit (R2 = 0.07); while fPAR showed (R2 = 0.08) better relation with woody species richness. We observed positive but weak correlation for all the biophysiological proxies with species richness in the forests of Western Ghats. The annual pattern of correlation faired than seasonal (i.e., post-monsoon) between biophysical variables and species richness, while the woody subset of the species richness demonstrated marginally better relation at annual scale. The range of each biophysical proxy varied from medium to high, indicating higher vegetation strength. The species richness trend increased linearly for NDVI and EVI. The positive correlation showed by fPAR and LAI could be due to varied canopy architecture of the Western Ghats forests. Utility of fine resolution spatio-temporal data could render better understanding of species richness pattern using biophysical proxies, and thereby, help in long-term biodiversity monitoring.

Presence of Foraminifera of Superfamily Komokioidea (Order Astrorhizida) in Colombian deep Caribbean waters.

Research regarding deep-sea benthic foraminifera in the Colombian Caribbean requires further development given the complete lack of information related to the different groups that constitute associations and the ecological functions they fulfill. For this purpose, a taxonomic description of Superfamily Komokioidea was composed from macrofauna samples from between 1,215 m and 3,179 m depth, obtained during the research cruise ANH-COL 4 and COL 5 carried out in 2014. Results showed foraminifera belonging to the three families: Komokiidae, Baculellidae, and Normaninidae, inclu-ding five genera (Lana, Komokia, Ipoa, Normaninam, and Catena) and five species (Lana neglecta, Komokia multiramosa, Normanina conferta, Ipoa fragila, and Catena piriformis). This study presents knowledge regarding deep-sea Colombian Caribbean benthic foraminifera, which to date have not been recorded from this region. Their depth distribution when compared with other studies from the Atlantic and Pacific, allows the expansion of taxonomic inventories and the characterization of biodiversity within poorly explored regions.

Kryptousia macronema gen. nov., sp. nov. and Kryptousia microlepis sp. nov., nostocalean cyanobacteria isolated from phyllospheres.

Tropical ecosystems worldwide host very diverse microbial communities, but are increasingly threatened by deforestation and climate change. Thus, characterization of biodiversity in these environments, and especially of microbial communities that show unique adaptations to their habitats, is a very urgent matter. Information about representatives of the phylum Cyanobacteria in tropical environments is scarce, even though they are fundamental primary producers that help other microbes to thrive in nutrient-depleted habitats, including phyllospheres. In order to increase our knowledge of cyanobacterial diversity, a study was conducted to characterize isolates from Avicennia schaueriana and Merostachys neesii leaves collected at a mangrove and an Atlantic forest reserve located at the littoral of São Paulo state, south-east Brazil. The morphological, ultrastructural, phylogenetic, molecular and ecological features of the strains led to the recognition of the new genus Kryptousia, comprising two new species, Kryptousiamacronema gen. nov., sp. nov. and Kryptousiamicrolepis sp. nov., described here according to the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi and plants. The new genus and species were classified in the nostocalean family Tolypotrichaceae. This finding advances knowledge on the microbial diversity of South American ecosystems and sheds further light on the systematics of cyanobacteria.