Endemic Rates Research Articles

Ethnobotanical Uses of Liliaceae s.s. and Colchicaceae Taxa in Turkey

The relationship between plants and humans is as old as human history. The branch of science that studies this relationship between humans and plants is called ethnobotany. People have been used plants in various ways, including food, medicine, clothing, goods, and firewood. Geophyte is a name given to herbaceous plants with special subsoil stems, such as bulbs, rhizomes, and tubers. In the Flora of Turkey, monocotyl geophytes are represented by 688 species, of which 244 are endemic. The rate of endemism is 35.5%. They belong mostly to the families Liliaceae s.l., Amaryllidaceae, Iridaceae, Araceae, and Orchidaceae. There are many reports on the ethnomedicinal effects of Liliaceae s.s. and Colchicaceae families. This review reports on the findings of an ethnobotanical survey of Liliaceae and Colchicaceae families used in Turkey. As a result of the study, we listed that four Gagea, four Tulipa, three Fritillaria, and two Lilium taxa from the Liliaceae s.s., and three Colchicum taxa from the Colchicaceae were used ethnobotanically by local people in Turkey. It was also apparent from the results of the study, Liliaceae s.s. and Colchicaceae families are mostly used by local people for ornamental plant. The genus Tulipa has the greatest number of ethnobotanical uses. The most commonly used plant parts are whole plants, bulbs, and flowers.

Biodiversity modelling reveals a significant gap between diversity hotspots and protected areas for Iranian reptiles

The global struggle to conserve as many species as possible with limited resources requires an improvement of our knowledge on the distribution of biodiversity. In Iran, the state of knowledge is poor for most groups of organisms, except few vertebrate groups and vascular plants. Reptiles are one of the best known, most diverse vertebrate groups in Iran, with a high rate of endemism (ca. 29%), but distribution patterns and related environmental drivers remain poorly understood. In the present study, based on a large publicly available dataset, we use general additive modelling (GAM) to identify explanatory variables for species richness of reptiles in Iran. Results indicate heterogeneity parameters (range +entropy) as the variables with the highest explanatory values. Based on the grid cells of the predicted environmental richness, using hotspot analysis, we suggest seven hotspots of reptile diversity (HRDs) across the country. Our results corroborate the previously recognized HRDs and detect three additional ones, located alongside the major mountain ranges around the central deserts plateau, particularly in the Zagros Mountains. Four of the largest HRDs (ca. 90%) situate within the Irano-Anatolian and Caucasus global biodiversity hotspot. In addition, our results reveal a large gap between identified HRDs and the current network of protected areas (PAs) in the country. While three of the detected HRDs in this study are partially touched (ca. 18%) by the PA network, overall, these areas are only covered by less than 10%. Therefore, the effectiveness of the current PAs for the protection of the reptile diversity of Iran is questionable.

Baseline Assessments of Wildlife Biodiversity Within Selected Areas of Central Visayas, Philippines

A comprehensive inventory of faunal biodiversity was conducted within three Key Biodiversity Areas of Central Visayas. Mt. Bandilaan Natural Park (MBNP), Balinsasayao Twin Lakes Natural Park (BTLNP), and Rajah Sikatuna Protected Landscape (RSPL). Three primary wildlife groups were surveyed: bats, birds and amphibians. Species diversity and population trends were then analyzed to assess areas of biodiversity importance. RSPL generally had the highest species richness and diversity index while MBNP consistently had the lowest. When pooled. The surveyed areas resulted in a high diversity index and rate of endemicity showing the importance of multiple areas of protection. These findings can be utilized to prioritize habitat protection as well as to serve as a baseline information for future biodiversity inventories. J. Biodivers. Conserv. Bioresour. Manag. 2020, 6(2): 27-34

New Data on Orthotrichum gigantosporum Lewinsky (Orthotrichaceae, Bryophyta), a Widespread Northern Andean-Patagonian Endemic Moss

The moss family Orthotrichaceae is still poorly known in the southern extreme of South America. This is especially true regarding the morphological variability, geographical distribution, and ecological affinities of the species restricted to the Andean-Patagonian area. These deficiencies are addressed for Orthotrichum gigantosporum Lewinsky, one of the least known and most interesting endemics of the area. After examining the rich collections made by our team in southern Chile and Argentina, we have found numerous new localities for the species. Orthotrichum gigantosporum has proven to be a widespread moss in the forests and scrublands of the northern sector of the Andean-Patagonian area. In the light of new morphological data, an updated description of the species is presented and the characteristics that allow its differentiation are discussed and illustrated. The ecological data obtained on the populations also help to characterise the distribution of this moss in relation to various environmental factors. An updated list of the accepted species of Orthotrichaceae present in the Andean-Patagonian area is also provided, facilitating an estimate of endemicity rates within each genus.

SOME DICOTYL ENDEMIC PLANTS WITH THE POTENTIAL OF BEING AN ORNAMENTAL PLANT IN MERSIN

Flora of Turkey, which constitutes an important part of Turkey of biological diversity, ranks first among European countries. Flora of Turkey first among other countries in the world in terms of its endemism rate. Mersin province, which is located in the Mediterranean region, which is the richest region of Turkey concerning endemism, forms an important part of our country's flora and the Mediterranean in terms of floristic. The endemism rate of flora of Mersin province is approximately 23%. Today, when urbanization is increasing and the concentration in rural areas decreases, natural ingredients and plants are increasingly included in city life. For this reason, big cities and cities such as Mersin are trying to be integrated with nature or to include nature and its ingredients in city life. Unfortunately, most of the plants that are tried to be included in city life are not natural plants of our country but are mainly exotic dicotyledon ornamental plants of foreign origin. Some of these species are invasive and appear to threaten the natural ecosystem. For this reason, it is important in many aspects to include the species with natural distribution in Mersin to the landscape areas and urban ecosystem. Therefore, the natural ecosystem will not be damaged therewithal aesthetically valuable species can be considered ornamental plants. In this context, the spread of the species suggested in our study only in our country (and some only in Mersin) is of great importance in bringing these species to the ornamental plant sector. In this study, some of the dicotyl endemic plant taxa with ornamental plant potential were identified, and photographs of these taxa were presented. Thirty different endemic taxa belonging to 13 different dicotyl families identified are listed. It is seen that the endemic taxa we propose are not very aesthetically different from the taxa currently used in the landscape, and even some taxa are more striking than some exotic taxa evaluated in the landscape. In addition, the proposed list includes taxa with medical importance in the landscape and endemic taxa that can also be considered as honey plants, as well as ground cover and hedge plants. We anticipate that these taxa, which are the elements of the natural vegetation of Mersin, can be transferred to urban areas by taking inspiration from nature and prevent biological, ecological, economic, and even pathological problems caused by a significant part of exotic species.

SOME MONOCOTYLE ENDEMIC PLANTS WITH THE POTENTIAL OF BEING AN ORNAMENTAL PLANT IN MERSIN

Humanity has used plants for aesthetic purposes for centuries. Plants nowadays use cities for more livable habitats and similar purposes to satisfy the longing for nature of people who move away from nature due to increasing urbanization. So that plants attract attention as a commercial field plays a crucial role in economic development for many countries today. Our country, which is one of the richest geographies in terms of biodiversity globally, shows a total of 11466 plant taxa, 3800 of which are endemic. While the total number of plant species in all of Europe is around 12.000, in our country there are approximately 10.000 species. When the species and subspecies identified in recent years are added, around 12,000 taxa find natural habitats in our country. Mersin province is one of the important endemism centers of our country, with approximately 400 endemic species (endemism rate is approximately 23%). It is seen that the areas where geophytes spread intensively in the world are regions where the Mediterranean climate prevails, which is humid and warm in winters and dry and hot in summers. The Mediterranean Basin, where our country is located, is the second richest geophyte region in the world. Mersin province is one of the provinces located in the Mediterranean Basin. Within the scope of this study, it is to determine the usability of endemic plant species that are naturally distributed in Mersin province as ornamental plants and to ensure that they gain economic value in the ornamental plant market. For this purpose, in our study, some monocotyledon taxa that have an ornamental plant potential from endemic plant taxa in Mersin have been determined, and photographs of these taxa are presented. The recommended taxa are geophyte taxa, and the fact that they only spread in our country (some only in Mersin) is of great importance in bringing these species into the landscape as ornamental plants. A total of 20 endemic taxa belonging to 5 different monocotyledon families identified in Mersin were determined. The endangered extinction of some of these taxa proposed as ornamental plants is also of great importance in ensuring their generation by bringing them into the landscape with various production techniques.

Chemical composition of Artedia squamata L. essential oil

The genus Artedia L. (Apiaceae) is represented in Turkey by 485 species and altogether 511 taxa. The rate of species endemism in Turkey is 37.7%. The plant material was collected from the province of Kahramanmaraş, Turkey. The essential oils from fruits and aerial parts were obtained by hydrodistillation using a Clevenger type apparatus. Chemical compositions of the oils were analysed using the GC-FID and GC-MS techniques. The main components of fruits oil were characterized as 1-octadecanol (16.4%), hexadecanoic acid (16.2%), 1-hexadecanol (6.0%), spathulenol (5.5%), caryophyllene oxide (5.0%), bicyclogermacrene (4.1%) and dillapiol (3.0%). Major compounds of the oil from aerial parts were determined as α-pinene (39.0%), sabinene (36.0%) and terpinen-4-ol (3.2%).

Endemic plant species in the west of Hebron, Palestine

This research contains a study of part of the vegetation cover in the west of Hebron territories (Idna & Suba, Al-kum, Farsh Al-Hawa  and Tarqumia village) in Palestine, including many different plant varieties. This area is of great local importance for plants with a good endemism rate of 13%. The aim of this study is to identify the endemic species and determine their life form and habitat. Over 200 random samples were also analysed for over 1,300 species of plants distributed in the study area, based on the Braun-Blanquet methodology for botanical analysis. During the process of studying and analysing the flora, 169 endemic plant species were recorded out of a total of 1,300 plant species and 35 family, and covering an area of about 71 Km2. According to Raunkiaer’s life form system of endemic plants, were the tree (4.73%), phanerophytes as a trees & shrubs (6.50% dominated followed by Rhamnus palaestinus Boiss., Pistacia palaestina Boiss., Ficus cariaca L., Quercus look Kotschy, Lycium schweinfurthii Dammer.; annuals or therophyte (43%) as Anthemis leucanthemifolia Boiss., Anthemis bornmuelleri Stoj. & Acht., Anthemis brachycarpa Eig., Anthemis cornucopiae Boiss., Anthemis edumea Eig., Anthemis eliezrae Eig. Tulipa boissieri Regel; geophytes (15.02%) as Asparagus palaestinus Baker, Gagea dayana Chodat & Beauverd; hemicryptophytes (14%) as Exoacantha heterophylla Labill., Onopordum telavivense Eig. and Rheum palaestinum Feinbrun; and chamaetophyte & semi shrubs (10.65%) as Phlomis brachyodon (Boiss.) Zohary; Papilionaceae, Compositae and Lamiaceae were among the wealthiest families in the current study, accounting for (12.42%), (11.83%) and (10%) of the taxa, respectively. The region study is belong to the dry, arid and semi-arid of ombrotype, and thermo-inframediterranean thermotype.  

Mitogenome phylogeny reveals Indochina Peninsula origin and spatiotemporal diversification of freshwater crabs (Potamidae: Potamiscinae) in China.

The Asian potamid subfamily Potamiscinae is the most species-rich group of primary freshwater crabs in the world, and a large number of these (318 species in 52 genera) are found in China where they exhibit a remarkably high rate of endemism. However, the evolutionary history and phylogenetic relationships of this subfamily is still poorly understood and the hypothesis that the Chinese potamids originated in the Indochina Peninsula has yet to be tested using a modern phylogeographic reconstruction and molecular dating methods. Here we analyze the phylogenetic relationships and biogeographic history of the Chinese potamiscines based on whole mitogenomes of 72 species of Asian freshwater crabs representing 65% of the potamiscine genera found in China, including new mitogenome sequences for 57 species. The mitogenomic phylogeny generated four separate clades: Southwest China (SWC), Indochina-Southwest China (ISWC), Central China (CC), and South China-adjacent Islands (SCI). Our results suggest that the Chinese potamiscine fauna most likely originated in Indochina during the Eocene. The establishment of the East Asian monsoon during the Eocene/Oligocene resulted in major climate changes that coincide with the local diversification of the CC and SCI clades. In addition, diversification of two other clades (ISWC and SWC) may have been driven by past large scale environmental changes taking place at that time such as increased local precipitation and expanding freshwater habitats associated with the uplifting of the Hengduan Mountains. In addition, our phylogenies did not support monophyly for six currently recognized potamiscine genera, highlighting the need for further taxonomic revisions of this fauna. The broad taxonomic sampling and well-supported molecular phylogenies used here allow for the updating of our understanding of the evolutionary origins and diversification of the potamiscine freshwater crabs in China.

Diversity and Conservation of Pedicularis Plants in Wolong National Nature Reserve

Based on field investigation, specimen arrangement and literature review, the species, distribution, present situation and conservation and utilization of Pedicularis plants in Wolong Nature Reserve were studied. The results showed that there were 42 Pedicularis species in the reserve (including varieties and subspecies), belonging to 10 groups and 27 series, of which 30 species were endemic to China, with the endemic rate as high as 71.43%. In the reserve, Pedicularis plants were mainly distributed in areas above 2500 m altitude (up to 39 species, accounting for 92.86%), especially in alpine shrubs and meadows above 3500 m altitude (up to 27 species, accounting for 64.29%). There were eleven newly recorded species (including varieties), including Pedicularis dunniana, P. siphonantha var. delavayi, P. kansuensis, P. fargesii, P. rhodotricha, P. oederi, P. torta, P. petitmenginii, P. rudis, P. merrillian. In this region, Pedicularis plants were concentrated and contiguous, but a few species were distributed in narrow areas. Two suspected new species were founded in the investigation, and samples and molecular materials were also collected for further study. At the same time, some suggestions were put forward for the protection and utilization of Pedicularis plants in the nature reserve.

Risk of secondary malignancies in ovarian cancer survivors: 52,680 patients analyzed with over 40 years of follow-up

ObjectiveSurvivors of ovarian cancer are at risk of developing a secondary malignancy (SM). We sought to evaluate the risk of developing SM, stratified by treatment modality. MethodsStandardized incidence ratios (SIR, observed-to-expected [O/E] ratio) were assessed in 52,680 patients diagnosed with ovarian cancer between 1975 and 2016 in the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program. ResultsOf the 52,680 patients, 3366 patients (6.4%) developed SM, which was more than the endemic rate (O/E 1.13; p < .05). Patients who received any radiation (RT) had an increased risk of overall SM compared to those who didn't (O/E 1.42 vs 1.11; p < .05), and specifically, in the bladder (O/E 2.81). Patients who received any chemotherapy (CT) had an increased risk of leukemia (O/E 3.06), and a similar risk of overall SM compared to those not treated with CT (O/E 1.11 vs 1.14; p < .05). The excess risk of developing a solid tumor SM was greatest at latencies of 10–20 years. Patients younger than 50 had the highest risk of developing SM. Non-White patients had a higher risk of SM compared to White patients. ConclusionsThis is the largest study to examine the risk of SM in patients with ovarian cancer and has the longest follow-up. Risk of SM was increased after ovarian cancer and varied with treatment modality, race, latency, and age. These results may help inform SM screening protocols for women diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

Annotated checklist of the birds of Brazil by the Brazilian Ornithological Records Committee—second edition

An updated version of the checklist of birds of Brazil is presented, along with a summary of the changes approved by the Brazilian Ornithological Records Committee’s Taxonomy Subcommittee since the first edition, published in 2015. In total, 1971 bird species occurring in Brazil are supported by documentary evidence and are admitted to the Primary List, 4.3% more than in the previous edition. Eleven additional species are known only from undocumented records (Secondary List). For each species on the Primary List, status of occurrence in the country is provided and, in the case of polytypic species, the respective subspecies present in Brazilian territory are listed. Explanatory notes cover taxonomic changes, nomenclatural corrections, new occurrences, and other changes implemented since the last edition. Ninety species are added to the Primary List as a result of species descriptions, new occurrences, taxonomic splits, and transfers from the Secondary List due to the availability of documentation. In contrast, eight species are synonymized or assigned subspecific status and thus removed from the Primary List. In all, 293 species are endemic to Brazil, ranked third among the countries with the highest rate of bird endemism. The Brazilian avifauna currently consists of 1742 residents or breeding migrants, 126 seasonal non-breeding visitors, and 103 vagrants. The category of vagrants showed the greatest increase (56%) compared to the previous list, mainly due to new occurrences documented in recent years by citizen scientists. The list updates the diversity, systematics, taxonomy, scientific and vernacular nomenclature, and occurrence status of birds in Brazil.

Risk of secondary malignancies in non-Hodgkin lymphoma survivors: 40 years of follow-up assessed by treatment modality.

e19525 Background: Survivors of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) are at increased risk of secondary malignancies (SM). We quantified this risk in survivors with over 40 years of follow-up, and evaluated differences in risk by treatment modality. Methods: Standardized incidence ratios (SIR, observed-to-expected [O/E] ratio), which accounts for patient years at risk, and absolute excess risk of SM were assessed in 142,837 patients diagnosed with NHL as a first malignancy between 1975 and 2016 in the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program. Follow up was available through 2016. Non-melanoma skin cancers were not counted as SM. SIRs were also evaluated for patients stratified by age at and latency from diagnosis. Results: In all, 14,101 patients received radiotherapy alone (RT), 68,424 received chemotherapy alone (CT), and 18,339 received chemotherapy and radiation (CRT). In total, 15,979 patients (11%) developed SM, more than the endemic rate (O/E 1.29; P &lt; .01). Overall, patients treated with any RT (RT+CRT) had a similar risk of SM as those who did not receive RT (O/E 1.29 for both compared to endemic rate). Patients treated with RT had more risk of female breast cancer and less risk of leukemia than unirradiated patients (P &lt; .05). Patients treated with any CT (CT+CRT) had increased SM rates compared with those who did not receive CT [O/E 1.33 (95% CI 1.30-1.35) vs 1.24 (95% CI 1.21-1.26), respectively], which included increased risks of leukemia, Kaposi sarcoma, kidney, pancreas, rectal, head and neck, and colon cancers and decreased risk of prostate cancer (P &lt; 0.05). When stratified by four treatment groups (no CT or RT, RT alone, CT alone, CRT), there were no differences in SM rates between the no therapy and RT alone groups (O/E 1.24 95% CI 1.21-1.27 and O/E 1.23 95% CI 1.18-1.28 respectively). CT alone and CRT were associated with increased risk of secondary malignancy compared to the no therapy group (O/E 1.32 95% CI 1.29-1.35 and O/E 1.35 95% CI 1.29-1.40 respectively). CT alone was also associated with increased risk of leukemia, Kaposi sarcoma, kidney, head and neck and thyroid cancers, and a decreased risk of prostate cancer (P &lt; .05). CRT was associated with increased risk of head and neck and female breast cancers (P &lt; .05). There was no difference in the overall risk of SM between the CT alone and CRT groups and female breast cancer was the only site at which CRT was associated with higher risk than CT alone. Of note, female breast cancer risk was highest in those diagnosed under 25 years of age and at latencies of greater than 10 years. Conclusions: This is the largest study to examine secondary malignancy risk in patients with NHL and has the longest follow-up. Patients treated with RT alone did not have an increased SM risk compared to those who received no RT or CT. The risk of SMs was increased overall for NHL survivors and varied with treatment modality.

Pneumococcal and Influenza Vaccination Rates and Pneumococcal Invasive Disease Rates Set Geographical and Ethnic Population Susceptibility to Serious COVID-19 Cases and Deaths.

This study examines the relationship of pneumococcal vaccination rates, influenza, measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccinations (DTP), polio, Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib), and Bacillus Calmette–Guerin (tuberculosis) vaccination rates to COVID-19 case and death rates for 51 nations that have high rates of COVID-19 testing and for which nearly complete childhood, at-risk adult and elderly pneumococcal vaccination data were available. The study is unique in a large number of nations examined, the range of vaccine controls, in testing effects of combinations of vaccinations, and in examining the relationship of COVID-19 and vaccination rates to invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). Analysis of Italian regions and the states of the United States were also performed. Significant positive correlations were found between IPD (but not lower respiratory infections) and COVID-19 rates, while significant negative correlations were found between pneumococcal vaccination and COVID-19 rates. Influenza and MMR vaccination rates were negatively correlated with lower respiratory infection (LRI) rates and may synergize with pneumococcal vaccination rates to protect against COVID-19. Pneumococcal and influenza vaccination rates were independent of other vaccination rates. These results suggest that endemic rates of bacterial pneumonias, for which pneumococci are a sentinel, may set regional and national susceptibility to severe COVID-19 disease and death.

Understanding how environmental heterogeneity and elevation drives the distribution of woody communities across vegetation types within the campo rupestre in South America

The campo rupestre sensu lato is a vegetation type that occurs in South American mountains, supports a distinctive flora characterized by high rates of endemism, high herbaceous species richness and often-neglected but also species-rich of the arboreal stratum. We aimed to investigate how environmental factors and elevation are associated with the distribution and diversity of woody species in different rupestrian vegetation types across South America. Using a database of 2,049 woody species from 185 sites across four vegetation types within the campo rupestre, we assessed how the vegetation types were grouped according to their floristic composition and number of shared indicator species, as well as by using different beta diversity indices. The most important variables from a set of 27 variables (e.g. altitude, geo-edaphic and climatic) explaining species distribution were identified using redundancy analysis (RDA) and variation partitioning methods. The distribution of vegetation types was related to both environmental and spatial fractions, with a set of 17 variables retained (e.g. rockiness, grass cover and temperature seasonality as the most important variables). There was an association between the floristic composition of each vegetation type and the elevation range. Although the identified vegetation types are floristically related, they are distinguished by exclusive and habitat-specialist woody species. This uniqueness of vegetation types should be considered in terms of complementarity for the conservation of campos rupestres.

Endemic species dominate reef fish interaction networks on two isolated oceanic islands

Ecological interactions are found across ecosystems, facilitating comparison among systems with distinct species composition. The balance of positive and agonistic interactions among species may be sensitive to variation in the diversity and abundance of species in a community. We studied marine interaction networks among reef fishes on two oceanic islands characterized by high rates of endemism and restricted population connectivity: Rapa Nui (Easter Island) and Robinson Crusoe Island (Juan Fernandez Archipelago). Specifically, we examined whether the type and strength of behavioral interactions varied between these two isolated fish assemblages, how the relative proportions of agonistic and positive interactions compare, and which are the most important interacting species in each system. Combining detailed interaction records using standardized remote underwater video and visual censuses, we observed: (a) Rapa Nui contains 50% more fish species but half the fish densities than Robinson Crusoe, (b) despite these differences, the total number of interactions and proportion of all potentially interacting species were similar between the two oceanic islands; (c) the species that occupied the greatest proportion of all potential interactions in each community were endemic to their respective islands; (d) the relative frequency of positive and agonistic interactions varied, with more agonistic interactions in the more speciose reef system (Rapa Nui) and more positive interactions where fish densities were higher (Robinson Crusoe); and lastly (e) the relative abundance of each species predicted the interaction strength and the number of interactions across all reef fish species. It is of particular importance to understand the role of endemic species and processes affecting reef fish ecological networks on oceanic islands given the multiple anthropogenic threats to these isolated and vulnerable ecosystems.

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Three new combinations and one lectotypification of fern and lycophyte taxa from the French overseas territories&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

With the exception of French Guiana and Adélie Land, the French Overseas Territories (FOTs) are islands and their biodiversity is remarkable in many ways. Notably, they harbour numerous unique taxa leading to exceptionally high rates of endemism. Among French endemic plants, 95% occur in the FOTs, accounting for ca. 4000 species of tracheophytes and ‘bryophytes’ (Gargominy et al. 2020).

Rubella and tick-borne encephalitis vaccination rates among staff and students at Austrian University of Applied Sciences.

Rubella and tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) are infectious diseases caused by viruses. Rubella is an air-borne infection. TBE, on the other hand, is transmitted by virus-infected ticks. Both diseases show specific symptoms after an incubation period of approximately 10 days. The Austrian vaccination plan recommends vaccinations against both viruses, as only these can protect against both infectious diseases. Because of both, an increase in measles infections and the high endemic rate of TBE in Austria, our goal was to evaluate the vaccination rate, antibody titre and general level of knowledge with respect to these two infections amongst adults in order to identify possible nescience regarding booster vaccination and general titre rates. One hundred ninety-nine people participated in the study of the TBE and rubella titre determination. We used indirect ELISA and asked the volunteers to complete a questionnaire. The analysis of the results showed a vaccination coverage rate of over 90% for both diseases. Our findings lead to the conclusion that the protection through immunization is very high and the vaccines used are extremely effective, particularly as some individuals do not adhere to the recommended vaccination schedule.

Volant and Small Non-volant Mammals of Dinagat Island, Philippines

The Philippine province of Dinagat Islands supports a huge array of flora and fauna with a high rate of endemism, including three species of mammals found nowhere else in the world. However, anthropogenic activities such as mining are rampant on the island and present a grave threat to the island’s unique biodiversity. We conducted a survey of volant and small non-volant mammals in selected municipalities of Dinagat Islands to contribute to the current understanding of Philippine mammalian fauna. A total of 17 species of volant mammals were recorded among 420 individuals captured in mist nets, 11 species of which are fruit bats and six are insectivorous bats. As for small non-volant mammals, a total of eight species were recorded from 51 individuals captured using a combination of trapping, mist-netting, and transect walks. Among these, eight and six species of volant and non-volant mammals, respectively, were Philippine endemics. We also recorded six species listed under different categories of threat based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Administrative Order (DENR-DAO). Four species were new records for the Dinagat Islands: Harpionycteris whiteheadi, Rhinolophus subrufus, Pipistrellus javanicus, and Myotis muricola – bringing the total number of recorded mammals on the island to 38 species. With our limited sampling methods, it is possible that some species were overlooked and that new records and novel species may still be discovered as more extensive surveys utilizing other sampling techniques, such as acoustic surveys and the use of different baits and traps, are conducted. Nonetheless, the presence of endemic and threatened species in all our sites – especially those with relatively intact forest – underlines the need for the continued protection of their remaining habitats. Furthermore, our findings emphasize the need for the proper rehabilitation and restoration of areas impacted by mining activities to provide additional habitat and resources for mammals on the island.

Review of the Chilean Anthicidae Sensu Lato (Insecta: Coleoptera), with Critical Notes on the Lemodinae and Tomoderinae, New Descriptions and Synonyms

An account of the Anthicidae (ant-like flower beetles) and associated incertae sedis groups of Chile is presented. Forty seven species and subspecies are confirmed for the country (Anthicinae, Copobaeninae, Eurygeniinae, Lagrioidinae, Lemodinae, Tomoderinae), including 11 new to science: Ischyropalpus aberratus, I. quadrimaculatus, I. similis, Sapintus costae, Tomoderus cavithorax, T. differens, T. melanocephalus, T. nahuelbuta, Trichananca inexpectata, T. neotropica, T. poggiispp. nov.ProtoanthicusMoore et Vidal, 2005 is found to be congeneric with Trichananca Blackburn, 1891, a new synonym and three new combinations are proposed: Trichananca marziae (Moore et Vidal, 2005) comb. nov., T. poqui (Guerrero et Diéguez, 2018) comb. nov., T. valenciai (Moore et Vidal, 2005) comb. nov. (all from Protoanthicus). Lectotypes are designated for Ischyropalpus maculosus (Fairmaire et Germain, 1860) and I. testaceoguttatus testaceoguttatus (Fairmaire et Germain, 1863). Hirticomus quadriguttatus (Rossi, 1792) appears to have been recently introduced to New World by human activity. Heterolobus R. A. Philippi in Philippi et Philippi, 1864, which has been originally described as Anthicidae, is moved to Salpinginae (Salpingidae). As a result of the present study, the confirmed endemism rate in Chilean Anthicidae sensu lato is about 82%.