List Of Taxa Research Articles

Taxa of Heteroptera described by Izyaslav M. Kerzhner

Izyaslav Moiseyevich Kerzhner, a world distinguished specialist on the taxonomy of Heteroptera described 33 genera, 10 subgenera, 358 species and 29 subspecies. A complete list of taxa described by him is provided in alphabetical order. Current position of all taxa is indicated if different from the original combination. References to the papers by I.M. Kerzhner are given as a number (in square brackets) corresponding to the appended list of his printing works published in the present issue of Zoosystematica Rossica (Gapon D.A. Publications by Izyaslav M. Kerzhner).

Restoration effort, habitat mosaics, and macroinvertebrates — does channel form determine community composition?

Abstract In certain lower mountainous regions of Germany multiple‐channel streams constitute the reference condition for stream restoration and conservation efforts. An increasing number of restoration projects re‐establish such stream sections, but their impact on macroinvertebrate communities remains vague and needs further elaboration. Seven pairs of single‐ and multiple‐channel sections of mountain rivers were compared in terms of hydromorphology and macroinvertebrate communities. The stream sections were characterized by 16 hydromorphological metrics at various scales, e.g. shore length, channel feature or substrate diversity, flow variability and substrate coverage. Macroinvertebrate data were obtained from 140 substrate‐specific samples, which were combined to form representative communities for each section. Community data were subject to similarity and cluster analyses. Thirty‐five metrics were calculated with the taxa lists, including number of taxa, abundance, feeding type, habitat and current preferences. Bray–Curtis similarity was very high (69–77%) between communities of single‐ and multiple‐channel sections. Biological metrics were correlated with hydromorphological parameters. Mean Spearman rank r was 0.59 (absolute values). The biological metrics percentage of the community preferring submerged vegetation, being grazers and scrapers or active filter feeders, percentage of epipotamal preference and the percentage of current preference (rheo‐ to limnophil and rheobiont) were significantly correlated with hydromorphological parameters. Differences between stream sections can be attributed to single taxa occurring only in either the single‐ or multiple‐channel sections. These exclusive taxa were mainly found on organic substrates such as living parts of terrestrial plants, large wood, coarse particulate organic matter (CPOM) and mud. Reasons for high similarity of macroinvertebrate communities from single‐ or multiple‐channel sections are discussed, including the influence of large‐scale catchment pressures, length of restored sections and lack of potential re‐colonizers. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Detection of ecological change in stream macroinvertebrate assemblages using single metric, multimetric or multivariate approaches

The effects of nutrients on aquatic ecosystems are widespread and trying to understand the reaction of different response indicators is a complex issue. In this study, we used a data set of 21 stream site-samples situated in southern Sweden to assess the strength of single and multimetric indices and multivariate approaches for detecting the effects of nutrient enrichment on stream ecosystems using benthic macroinvertebrate communities. Our results showed both multimetric and multivariate approaches to be reliable tools for detecting the effects of nutrient enrichment on stream macroinvertebrate communities, superior to single metric approaches. In particular, the multimetric DJ index and the multivariate CA scores were sensitive (high coefficients of determination) to the stressor gradient and had high precision (low error). The Saprobic index was the ‘best’ of the six single metric approaches tested here. However, due to differences in the way taxa lists are managed in multimetric and multivariate approaches, we recommend that, if possible, both methods should be used in assessing the effects of nutrient enrichment of stream ecosystems.

List of the taxa of Lepidoptera, primarily Tortricidae, described by Józef Razowski in the years 1953-2006

List of the taxa of Lepidoptera, primarily Tortricidae, described by Józef Razowski in the years 1953-2006

Obtaining accurate and precise environmental reconstructions from the modern analog technique and North American surface pollen dataset

Using a recently compiled surface-sample pollen dataset for North America, we test methods to improve the skillfulness (i.e. accuracy and precision) of the modern analog technique (MAT) for continental- to sub-continental-scale paleoenvironmental reconstructions. Interregional floristic differences challenge such reconstructions, because with widening spatial extent each pollen type represents an increasing number of species, each with its unique niche, thus blurring pollen–climate relationships. We conduct a series of cross-validation experiments in which we first explore (1) whether increasing the spatial extent of the pool of potential analogs improves or worsens MAT skill, (2) whether MAT skill is improved by increasing the number of pollen taxa and splitting pollen taxa into regional groups, and (3) the differences in MAT skill among environmental variables. Regional splits are guided by the range boundaries of parent species. Results are analyzed for multiple environmental variables. We then systematically explore options for (a) the value of the no-analog/analog threshold (T), (b) the maximum number of modern analogs (N) allowed for a target fossil sample, and (c) whether the environmental average constructed from the modern analogs should be weighted by their compositional dissimilarity (D) to the target sample. We demonstrate that substantial interregional differences in pollen–climate relationships, particularly between eastern and western North America, degrade MAT precision and accuracy, but these adverse effects can be overcome by expanding the list of taxa used and/or splitting pollen types into regional groups. MAT precision was best when pollen types were regionally split and better when more taxa were used, although increasing the taxon list from 64 to 135 types did not substantially increase performance. Temperature-related variables were reconstructed more precisely than hydrological variables, and there was little difference in MAT skill between climatic and bioclimatic variables (e.g. mean July temperatures versus growing degree days). T scales with the number of taxa analyzed, and there is a tradeoff between skill (best when T is low) and utility (if T is low, few samples can receive environmental inferences). For N, there is a tradeoff between precision and accuracy, such that retaining just the single best analog had the worst precision and best accuracy. Strongly weighting by taxonomic dissimilarity (1/D2) consistently reduced precision, but MAT precision was similar for unweighted and inverse-distance weighted averages. Given the above tradeoffs, we recommend using the 64-taxon list with taxa split by region, 0.20⩽T⩽0.30, 3⩽N⩽7, and either no weighting or an inverse-distance weighting, for North American applications of the MAT.

Otiorhynchini (Coleoptera: Curculionidae, entiminae) in the collection of the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina

This paper gives a detailed survey of the state of the tribe Otiorhynchini in the collection of the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina as of the year 2006. The list of taxa is compiled according to the contemporary classification accepted in Europe. The survey of types of certain taxa and the locus classicus of each constitutes the most important part of this list.

How to find a dinosaur, and the role of synonymy in biodiversity studies

Taxon discovery underlies many studies in evolutionary biology, including biodiversity and conservation biology. Synonymy has been recognized as an issue, and as many as 30–60% of named species later turn out to be invalid as a result of synonymy or other errors in taxonomic practice. This error level cannot be ignored, because users of taxon lists do not know whether their data sets are clean or riddled with erroneous taxa. A year-by-year study of a large clade, Dinosauria, comprising over 1000 taxa, reveals how systematists have worked. The group has been subject to heavy review and revision over the decades, and the error rate is about 40% at generic level and 50% at species level. The naming of new species and genera of dinosaurs is proportional to the number of people at work in the field. But the number ofvalidnew dinosaurian taxa depends mainly on the discovery of new territory, particularly new sedimentary basins, as well as the number of paleontologists. Error rates are highest (>50%) for dinosaurs from Europe; less well studied continents show lower totals of taxa, exponential discovery curves, and lower synonymy rates. The most prolific author of new dinosaur names was Othniel Marsh, who named 80 species, closely followed by Friedrich von Huene (71) and Edward Cope (64), but the “success rate” (proportion of dinosaurs named that are still regarded as valid) was low (0.14–0.29) for these earlier authors, and it appears to improve through time, partly a reflection of reduction in revision time, but mainly because modern workers base their new taxa on more complete specimens. If only 50% of species are valid, evolutionary biologists and conservationists must exercise care in their use of unrevised taxon lists.

Molluscan Names And Malacological Contributions Of Wolfgang Karl Weyrauch (1907–1970) With A Brief Biography

Wolfgang Karl Weyrauch (1907–1970) studied land and freshwater gastropods of South America, mainly taxa belonging to the families Camaenidae, Charopidae, Clausiliidae, Endodontidae, Helicinidae, “Hydrobiidae”, Orthalicidae, Pupillidae, Scolodontidae, Subulinidae, and Urocoptidae. Here we list the 198 molluscan names introduced by Weyrauch and all of his publications of malacological interest. A brief biography of Weyrauch and a list of taxa named for him are also provided.

Keeping it simple: Benefits of targeting riffle-pool macroinvertebrate communities over multi-substratum sampling protocols in the preparation of a new European biotic index

Abstract The purpose of this study was to test the performance of a new sampling strategy for bioassessment of water quality. The macroinvertebrates living in the mineral substrata of geomorphological unit riffles strategy (MMS-GUR) concentrates sampling effort on certain geomorphologically and hydrobiologically representative units within survey sites and refines the level of taxonomic sorting of pertinent macroinvertebrate communities therein. Previous data have demonstrated that the mineral substrata of geomorphological unit riffles (GURs) harbour a wide variety of macroinvertebrates and pollution-sensitive taxa [Beauger, A., Lair, N., Reyes-Marchant, P., Peiry, J.-L., 2006. The distribution of macroinvertebrate assemblages in a reach of the River Allier (France), in relation to riverbed characteristics. Hydrobiologia 571, 63–76]. These units are typical of alluvial rivers and are easily identified from the bank and easily sampled. The objectives of the present study were to specify the sampling effort required to obtain representative taxonomic data from these communities, and to compare the performance of the new protocol with that of an established multi-substratum sampling methodology (XS). Two sampling series were carried out on two rivers within the same hydro-ecoregion. Two separate data were compiled from each site, incorporating taxon lists and relevant biological, ecological and physiological trait (BEPT) information, one using conventional (XS) methodology and the other from the MMS-GUR protocol. Macroinvertebrates sampled from three GURs of the River Allier ranged from pollution-tolerant to pollution-sensitive taxa. A comparison between the two methods (MMS-GUR and XS) conducted on the Allier and the Loire confirmed the validity of GURs as representative features, showing that pollution-sensitive taxa were better represented on mineral substrata and pollution-tolerant taxa were not over-estimated. The XS method is characterised by eight samples, while preliminary studies on the Allier suggested that a maximum of 13 samples were required to obtain sufficient taxonomic richness using the MMS-GUR methodology. However in river sections where pollution-sensitive taxa were numerous, the number of MMS-GUR samples required for analysis could be reduced to 10 or 8. In the context of the EU Water Framework Directive and associated AQEM project, the MMS-GUR protocol may facilitate the comparison of different rivers by sampling macroinvertebrate communities from similar rhithron or epipotamon habitats and focussing on pollution-sensitive taxa. It has the further advantage of reducing the time and effort spent in sampling and sorting. Increasing the resolution of taxonomic information to the genus level may also improve the standard of water quality assessment.

Application of the Wagner's Parsimony Method in fossil plant assemblages from the Cretaceous of Europe

Wagner's Parsimony Method, a grouping method used in phylogeny and synecology, is applied for the first time to taxon lists of fossil plant assemblages from the Albian–Cenomanian of Europe. When compared to a “classical” Correspondence Analysis, WPM allows for a higher resolution, using taxa named in “cf.” or “aff.” and points out both clusters and gradients. WPM results in a tree in which localities order according to their species content and minimizes the number of changes of character states (presence/absence), whereas Correspondence Analysis plots the localities along axes and maximizes the inertia (“variance” explaining most differences between localities). Close relationships exist between the plant palaeobiocenoses and palaeobiotopes, the latter being inferred from taphonomical data (especially the salinity and the clastic size). The space/time working scale can be very fine, up to the landscape ecology level.

The Status of Neopotamolejeunea (Lejeuneaceae) and Description of a New Species from Ecuador and Southern Brazil

A new rheophytic liverwort species, Lejeunea topoensis (Lejeuneaceae), is described from the Andes of Ecuador and southern Brazil. The new species is intermediate between Lejeunea and Neopotamolejeunea, combining short leaf insertions typical of the former genus, and robust stems and pinnate branching with numerous short sexual branches characteristic of the latter. Neopotamolejeunea is therefore reduced to subgeneric status under Lejeunea. The discovery of L. topoensis adds a further species to the growing list of taxa with disjunct distribution in the Andes and the Atlantic coastal region of Brazil. It is postulated that the disjunct range resulted from long-distance dispersal, although it might to some extent reflect under-representation of collections. The new name L. juruana, replacing Neopotamolejeunea uleana, is proposed. Cheilolejeunea rupestris is a new synonym of C. beyrichii.

The current status of species recognition and identification in Aspergillus.

The species recognition and identification of aspergilli and their teleomorphs is discussed. A historical overview of the taxonomic concepts starting with the monograph of Raper & Fennell (1965) is given. A list of taxa described since 2000 is provided. Physiological characters, particularly growth rates and the production of extrolites, often show differences that reflect phylogenetic species boundaries and greater emphasis should be placed on extrolite profiles and growth characteristics in species descriptions. Multilocus sequence-based phylogenetic analyses have emerged as the primary tool for inferring phylogenetic species boundaries and relationships within subgenera and sections. A four locus DNA sequence study covering all major lineages in Aspergillus using genealogical concordance theory resulted in a species recognition system that agrees in part with phenotypic studies and reveals the presence of many undescribed species not resolved by phenotype. The use of as much data from as many sources as possible in making taxonomic decisions is advocated. For species identification, DNA barcoding uses a short genetic marker in an organism”s DNA to quickly and easily identify it to a particular species. Partial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 sequences, which are used for barcoding animal species, were found to have limited value for species identification among black aspergilli. The various possibilities are discussed and at present partial β-tubulin or calmodulin are the most promising loci for Aspergillus identification. For characterising Aspergillus species one application would be to produce a multilocus phylogeny, with the goal of having a firm understanding of the evolutionary relationships among species across the entire genus. DNA chip technologies are discussed as possibilities for an accurate multilocus barcoding tool for the genus Aspergillus.

Publicación válida de 101 nombres de especies y subspecies de los generos Nasa y Aosa (Loasaceae: Cornales)

In the present paper, the valid names of 101 taxa of new species, new subspecies and new combinations of the genera Nasa and Aosa (Loasaceae: Cornales) are published. The invalid names of these taxa were originally published in various articles in the last ten years. This publication is carried out on the basis of the changes in the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature approved in the International Botanical Congress (IBC) in Viena, 2005. For each taxon the valid names, protologue citation and type are provided, in the case of the 41 new species and subspecies a latin diagnosis is included, as per requirement ot the Code. We additionally provide the citation for the original, invalid publication and corresponding illustration of the taxon. The taxon list here provided represents a complete list of all taxa currently known in the genus Nasa, including the species recently validated in TAXON.

Key to Freshwater Algae: A Web-based Tool to Enhance Understanding of Microscopic Biodiversity

The Freshwater Ecology Laboratory at Connecticut College has developed an interactive, Web-based identification key to freshwater algal genera using the Lucid Professional and Lucid 3 software developed by the Centre for Biological Information Technology at the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. The Key to Freshwater Algae was funded by the National Science Foundation (Award #CCLI-0229531) to encourage awareness of microscopic diversity through a creative, investigative approach to learning. Users may answer questions in any order to quickly and efficiently narrow down the list of taxa to only those that match the characteristics they have chosen. All characters and terms are clearly explained for ease of use by those unfamiliar with the algae. This non-hierarchical, user-friendly key is linked to Web pages containing a wealth of resources, including images, movies, and information about the morphology, ecology, and reproduction of each organism. These materials are especially well suited for classroom use in conjunction with cultures purchased from the Carolina Biological Supply Company, a popular distributor of biological materials. Cultures from the Carolina Biological Supply Company representing nearly 75 freshwater genera from a variety of algal groups were observed and photographed using high resolution digital imaging to fully document cellular structure and highlight distinguishing features. High quality video footage of each taxon incorporating titles, diagrams, and structural terminology was outputted as QuickTime movies, on DVD, and on VHS cassettes. The Key to Freshwater Algae and supplemental materials are available online at http://silicasecchidisk.conncoll.edu to provide an innovative alternative to traditional dichotomous keys that is particularly appropriate for introducing students in undergraduate life science courses to the algal groups and genera.

Early stages of Atlantic fishes: an identification guide for the western central North Atlantic

Introduction. Background. Geographic Coverage. Taxonomic Coverage. List of Taxa. Principles and Terminology. Egg Stage. Yol-sac Stage. Larval Stage. Transformation Stage. Juvenile Stage. Abbreviations. Glossary. Explanation of Format and Methods. Introduction to Orders. Introduction to Families. Species Descriptions. How to Identify Early Stages of Fishes with this Guide. Descriptions. For a complete listing of the contents of all 214 family chapters look up the book's description at www.crcpress.com.

Spectral ordering and biochronology of European fossil mammals

Spectral algorithms have been shown to work well in a wide range of situations that involve the task of ordering. When applied to the localities of a set of European Neogene land mammal taxa, spectral ordering relies almost entirely on the most common genera, depends on connectivity more than on length of taxon lists, and is robust to noise from rarer and less connected taxa. The spectral coefficients for localities are highly correlated with known geochronological ages. Although elementary compared with more sophisticated biochronological tools, spectral ordering allows a fast and standardized way to generate biochronological ordering of localities when other information than faunal lists is lacking. Compared with the conventional mammal Neogene (MN) units, spectral ordering of localities appears to lack distinct temporal boundaries in taxon content and render a much lower count of Lazarus events. If, as seems to be the case, biochronology depends mainly on the most common taxa and if evolutionary change is also most clearly reflected in them, then the main evolutionary patterns should be detectable at a modest level of sampling.

Late Cretaceous Antarctic fish diversity

Abstract New material from the Santa Marta Formation (late Coniacian-?early Maastrichtian) of James Ross Island contributes significantly to the current knowledge of Late Cretaceous Antarctic fish diversity. The taxon list for the Santa Marta Formation is extended, and new records of neoselachians and teleosts are reported. The stratigraphic ranges of some previously known taxa are enlarged, and the palaeobiogeography and palaeoecology of Late Cretaceous Antarctic fishes are discussed. Top predators that occupied the higher levels in the food chain along with marine tetrapods dominate the marine faunas from the Santa Marta and López de Bertodano formations. The only fish adapted to crushing hard-shelled invertebrates were the chimeroids. Rays, an important component of marine fish associations, as well as fish from lower trophic levels, remain unknown from the Late Cretaceous of Antarctica.

Coleotteri Caraboidei delle Alpi e Prealpi centrali e orientali, e loro significato biogeografico (Coleoptera, Caraboidea)

Biogeographfa vol. XX VI - 2005 (Pubb/fcatoiil 30 Dicembre 2005) Biogeografia delle Alpi e Preaipi centro-orientali Coleotteri Caraboidei delle Alpi e Prealpi centrali e orientali, e loro significato biogeogtafico (Coleoptera, Caraboidea) ACHILLE CASALE* e AUGUSTO VTGNA TAGLIANTI“ ‘Dipm'tz'rm.’m0 di Zoologicz e/lntropologia Biolagiocz, Universitiz dzi Szisrczri via Muroni, 25, 1-071 00 Sasmri 6- mail.‘ cczsczle @uni5s. it q‘*Dz'pcmtz'mem‘0 di Biologiac /lrzimale e de[l’U0m0, Um'ver5z't2z dzq Roma “La! Sapienzisz” vials’ Uniyersirzi, 32, ]—00185 Roma e’*77’l£IZi[.' augusra. vignatag[iami@unir0ma1. it Key words: Central and Eastern Alps, Coleoptera, Caraboidea, historiesl-cenlogical biogeography, list of taxa. SUMMARY A synthesis of the Carabid Fauna of the Central and Eastern Alps and Pre—Alps, from a biogeographical point of view, is presented. Only the Italian side of the Alpine chain is considered, from the basin of the Toce river to the Trieste and Gorizia Karst. Main features ofthe landscape are: 1. an ancient orogenetic history and evolution, that made this area available to the colonization by carabids, of both gondwanaland and laurasian lineages, since the lower Tertiary; 2. a marked geological and geo—morphological complexity, with highest elevation at Pizzo Bernina in 4.049; 3. the presence of a very developed, dolomitiocalcareous and markedly carsified prealpine beit, rich of deep and large hypogean systems (also at high altitude), which makes this area highly difierent, from the geo-morphological point of view, from the Western Alps; 4. the geographic position, as a mountain chain of some 750 kms between central Europe and the Padanian plain, connected with the Caravanche and the Dinaric chain and close to the Adriatic sea in the Eastern part; 5. finally, a puzzled climate situation, that includes xero—therrnic areas (500-700 mm of rain per year, also in some intra-alpine sectors), close to highly rainy areas -— more than 2.500 mm per year - in the westernmost and easternmost parts of the chain. Thus, like in the Western Alps, subamediterranean vegetation types, close to cool—moist forests, coexist with high-altitude environments above the timber line. These facts explain the heterogeneity, the richness, the variety, and the interest of the carabid fauna of the area: the highest number of species (658) ascertained so far, i.e. 1/' 2 of the whole Italian carabid Fauna and about 1/5 of the carabid Fauna cited so Far for the Europe in politic sense, from the Canary islands to the Urals; the high number of euri— or stenoendemites (204, i.e. about 31 % of the species, 3/5 Ofwhich Concentrated In the pre-alpine belt), and the complex origins andfor affinities of different taxa. A large number of species (174, i.e. 26%) belongs to European chororypes (European, South—European or typically Alpine), and even more (255, i.e. 38%) to Holarctic (Holarctic, Palaearctic, West—Palaearctic, Asiatic—European, Siberian- European, Central-Asiatic-European, Central-Asiatic-European-Mediterranean, Turanic-European, Turanic-Europearb Mediterranean, European-Mediterranean) chororypes. This datum confirms the well known role, both of connection and separation, that the Alps as a whole played between Europe and the Mediterranean area. Furthermore, it is to be recalled the presence, in some localities of the Eastern Alps, ofmicrothermophilous, boreal species, like Mzscodeizz zzrmm. now widespread in Northern regions of the I-Iolarctic Region. Many orophilous, Foresedwelling, riparian and hygrophilous species, are of northern, north-eastern, turanic or dinaricvbalkanian origin. A very small, but interesting group ofthermophilous elements (mostly Harpalini), originally

Typology of streams in Germany based on benthic invertebrates: Ecoregions, zonation, geology and substrate

Based on 390 benthic invertebrate samples from near-natural streams in Germany we defined eight stream type groups by Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMS). The taxa lists were restricted to Mollusca, Ephemeroptera, Odonata, Plecoptera, Coleoptera and Trichoptera species and evaluated on presence/absence level. At genus level, streams located in the lowlands differ from streams in lower mountainous areas and the Alps, while the two latter groups were undistinguishable. At species level, a clear separation of different stream size classes is visible in the lowlands; a second gradient is related to the bottom substrate. Streams in the Alps can be distinguished from streams in lower mountainous areas at species level. Within the lower mountainous regions a size gradient is detectable, a less obvious gradient indicates catchment geology. The resulting “bottom-up” stream typology is compared to other stream typological systems in Germany.

An intellectual biography of Elie-Abel Carrière (l8l8–l896)

Abstract Williams, R. L. (1701 South 17th St., Laramie, WY 82070; Frenchcreek@wyoming.com). An intellectual biography of Elie-Abel Carriere (1818– 1896). Brittonia 56: 365–374. 2004.—An intellectual biography of Elie-Abel Carriere is presented, including a list of taxa named by him in the gymnosperms. He was the leading authority on gymnosperms in the middle years of the 19th century, and he was also the major French horticulturist of that era. He was also an active proponent of the reforestation of the mountains that began under Napoleon III after many decades of popular resistance.