Southernmost Occurrence Research Articles

Southernmost occurrence of Cuniculus paca (Rodentia, Cuniculidae): new Argentinean localities based on vouchers

Abstract Limited vouchered records exist for Cuniculus paca, the second-largest living caviomorph rodent, documenting its southernmost occurrence. Here, we introduce four new recording sites based on skulls probably discarded by local hunters, with three located in Misiones Province and the fourth marking the first supported evidence in the neighboring Corrientes Province in Argentina. The data remains inconclusive as to whether the latter location signifies a southern expansion of this rodent due to climate change or simply an overlooked population that has long been established. Regardless, these findings underscore the importance of increased fieldwork and specimen collection.

First documentation of Late Paleozoic conodonts from Argentina: Biostratigraphic and paleoclimatic constraints for the Late Paleozoic Ice Age in SW Gondwana

Abstract We present the first discovery of Late Paleozoic conodonts in Argentina, marking the southernmost occurrence of this fossil group in the dominantly cold, high latitudes of Gondwana. Recovered from the siliciclastic Río del Peñón (RDP) Formation at the Rincón Blanco section in the northern Precordillera, La Rioja Province, the fossil assemblage includes Neognathodus colombiensis and Neognathodus “pre-colombiensis,” precisely indicating the early Moscovian (late Atokan in North America) N. colombiensis Zone. Furthermore, the conodont fauna establishes a crucial temporal constraint for the brachiopod Tivertonia jachalensis–Streptorhynchus inaequiornatus (TS) Zone, which is a widely employed biostratigraphic unit in southern South America. The warm-water affinity of Neognathodus is in accordance with the record of typical paleoequatorial faunal elements in the TS Zone in several central western Argentinian basins, thus reinforcing the idea of a climatic amelioration in the southern latitudes of Gondwana during the early Moscovian.

A non-native fish species reaches the south-western European waters: the Atlantic croaker, Micropogoniasundulatus (Acanthuriformes, Sciaenidae) and its invasion history in Europe.

The Atlantic croaker Micropogoniasundulatus, a sciaenid fish native to the North Atlantic American coast, holds importance in recreational and commercial fisheries. Moreover, its potential as an invasive species should be noted, given its expansion and establishment in Atlantic European waters. This study reports its southernmost occurrence in Europe, in the Gulf of Cadiz. Morphological and molecular analysis confirmed its identity, revealing genetic similarities to US sequences. A comprehensive review of historical non-native distribution records underscored the species' expansion throughout European waters, suggesting human-mediated introduction. The escalating frequency of such arrivals emphasises the critical need for effective monitoring and management efforts in order to control non-native species in this region.

First records of two mackerel shark species (Carcharodon planus comb. nov. and Carcharodon hubbelli; Lamnidae) from New Zealand

ABSTRACT The fossil record of the genus Carcharodon (Lamniformes: Lamnidae) dates to the late Oligocene and has a near global distribution. Today the genus is represented by a single species, the white shark Carcharodon carcharias. However, multiple extinct species are recognised in the Cenozoic including Carcharodon hastalis, Carcharodon hubbelli and Carcharodon planus comb. nov. Here we present the first occurrences of Carcharodon hubbelli and Carcharodon planus from New Zealand/Aotearoa, from the South Island/Te Waipounamu. Carcharodon hubbelli is previously reported from late Miocene deposits in the Pacific basin of North and South America, Asia, and Australia. Whereas Carcharodon planus has been reported from the Miocene of North America and Asia. One tooth from Carcharodon hubbelli is reported from the presumed late Miocene of Motunau Beach, North Canterbury, while one upper early Miocene tooth recovered from the Kakahu River, South Canterbury and an earliest Miocene tooth from the Big River mouth, Tasman District are referred to Carcharodon planus. In addition to being the first reported occurrences of these two species in New Zealand, the teeth of Carcharodon planus represent some of the earliest occurrences of the taxon as well as its southernmost occurrence.

Redescription of the mole crab Emerita portoricensis Schmitt, 1935 (Crustacea: Decapoda: Hippidae), based on Caribbean populations from Puerto Rico, Belize, Costa Rica, and Panama

The mole crab Emerita portoricensis Schmitt, 1935 was originally described solely on the basis of few key characters that were not precisely defined, giving reason to question subsequent reports of its distribution. The present study, prompted by recent collections documenting coloration in life, undertakes a comprehensive redescription of the species based on specimens of varied sizes from Puerto Rico, Belize, Costa Rica, and Panama. Collections from the northern Caribbean that at first take appear to represent a northernmost record of E. brasiliensis Schmitt, 1935 or southernmost occurrence of E. talpoida (Say, 1817), may be assignable E. portoricensis as now recognized. Among western Atlantic species, E. portoricensis and E. benedicti have to date been considered to have the dactylus of the first pereopod terminally subacute or sharply pointed, which purportedly separates them from E. brasiliensis and E. talpoida, western Atlantic species in which this article is terminally rounded. However, in E. portoricensis this character varies with specimen size and the magnification at which the distal extreme of the dactylus is examined, being rounded to varying degrees in all but the largest specimens. Even in sexually mature specimens of less than maximum size, this rounded tip is armed by a minute corneous spine in E. portoricensis, although it is less prominent than the terminal spine on the consistently more acute dactylus of E. benedicti at all adult sizes. Also, the carapace color in live specimens of E. portoricensis, as documented for specimens collected in both Belize and Panama, differs from that of E. brasiliensis, E. talpoida, and E. benedicti by typically including longitudinal and diagonal dark bars of olive brown on the branchial regions and a light longitudinal bar marking the posterior quarter of the median line. Posterior to the cervical groove, fine rugae of the carapace that form broken transverse lines are at most little diminished across the mid-dorsal longitudinal line in E. portoricensis and E. benedicti, somewhat more broken in E. brasiliensis, and distinctly diminished to all but absent at the midline in E. talpoida. Previously reported BINs in the Barcode of Life database include sequenced specimens from Costa Rica herein accepted as E. portoricensis. We exclude populations from Brazil that have been mis-assigned to E. portoricensis.

Revisiting the southernmost occurrence of Brasilichnium elusivum Leonardi, 1981 with comments on the tetrapod track record of eolian environments

Mammalian lineage is deep rooted in Mesozoic, with several taxa and ichnotaxa described worldwide. One of the most prolific mammaliaform ichnospecies is Brasilichnium elusivum, which is extremely abundant in the Lower Cretaceous Botucatu Formation of the Brazilian Paraná Basin, as well as in other Mesozoic ichnofaunas of North America and Africa. In this contribution, we revisited the proposed southernmost occurrence of B. elusivum using both classical and photogrammetric (3D digitization) approaches. The flagstone containing the studied material was found ex situ, in a sidewalk at Santa Cruz do Sul Municipality (the Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil), and the results of the performed analysis showed that the tracks cannot be assigned to any ichnotaxon. Lastly, some significant issues related to ichnological research of ex situ track-bearing flagstones and large eolian deposits are discussed. Keywords: Early Cretaceous, Botucatu Formation, mesozoic mammals, South America, vertebrate ichnology.

Mites Associated with the European Spruce Bark Beetle Ips typographus (Linnaeus, 1758) in Europe, with New Evidence for the Fauna of Serbia

Various biotic and abiotic factors are the cause of the decline of coniferous forests throughout Europe. Trees weakened by unfavorable weather conditions create an ideal environment for a possible outbreak of bark beetles. The damage caused by bark beetles costs billions of dollars worldwide every year. Extreme climate events are responsible for the enormous forest losses in Tara National Park in the last ten years, leading to a massive bark beetle infestation. The understanding of the diversity and role of mites as biological control agents is still insufficient. In this study, we summarize the current knowledge on the diversity of mites associated with Ips typographus L. in Europe and provide information on the diversity of these mites in Serbia. Paraleius leontonychus, Uroobovella ipidis, Dendrolaelaps quadrisetus, Histiostoma piceae, and Trichouropoda polytricha were detected for the first time in Serbia. Moreover, the occurrence of Paraleius leontonychus represents the southernmost occurrence of this species.

A new large-sized species of Chelonoidis (Testudinidae) without gibbosities from the middle Miocene of Aguada Escondida (NW Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina).

Previously, only one small-sized species of Testudinidae (Chelonoidis gringorum) was named from Lower-Middle Miocene of Central Patagonia. In this short article, we describe a new large Testudinidae, here named Chelonoidis meridiana sp. nov. This large new species (carapace up to 80 cm) differs from other large species of the southern South American fossil record by the absence of gibbosities on neural and costal carapacial bones, a short and wide entoplastron with a humeropectoral sulcus that was placed well behind its posterior end, and pectoral scutes that are medially longer, approximately one-third of the medial length of the hyoplastra. The discovery of this new species in the Middle Miocene increases the raw turtle diversity in Chubut, permitting to reduce the gap between the raw and phylogenetic diversity previously proposed. This occurrence is also important from both a temporal and geographic point of view. It permits fixing the presence of large-sized tortoises in the continent since ~15 million years ago (Middle Miocene). This occurrence predates all other large and giant tortoises from Argentina and South America and it is older than the giant Chelonoidis from the Langhian-Tortonian of Colombia. This is also the southernmost occurrence of a large-sized testudinid in the world.

Towards a real-time tracking of an expanding alien bee species in Southeast Europe through citizen science and floral host monitoring

Citizen science, a practice of public participation in scientific projects, is popular in Western countries, however, it is still a relatively novel approach in Southeast Europe. In this region, citizen science can be a useful tool for increasing the understanding of alien species. One such species is the sculptured resin bee, Megachile sculpturalis, a putatively invasive alien pollinator native to East Asia. It was introduced to France in 2008, from where it quickly spread across West and Central Europe. However, our knowledge of its eastern distribution is scarce since it is based mostly on isolated findings. We combined citizen science and data extraction from online sources (e.g., naturalist’s databases and social media) covering 6 years, and 3 years of targeted floral resource monitoring in the search for M. sculpturalis across regions of southeastern Europe. We collected presence data and information on M. sculpturalis abundances across an urban-rural gradient from eight countries: Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Romania, Bulgaria, and the region of the Crimean Peninsula. We present the first country records for Romania, Bulgaria, and Montenegro, identify the dynamic expansion front in southern Serbia and provide new southernmost occurrences in Southeast Europe. We also collected data on species ecology (e.g., phenology, pollen/nectar sources, nest characteristics) and gathered evidence of reproducing populations of this species across the studied region. Citizen science data provided a five times larger spatial coverage, including recordings from remote locations, than the data collected by expert field surveys and provided critical additional data about the species biology, thanks to exceptionally engaged participants. We emphasize the importance of close collaboration between regional scientist teams and citizen participants and the benefits of this approach for monitoring a species with a continent-wide spread potential.

First record of the Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus) from Sundarban Tiger Reserve, West Bengal, India

This is the first occurrence report of Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus) from Sundarban Tiger Reserve, West Bengal, India. A Great Crested Grebe was observed at a river in the Sajnekhali Wildlife Sanctuary, while conducting the annual biodiversity survey within the Sundarban Tiger Reserve in November 2020. The species is a winter migrant to mostly man-made reservoirs at the northern districts of the state, and compared to the previous records, this is the southernmost occurrence report from West Bengal. The discovery of Podiceps cristatus at an undisturbed and favorable habitat inside a well-protected mangrove ecosystem within the Sundarban Tiger Reserve may prove significantly informative for the possible range extension and future conservation approaches of the species.

First record of the family Rotundabaloghiidae Kontschán, 2010 in Chile with the description of Rotundabaloghia (Circobaloghia) chilensis sp. nov. (Acari: Mesostigmata)

Rotundabaloghia (Circobaloghia) chilensis sp. nov. is described based on one female specimen collected from soil in Osorno Coastal Range, Chile. The new species differs from the other species from the subgenus Circobaloghia in the shape of peritremes, the shape and length of the ventral and dorsal setae. This is the first record of this family in Chile and also the southernmost occurrence of the family.

The Occurrence and Characteristics of Imbrasia belina (Westwood, 1849) in the Subtropical Region of KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa

Mopane worm is the edible larva of Imbrasia (Gonimbrasia) belina (Westwood, 1894), a species of emperor moth that is generally found in central and southern African tropical regions. Both over-harvesting of larvae and the destruction of the mopane woodlands are threatening its biodiversity. An insect with a description matching that of I. belina was observed in the northern coastal region of KwaZulu-Natal, a subtropical biota. The aim of this study was to gain insight into the potential of the northern coastal region of KwaZulu-Natal as a sanctuary for I. belina. The presence of I. belina in the subtropical biota of the coastal region of KwaZulu-Natal was confirmed through mitochondrion CO1 gene sequences, this being so far its southernmost occurrence. Field surveys revealed the occurrence of four morphologically distinct variants within the uMkhanyakude District, inclusive of the protected iSimangaliso Wetland Park and Hluhluwe Game Reserve from the beginning of September to early November as do most of the populations in the mopane woodlands but differs from them by having one outbreak per season instead of two. Imbrasia belina is polyphagous and feeds off hosts including marula (Sclerocarya birrea [(A. Rich.) Hochst.] [Anacardiaceae]) and seven other tree species. There is therefore scope to use the northern KwaZulu-Natal coastal region as a sanctuary for biodiversity conservation of I. belina. There are initiatives to cultivate marula for its fruit in the region, which further increases the potential of the area as a sanctuary for I. belina by farming marula for both its fruit and I. belina. The protected nature reserves present in the region will ensure areas of controlled use by humans.

Equatorial pliosaurid from Venezuela marks the youngest South American occurrence of the clade

Pliosaurids were the dominant macropredators in aquatic environments at least since the Middle Jurassic until their extinction in the early Late Cretaceous. Until very recently, the Cretaceous record of Pliosauridae has been poor and difficult to interpret from the taxonomic and phylogenetic perspective. Despite that the knowledge of Cretaceous pliosaurids improved in recent years, numerous aspects of their evolutionary history still remain only poorly known. Here, we report the first pliosaurid material from Venezuela. The taxon is most likely earliest Cenomanian in age, thus representing the youngest occurrence of Pliosauridae from South America. The Venezuelan taxon is based on a well-preserved tooth crown whose morphology and outer enamel structural elements appear to resemble especially those observable in the giant pliosaurid Sachicasaurus vitae from the Lower Cretaceous of Colombia. The new discovery extends the pliosaurid record on the continent by more than 10 million years and likely marks the southernmost Upper Cretaceous occurrence of Pliosauridae, worldwide. We also briefly discuss the affinities of the enigmatic Venezuelan elasmosaurid Alzadasaurus tropicus and highlight similarities to elasmosaurids from the Western Interior Seaway.

Southernmost occurrence of Deltamys kempi (Rodentia, Cricetidae) in Argentina: paleontological and neontological evidence to assess its current distribution

Southernmost occurrence of Deltamys kempi (Rodentia, Cricetidae) in Argentina: paleontological and neontological evidence to assess its current distribution

New record of Cepa apeca (Diptera, Syrphidae, Eristalinae, Merodontini) in the Andean-Amazonian region of Colombia and expansion of its geographic range

ABSTRACT Flower flies of the genus Cepa are endemic to the Neotropical region and Cepa apeca is currently known only from Costa Rica. Here we report the first record of C. apeca in Colombia based on a single female collected using a canopy trap in a dense secondary forest in a mountainous ecosystem in the locality of Vereda San Francisco, municipality of Florencia-Caquetá, at an altitude of 643 m.a.s.l. This finding constitutes the first record of the genus Cepa in Colombia and expands the geographic range of Cepa apeca by approximately 1,500 km (straight line) southwards to South America. Our finding represents the southernmost occurrence of the species and contributes to the incipient knowledge on the Diptera diversity in the Colombian Andean-Amazonian region.

A more southerly occurrence of Xenoxylon in North America: X. utahense Xie et Gee sp. nov. from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation in Utah, USA, and its paleobiogeographic and paleoclimatic significance

Although Xenoxylon is a global genus of Mesozoic wood in the Northern Hemisphere, it is striking that the valid records in North America occur only in the northernmost parts of the continent. Decades ago, two species of Xenoxylon were described from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation in Utah, USA. However, a recent review of all North American reports of Xenoxylon excluded both species from the genus based on their anatomy, rendering all records of this genus south of Montana invalid in 2019. Here we describe a fossil log from the Morrison Formation near Vernal, northeastern Utah, USA, with true Xenoxylon anatomy with locally xenoxylean radial tracheid pitting and fenestriform crossfield pitting. Due to a novel combination of radial tracheid pitting, crossfield pitting and ray height, a new species, Xenoxylon utahense Xie et Gee sp. nov., is recognized here. Located at the southernmost occurrence of Xenoxylon in North America during the Mesozoic, this new species confirms that Xenoxylon trees were not only restricted to a circumpolar zone, but also grew in more southerly areas. In comparison with other fossil plants in the Morrison Formation of Utah, along with growth ring characteristics and climatic preferences of living conifers, the new fossil log with true growth rings with abundant, well-formed earlywood and extremely little latewood argues for a warm and humid climate with very mild seasonality for the Late Jurassic in this region, which is inconsistent with previous interpretations of Xenoxylon as a reliable indicator of cool climates.

A new brachylophosaurin (Dinosauria: Hadrosauridae) from the Upper Cretaceous Menefee Formation of New Mexico.

Brachylophosaurini is a clade of hadrosaurid dinosaurs from the Campanian of western North America. Although well-known from northern localities in Montana and Alberta, including abundant material of Brachylophosaurus canadensis and Maiasaura peeblesorum and the holotypes of Acristavus gagslarsoni and Probrachylophosaurus bergei, material from southern localities in Utah and Colorado is restricted to a partial skull referred to A. gagslarsoni and several indeterminate specimens. Here we describe Ornatops incantatus gen. et sp. nov., a new brachylophosaurin known from a partial skeleton from the Allison Member of the Menefee Formation in New Mexico. Ornatops is the first brachylophosaurin reported from New Mexico and the southernmost occurrence of the clade. Ornatops shares with Probrachylophosaurus and Brachylophosaurus a caudally expanded nasofrontal suture on the frontals, but also exhibits an autapomorphic nasofrontal suture morphology, with a horizontal rostral region and elevated caudal region with two prominent parasagittal bumps, which is different from other brachylophosaurin specimens, including juvenile and adult Brachylophosaurus. A phylogenetic analysis places Ornatops in a trichotomy with Probrachylophosaurus and Brachylophosaurus, with Maiasaura and Acristavus as successive outgroups.

FIRST REVIEW OF THE LYNCODONTINI MATERIAL (MUSTELIDAE, CARNIVORA, MAMMALIA) FROM THE LOWER PLEISTOCENE ARCHAEO-PALAEONTOLOGICAL SITES OF ORCE (SOUTHEASTERN SPAIN)

Two archaeo-palaeontological Lower Pleistocene sites of Orce (Baza Basin, SE Spain), Fuente Nueva 3 (1.3 Ma) and Barranco Leon (1.4 Ma), preserve some of the earliest evidences of human presence in the European continent. During the 2013 field season, a small Lyncodontini mustelid mandible was found at Fuente Nueva-3. This finding was accompanied by a lower canine (c1), also from the same site, and a lower fourth premolar (p4) from Barranco Leon. Here, we report on the morphological and biometrical study of these materials, in comparison to other Eurasian Pliocene-Pleistocene species of the tribe Lyncodontini. The analyses revealed an affinity between the taxon from Fuente Nueva-3 and Barranco Leon with the small-sized European species Martellictis ardea (Gervais, 1848-1852), allowing us to ascribe the described material to the latter species. The presence of M. ardea in the sites of Orce is the southernmost occurrence of the species in the Iberian Peninsula and an important finding in the scarce fossil record of Lyncodontini in Europe.

First report of Scaphoideus titanus for Madeira Island

This is the first report of Scaphoideus titanus, the main vector of flavescence dorée, for Madeira (Portugal) and also for Macaronesia. This new record currently represents its southernmost occurrence in Europe. This leafhopper is present in most of the primary wine production regions in the north of Madeira island. There were no symptoms of flavescence dorée disease during the monitoring period from 2010 to 2017. The ability of S. titanus to survive in regions with a subtropical climate suggests that it may also live in the most meridional areas of the Mediterranean region where, until now, it has been absent.

New troglobitic species of Xangoniscus (Isopoda: Styloniscidae) from Brazil, with notes on their habitats and threats.

In the present work, five new species of Xangoniscus are described, increasing to eight the number of the known troglobitic species for the genus. Xangoniscus species can be distinguished from each other by the shape of pleonites epimera, the number and size of aesthetascs in the distal article of antennula, the modifications on pereopods, the shape of male pleopods and the proportion between uropod rami. Species from this genus are known for the states of Minas Gerais and Bahia with Xangoniscus aganju representing the northernmost occurrence, and X. lundi n. sp. and X. dagua n. sp. the southernmost occurrences. Of the six caves where specimens were collected, four are not registered in the national speleological database, what points to all the potential to yet be discovered regarding number of cavities and the associated biodiversity in Brazil. Some of the here mentioned type localities are not located inside protected areas, therefore exposing the species to risks related to the adjacent land use and consequent influence on water table level and input of food resources. The contribution of this work with descriptions of new troglobitic species provides support to consider them as plausible candidates to be assessed in the next list of threatened species as well as to elaborate conservation actions for the species, the caves where they inhabit and the surrounding landscape.