Life Sciences Commons^™

The Tadpole Of Leptodactylus Caatingae Heyer & Juncá, 2003 (Anura: Leptodactylidae): External Morphology, Internal Anatomy, And Natural History, Felipe De Madeiros Magalhães, Adrian Antonio Garda, Ralita Ferreira Amado, Rafael O. De Sá

Biology Faculty Publications

We describe and illustrate the external morphology, oral disc, chondrocranium, and internal oral anatomy of Leptodactylus caatingae larvae. We analyze the internal oral anatomy using scanning electron microscopy of a larva in Gosner, stage 38 and chondrocranial anatomy is reported for Gosner stage 34. The tadpole at Gosner stage 38 has a globular body shape with low tail fins and a ventral oral disc bordered by two rows of marginal papillae on most of the disc, except for the anterior labium and a medial portion of the posterior labium where papillae are simple; a wide rostral gap is present, labial …

Coccidia Of Gerbils From Mongolia, Ethan T. Jensen

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In this study, gerbils collected in the Mongolia over the summers of 2009-2012 were examined for coccidia. In total, 171 gerbils of three species from 22 localities were examined for coccidia. Coccidian oocysts were identified from 21 gerbils, but those found in 1 of those gerbils were probably pseudoparasites of the host from which they were recovered. From the remaining 20 gerbils, 7 morphotypes of Eimeria and 1 morphotype of Isospora were identified. Four of the 7 morphotypes of Eimeria were attributed to new species which were described in this study. In addition, 10 previously described species of Eimeria were …

Biogeography And Evolution Of Neotropical Small Mammals, With Emphasis On Hystricognath Spiny Rats Of The Genus Proechimys (Family Echimyidae), Rafael Do Nascimento Leite

Theses and Dissertations

The Neotropical region is the most biologically diverse region on the planet. The region encompasses a variety of ecosystems and has long been the target of researchers interested in patterns of species diversity and distribution. More recently, molecular data have been incorporated into methods for reconstructing the historical relationships among geographical areas and their biotas. Molecular phylogenetics has provided insights into diversification patterns and the influence of Late Cenozoic events on the evolutionary history of the region. Nevertheless, considering the vast extent and complexity of the region, more studies are needed to fully appreciate the patterns of biogeography and the …

Fossil Trachemys (Testudines: Emydidae) From The Late Hemphillian Of Eastern Tennessee And Its Implications For The Evolution Of The Emydidae, Steven E. Jasinski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Trachemys (Testudines: Emydidae) represents one of the most well-known turtles today. The evolution of Trachemys, while being heavily documented with various fossil representatives, is not well understood. Numerous fossils from the Gray Fossil Site in northeastern Tennessee are helping to elucidate the taxon’s evolution. The fossil Trachemys at the Gray Fossil Site represent a new species. A review of previously named Trachemys taxa reveals that a huge majority of them are not valid or have been previously misinterpreted. A phylogenetic analysis preformed on modern emydids and supposed fossil representatives of those genera also shows the evolution of a portion …

Subterranean Species Of Acipes Attems, 1937 (Diplopoda, Julida, Blaniulidae), Henrik Enghoff, Ana Reboleira

Ana Sofia P.S. Reboleira

Two new blind, cave-dwelling species of the genus Acipes Attems, 1937, are described from the Algarve, southern Portugal: A. machadoi n. sp. and A. bifilum n. sp. Acipes andalusius Enghoff & Mauriès, 1999, is reported from the mesovoid shallow substratum in Alicante (Spain), 250 km from the type locality in Andalusia.

The Genus Boreviulisoma Brolemann, 1928—An Iberian-N African Outlier Of A Mainly Tropical Tribe Of Millipedes (Diplopoda: Polydesmida: Paradoxosomatidae), Ana Reboleira, Henrik Enghoff

Ana Sofia P.S. Reboleira

The genus Boreviulisoma Brolemann, 1928, is revised. The synonymy of Liliputia Attems, 1952, under Boreviulisoma is confirmed, but L. badia Attems, 1951, from Spain, is resurrected, as Boreviulisoma badium, from synonymy under B. liouvilleiBrolemann, 1928 (the type species of Boreviulisoma) from Morocco. Boreviulisoma barrocalense n. sp. is described from the subterranean environment of the Algarve, the southernmost province of Portugal. The distribution of the three known species of Boreviulisoma is mapped, main characters of the genus and its species are reviewed and a key to species of the genus is included. The isolated occurrence of Boreviulisoma badium and B. barrocalense …

Diversification And Coexistence In The Madagascar Olive (Noronhia, Oleaceae), Cynthia Hong-Wa

Dissertations

The long-isolated island of Madagascar provides a suitable setting for studying species diversification, with most groups of organisms there both radiating and showing a high level of endemism. Noronhia is one of these groups and represents the most successful radiation of the olive family (Oleaceae) in Madagascar, with ca. 80 species. In this study, using plastid and nuclear DNA sequences obtained from a comprehensive sampling both within Noronhia and the family, I show that Noronhia, together with Indian Ocean species of Chionanthus, form a monophyletic clade sister to African Chionanthus. The diversification of Noronhia followed a likely Cenozoic dispersal from …

Pushing Taxonomy To Extiction?, Alessandro Minelli, Annemarie Ohler, Erna Aescht, Aaron Bauer, Lucio Bonato, Roger Bour, Marcelo Rodrigues De Carvalho, Rafael O. De Sá, Et Al.

Biology Faculty Publications

Can we describe all species on Earth before they disappear? We argue that this is possible only by endowing taxonomy with professional manpower and appropriate material resources as required by big science.

Contrary to Costello et al.’s (CMS) (1) statements, taxonomy is not an easy discipline accessible to all through a smartphone. It requires exhaustive training and long familiarity with field, specimens and literature (2).

CMS’s argument is framed in terms of species numbers, but different, non-overlapping species concepts apply to bacteria, brambles and birds (3,4,5): “the species” as common unit of biodiversity does not exist (6).

Even ignoring this …

Sinularia Leptoclados (Ehrenberg, 1834) (Cnidaria: Octocorallia) Re-Examined, Catherine S. Mcfadden, Leen P. Van Ofwegen, Yehuda Benayahu

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

Sinularia leptoclados (Ehrenberg, 1834) is re-described. Sinularia leptoclados var. gonatodes Kolonko, 1926 is synonymized with S. maxima Verseveldt, 1977. Two new species of Sinularia with digitiform lobules, leptoclados-type surface clubs and unbranched interior spindles, are described. An updated maximum likelihood tree of Sinularia species with leptoclados-type clubs (clade 5C) based on two mitochondrial genes (mtMutS, COI) and a nuclear gene (28S rDNA) is presented.

Molecular Phylogenetic Evidence Supports A New Family Of Octocorals And A New Genus Of Alcyoniidae (Octocorallia: Alcyonacea), Catherine S. Mcfadden, Leen P. Van Ofwegen

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

Molecular phylogenetic evidence indicates that the octocoral family Alcyoniidae is highly polyphyletic, with genera distributed across Octocorallia in more than 10 separate clades. Most alcyoniid taxa belong to the large and poorly resolved Holaxonia–Alcyoniina clade of octocorals, but members of at least four genera of Alcyoniidae fall outside of that group. As a first step towards revision of the family, we describe a new genus, Parasphaerasclera gen. n., and family, Parasphaerascleridae fam. n., of Alcyonacea to accommodate species of Eleutherobia Pütter, 1900 and Alcyonium Linnaeus, 1758 that have digitiform to digitate or lobate growth forms, completely lack sclerites …

Ancyronyx Erichson, 1847 (Coleoptera, Elmidae) From Mindoro, Philippines, With Description Of The Larvae And Two New Species Using Dna Sequences For The Assignment Of The Developmental Stages, Hendrik Freitag

Biology Faculty Publications

Ancyronyx buhid sp. n. and Ancyronyx tamaraw sp. n. are described based on adults and larvae, matched using their cox1 or cob DNA sequence data. Additional records of Ancyronyx schillhammeri Jäch, 1994 and Ancyronyx minerva Freitag & Jäch, 2007 from Mindoro are listed. The previously unknown larva of Ancyronyx schillhammeri is also described here, aided by cox1 data. The new species and larval stages are described in detail and illustrated by SEM and stacked microscopic images. Keys to the adult and larval Ancyronyx species of Mindoro and an updated checklist of Philippine Ancyronyx species are provided. The usefulness as bioindicators, …

The Phylogenetics Of Tachinidae (Insecta: Diptera) With An Emphasis On Subfamily Structure, Daniel J. Davis

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The parasitoid flies of the Tachinidae family are an important and diverse (>10,000 species) lineage of insects. However, tachinids are not well studied partially due to their confusing classification and taxonomy. DNA sequences were obtained from twenty tribal representatives of Tachinidae, along with eight outgroups in order to phylogenetically reconstruct the superfamilial, subfamilial and tribal relationships of Tachinidae. Seven gene regions of six genes (18S, 28S, COI, CAD, Ef1a, and TPI) were sequenced for each taxon (6214 bp total). Both maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods were used to infer phylogenies. The Sarcophagidae and Oestridae were usually reconstructed as monophyletic. …

Hydraena (Hydraenopsis) Ateneo, New Species (Coleoptera, Hydraenidae) And Other Aquatic Polyphaga From A Small Habitat Patch In A Highly Urbanized Landscape Of Metro Manila, Philippines, Hendrik Freitag

Biology Faculty Publications

Seven species of Hydraenidae, Hydrophilidae and Elmidae are recorded from temporary freshwater habitats at the Ateneo de Manila University Campus in the metropolitan area of Manila, Philippines. They were identified as Enochrus (Lumetus) fragiloides d’Orchymont, Helochares (Hydrobaticus) lepidus d’Orchymont, Helochares (Helochares) pallens (MacLeay), Hydraena (Hydraenopsis) scabra d’Orchymont, Hydraena (Hydraenopsis) palawanensis Freitag & Jäch (new record for Luzon Island), Stenelmis sp. A further hydraenid species was unknown to science and is newly described: Hydraena (Hydraenopsis) ateneo Freitag, sp. n. Aedeagus, gonocoxite, spermatheca, and female tergite X are illustrated by …

Trichoptera Of Mindoro, The Philippines I. New Species And Records From The Baroc River Catchment, Roxas, Oriental Mindoro (Insecta, Trichoptera), Hendrik Freitag, Wolfram Mey

Biology Faculty Publications

The study of a collection of caddisflies from Mindoro yielded a total of 34 species. Eight species proved to be unknown taxa and are described in the present article as: Rhyacophila crenophysetis spec. nov., Agapetus parallelaria spec. nov., Stactobia roxasi spec. nov., Paduniella vicentis spec. nov., Paduniella prodita spec. nov., Psychomyia taugadensis spec. nov., Tinodes hypoplectis spec. nov., and Ecnomus biundularia spec. nov. A list of all collected species is provided.

Phylotastic! Making Tree-Of-Life Knowledge Accessible, Reusable And Convenient, Arlin Stoltzfus, Hilmar Lapp, Helena Deus, Brian Sidlauskas, Christian M. Zmasek, Gaurav Vaidya, Enrico Pontelli, Karen Cranston, Rutger Vos, Campbell O. Webb, Luke J. Harmon, Megan Pirrung, Brian O'Meara, Matthew W. Pennell, Siavash Mirarab, Michael S. Rosenburg, James P. Balhoff, Holly M. Bik, Tracy A. Heath, Peter E. Midford, Joseph W. Brown, Emily Jane Mctavish, Jeet Sukumaran, Mark Westneat, Michael E. Alfaro, Aaron Steele, Greg Jordan

Tracy Heath