Drivers of bird beta diversity in the Western Ghats–Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot are scale dependent: roles of land use, climate, and distance

As part of the Western Ghats-Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot, Sri Lanka harbors a rich and diverse fauna, especially in the perhumid southwestern part of the island. However, many invertebrate groups such as spiders continue to be poorly studied. The present paper reviews our knowledge about Pholcidae, a family of spiders that is well represented in Sri Lanka, both by numerous (10) introduced species and by a rich native fauna in five genera (described native Sri Lankan species in parentheses): Belisana Thorell, 1898 (6), Leptopholcus Simon, 1893 (1), Pholcus Walckenaer, 1805 (4), Tissahamia Huber, 2018 (4), and Wanniyala Huber & Benjamin, 2005 (9). Fourteen species are newly described: Belisana minneriya sp. n., B. badulla sp. n., B. gowindahela sp. n.; Pholcus metta sp. n., P. puranappui sp. n., P. uva sp. n.; Tissahamia karuna sp. n.; Wanniyala mudita sp. n., W. orientalis sp. n., W. upekkha sp. n., W. ohiya sp. n., W. viharekele sp. n., W. mapalena sp. n., and W. labugama sp. n.. All new species are described from males and females. New Sri Lankan records are given for 16 previously described species. Distribution data suggest that most or all of the 24 native species might be endemic to Sri Lanka, but the Indian pholcid fauna remains almost entirely unknown.

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Faculty Opinions recommendation of Local endemism within the Western Ghats-sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot.

Faculty Opinions – Post-Publication Peer Review of the Biomedical Literature ◽

10.3410/f.1024509.287982 ◽

2005 ◽

Author(s):

Roland Jansson

Keyword(s):

Sri Lanka ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Biodiversity Hotspot ◽

The Western Ghats

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Diversification and biogeography of Dawkinsia (Teleostei: Cyprinidae) in the Western Ghats-Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot

Organisms Diversity & Evolution ◽

10.1007/s13127-021-00515-x ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Hiranya Sudasinghe ◽

Rajeev Raghavan ◽

Neelesh Dahanukar ◽

Rohan Pethiyagoda ◽

Lukas Rüber ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sri Lanka ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Biodiversity Hotspot ◽

The Western Ghats

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Phytolith analysis reveals the intensity of past land use change in the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot

Quaternary International ◽

10.1016/j.quaint.2015.11.113 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 437 ◽

pp. 82-89 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Sandra Nogué ◽

Katie Whicher ◽

Ambroise G. Baker ◽

Shonil A. Bhagwat ◽

Kathy J. Willis

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Use Change ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Biodiversity Hotspot ◽

Phytolith Analysis ◽

The Western Ghats ◽

Past Land Use

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Toad radiation reveals into-India dispersal as a source of endemism in the Western Ghats-Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot

BMC Evolutionary Biology ◽

10.1186/1471-2148-9-131 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 131 ◽

Cited By ~ 53

Author(s):

Ines Van Bocxlaer ◽

SD Biju ◽

Simon P Loader ◽

Franky Bossuyt

Keyword(s):

Sri Lanka ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Biodiversity Hotspot ◽

The Western Ghats

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A comprehensive checklist of the earthworms (Annelida: Clitellata: Megadrili) of Sri Lanka, a component of the Western Ghats – Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot

Travaux du Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle “Grigore Antipa” ◽

10.3897/travaux.64.e56877 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 64 (1) ◽

pp. 7-36

Author(s):

Sasankan Prasanth Narayanan ◽

Shailja Kumari ◽

Vijo Thomas Kurien ◽

Ambattu Paili Thomas ◽

Rahul Paliwal ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sri Lanka ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Indian Subcontinent ◽

Biodiversity Hotspot ◽

Type Locality ◽

Distributional Pattern ◽

Earthworm Species ◽

The Western Ghats

A comprehensive checklist of the earthworm species known from Sri Lanka, an island country in the Indian subcontinent, is presented. In total, 81 species and subspecies belonging to 20 genera and 8 families are recorded. Of these, 58 are Sri Lanka endemics, 2 near endemics and 21 exotics. The checklist includes the type locality, any significant subsequent generic placements, and the distributional pattern with province and districts for each species/subspecies within Sri Lanka.

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Acoustic indices as rapid indicators of avian diversity in different land-use types in an Indian biodiversity hotspot

Journal of Ecoacoustics ◽

10.22261/jea.gwpzvd ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 1-1 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Rachel T. Buxton ◽

Samira Agnihotri ◽

V. V. Robin ◽

Anurag Goel ◽

Rohini Balakrishnan

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Mean Squared Error ◽

Analytical Techniques ◽

Biodiversity Hotspot ◽

Avian Species ◽

Biological Information ◽

Land Use Types ◽

Random Forest Models ◽

The Western Ghats

Passive acoustic monitoring is a potentially valuable tool in biodiversity hotspots, where surveying can occur at large scales across land conversion types. However, in order to extract meaningful biological information from resulting enormous acoustic datasets, rapid analytical techniques are required. Here we tested the ability of a suite of acoustic indices to predict avian bioacoustic activity in recordings collected from the Western Ghats, a biodiversity hotspot in southwestern India. Recordings were collected at 28 sites in a range of land-use types, from tea, coffee, and cardamom plantations to remnant forest stands. Using 36 acoustic indices we developed random forest models to predict the richness, diversity, and total number of avian vocalizations observed in recordings. We found limited evidence that acoustic indices predict the richness and total number of avian species vocalizations in recordings (R2 < 0.51). However, acoustic indices predicted the diversity of avian species vocalizations with high accuracy (R2 = 0.64, mean squared error = 0.17). Index models predicted low and high diversity best, with the highest residuals for medium diversity values and when continuous biological sounds were present (e.g., insect sounds >8 sec). The acoustic complexity index and roughness index were the most important for predicting avian vocal diversity. Avian species richness was generally higher among shade-grown crops than in the open tea plantation. Our results suggest that models incorporating acoustic indices can accurately predict low and high avian species diversity from acoustic recordings. Thus, ecoacoustics could be an important contributor to biodiversity monitoring across landscapes like the Western Ghats, which are a complex mosaic of different land-use types and face continued changes in the future.

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DNA barcoding, phylogeny and systematics of Golden-backed frogs (Hylarana, Ranidae) of the Western Ghats-Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot, with the description of seven new species

Contributions to Zoology ◽

10.1163/18759866-08304004 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 83 (4) ◽

pp. 269-S4 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

S.D. Biju ◽

Sonali Garg ◽

Stephen Mahony ◽

Nayana Wijayathilaka ◽

Gayani Senevirathne ◽

...

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

Sri Lanka ◽

Western Ghats ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Morphological Characters ◽

Biodiversity Hotspot ◽

Morphological Data ◽

Valid Species ◽

Natural Habitats ◽

The Western Ghats

A systematic revision of the genus Hylarana in the Western Ghats-Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot is presented. Species delineation in Hylarana is complicated due to a lack of distinct colour differences or striking morphological characters, leading to potential misidentification. We conducted extensive surveys throughout the Western Ghats-Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot and performed multiple gene (16S, COI and Cytb) barcoding using 103 samples collected from cultivated land and natural habitats. Genetic distance comparisons and Neighbor Joining trees indicated the presence of at least 14 candidate species in the region, supported by taxa groupings for all three genetic markers. Utilising a combination of molecular and morphological data, we describe seven new species, doubling the number of Hylarana species previously known from this region. We further demonstrate that H. temporalis, which was originally described from Sri Lanka, was misidentified with the Western Ghats endemic species for nearly 100 years. Conversely, H. aurantiaca was originally described from the Western Ghats and misidentified in Sri Lanka. Our study confirms that the distribution of H. temporalis is restricted to Sri Lanka, while H. aurantiaca is endemic to the Western Ghats, and that there are no shared Hylarana species between the two regions. Hylarana flavescens, H. intermedius and H. montanus, previously considered synonyms of H. temporalis are confirmed as valid species. Hylarana bhagmandlensis is removed from the synonymy of H. aurantiaca and placed as a junior subjective synonym of H. montanus. To establish nomenclatural stability, H. flavescens, H. malabarica and H. temporalis are lectotypified and H. intermedius is neotypified. Detailed descriptions, diagnosis, morphological and genetic comparisons, illustrations and data on distribution and natural history are provided for all species. Phylogenetic analyses based on three mitochondrial markers (16S, COI and Cytb) and a fragment of the nuclear Rag1 gene, show complete endemism of the Western Ghats-Sri Lankan species. Four major groups in this region are identified as: 1 — the Hylarana aurantiaca group, endemic to the Western Ghats; 2 — the Hylarana flavescens group, endemic to the Western Ghats; 3 — the Hylarana temporalis group, endemic to Sri Lanka; and 4 — the Hylarana malabarica group from Sri Lanka and India. The discovery of numerous morphologically cryptic Hylarana species in this region further emphasizes the benefits of utilizing an integrative taxonomic approach for uncovering hidden diversity and highlighting local endemism in the Western Ghats-Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot.

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