Mammals of the San Pedro-Mezquital River Basin, Durango-Nayarit, Mexico

The San Pedro–Mezquital River Basin is located in the southern Sierra Madre Occidental, at the Nearctic– Neotropical transition. The river traverses the Sierra through a canyon that reaches over 1000 m in depth. Based on examination of museum specimens, literature records, and our own collections, we documented the occurrence of 120 species (24.6% of the Mexican terrestrial mammals), 24 endemic to Mexico. Richness was comparable with other megadiverse areas of Mexico, and higher than any other Nearctic–Neotropical transition area, moreover species richness is likely to rise as survey continues. Contrary to expectation, distribution of mammals across the basin not only reflected the Nearctic–Neotropical divide, but a third fauna that is a mixture of tropical, temperate and desert species was identifiable at the canyon. Anthropogenic threats including damming of the river, uncontrolled cattle grazing, and pollution from domestic sources, call for effective management strategies to preserve one of the most biodiverse areas of Mexico.

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Morphology of two native catfishes from the Sierra Madre Occidental, México: I. pricei and Ictalurus sp. (Siluriformes: Ictaluridae)

Revista de Biología Tropical ◽

10.15517/rbt.v68i2.37041 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 68 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Gorgonio Ruiz-Campos ◽

Alejandro Varela-Romero ◽

David Ceseña-Gallegos ◽

Carlos Alonso Ballesteros-Córdova ◽

Sergio Sánchez-Gonzáles

Keyword(s):

River Basin ◽

Function Analysis ◽

River Basins ◽

Morphological Characters ◽

Evolutionarily Significant Unit ◽

Sierra Madre Occidental ◽

San Lorenzo ◽

Dorsal Fin ◽

Fin Ray ◽

Sierra Madre

Introduction: Morphotypes of native catfish of the genus Ictalurus (Siluriformes: Ictaluridae) are known to occur in allopatry in the northern Sierra Madre Occidental of Mexico, with only the Yaqui catfish (Ictalurus pricei) taxonomically described. Recent genetic analysis of these morphotypes has revealed the monophyly of the I. pricei complex, which indicates Ictalurus sp. from the Culiacán River and San Lorenzo River basins as its nearest genetic relative and recognizes as an evolutionarily significant unit the Culiacán River and San Lorenzo River morphotypes. Objective: To compare the meristic and morphometric characteristics of the catfish of the Culiacán River basin with its nearest genetic relative, the Yaqui catfish, in order to determine the presence of distinctive morphological characters that support genetic evidence previously reported for these morphotypes. Methods: Catfish specimens were collected during various field expeditions (1990-2012) to remote sites of the Sierra Madre Occidental and conducted in the Yaqui River and Culiacán River basins with the purpose of morphological comparison. Forty-five morphological characters (40 morphometric and five meristic) were examined in 76 adult specimens – 52 Ictalurus sp. and 24 Ictalurus pricei. Three groups were subject to a discriminant function analysis (DFA), including two Ictalurus sp. groups from the Humaya River and Tamazula River sub-basins, representing the Culiacán River basin, and one I. pricei group representing the Yaqui River basin. The standardized measurements and meristic data of the catfish morphotypes were compared by means of DFA. Results: The DFA revealed 12 characters to be significantly different (P < 0.01) among the groups compared. The morphological characters separating the Ictalurus sp. (Culiacán River basin) from the Yaqui catfish were associated with lower anal, pelvic and pectoral fin ray numbers, shorter head and predorsal lengths, shorter longest lateral barbel and longest dorsal ray lengths and a narrower premaxilar dentary plate; and finally longer distances in Ictalurus sp. for dorsal-fin origin to last anal-fin ray base and dorsal-fin origin to posterior end of the adipose fin base. The standardized coefficients for canonical variables 1 and 2 accounted for 85.6 % and 14.4 % of the total variation, respectively. Conclusions: The distinctive morphological characters of the Ictalurus sp. found in the Culiacán River basin, combined with the known mitochondrial evidence for this morphotype, identify it as an evolutionarily significant unit that requires description as a new species based on taxonomical protocols.

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Fishes in the lower San Pedro Mezquital River, Nayarit, Mexico

Check List ◽

10.15560/11.6.1797 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 11 (6) ◽

pp. 1797 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Alfonso Ángel González-Díaz ◽

Miriam Soria-Barreto ◽

Leonardo Martínez-Cardenas ◽

Manuel Blanco y Correa

Keyword(s):

Native Species ◽

New Records ◽

Fish Fauna ◽

Biosphere Reserve ◽

The State ◽

Sierra Madre Occidental ◽

San Pedro ◽

First Approximation ◽

Sierra Madre ◽

Negative Impacts

The San Pedro Mezquital River is the seventh largest river in Mexico, and flows through the Sierra Madre Occidental into the Marismas Nacionales Biosphere Reserve, on the coast of the state of Nayarit. The present study is to conform a systematic checklist of fishes in the lower basin of the San Pedro Mezquital River. In total, 52 species were collected from 24 families. Four native species were collected (Atherinella crystallina, Poecilia butleri, Poeciliopsis latidens and Poeciliopsis prolifica) that are federally protected. Five of the collected species were new records for the state of Nayarit. This checklist constitutes a first approximation of the fish fauna present in the San Pedro Mezquital River. However, the construction of the Las Cruces dam upstream, will modify the basin hydrology, worsen the introduction of exotic species and create habitat loss, which can have immediate negative impacts on the fish communities in this region.

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A Fluted Point from Durango, Mexico

American Antiquity ◽

10.2307/277113 ◽

1953 ◽

Vol 18 (4) ◽

pp. 394-395 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

José L. Lorenzo

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

The State ◽

Archaeological Remains ◽

Santa Barbara ◽

Southern Illinois ◽

Sierra Madre Occidental ◽

San Pedro ◽

Field School ◽

The Pacific ◽

Sierra Madre

Under the direction of J. Charles Kelley of Southern Illinois University, an anthropological field school carried out investigations in the State of Durango, Mexico, from June 22 to August 8, 1952, with the permission of the Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia.Their camp was established on the rancho “Santa Barbara,” property of Fred Weicker, about 50 kms. west of Durango city, in the Sierra Madre Occidental. The camp was on the side of an arroyo, a branch of the Rio Mimbres, which after joining the Rio Chico, flows into the Rio Tunal. This becomes the Mesquital-San Pedro and flows into the Pacific through the State of Nayarit. The camp was approximately 2280 m. above sea level, near archaeological remains consisting of house-mounds, ceramics, and obsidian artifacts.

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STABLE ISOTOPE COMPOSITIONS OF MODERN SURFACE WATER IN THE SIERRA MADRE OCCIDENTAL, MEXICO

10.1130/abs/2020sc-343613 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jordan M. Foote ◽

◽

Majie Fan ◽

Aaron J. Martin ◽

Lu Zhu

Keyword(s):

Surface Water ◽

Stable Isotope ◽

Sierra Madre Occidental ◽

Sierra Madre

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Survival and Inoculum Production of Gibberella zeae in Wheat Residue

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis.2004.88.7.724 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 88 (7) ◽

pp. 724-730 ◽

Cited By ~ 91

Author(s):

S. A. Pereyra ◽

R. Dill-Macky ◽

A. L. Sims

Keyword(s):

Management Strategies ◽

Soil Surface ◽

Triticum Aestivum L ◽

Gibberella Zeae ◽

Effective Management ◽

Head Blight ◽

Fusarium Spp ◽

Residue Decomposition ◽

Inoculum Production ◽

Mesh Bags

Survival and inoculum production of Gibberella zeae (Schwein.) Petch (anamorph Fusarium graminearum (Schwabe)), the causal agent of Fusarium head blight of wheat and barley, was related to the rate of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) residue decomposition. Infested wheat residue, comprising intact nodes, internodes, and leaf sheaths, was placed in fiberglass mesh bags on the soil surface and at 7.5- to 10-cm and 15- to 20-cm depths in chisel-plowed plots and 15 to 20 cm deep in moldboard-plowed plots in October 1997. Residue was sampled monthly from April through November during 1998 and every 2 months through April to October 1999. Buried residue decomposed faster than residue placed on the soil surface. Less than 2% of the dry-matter residue remained in buried treatments after 24 months in the field, while 25% of the residue remained in the soil-surface treatment. Survival of G. zeae on node tissues was inversely related to the residue decomposition rate. Surface residue provided a substrate for G. zeae for a longer period of time than buried residue. Twenty-four months after the initiation of the trial, the level of colonization of nodes in buried residue was half the level of colonization of residue on the soil surface. Colonization of node tissues by G. zeae decreased over time, but increased for other Fusarium spp. Ascospores of G. zeae were still produced on residue pieces after 23 months, and these spores were capable of inducing disease. Data from this research may assist in developing effective management strategies for residues infested with G. zeae.

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Monitoring micropollutants in the Swist river basin

Water Science & Technology ◽

10.2166/wst.2016.392 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 74 (10) ◽

pp. 2280-2296 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Ekkehard Christoffels ◽

Andrea Brunsch ◽

Jens Wunderlich-Pfeiffer ◽

Franz Michael Mertens

Keyword(s):

River Basin ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Flame Retardants ◽

Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽

Beta Blockers ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Sewer System ◽

Receiving River ◽

Western Germany ◽

Industrial Compounds

Micropollutant pathways were studied for the Swist river basin (Western Germany). The aim was to verify the effectiveness of a monitoring approach to detect micropollutants entering the river. In a separate sewer system, water was frequently found to be contaminated with micropollutants. Improper connections of sewage canals to the stormwater network seemed to be the cause of pollution. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) exerted the largest influence on micropollutants for the receiving river. During a flu outbreak, antibiotics in the Swist stemming from WWTPs increased remarkably. Elevated levels of pharmaceuticals were measured in discharges from a combined sewer overflow (CSO). The study showed that the pharmaceutical load of a CSO was significantly reduced by advanced treatment with a retention soil filter. Painkillers, an anticonvulsant and beta blockers were the most often detected pharmaceuticals in the sewage of urban areas. Herbicides, flame retardants and industrial compounds were also observed frequently. On cropland, Chloridazon and Terbuthylazine compounds were often found in landscape runoff. Fungicides and insecticides were the most frequent positive findings in runoff from orchards. The paper shows that a coherent approach to collecting valid information regarding micropollutants and to addressing relevant pathways as a basis for appropriate management strategies could be established.

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