†Camelosphecia gen. nov., lost ant-wasp intermediates from the mid-Cretaceous (Hymenoptera, Formicoidea)

Fossils provide primary material evidence for the pattern and timing of evolution. The newly discovered “beast ants” from mid-Cretaceous Burmite, †Camelospheciagen. nov., display an exceptional combination of plesiomorphies, including absence of the metapleural gland, and a series of unique apomorphies. Females and males, represented by †C. fossorsp. nov. and †C. venatorsp. nov., differ in a number of features which suggest distinct sexual biologies. Combined-evidence phylogenetic analysis recovers †Camelosphecia and †Camelomecia as a clade which forms the extinct sister group of the Formicidae. Notably, these genera are only known from alate males and females; workers, if present, have yet to be recovered. Based on ongoing study of the total Aculeata informed by the beast ant genera, we provide a brief diagnosis of the Formicoidea. We also provide the first comprehensive key to the major groupings of Mesozoic Formicoidea, alongside a synoptic classification in which †Zigrasimeciinaestat. nov. and †Myanmyrma marauderacomb. nov. are recognized. Finally, a brief diagnosis of the Formicoidea is outlined.

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Revision of the genus Orthocephalus Fieber, 1858 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae: Orthotylinae)

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.2316.1.1 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 2316 (1) ◽

pp. 1-118 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

ANNA A. NAMYATOVA ◽

FEDOR V. KONSTANTINOV

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Host Plants ◽

Sister Group ◽

Species Level ◽

Sister Group Relationship ◽

Scanning Electron Micrographs ◽

Apical Position ◽

Males And Females ◽

Characteristic Features ◽

Scanning Electron

The Palaearctic genus Orthocephalus Fieber, 1858 is revised. The generic names Anapomella Putshkov, 1961 and Oraniella Reuter, 1894 are synonymized with Orthocephalus Fieber, 1858; providing for three comb. nov. — O. arnoldii (Putshkov, 1961), O. tibialis (Reuter, 1894), and O. tristis (Reuter, 1894). The following new species-level synonymies are established: O. niger Reuter, 1879 = O. bivittatus Fieber, 1864, O. parvulus Reuter, 1891 = O. saltator (Hahn, 1835), and O. beresovskii Reuter, 1906 with all its varieties = O. funestus Jakovlev, 1881. Piezocanum medvedevi Putshkov, 1961 is transferred to Orthocephalus and the replacement name O. putshkovi nom. nov. is proposed to remove the homonymy with O. medvedevi Kiritshenko, 1951. Keys to males and females, and data on distribution and host plants are given for all 23 species of the genus, including Orthocephalus turkmenicus sp. n. (Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkmenistan). Color digital habitus images and genitalic illustrations are provided of female specimens for all species and males for most of the species. Scanning electron micrographs are used to illustrate characteristic features for Orthocephalus and related groups. A phylogenetic analysis, including 33 taxa and 35 characters, is presented. The main results of this study are support for a sister-group relationship between Orthocephalus and Pachytomella, the monophyly of Orthocephalus as here diagnosed, and the relatively apical position of the clade containing Anapomella arnoldii and Oraniella tibialis within Orthocephalus.

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A new male-killing parasitism:Spiroplasmabacteria infect the ladybird beetleAnisosticta novemdecimpunctata(Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)

Parasitology ◽

10.1017/s0031182005009789 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 132 (6) ◽

pp. 757-765 ◽

Cited By ~ 61

Author(s):

M. C. TINSLEY ◽

M. E. N. MAJERUS

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Sex Ratio ◽

High Efficiency ◽

Sex Ratios ◽

Egg Hatch ◽

Hatch Rate ◽

Male Killing ◽

Offspring Sex ◽

Novel Host ◽

Males And Females

Whilst most animals invest equally in males and females when they reproduce, a variety of vertically transmitted parasites has evolved the ability to distort the offspring sex ratios of their hosts. One such group of parasites are male-killing bacteria. Here we report the discovery of females of the ladybirdAnisosticta novemdecimpunctatathat produced highly female-biased offspring sex ratios associated with a 50% reduction in egg hatch rate. This trait was maternally transmitted with high efficiency, was antibiotic sensitive and was infectious following experimental haemolymph injection. We identified the cause as a male-killingSpiroplasmabacterium and phylogenetic analysis of rDNA revealed that it belongs to theSpiroplasma ixodetisclade in which other sex ratio distorters lie. We tested the potential for interspecific horizontal transfer by injection from an infectedA. novemdecimpunctataline into uninfected individuals of the two-spot ladybirdAdalia bipunctata. In this novel host, the bacterium was able to establish infection, transmit vertically and kill male embryos.

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Comparing phylogenetics and linear morphometrics to solve the generic assignment ofParabolinella?triarthroidesHarrington (Trilobita, Olenidae)

Journal of Paleontology ◽

10.1017/jpa.2017.60 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 91 (5) ◽

pp. 919-932 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Daniela S. Monti ◽

Viviana A. Confalonieri

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Morphological Traits ◽

Good Description ◽

Sister Group ◽

Integrative Approach ◽

Original Matrix ◽

Quantitative Characters ◽

Phylogenetic Framework ◽

Methodological Approaches ◽

Source Of Information

AbstractThe use of different methodological approaches together with an exhaustive qualitative study has helped to recognize important morphological traits to distinguish species in a systematic and phylogenetic framework.Parabolinella triarthroidesHarrington, 1938 was described based on two cranidia from the Quebrada de Coquena, Purmamarca, Jujuy province. The generic assignment ofP. triarthroideshas been questioned by a phylogenetic analysis, which resolves this species as the sister group ofBienvilliaClark, 1924. To explore the generic assignment of this species, a revision of the type material, plus a morphometric analysis including specimens ofParabolinellaBrøgger, 1882 andBienvilliawere performed. In addition, the original matrix used in the published phylogeny was reviewed and enlarged, including more species ofBienvillia. Continuous characters were coded in different ways in order to compare how they could affect the ordering of specimens and their phylogenetic relationships. Finally, both methodologies were compared, especially in regard to the behavior of the quantitative characters included in the analyses. From the combined analyses, it is shown that similarities between the cranidium ofP. triarthroidesand all otherParabolinellaspecies are true homologies instead of a by-product of evolutionary convergence. Therefore,P. triarthroidesshould be considered a member of this genus. Finally, this study demonstrates that the best strategy for solving systematic problems in groups where the morphological variation is the only source of information (i.e., fossil taxa without living representatives) is the implementation of an integrative approach, combining different methodological techniques and a good description of specimens.

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The Waterston’s evaporatorium of Ceraphronidae (Ceraphronoidea, Hymenoptera): A morphological barcode to a cryptic taxon

Journal of Hymenoptera Research ◽

10.3897/jhr.85.67165 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 85 ◽

pp. 29-56

Author(s):

Jonah M. Ulmer ◽

István Mikó ◽

Andrew R. Deans ◽

Lars Krogmann

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Potential Function ◽

Parasitoid Wasp ◽

Species Level ◽

Exocrine Gland ◽

Dorsal Vessel ◽

Taxonomic Significance ◽

Character Set ◽

Males And Females ◽

First Time

The Waterston’s evaporatorium (=Waterston’s organ), a cuticular modification surrounding the opening of an exocrine gland located on metasomal tergite 6, is characterized and examined for taxonomic significance within the parasitoid wasp family Ceraphronidae. Modification of the abdominal musculature and the dorsal vessel are also broadly discussed for the superfamily Ceraphronoidea, with a novel abdominal pulsatory organ for Apocrita being discovered and described for the first time. Cuticular modification of T6, due to the presence of the Waterston’s evaporatorium, provides a character complex that allows for genus- and species-level delimitation in Ceraphronidae. The matching of males and females of a species using morphology, a long standing challenge for the group, is also resolved with this new character set. Phylogenetic analysis including 19 Waterston’s evaporatorium related characters provides support for current generic groupings within the Ceraphronidae and elaborates on previously suggested synapomorphies. Potential function of the Waterston’s organ and its effects on the dorsal vessel are discussed.

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Comparative morphology of extant raptorial Mantispoidea (Neuroptera: Mantispidae, Rhachiberothidae) suggests a non-monophyletic Mantispidae and a single origin of the raptorial condition within the superfamily

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.4992.1.1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4992 (1) ◽

pp. 1-89

Author(s):

ADRIAN ARDILA-CAMACHO ◽

CALEB CALIFRE MARTINS ◽

ULRIKE ASPÖCK ◽

ATILANO CONTRERAS-RAMOS

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Comparative Morphology ◽

Sister Group ◽

Sister Group Relationship ◽

Wing Venation ◽

Morphological Studies ◽

Starting Point ◽

The Family ◽

Evolutionary Context ◽

New Interpretation

Adult external morphology of the extant raptorial Mantispoidea (Insecta: Neuroptera: Mantispidae and Rhachiberothidae) is compared emphasizing the morphology of the subfamily Symphrasinae as a key group to understand the phylogenetic relationships among the members of the superfamily. Plega dactylota Rehn, 1939 is thoroughly characterized in order to exemplify the morphology of the Symphrasinae. Additionally, following a review of the literature and examination of comparative material of Dilaridae, Berothidae, Rhachiberothidae and all Mantispidae subfamilies, a new interpretation of the components of the raptorial apparatus (i.e., head, prothorax, grasping forelegs, as well as integumentary specializations) is presented. Also, wing venation for these groups is reinterpreted, and new homology hypotheses for wing venation are proposed based on tracheation and comparative analyses. Given the high morphological divergence on the genital sclerites within the Mantispoidea, plus the confusing previous usage of neutral terminology and terms referring to appendages across taxonomic and morphological studies, we attempt to standardize, simplify, and situate terminology in an evolutionary context under the “gonocoxite concept” (multi-coxopod hypothesis). The remarkable morphological similarity of the genital sclerites of Symphrasinae and Rhachiberothidae (sensu U. Aspöck & Mansell 1994) with the Nallachinae (Dilaridae) was taken as a starting point to understand the morphology of other Mantispidae subfamilies. Based on these morphological comparisons, we provide a revised phylogenetic analysis of Mantispoidea. This new phylogenetic analysis supports a sister group relationship between the family Rhachiberothidae, comprising Rhachiberothinae and Symphrasinae, and the family Mantispidae, including the subfamily Mantispinae and its sister taxa Drepanicinae and Calomantispinae, which may represent a single subfamily. Based on these analyses, raptorial condition probably evolved a single time in these insects and subsequently became diversified in the two sister clades of the raptorial Mantispoidea.

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A New Cypselomorph Bird from the Middle Eocene of Germany and the Early Diversification of Avian Aerial Insectivores

The Condor ◽

10.1093/condor/107.2.342 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 107 (2) ◽

pp. 342-352 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Gerald Mayr

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Middle Eocene ◽

Sister Group ◽

Food Competition ◽

Early Miocene ◽

New Taxon ◽

Insectivorous Birds ◽

Dominant Group ◽

Early Diversification ◽

Aerial Insectivores

Abstract A new taxon of the Cypselomorphae—the clade including nightjars, potoos, owlet-nightjars, and apodiform birds—is described from the middle Eocene of Messel in Germany. Phylogenetic analysis of 49 characters shows Protocypselomorphus manfredkelleri gen. et sp. nov. to be the sister group of all other cypselomorph taxa, although this placement was not robust to bootstrapping. As evidenced by its swift-like beak, long forearm, and reduced feet, P. manfredkelleri was hawking insects on the wing. Thus it adds a distinctive new taxon to the already diverse assemblage of Paleogene aerial insectivores, all of which belong to the Cypselomorphae. This strongly contrasts with the extant avifauna where many aerial insectivores belong to songbirds, and among the insectivorous cypselomorph taxa only swifts and nightjars are species rich and widely distributed. The diversity of aerial insectivores among the Cypselomorphae may have been reduced by food competition with songbirds, which do not become the dominant group of insectivorous birds before the early Miocene. Una Nueva Ave Cipselomorfa del Eoceno Medio de Alemania y la Diversificación Temprana de las Aves Insectívoras Aéreas Resumen. Se describe un nuevo taxón de Cypselomorphae, el clado que incluye a las familias Caprimulgidae, Nyctibiidae, Aegothelidae y a las aves apodiformes, del Eoceno medio de Messel en Alemania. Un análisis filogenético de 49 caracteres muestra que Protocypselomorphus manfredkelleri gen. et sp. nov. es el grupo hermano de los demás taxa de cipselomorfos, aunque esta posición no fue apoyada por el análisis de bootstrap. Como lo evidencia su pico tipo vencejo, antebrazo largo y patas pequeñas, P. manfredkelleri cazaba insectos al vuelo. Así, este hallazgo añade un nuevo taxón al grupo ya diverso de los insectívoros aéreos del Paleógeno, todos los cuales pertenecen al grupo de los cipselomorfos. Esto contrasta fuertemente con la avifauna actual, en que muchos insectívoros aéreos pertenecen al grupo de los paseriformes, mientras que de los taxa de insectívoros cipselomorfos sólo los apodiformes y caprimúlgidos presentan alta diversidad específica y se encuentran ampliamente distribuidos. La diversidad de los insectívoros aéreos en los cipselomorfos pude haberse reducido debido a la competencia por alimento con las aves paseriformes, las cuales no se transforman en el grupo dominante de aves insectívoras sino hasta el Mioceno temprano.

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Flightless Disphaerona rediscovered in China: mtDNA phylogeography of the Yunnan clade and the sobering state of fungus weevil phylogenetics (Coleoptera: Anthribidae)

Fragmenta Entomologica ◽

10.4081/fe.2016.174 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 48 (2) ◽

pp. 89 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Vasily V. Grebennikov

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Dna Barcode ◽

Sister Group ◽

The State ◽

Female Genitalia ◽

Dabie Mountains ◽

Male And Female ◽

The Family

This paper reports discovery of the genus Disphaerona Jordan, 1902 in two widely separated regions in China: in three isolated highlands in Yunnan (the Cang Shan Range, Mt. Jizu and Mt. Haba) and in the Dabie Mountains of Hubei, at the border with Anhui. Till present the genus was known from China only from four specimens of D. chinensis (including its holotype) described from Sichuan in 1995. Sixteen specimens from each of the three newly detected localities in Yunnan were DNA barcoded and the data were made publicly available at dx.doi.org/10.5883/DS-DISPHAE. Temporal phylogenetic analysis revealed a topology suggesting monophyly and recent (0.2–0.4 Ma) origin of the populations on both Mt. Jizu and Mt. Haba. The population on the Cang Shan Range harbours representatives of both clades forming the ingroup, mtDNA of which diverged some 7.9 Ma. The habitus of the holotype of the only nominative Chinese Disphaerona species, D. chinensis, is illustrated, together with habitus and male and female genitalia of specimens newly discovered in both Yunnan and Hubei. All specimens of Disphaerona from Yunnan are seemingly conspecific and are taxonomically assigned to D. chinensis. Two similar males and one sympatric but dissimilar, smaller female from the Dabie Mountains do not have associated DNA barcode data. It remains unknown whether the three Dabie Mountains specimens are conspecific or even congeneric; pending this uncertainty they are tentatively treated as Disphaerona without a Linnaean name. Disphaerona population in the Dabie Mountains, if indeed a member of this hypothesised clade, forms the easternmost record of the genus. Monophyly and sister group of Disphaerona are briefly discussed and both are shown as unknown and unverifiable. A brief overview of the state of phylogenetic knowledge of Anthribidae is given, which is practically non-existing and with neither the family, nor any of its tribes and the vast majority of genera tested as monophyletic.

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Taxonomic revision and phylogenetic relationships of Dasyloricaria Isbrücker & Nijssen, 1979 (Siluriformes: Loricariidae), with description of a new species

Neotropical Ichthyology ◽

10.1590/1982-0224-20150120 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Alejandro Londoño-Burbano ◽

Roberto E. Reis

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

New Species ◽

Phylogenetic Relationships ◽

Taxonomic Revision ◽

Sister Group ◽

Valid Species ◽

Maracaibo Basin ◽

New Synonyms ◽

Branchial Arches ◽

A New Species

ABSTRACT A taxonomic revision and phylogenetic analysis were completed for Dasyloricaria . The genus includes three valid species: D . filamentosa and D . latiura previously included in the genus, and a new species described herein. Dasyloricaria have a restricted trans-Andean distribution, with D . filamentosa occurring at the lower and middle Magdalena, lower Cauca, and Sinu in Colombia, and lago Maracaibo basin in Colombia and Venezuela; D . latiura in the Atrato and the Tuyra basins in Colombia and Panama, respectively; and the new species in the upper and middle Magdalena basin in Colombia. New synonyms for D . filamentosa and D . latiura are proposed, and a lectotype is designated for the latter. Dasyloricaria is herein recognized as monophyletic, with D . filamentosa as the sister group of D . latiura , and the new speciesas sister to that clade. Spatuloricaria is hypothesized to be the sister group of Dasyloricaria based on synapomorphies of the neurocranium, branchial arches and external morphology features. The subtribe Rineloricariina was partially corroborated through the phylogenetic analysis. An identification key for the species of Dasyloricaria is provided.

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The oldest fungus gnat of the tribe Exechiini in the lowermost Eocene Oise amber (Diptera: Mycetophilidae)

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.4722.1.9 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4722 (1) ◽

pp. 91-98

Author(s):

MARIE CAMIER ◽

ANDRE NEL

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

Sister Group ◽

Fungus Gnat ◽

Eocene Amber ◽

New Discovery

Eoexechia gallica gen. n. and sp. n., oldest record of the fungus gnat tribe Exechiini, is described from the Lowermost Eocene amber of France. It falls as sister group of all the extant Exechiini after its addition to the morphological phylogenetic analysis of the tribe. Its discovery suggests a Paleocene age for the Exechiini, in accordance with the current phylogenetic dating. This new discovery will help to date the whole clade in future phylogenies.

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Phylogenetic analysis of the genus Corotoca, with description of a new genus and species from Brazil (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Aleocharinae)

Insect Systematics & Evolution ◽

10.1163/1876312x-bja10005 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-45

Author(s):

Bruno Zilberman

Keyword(s):

Phylogenetic Analysis ◽

New Species ◽

Species Identification ◽

New Genus ◽

Cladistic Analysis ◽

Sister Group ◽

Exhaustive Search ◽

New Genus And Species ◽

A New Species

Corotoca is a strictly Neotropical genus of termitophilous beetles associated with termites of genus Constrictotermes. A cladistic analysis based on 13 terminal taxa and 60 characters (57 morphological and three behavioral) was conducted. The exhaustive search with equally weighted characters resulted in two most parsimonious trees with 95 steps. Spirachtha is proposed to be the sister group of the monophyletic “subgroup Corotocae” (Corotoca + Cavifonexus gen. nov.), based on eleven synapomorhphies (ten exclusive and one homoplastic). The monophyly of Corotoca is supported here, including six species associated with Constrictotermes cyphergaster: (Corotoca hitchensi sp. nov + (C. melantho + C. pseudomelantho sp. nov.) + ((C. fontesi + (C. phylo + C. araujoi)). A new genus, Cavifronexus gen. nov., is proposed to two species associated with Constrictotermes cavifrons (Holmgren, 1910): Cavifronexus guyanae comb. nov., from Guyana and Brazil, previously described as Corotoca; and a new species, Cavifronexus papaveroi sp. nov., from Brazil. This work also includes descriptions, redescriptions, and illustrations for all species and genera. Keys for genera and species identification in “subgroup Corotocae” are also provided.

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