Systematics of Hypnea (Cystocloniaceae, Rhodophyta) from coastal North Carolina, with a first report of Calliblepharis saidana from the United States Atlantic Coast

Complete and/or partial DNA sequences for the plastid-encoded rbcL gene and the 5′ end of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (COI-5P) gene were used to re-examine the systematics of Hypnea species (Cystocloniaceae, Rhodophyta) from North Carolina, USA. These data, combined with light microscopic observations, indicate that two species (Hypnea cryptica and H. musciformis sensu stricto) are present in nearshore waters of coastal North Carolina. Molecular and morphological analyses with topotype material of Hypnea volubilis from North Carolina offshore waters revealed that it and Calliblepharis saidana are conspecific. Hypnea volubilis is proposed as a heterotypic synonym of C. saidana. This is the first report of Calliblepharis from the United States Atlantic coast and only the second report from the western hemisphere.

A new Gammarus species from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (China) with a key to Xinjiang freshwater gammarids (Crustacea, Amphipoda, Gammaridae)

The Gammarus zhouqiongi sp. nov. are described and illustrated from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. The new species is characterized by pereopods III-IV with long straight setae on posterior margins and inner ramus of uropod III 0.7 times as long as outer ramus. Detailed morphological comparisons with related species are discussed. The mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase 1 (COI) sequence differs from the other Gammarus species in Xinjiang by 16.6%-32.4% in K2P distance. The mitochondrial (COI, 16S) and nuclear markers (28S, EF1α) show that the new species is an independent branch in the phylogenetic tree. A key to identify Gammarus species in the Xinjiang are also provided.

The genus Microniphargus (Crustacea, Amphipoda): evidence for three lineages distributed across northwestern Europe and transfer from Niphargidae to Pseudoniphargidae

Microniphargus leruthi Schellenberg, 1934 (Amphipoda: Niphargidae) was first described based on samples collected in Belgium and placed in a monotypic genus within the family Niphargidae. However, some details of its morphology as well as recent phylogenetic studies suggest that Microniphargus may be more closely related to Pseudoniphargus (Amphipoda: Pseudoniphargidae) than to Niphargus. Moreover, M. leruthi ranges over 1,469 km from Ireland to Germany, which is striking since only a few niphargids have confirmed ranges in excess of 200 km. To find out the phylogenetic position of M. leruthi and check whether it may be a complex of cryptic species, we collected material from Ireland, England and Belgium then sequenced fragments of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene as well as of the nuclear 28S ribosomal gene. Phylogenetic analyses of both markers confirm that Microniphargus is closer to Pseudoniphargus than to Niphargus, leading us to reallocate Microniphargus to Pseudoniphargidae. We also identify three congruent mito-nuclear lineages present respectively in Ireland, in both Belgium and England, and in England only (with the latter found in sympatry at one location), suggesting that M. leruthi is a complex of at least three species with a putative centre of origin in England.

Geographic isolation created distinct pelage characters in Finlayson’s squirrel on isolated island offshore of the Indochina Peninsula in Central Vietnam

We found distinct pelage characters in Finlayson’s squirrel (Callosciurus finlaysonii) population, which is endemic to Lao Island of the Cham Islands, located off the coast of central Vietnam. Among squirrels of the ‘C. erythraeus-finlaysonii complex’, which consists of all forms of C. erythraeus and C. finlaysonii, mitochondrial cytochrome-b sequences show that the Lao Island squirrel forms a cluster with C. finlaysonii with external characters of C. erythraeus flavimanus, defined previously as ‘C. finlaysonii morpha flavimanus’. Both squirrel forms, however, differed in pelage colour. This different colouration may have arisen from the effect of geographic isolation.

A new species of the genus Hylcalosia Fischer (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Alysiinae) from South Korea, with a key to the Korean species

The species of the genus Hylcalosia Fischer, 1967 (Braconidae: Alysiinae) from South Korea are revised. One species, Hylcalosia bicolorsp. nov., is new to science. They are described and illustrated herein and an identification key to the Korean species is added. In addition, the DNA barcode region of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) has been analysed for the new species and H. sutchanica is used for genetic comparison.

Occurrence and molecular identification of an invasive rice strain of fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) from Sindh, Pakistan, using mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I gene sequences

The fall armyworm (FAW), an invasive pest of maize, is an emerging threat in Southern Asia after America and Europe. Recently, this notorious pest has also been found in different areas of Pakistan. To assess its presence in Pakistan, a survey was carried out in the provinces of Punjab, Sindh, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during May–October 2019. We observed the highest incidence of FAW in Sindh with maximum impact in districts Tando-Allahyar and Hyderabad. These samples were identified as Spodoptera frugiperda on the morphological and taxonomical bases. However, morphological identification of this pest is very difficult at early larval instars. Here, we use the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) gene region for the precise identification of larva of this invasive pest at species level. Two different regions of COI gene (COI-5′ and COI-3′) were used as molecular markers for the identification of this species. DNA sequence similarity searches of the obtained COI gene sequences (NCBI GenBank Accession Nos. MW241537, MW241538, MW349515, MW349516, MW349493 and MW349494) revealed that genetically it is more than 99% identical to S. frugiperda. The phylogenetic analysis indicated it as the rice-strain (R-strain). Both 3′- and 5′-fragment tree topologies showed that the collected samples of the FAW species belong to the R-strain. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report providing molecular evidence for the existence of R-strain of S. frugiperda that was found feeding on maize crop in Sindh, Pakistan, using COI gene sequences as a marker.

The genus Ceratrimeria Bӧrner, 1906 (Collembola: Neanuridae, Pseudachorutinae) in the fauna of Japan

Two Japanese species, Ceratrimeria takaoensis (Kinoshita, 1916) and C. yasumatsui (Uchida, 1940), were redescribed based on fresh material, including that from the type localities and using modern morphological criteria. The main diagnostic characters of the genus Ceratrimeria are also discussed. In addition, nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 and 16S ribosomal RNA genes of specimens obtained from the type localities of both congeners are analyzed allowing for their species statuses to be confirmed. Barcoded specimens are deposited in the National Museum of Nature and Science, Tsukuba, Japan and the DNA sequence data are available in the International Nucleotide Sequence Databases.