PROBLEMS OF DIFFERENTIATION AND CORRELATION OF ALLUVIAL DEPOSITS OF THE NEO-PLEISTOCENE IN THE LOWER OB REGION

The Upper Neo-Pleistocene alluvial deposits lie in a close hypsometric position in outcrops of the Lower Ob Region right bank. Their top usually does not rise above the level of 5 m above the tow-path edge. At the same level, glacial erratic masses of the Middle Pleistocene alluvium were recorded in a number of areas. The height of the 1st and 2nd sites of terraces (on average from 5 to 10–15 m) depends on the thickness of subaerial deposits overlapping the alluvium. The 3rd terrace above flood-plain of the Bolshaya (Big) Ob has no geomorphological expression, since the alluvium of the first Late Neo-Pleistocene interglacial period without ablation is drape overlain by parallely bedded precipitates of the glacier-ice-blocked lake of the first Late Neo-Pleistocene glaciation. Thus, the height of sites of terraced surfaces does not directly correlate with the age of their alluvial basement. Therefore, the geomorphological method for differentiation of river sediments is not effective for this region. In addition, the problems of differentiation and correlation of alluvial deposits of the Lower Ob Region right bank are complicated by the presence of fluvioglacial incisions of deglaciation stages of the Middle Neo-Pleistocene and Upper Neo-Pleistocene glaciations.

Systematics and Biogeography of the New World Genus Plumolepilius (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

Plumolepilius Barrios-Izás & Anderson, 2016 is a leaf litter weevil genus that inhabits montane broadleaf forests from southern Mexico to northern Panama. The genus consists of 27 species, 22 distributed in the Chiapas Highlands province (Mexican Transition Zone) and 5 found in the Pacific dominion (Neotropical region) in Costa Rica and Panamá. Here, we analyze the phylogenetic relationships of the species of Plumolepilius based on 20 external body characters and 9 characters from the genitalia. The first dichotomy of the cladogram separates two species from the Pacific dominion from the remaining species of Plumolepilius from the Chiapas Highlands province and three species restricted to the Pacific dominion. We hypothesize that redundant distributions in the taxon-area cladogram of the genus may be due to dispersal events, probably during the Pleistocene glaciations.

Phylogeography and molecular species delimitation reveal cryptic diversity in Potamolithus (Caenogastropoda: Tateidae) of the southwest basin of the Andes

The species of the genus Potamolithus inhabiting the southwestern basin of the Andes are difficult to distinguish due to small size and similar shell morphology. Only Potamolithus australis and Potamolithus santiagensis have been traditionally recognized in this region, but the occurrence of several morphologically similar undescribed populations could increase the regional richness. Here we delimit described and potentially undescribed cryptic species of the genus using partial sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene. Network analysis and diversity indices inferred six highly differentiated haplogroups, many of them sympatric and widespread in the study area. Phylogeographic analyses suggest a scenario of recent diversification and the occurrence of multiple refuges during the successive Pleistocene glaciations. Phylogenetic analysis also recovered six major clades that showed no relationship with physiography. Species delimitation analyses consistently recognized three or four candidate species apart from P. australis and P. santiagensis. Divergence times indicate that speciation of Chilean Potamolithus began at the end of the Pliocene, probably driven by climatic rather than geographic events. Considering the high inter- and intra-basin genetic diversity, conservation efforts should be focused on protecting sympatric taxa in the basins with the highest species richness.

Discovery of cryptic plant diversity on the rooftops of the Alps

High elevation temperate mountains have long been considered species poor owing to high extinction or low speciation rates during the Pleistocene. We performed a phylogenetic and population genomic investigation of an emblematic high-elevation plant clade (Androsace sect. Aretia, 31 currently recognized species), based on plant surveys conducted during alpinism expeditions. We inferred that this clade originated in the Miocene and continued diversifying through Pleistocene glaciations, and discovered three novel species of Androsace dwelling on different bedrock types on the rooftops of the Alps. This highlights that temperate high mountains have been cradles of plant diversity even during the Pleistocene, with in-situ speciation driven by the combined action of geography and geology. Our findings have an unexpected historical relevance: H.-B. de Saussure likely observed one of these species during his 1788 expedition to the Mont Blanc and we describe it here, over two hundred years after its first sighting.

Geological and Pleistocene glaciations explain the demography and disjunct distribution of red panda (A. fulgens) in eastern Himalayas

Pleistocene glaciations facilitated climatic oscillations that caused for enormous heterogeneity in landscapes, and consequently affected demography and distribution patterns of the mountain endemic species. In this context, we investigated demographic history and population genetic structure of red panda, distributed along the geographical proximity in the southern edge of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Bayesian based phylogeny demonstrated that red panda diverged about 0.30 million years ago (CI 0.23–0.39) into two phylogenetic (sub) species, that correspond to the middle-late Pleistocene transition. The observed intraspecific clades with respect to Himalayan and Chinese red panda indicated restricted gene flow resulting from the Pleistocene glaciations in the eastern and southern Tibetan Plateau. We found Himalayan red panda population at least in KL-India declined abruptly in last 5–10 thousand years after being under demographic equilibrium. We suggest revisiting the ongoing conservation activities through cross border collaboration by developing multi-nationals, and multi-lateral species-oriented conservation action plans to support the red panda populations in transboundary landscapes.

The origin of the mountain (goltzy) deserts of the European Arctic: A review of theories .

The main theories of origin of the European Arctic tundra and subarctic mountain(goltzy)deserts are reviewed, in application to the Kola Peninsula. The theory of «tabula rasa» stated that all plants died during glaciation, and then immigrated fromtheCentral Europe, Siberia, and British Isles. According to another theory, during several Pleistocene glaciations, plants survived in ice-free refugia. Modern bota-ny point of views supports post-glacial migration of species and rather «tabula rasa»theory. The border of the timberline moving up inthe Holocene thermal optimum did not affect the subarctic mountain de-serts, unlike the tundra zone. Based on this, the evolution of the high mountain deserts vegetation probably meant the establishment of groups of species that differ from modern communities of the lower disposed tundra zone. Many types of mountain tundra vegetation, apparently, came from the mountains of North-East Azia; however, many species have been originated from the forest communi-ties. The subarctic mountain deserts have apparently not changed since the retreat of the glacier.

Discovery of cryptic plant diversity in one of the harshest environments: the rooftops of the Alps

High altitude temperate mountains have long been considered devoid of life owing to high extinction or low speciation rates during the Pleistocene. We performed a phylogenetic and population genomic investigation of an emblematic high-altitude plant clade (Androsace sect. Aretia, 31 currently recognized species), based on plant surveys conducted during alpinism expeditions. Surprisingly, we inferred that this clade originated in the Miocene and continued diversifying through Pleistocene glaciations, and discovered three novel species of Androsace dwelling on different bedrock types on the rooftops of the Alps. This suggests that temperate high mountains have been cradles of plant diversity even during the Pleistocene, with in-situ speciation driven by the combined action of geography and geology. Our findings have an unexpected historical relevance: H.-B. de Saussure likely observed one of these species during his 1788 expedition to the Mont Blanc and we describe it here, over two hundred years after its first sighting.