Contiguous Genome Sequence of Frankia sp. Strain ArI3, Isolated from Root Nodules of Alnus rubra Bong

We report the genome sequence of Frankia sp. strain ArI3, recovered as a single contig from one run of the Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) MinION instrument. The genome has a G+C content of 72%, is 7,541,222 bp long, and contains 5,427 predicted protein-coding genes.

Using Discrete-Point LiDAR to Classify Tree Species in the Riparian Pacific Northwest, USA

Practical methods for tree species identification are important for both land management and scientific inquiry. LiDAR has been widely used for species mapping due to its ability to characterize 3D structure, but in structurally complex Pacific Northwest forests, additional research is needed. To address this need and to determine the feasibility of species modeling in such forests, we compared six approaches using five algorithms available in R’s lidR package and Trimble’s eCognition software to determine which approach most consistently identified individual trees across a heterogenous riparian landscape. We then classified segments into Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), black cottonwood (Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa), and red alder (Alnus rubra). Classification accuracies based on the best-performing segmentation method were 91%, 92%, and 84%, respectively. To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate tree species modeling from LiDAR in a natural Pacific Northwest forest, and the first to model Pacific Northwest species at the landscape scale. Our results suggest that LiDAR alone may provide enough information on tree species to be useful to land managers in limited applications, even under structurally challenging conditions. With slight changes to the modeling approach, even higher accuracies may be possible.

The genus Melanconis (Diaporthales)

The genus Melanconis (Melanconidaceae, Diaporthales) in the strict sense is here re-evaluated regarding phylogenetic structure, taxonomy, distribution and ecology. Using a matrix of sequences from ITS, LSU, ms204, rpb2, tef1 and tub2, eight species are recognised and their phylogenetic positions are determined. Based on phylogenetic, morphological and geographical differentiation, Melanconis marginalis is subdivided into four subspecies. Melanconis italica is reduced to a subspecies of Melanconis marginalis. The two species Melanconis larissae from Betula sp. and M. pacifica from Alnus rubra are described as new. Melanconis alni and M. stilbostoma are lectotypified and M. alni, M. marginalis and M. stilbostoma are epitypified. All GenBank sequences deposited as Melanconis alni are shown to actually represent M. marginalis and those as M. marginalis belong to the newly described M. pacifica. Currently, Alnus and Betula are the sole host genera of Melanconis. All species and subspecies are (re-)described and illustrated. In addition, the neotypification of Melanconium pterocaryae is here validated.