The morphological character variation analysis of Schizostachyum lima (Blanco) Merr in Central Lombok Regency

The small diameter size with thin wall thickness is the unique character of S. lima, so it is appropriate to be used as raw material for environmentally friendly bamboo straws. This environmentally friendly bamboo straw has become one of the mainstay export commodities from Lombok Island. This research aimed at determining the diversity of S.lima in Central Lombok Regency through morphological characteristics and analyzing the phenetic relationship. The research was conducted from November 2020 to June 2021 in Central Lombok Regency. Determination of sampling locations based on literature and the community, especially bamboo craftsmen and S.lima collectors. There are 45 phenetic characters used in this research, consisting of qualitative data and quantitative data. Data analysis was used the NTSYS PC version 2.11a to analyze phenetic relationships. The phenogram was analyzed and subsequently used to develop descriptions of each S.lima which was found in the Central Lombok Regency. As a result, most of S.lima was found growing in community plantations with variations in the soil texture. The results of the cluster analysis resulted in 2 large groups, the first group consisting of 21 locations S.lima was found, and the second group only consisted of 1 location, namely Lantan. The level of similarity between the first group and the second group 2 was only 40%. Another group consisting of 21 locations showed a varying degree of similarity from one location to another (52%-93%). There are 6 locations that have the highest level of similarity (93%), namely, between Jurit and Presak bat, Bebante with Mekar Damai and Montong Terep, and Gunung Ise. The results of this study indicate that S.lima found in all locations in Central Lombok did not show significant variation when the growth factor was optimal. Further research by molecular approach is needed to determine the genetic variation of S. lima in Central Lombok Regency.

Thixotropy of a Transparent Clay Manufactured Using Carbopol to Simulate Marine Soil

A transparent clay manufactured using Carbopol® UltrezTM 10 (simplified as U10) was introduced, and its manufacturing processes were briefly described. Both relative transparency (RT) and modulation transfer function (MTF) methods were used to quantify the optical character variation via soil thickness. The transparency of this new transparent clay was analyzed and compared with four traditional transparent materials. The thixotropic properties of this synthetic transparent clay were measured in detail through the laboratory vane test. An exponential function was used to describe the thixotropy and sensitivity of the clay. The results showed that the new transparent clay has a relatively higher optical transparency than the majority of previous materials. Good-fitting results showed a similar development trend in thixotropy for the synthetic transparent clay and the natural ones. Furthermore, the sensitivity of the transparent clay was low to medium, which can simulate marine soil. With higher optical transparency than and similar thixotropy and sensitivity as natural clays, Carbopol® UltrezTM 10 shows great potential as a substitute for natural clay and is expected to be widely used in model tests.

Integrating UCE Phylogenomics With Traditional Taxonomy Reveals a Trove of New World Syscia Species (Formicidae: Dorylinae)

The ant genus Syscia Roger, 1861 is part of the cryptic ant fauna inhabiting leaf litter and rotten wood in the Asian and American tropics. It is a distinct clade within the Dorylinae, the subfamily from which army ants arose. Prior to this work, the genus comprised seven species, each known from a single or very few collections. Extensive collecting in Middle America revealed an unexpected and challenging diversity of morphological forms. Locally distinct forms could be identified at many sites, but assignment of specimens to species spanning multiple sites was problematic. To improve species delimitation, Ultra-Conserved Element (UCE) phylogenomic data were sequenced for all forms, both within and among sites, and a phylogeny was inferred. Informed by phylogeny, species delimitation was based on monophyly, absence of within-clade sympatry, and a subjective degree of morphological uniformity. UCE phylogenomic results for 130 specimens were complemented by analysis of mitochondrial COI (DNA barcode) data for an expanded taxon set. The resulting taxonomy augments the number of known species in the New World from 3 to 57. We describe and name 31 new species, and 23 species are assigned morphospecies codes pending improved specimen coverage. Queens may be fully alate or brachypterous, and there is a wide variety of intercaste female forms. Identification based on morphology alone is very difficult due to continuous character variation and high similarity of phylogenetically distant species. An identification aid is provided in the form of a set of distribution maps and standard views, with species ordered by size.

Thixotropy of A Transparent Clay Manufactured by Carbopol Simulate Marine Soil

A transparent clay manufactured by Carbopol® UltrezTM 10 (simplified as U10) was introduced, and its manufacture processes were briefly described. Both relative transparency (RT) and modulation transfer function (MTF) methods were used to quantify the optical character variation via soil thickness. The transparency of this new transparent clay was comparative analyzed with traditional four previous transparent materials. The results show that this new transparent clay has relative higher optical transparency than majority of previous materials. The thixotropic properties of this synthetic transparent clay were measured in detail through laboratory vane test. Exponential function was used to describe the thixotropy and sensitivity of clay. The good fitting results shown similar development trend of thixotropy for synthetic transparent clay and natural one. Furthermore, sensitivity of transparent clay belongs to low to medium sensitivity, which can simulate marine soil. With the test results, Carbopol® UltrezTM 10 shows a great potential as a substitute for natural clay and is expected to be widely used in model tests.

Interpreting character variation in turtles: Araripemys barretoi (Pleurodira: Pelomedusoides) from the Araripe Basin, Early Cretaceous of Northeastern Brazil

The Araripe Basin (Northeastern Brazil) has yielded a rich Cretaceous fossil fauna of both vertebrates and invertebrates found mainly in the Crato and Romualdo Formations, of Aptian and Albian ages respectively. Among the vertebrates, the turtles were found to be quite diverse, with several specimens retrieved and five valid species described to this date for the Romualdo Formation. There were also records of turtles from Ipubi and Crato Formations, mainly fragmentary material which precluded proper specific identification; however, Araripemys barretoi is supposed to occur on both Crato and Romualdo Formations. Here we describe thirteen specimens of A. barretoi-including the first description of an almost complete individual, bearing a skull, from the Crato Formation. We report a great amount of morphological variation, interpreted as being essentially of intraspecific nature, including individual, sexual and ontogenetic variation.

Origin and evolution of turiasaur dinosaurs set by means of a new ‘rosetta’ specimen from Spain

Turiasauria is a non-neosauropod eusauropod clade of dinosaurs known since 2006, when the description of Turiasaurus was published. This group, including Losillasaurus, was originally thought to have been restricted to the Late Jurassic of Spain. However, over the last decade, our knowledge of this group has improved with the discovery of new taxa such as Zby from the Portuguese Late Jurassic, Tendaguria from the Tanzanian Late Jurassic and Mierasaurus and Moabosaurus from the Early Cretaceous of the USA. Here, we describe a new specimen of Losillasaurus from Spain, which allows us to better understand the character variation in the cranial and postcranial skeleton. The review of some sauropod fauna of Madagascar, and inclusion of some specimens of Turiasauria, suggest that this clade might have arisen in the Middle Jurassic. According to our phylogenetic results, a specimen found in the early 19th century in Madagascar is shown to be the oldest and only member of Turiasauria represented in the Middle Jurassic thus far. This is named Narindasaurus thevenini gen. & sp. nov.. Turiasauria is thus known from the Middle Jurassic in Pangaea, diversified in the Late Jurassic in Gondwana and Laurasia, and dispersed during the Early Cretaceous to North America.

Character variation and taxonomy of short-tailed fruit bats from Carollia in Brazil

Carollia has a complex taxonomic history and is widely distributed in the Neotropics. Species of Carollia appear to have differentiated recently in the late Cenozoic, and present overlapping morphological characters that may not be useful to distinguish among species. Carollia has recently been revised, but only a few specimens representing the Brazilian distribution of Carollia within Brazil were studied. We reviewed specimens of Carollia distributed in several localities of Brazil revisiting previously described morphological characters for species identification, and taxonomic problems within the genus. We found a large degree of overlap between characters previously used to distinguish among species of Carollia, and some of them constitute variation within a same species. We also report new records extending the known distribution of C. benkeithi to farther east of its previously known distribution (Parauapebas, southeastern Pará, and Vitória do Xingu, Pará, eastern Amazonian Brazil) and one record extending the distribution of C. brevicauda south to Corumbá, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil.