Diving into the unknown: fourteen new species of haplosclerid sponges (Demospongiae: Haplosclerida) revealed along the Peruvian coast (Southeastern Pacific)

The Peruvian coast is certainly one of the poorest studied areas in the world for marine sponges biodiversity, with only 20 species registered so far from over 2,400 km coastline. In spite of its great species richness worldwide, there is not a single record of Haplosclerida in Peru. Accordingly, in this study we aimed to describe the species belonging to this order present in the relatively recent collections undertaken along the Peruvian coast by two of us (PhW, EH). Here, we describe fourteen new species, provisionally endemic to the Peruvian coast. This finding represents a major addition to the knowledge of the biodiversity of sponges along the Peruvian coast, increasing the list of species known to occur in this area by about 68%. This is also the largest single proposal of new Haplosclerida in over 37 years of sponge taxonomy worldwide. Niphates is for the first time recorded in the Southeastern Pacific, and an identification key to the Haplosclerida from the Peruvian coast is provided. Regarding the distribution of the described species, most of them—except for Chalinula chelysa sp. nov.—have a narrow geographic range, which might indicate their rarity or that the haplosclerid fauna in Peru is still poorly known.

Chaetogastra cogniauxiana (Melastomataceae), a new Brazilian species from the Chaetogastra gracilis complex

Eleven varieties of Tibouchina gracilis were indicated as synonyms of Chaetogastra gracilis in the most recent work on the taxonomy of the genus. However, field observations and a more detailed analysis of herbarium specimens, including the types, led us to the conclusion that two of these varieties represent a single new species. Chaetogastra cogniauxiana is endemic to Brazil, and differs from C. gracilis by the smaller size, 10–70 cm tall (versus 30–120 cm tall in C. gracilis), dendritic-setose to dendritic-strigose hypanthium and bracteoles (vs. dendritic-sericeous hypanthium and bracteoles), and smaller petals, 9.8–13.4 × 8.8–9.1 mm (vs. larger petals, 16.5–21.6 × 11.2–14.8 mm). In this article, we provide a complete description of C. cogniauxiana, and indicate the main morphological differences between C. cogniauxiana and the most closely related species. We also provide comments on taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships of this species, photos, illustrations, and a distribution map. This work is part of a monograph of the genus Chaetogastra in Brazil, which showed a great species richness and also the necessity of several taxonomic adjustments.

The Subnival Vegetation of Moquegua, South Peru: Chasmophytes, Grasslands and Cushion Communities

The present work is a phytosociological synthesis and syntaxonomic overview of the vegetation of the highest subnival parts (superpuna) of the open alpine vegetation of the high plateaus (puna) of the Andes of Moquegua, South West Peru, as related to the main environmental gradients. Using TWINSPAN and DCA ordination analysis, 153 phytosociological relevés were analyzed. For each association, subassociation and community, the syntaxonomy, floristic diversity and relation with environmental variables are described. The syntaxonomy and synecology of superpuna vegetation was studied in 19 localities at an altitude of 4450–4800 m. The study area has a pluviseasonal climate with yearly rainfall (December-April). Four main highland vegetation types were distinguished: 1. slope and scree chasmophyte vegetation composed of shrubs, cushions, ground rosettes and grasses, 2. grasslands (grazed and ungrazed) characterized by great species richness in shrubs, cushions, ground rosettes, grasses and herbs, 3. vegetation of plateaus with cushions, shrubs, ground rosettes, herbs and grasses and 4. nitrophilous vegetation with high cover and low species richness. Within the vegetation of the orotropical and cryorotropical bioclimatic belts three phytosociological classes can be distinguished: Argyrochosmetea niveae (chasmophytic vegetation), Calamagrostietea vicunarum (grasslands with cushions), Anthochloo lepidulae-Dielsiochloetea floribundae (highland slopes and plateaus) and a nitrophylous community. One new association from rock and scree slopes was described within the Saxifragion magellanicae (Argyrochosmetea niveae). Within the Calamagrostion minimae, which comprises grasslands with cushions and mat-forming plants, one new association with two subassociations could be distinguished. Within the grassland and cushion associations of the Azorello-Festucion (Calamagrostietea vicunarum), three new associations were described, comprising nine subassociations. In the Anthochloo-Dielsiochloetalia one new and one previously described association and one community are distinguished. In addition, the nitrophilous community of Tarasa nototrichoides and Urtica flabellata has been described. In total the vegetation comprised 172 vascular species belonging to 32 families. Our study provides the first syntaxonomic revision of chasmophytes, cushion associations and high-altitude grasslands in the Andes of North Moquegua. The proposed syntaxonomic scheme contains the associations distributed under similar habitat conditions throughout the Southern Andes of Peru, but also the associations reflecting the local floristic and environmental patterns. The subnival vegetation of Moquegua hosts some rare endangered and/or protected plant species.

Analysis of the genetic basis of speciation induced by adaptation to new oviposition substrates

Evolution, the constant source of change in the biological world is a force that is enacted on all species. By way of natural selection and adaptation species change over time in the face of challenges. Often these challenges result from the competition for mates and other resources like food. All animals must eat to survive and survive to reproduce so being able to navigate their environments, stay alive and find food are of the outmost importance. When an environment, or niche, becomes too crowded and the fight for space and food becomes too great, species can evolve specific adaptions in order to exploit new niches where resources are abundant and competitors scarce. Upon moving into a new niche however they become isolated from other members of their species and over time as they adapt further to the new niche they diverge, eventually becoming a new species. Associate Professor Aya Takahashi has dedicated her career to understanding evolutionary biology and genetics, and in particular the process of reproductive isolation and evolution of organisms into new species.

Multiple Sex Chromosomes and Evolutionary Relationships in Amazonian Catfishes: The Outstanding Model of the Genus Harttia (Siluriformes: Loricariidae)

The armored Harttia catfishes present great species diversity and remarkable cytogenetic variation, including different sex chromosome systems. Here we analyzed three new species, H. duriventris, H. villasboas and H. rondoni, using both conventional and molecular cytogenetic techniques (Giemsa-staining and C-banding), including the mapping of repetitive DNAs using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) experiments. Both H. duriventris and H. villasboas have 2n = ♀56/♂55 chromosomes, and an X1X1X2X2 /X1X2Y sex chromosome system, while a proto or neo-XY system is proposed for H. rondoni (2n = 54♀♂). Single motifs of 5S and 18S rDNA occur in all three species, with the latter being also mapped in the sex chromosomes. The results confirm the general evolutionary trend that has been noticed for the genus: an extensive variation on their chromosome number, single sites of rDNA sequences and the occurrence of multiple sex chromosomes. Comparative genomic analyses with another congeneric species, H. punctata, reveal that the X1X2Y sex chromosomes of these species share the genomic contents, indicating a probable common origin. The remarkable karyotypic variation, including sex chromosomes systems, makes Harttia a suitable model for evolutionary studies focusing on karyotype differentiation and sex chromosome evolution among lower vertebrates.

How to Understand the COVID 19 Epidemic Phenomenon?

The author discusses the mental barriers that are obstacles to understanding the phenomenon of COVID19 pandemic, and proposes a thesis that the crisis is not due to a new or a sudden mutation of a dangerous virus, but rather the collapse of our natural biological defences as we head into a civilizational cul-de-sac. The consequence is an attack by elements from within a biotope, which for millions of years had held within it viruses in many ways similar to that currently ravaging the planet. The popular perspective however is that of an alien, oriental, indeed criminal entity against which we must defend ourselves. However, the newest scientific research posits a different vision, which situates the virus in a biocenosis of which we are also a part. A balanced relationship had existed in which both man and virus formed a functional whole and in which biological mechanisms existed to create immunity (analogous to vaccination) up to the point where this relationship has been disrupted by man’s activities. The reduced resistance to infection of today’s children is symptomatic of this disruption as increasing susceptibility to infection appears to be in tandem with our civilisation as it continues its so -called progressive trajectory. We are now under attack from elements within our biocenosis with which we had been existing in a functional relationship for millions of years. In the evolutionary process viruses were assigned a regulatory function maintaining herd functionality through effecting the removal of aged and ailing units. The Sars2 Cov virus now performs this function killing those weaker aging or ailing members of our species and illustrates the reality of the 6th great species extinction as a part of the Anthropocene. The author treats COVID 19 as a factor accelerating human transformation to one in which cyborgization become a dominant trope of existence, affecting in the first instance human communities in which urbanisation and civilizational transformation is proceeding rapidly.

Two new species of Sphaerodoridae (Annelida) from the Gulf of Thailand

Despite being a great species-rich area, the Gulf of Thailand has been relatively poorly studied and new species are awaiting to be described. In the present study two new species of Sphaerodoridae (Annelida), Geminofilum thailandica sp. nov. and Sphaerodoridium songkhlaensis sp. nov. were collected in shallow soft bottoms at Songkhla Sea. Geminofilum thailandica sp. nov. is characterised by bearing sessile and elongated dorsal macrotubercles, arranged in two transverse rows per segment, lacking other dorsal papillae, having parapodia with a single papilla at the base and compound chaetae with blades 4–6 times as long as wide and serration showing variation within fascicles. Sphaerodoridium songkhlaensis sp. nov. can be distinguished from other congeners by the singular morphology of the short stalked dorsal macrotubercles as inverted cones, with a conspicuous rim encircling the flattened distal surface, and two longitudinal rows of smaller sessile tubercles, as inverted cones, along ventrum, with four pairs of tubercles per segment. Chaetae show variation in the serration within fascicles. The present study highlights the need for further biodiversity studies on benthic communities in this area.

Mechanisms Responsible for the Anticoagulant Properties of Neurotoxic Dendroaspis Venoms: A Viscoelastic Analysis

Using thrombelastography to gain mechanistic insights, recent investigations have identified enzymes and compounds in Naja and Crotalus species’ neurotoxic venoms that are anticoagulant in nature. The neurotoxic venoms of the four extant species of Dendroaspis (the Black and green mambas) were noted to be anticoagulant in nature in human blood, but the mechanisms underlying these observations have never been explored. The venom proteomes of these venoms are unique, primarily composed of three finger toxins (3-FTx), Kunitz-type serine protease inhibitors (Kunitz-type SPI) and <7% metalloproteinases. The anticoagulant potency of the four mamba venoms available were determined in human plasma via thrombelastography; vulnerability to inhibition of anticoagulant activity to ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) was assessed, and inhibition of anticoagulant activity after exposure to a ruthenium (Ru)-based carbon monoxide releasing molecule (CORM-2) was quantified. Black mamba venom was the least potent by more than two orders of magnitude compared to the green mamba venoms tested; further, Black Mamba venom anticoagulant activity was not inhibited by either EDTA or CORM-2. In contrast, the anticoagulant activities of the green mamba venoms were all inhibited by EDTA to a greater or lesser extent, and all had anticoagulation inhibited with CORM-2. Critically, CORM-2-mediated inhibition was independent of carbon monoxide release, but was dependent on a putative Ru-based species formed from CORM-2. In conclusion, there was great species-specific variation in potency and mechanism(s) responsible for the anticoagulant activity of Dendroaspis venom, with perhaps all three protein classes—3-FTx, Kunitz-type SPI and metalloproteinases—playing a role in the venoms characterized.

Insect galls of the Reserva Biológica União, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Several inventories of insect galls have been performed in the Atlantic Forest of Rio de Janeiro, mostly in restingas, whereas the other phytophysiognomies remain poorly sampled. The present study inventoried the insect galls of Reserva Biológica União (RJ), a protected area comprising mainly Ombrophilous Forest. Field work was performed every two months from January to October, 2013. Insect galls were collected, photographed, characterized and transported to the laboratory. Adults were obtained by rearing and immature stages by gall dissection. The insects were deposited in the Cecidomyiidae Collection of the Museu Nacional. A total of 153 gall morphotypes were found on plants representing 37 plant families, 69 genera, 55 species and 53 morphospecies. Among them, two plant genera and five species were reported for the first time as host plants in Ombrophilous Forest. REBIO União showed little similarlity of host plant species and insect gall morphotypes when compared with other investigated Ombrophilous Forest areas. The leaf was the most attacked plant organ as expected. Asteraceae, Bignoniaceae, Fabaceae and Myrtaceae, and Mikania (Asteraceae) and Myrcia (Myrtaceae) were the richest host families and genera, respectivey, in number of gall morphotypes, all previously indicated as superhosts by other Brazilian Ombrophilous Forest inventories, except Bignoniaceae. Their great species richness may be related to their great gall richness, adding evidence in support of the taxon size hypothesis. Fusiform and globose galls were the most frequent, green was the predominant color, and most morphotypes did not present an indumentum. The highest gall richness was recorded in June and August. The gallers were distributed among Diptera (Cecidomyiidae), Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Hemiptera and Thysanoptera, with the first being predominant, following a global pattern. Eight gall-inducing species are recorded for the first time in REBIO União and four in Ombrophilous Forest. About 25% of the gall morphotypes were occupied by dwellers other than those that created the gall. They comprised parasitoids (Hymenoptera), inquilines (Diptera: Sciaridae and Muscomorpha, Hemiptera, and Lepidoptera) and successors (Psocoptera, mites, and Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Although these taxa were previously reported by Brazilian inventories of insect galls, 12 new association with plants are recorded. The amount of new records reinforces the importance of inventories.

The spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) community of an agroecosystem

The agricultural areas, especialy the orchards, of more ancient cultivation, are characterized by having plant and animal communities of great interest. Plant and vertebrate communities are well studied in theese agroecosystems, but the same cannot be said for invertebrates. Among these are generally known taxonomic groups of agricultural interest, including also beetles (Coleoptera) and moths (Lepidoptera). Little known are other arthropods such as those belonging to the Arachnida. In a historic orchard of the Conca d'Oro, the plain around Palermo city, systematic observations and catches of Arachnidae have been conducted, with particular interest in spiders (Araneae) but also involving other orders such as Opiliones and Pseudoscorpionida. The surveys showed a great species richness. It is in fact a historic orchard characterized by the presence of numerous species of fruit trees (Citrus spp., Loquat Eriobotrya japonica, etc.) interspersed with small vegetable garden surfaces. Many of the individuals found are in the process of being determined, but it is so far the community is exceeding sixty species. The research is ongoing and will further aim to clarify the ecological relationships between the different species and the other components of the agro-ecosystem.