When David Burnett and I founded Molecular Pathology six years ago, it was partly in the belief (which I am sure is correct) that pathologists, whether they work in haematology, oncological pathology, microbiology, or whatever, speak the same language in molecular terms. The publication of this book underlines that fact, and although my interest is, of course, largely in lymphoma pathology, there are many chapters in this publication that are of interest to me, not only on the technical side. For example, those with an interest in Epstein-Barr virus would also benefit from reading the sections on papilloma virus, human herpesvirus 8, cytomegalovirus, and, of course, the detection of translocations and so on in various leukaemias and lymphomas. However, interest does not stop at this level because surely to most of us telomerases and microsatellite instability are of fundamental interest. Also, for example, in our hospital we have studies under way on molecular aspects of thrombotic disorders and haemochromotosis. These comments serve to underline, on a somewhat personalised basis, the broad overlap between what would appear to be highly specialised contributions in this volume. At the beginning of the book there are three essential chapters on DNA and RNA extraction from wax embedded or frozen tissue, which should be read by all in this field. Furthermore, with the increase in frequency of mycobacterial disease worldwide, the section on the detection and speciation of mycobacteria in formalin fixed, wax embedded tissue sections is surely a taste of the future when—for example, staining of sections with the ZiehiNeeisen technique will surely become a technique of the past. Thus, although on initial scan of the contents of this book, it would appear to be the case that any one individual might find, say, only three or four chapters of relevance or interest, I do not feel that this is the case and I would recommend any pathologist (with a capital P!) to dip into this book because they are sure to benefit from it.
{"title":"BOOK REVIEWS","authors":"E. Quah","doi":"10.1643/CT2020109","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CT2020109","url":null,"abstract":"When David Burnett and I founded Molecular Pathology six years ago, it was partly in the belief (which I am sure is correct) that pathologists, whether they work in haematology, oncological pathology, microbiology, or whatever, speak the same language in molecular terms. The publication of this book underlines that fact, and although my interest is, of course, largely in lymphoma pathology, there are many chapters in this publication that are of interest to me, not only on the technical side. For example, those with an interest in Epstein-Barr virus would also benefit from reading the sections on papilloma virus, human herpesvirus 8, cytomegalovirus, and, of course, the detection of translocations and so on in various leukaemias and lymphomas. However, interest does not stop at this level because surely to most of us telomerases and microsatellite instability are of fundamental interest. Also, for example, in our hospital we have studies under way on molecular aspects of thrombotic disorders and haemochromotosis. These comments serve to underline, on a somewhat personalised basis, the broad overlap between what would appear to be highly specialised contributions in this volume. At the beginning of the book there are three essential chapters on DNA and RNA extraction from wax embedded or frozen tissue, which should be read by all in this field. Furthermore, with the increase in frequency of mycobacterial disease worldwide, the section on the detection and speciation of mycobacteria in formalin fixed, wax embedded tissue sections is surely a taste of the future when—for example, staining of sections with the ZiehiNeeisen technique will surely become a technique of the past. Thus, although on initial scan of the contents of this book, it would appear to be the case that any one individual might find, say, only three or four chapters of relevance or interest, I do not feel that this is the case and I would recommend any pathologist (with a capital P!) to dip into this book because they are sure to benefit from it.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44678633","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hybridization between populations along the path to complete reproductive isolation can provide snapshots of speciation in action. Here, we present a comprehensive list of salamander hybrids and estimate genetic distances between the parental hybridizing species using one mitochondrial and one nuclear gene (MT-CYB and RAG1). Salamanders are outliers among tetrapod vertebrates in having low metabolic rates and highly variable sex chromosomes. Both of these features might be expected to impact speciation; mismatches between the mitochondrial and nuclear genomes that encode the proteins for oxidative metabolism, as well as mismatches in heteromorphic sex chromosomes, can lead to reproductive isolation. We compared the genetic distances between hybridizing parental species across four main tetrapod groups that differ in metabolic rates and sex chromosome diversity: salamanders, lizards, mammals, and birds. Our results reveal no significant differences, suggesting that variation in these traits across vertebrates does not translate into predictable patterns of genetic divergence and incompatible loci in hybrids.
{"title":"Comprehensive Analysis of Salamander Hybridization Suggests a Consistent Relationship between Genetic Distance and Reproductive Isolation across Tetrapods","authors":"S. Melander, R. Mueller","doi":"10.1643/CH-19-319","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CH-19-319","url":null,"abstract":"Hybridization between populations along the path to complete reproductive isolation can provide snapshots of speciation in action. Here, we present a comprehensive list of salamander hybrids and estimate genetic distances between the parental hybridizing species using one mitochondrial and one nuclear gene (MT-CYB and RAG1). Salamanders are outliers among tetrapod vertebrates in having low metabolic rates and highly variable sex chromosomes. Both of these features might be expected to impact speciation; mismatches between the mitochondrial and nuclear genomes that encode the proteins for oxidative metabolism, as well as mismatches in heteromorphic sex chromosomes, can lead to reproductive isolation. We compared the genetic distances between hybridizing parental species across four main tetrapod groups that differ in metabolic rates and sex chromosome diversity: salamanders, lizards, mammals, and birds. Our results reveal no significant differences, suggesting that variation in these traits across vertebrates does not translate into predictable patterns of genetic divergence and incompatible loci in hybrids.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45327192","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Taggert G. Butterfield, M. Olson, Daniel D. Beck, R. Macip-Ríos
Resource partitioning in communities is often achieved by sympatric species having different morphologies that allow them to access different resources. This is because differences in morphology influence an organism's capability to perform a task that is relevant to their ecology. Here, we compare limb, shell, and head morphology, swimming performance, habitat use, and diet of three species (Rhinoclemmys rubida , R. pulcherrima, and Kinosternon chimalhuaca) that co-occur in the tropical dry forest of Chamela, Jalisco, Mexico. We found that these species do not overlap in both habitat or diet, and the overlap that we observed in habitat was contrasted by differences in diet. We also found a consistent relationship among limb and shell morphology, swimming speed, and habitat. Rhinoclemmys rubida occupies the driest deciduous forest atop and along hills, has shorter hands, less interdigital webbing, longer plastrons, more-domed shells, and slower swimming speeds in proportion to body size. In contrast, Kinosternon chimalhuaca exclusively occupies arroyos or seasonal streams, has longer hands, more interdigital webbing, smaller plastrons, less-domed shells, and faster swimming speeds in proportion to its body size. Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima was found in all habitats and intermediate in morphology and swimming speed between the other two species. Therefore, in this study system, limb and shell morphology are good indicators of habitat differences between turtle species. These differences are likely due to the influence that limb and shell morphology have on swimming performance. Relationships between head morphology and diet were less clear, which might be the result of changes in behavior or habitat rather than morphology. Patterns of resource partitioning in Chamela seem to coincide with other studies of turtle communities, which suggests that relationships among morphology, performance, and ecology that we observe here might be a general pattern across turtles.
群落中的资源分配通常是由具有不同形态的同域物种实现的，这使得它们能够获得不同的资源。这是因为形态上的差异会影响生物体执行与其生态相关的任务的能力。在这里，我们比较了三个物种(Rhinoclemmys rubida, R. pulcherrima和Kinosternon chimalhuaca)的肢体、壳和头部形态、游泳性能、栖息地利用和饮食，这些物种共同生活在墨西哥Jalisco州Chamela的热带干燥森林中。我们发现这些物种在栖息地和饮食上都没有重叠，我们在栖息地观察到的重叠与饮食的差异形成对比。我们还发现了肢壳形态、游泳速度和栖息地之间的一致关系。rubida Rhinoclemmys rubida生活在最干燥的落叶林中，栖息在山顶和山坡上，手较短，趾间蹼较少，蹼较长，壳较圆，与体型成比例的游动速度较慢。相比之下，奇诺斯特农金马华卡只栖息在河流或季节性溪流中，它们的手更长，蹼间更多，蹼更小，壳更少，与体型成比例的游动速度更快。pulcherrima在所有栖息地都有发现，在形态和游泳速度上介于其他两个物种之间。因此，在本研究系统中，肢和壳形态是反映龟种生境差异的良好指标。这些差异可能是由于肢和壳形态对游泳表现的影响。头部形态和饮食之间的关系不太清楚，这可能是行为或栖息地变化的结果，而不是形态的变化。Chamela的资源分配模式似乎与其他海龟群落的研究相吻合，这表明我们在这里观察到的形态、性能和生态之间的关系可能是海龟的一般模式。
{"title":"Morphology, Performance, and Ecology of Three Sympatric Turtles in a Tropical Dry Forest","authors":"Taggert G. Butterfield, M. Olson, Daniel D. Beck, R. Macip-Ríos","doi":"10.1643/CE-18-165","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CE-18-165","url":null,"abstract":"Resource partitioning in communities is often achieved by sympatric species having different morphologies that allow them to access different resources. This is because differences in morphology influence an organism's capability to perform a task that is relevant to their ecology. Here, we compare limb, shell, and head morphology, swimming performance, habitat use, and diet of three species (Rhinoclemmys rubida , R. pulcherrima, and Kinosternon chimalhuaca) that co-occur in the tropical dry forest of Chamela, Jalisco, Mexico. We found that these species do not overlap in both habitat or diet, and the overlap that we observed in habitat was contrasted by differences in diet. We also found a consistent relationship among limb and shell morphology, swimming speed, and habitat. Rhinoclemmys rubida occupies the driest deciduous forest atop and along hills, has shorter hands, less interdigital webbing, longer plastrons, more-domed shells, and slower swimming speeds in proportion to body size. In contrast, Kinosternon chimalhuaca exclusively occupies arroyos or seasonal streams, has longer hands, more interdigital webbing, smaller plastrons, less-domed shells, and faster swimming speeds in proportion to its body size. Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima was found in all habitats and intermediate in morphology and swimming speed between the other two species. Therefore, in this study system, limb and shell morphology are good indicators of habitat differences between turtle species. These differences are likely due to the influence that limb and shell morphology have on swimming performance. Relationships between head morphology and diet were less clear, which might be the result of changes in behavior or habitat rather than morphology. Patterns of resource partitioning in Chamela seem to coincide with other studies of turtle communities, which suggests that relationships among morphology, performance, and ecology that we observe here might be a general pattern across turtles.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46924235","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
K. Conway, Cragen D. King, A. Summers, Daemin Kim, P. Hastings, G. Moore, S. Iglésias, M. Erdmann, C. Baldwin, G. Short, Kyoji Fujiwara, T. Trnski, G. Voelker, L. Rüber
Gobiesocidae are a moderate-sized family (currently 182 species, 51 genera) of predominantly coastal marine fishes, commonly referred to as clingfishes. Depending on the classification adopted, the species and genera of clingfishes are organized either across ten subfamilies, based on a classification scheme introduced in the 1950s (“traditional” classification, comprising Aspasminae, Cheilobranchinae, Chorisochisminae, Diademichthyinae, Diplocrepinae, Gobiesocinae, Haplocylicinae, Lepadogastrinae, Protogobiesocinae, and Trachelochisminae), or just two subfamilies, in a classification scheme adopted only recently (“reduced” classification, comprising Cheilobranchinae and Gobiesocinae). We investigated the phylogenetic relationships among members of the family Gobiesocidae using both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequence data to assess whether the alternative classification schemes (traditional and reduced) are compatible with inferred evolutionary relationships. Phylogenetic hypotheses are derived from maximum-likelihood and Bayesian analyses of a seven-gene concatenated dataset (2 mitochondrial and 5 nuclear markers; 4,857 bp) compiled from individuals representing 82 (of 182) species, 42 (of 51) genera, and 10 (of 10) subfamilies of the Gobiesocidae. Although our investigation provides strong support for the monophyly of the Gobiesocidae, multiple subfamilies of the traditional classification (Aspasminae, Diademichthyinae, Diplocrepinae, Gobiesocinae, and Trachelochisminae), one subfamily of the reduced classification (Gobiesocinae), and multiple genera (Aspasmichthys, Cochleoceps, Lepadogaster, and Lepadichthys) are resolved as non-monophyletic groups. Based on our results and the results of previous studies, we recommend a systematic reassignment of genera between subfamilies, of which we recognize nine: Cheilobranchinae, Chorisochisminae, Diademichthyinae, Diplocrepinae, Haplocylicinae, Gobiesocinae, Lepadogastrinae, Protogobiesocinae, and Trachelochisminae. Membership of the Lepadogastrinae is unchanged from previous usage; the Cheilobranchinae are expanded to contain additional genera from southern Australia, including those placed previously in the Aspasminae (Nettorhamphos and Posidonichthys) and the Diplocrepinae (Barryichthys, Cochleoceps, and Parvicrepis); the Aspasminae are placed in the synonymy of the Diademichthyinae and all genera placed in the former (excluding Modicus and Posidonichthys) are transferred to the latter; the Diplocrepinae are restricted to Diplocrepis; Eckloniaichthys scylliorhiniceps is transferred from the Gobiesocinae to the Chorisochisminae; Gobiesocinae are restricted to the New World members of this group (Acyrtops, Acyrtus, Arcos, Derilissus, Gobiesox, Rimicola, Sicyases, and Tomicodon); the Haplocylicinae are expanded to include additional genera from New Zealand (Gastrocyathus, Gastrocymba, and Gastroscyphus); the Protogobiesocinae are expanded to accommodate three genera of deep water taxa (Gymnoscyphus
{"title":"Molecular Phylogenetics of the Clingfishes (Teleostei: Gobiesocidae)—Implications for Classification","authors":"K. Conway, Cragen D. King, A. Summers, Daemin Kim, P. Hastings, G. Moore, S. Iglésias, M. Erdmann, C. Baldwin, G. Short, Kyoji Fujiwara, T. Trnski, G. Voelker, L. Rüber","doi":"10.1643/CI2020054","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CI2020054","url":null,"abstract":"Gobiesocidae are a moderate-sized family (currently 182 species, 51 genera) of predominantly coastal marine fishes, commonly referred to as clingfishes. Depending on the classification adopted, the species and genera of clingfishes are organized either across ten subfamilies, based on a classification scheme introduced in the 1950s (“traditional” classification, comprising Aspasminae, Cheilobranchinae, Chorisochisminae, Diademichthyinae, Diplocrepinae, Gobiesocinae, Haplocylicinae, Lepadogastrinae, Protogobiesocinae, and Trachelochisminae), or just two subfamilies, in a classification scheme adopted only recently (“reduced” classification, comprising Cheilobranchinae and Gobiesocinae). We investigated the phylogenetic relationships among members of the family Gobiesocidae using both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequence data to assess whether the alternative classification schemes (traditional and reduced) are compatible with inferred evolutionary relationships. Phylogenetic hypotheses are derived from maximum-likelihood and Bayesian analyses of a seven-gene concatenated dataset (2 mitochondrial and 5 nuclear markers; 4,857 bp) compiled from individuals representing 82 (of 182) species, 42 (of 51) genera, and 10 (of 10) subfamilies of the Gobiesocidae. Although our investigation provides strong support for the monophyly of the Gobiesocidae, multiple subfamilies of the traditional classification (Aspasminae, Diademichthyinae, Diplocrepinae, Gobiesocinae, and Trachelochisminae), one subfamily of the reduced classification (Gobiesocinae), and multiple genera (Aspasmichthys, Cochleoceps, Lepadogaster, and Lepadichthys) are resolved as non-monophyletic groups. Based on our results and the results of previous studies, we recommend a systematic reassignment of genera between subfamilies, of which we recognize nine: Cheilobranchinae, Chorisochisminae, Diademichthyinae, Diplocrepinae, Haplocylicinae, Gobiesocinae, Lepadogastrinae, Protogobiesocinae, and Trachelochisminae. Membership of the Lepadogastrinae is unchanged from previous usage; the Cheilobranchinae are expanded to contain additional genera from southern Australia, including those placed previously in the Aspasminae (Nettorhamphos and Posidonichthys) and the Diplocrepinae (Barryichthys, Cochleoceps, and Parvicrepis); the Aspasminae are placed in the synonymy of the Diademichthyinae and all genera placed in the former (excluding Modicus and Posidonichthys) are transferred to the latter; the Diplocrepinae are restricted to Diplocrepis; Eckloniaichthys scylliorhiniceps is transferred from the Gobiesocinae to the Chorisochisminae; Gobiesocinae are restricted to the New World members of this group (Acyrtops, Acyrtus, Arcos, Derilissus, Gobiesox, Rimicola, Sicyases, and Tomicodon); the Haplocylicinae are expanded to include additional genera from New Zealand (Gastrocyathus, Gastrocymba, and Gastroscyphus); the Protogobiesocinae are expanded to accommodate three genera of deep water taxa (Gymnoscyphus","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42853873","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
J. Praveenraj, T. Thackeray, Sadokpam Gojendro Singh, A. Uma, N. Moulitharan, Bankit K. Mukhim
A new species of colorful snakehead from Meghalaya, northeastern India is distinguished from all its congeners by possessing a uniform bright blue to bluish-green body, bright-blue dorsal, anal, and caudal fins, submarginally black with white distal margin, series of brown to maroon-red, rounded, oblong or clover-shaped blotches or spots on dorsolateral, postorbital, and ventrolateral region of head, continued on body forming oblique pattern or randomly distributed. The new species superficially resembles C. pardalis and C. bipuli in appearance, but it can be distinguished from both in having brown to maroon-red, rounded, oblong or clover-shaped blotches or spots on head and sides of the body (vs. possession of well-defined, black to brown, rounded to oblong spots), fewer pre-dorsal scales (7 vs. 8–9), more caudal-fin rays (15 vs. 13), and more vertebrae (49 vs. 45). The new species differs from both C. pardalis and C. bipuli by Kimura's two-parameter (K2P) distance of 4.2–4.8 and 4.9–6.0% in the coxI gene sequence. A key to the snakehead Gachua group of the Eastern Himalayan region is provided herein.
{"title":"A New Species of Snakehead (Teleostei: Channidae) from East Khasi Hills, Meghalaya, Northeastern India","authors":"J. Praveenraj, T. Thackeray, Sadokpam Gojendro Singh, A. Uma, N. Moulitharan, Bankit K. Mukhim","doi":"10.1643/CI2020007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CI2020007","url":null,"abstract":"A new species of colorful snakehead from Meghalaya, northeastern India is distinguished from all its congeners by possessing a uniform bright blue to bluish-green body, bright-blue dorsal, anal, and caudal fins, submarginally black with white distal margin, series of brown to maroon-red, rounded, oblong or clover-shaped blotches or spots on dorsolateral, postorbital, and ventrolateral region of head, continued on body forming oblique pattern or randomly distributed. The new species superficially resembles C. pardalis and C. bipuli in appearance, but it can be distinguished from both in having brown to maroon-red, rounded, oblong or clover-shaped blotches or spots on head and sides of the body (vs. possession of well-defined, black to brown, rounded to oblong spots), fewer pre-dorsal scales (7 vs. 8–9), more caudal-fin rays (15 vs. 13), and more vertebrae (49 vs. 45). The new species differs from both C. pardalis and C. bipuli by Kimura's two-parameter (K2P) distance of 4.2–4.8 and 4.9–6.0% in the coxI gene sequence. A key to the snakehead Gachua group of the Eastern Himalayan region is provided herein.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47747741","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jeffrey L. Weinell, Daniel J. Paluh, Cameron D. Siler, Rafe M. Brown
The Philippine archipelago is an exceptionally biodiverse region that includes at least 112 species of land snakes from 41 genera and 12 families. Recently, Cyclocoridae (formerly Lamprophiidae: Cyclocorinae) was proposed as a distinct, Philippine-endemic family, containing four genera: Cyclocorus, Hologerrhum, Myersophis, and Oxyrhabdium. Here, we describe an additional cyclocorid genus and species, Levitonius mirus, new genus and species, from Samar and Leyte Islands, Philippines. Molecular data support Levitonius, new genus, to be most closely related to Myersophis and Oxyrhabdium, and it shares multiple skeletal characteristics with these genera; Levitonius, new genus, differs from all of these taxa in body size, scalation, and other characters. Skeletal and other phenotypic data suggest that Levitonius, new genus, is fossorial and likely has a diet that is specialized on earthworms. Levitonius mirus, new genus and species, has a maximum total length of 172 mm and is at present the smallest known species in Elapoidea. Our results highlight the need for future work on Samar and Leyte Islands, which have received relatively little attention from systematists, in part because of a prevailing biogeographic paradigm that predicted (not necessarily correctly) that these islands would simply have a nested faunal subset of the Mindanao faunal region land vertebrates. The discovery of a strikingly distinct and phylogenetically divergent snake lineage on these landmasses joins numerous related studies calling for a wholesale reconsideration of the Pleistocene Aggregate Island Complex model (the PAIC paradigm of diversification) biogeographic framework.
{"title":"A New, Miniaturized Genus and Species of Snake (Cyclocoridae) from the Philippines","authors":"Jeffrey L. Weinell, Daniel J. Paluh, Cameron D. Siler, Rafe M. Brown","doi":"10.1643/CH2020110","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CH2020110","url":null,"abstract":"The Philippine archipelago is an exceptionally biodiverse region that includes at least 112 species of land snakes from 41 genera and 12 families. Recently, Cyclocoridae (formerly Lamprophiidae: Cyclocorinae) was proposed as a distinct, Philippine-endemic family, containing four genera: Cyclocorus, Hologerrhum, Myersophis, and Oxyrhabdium. Here, we describe an additional cyclocorid genus and species, Levitonius mirus, new genus and species, from Samar and Leyte Islands, Philippines. Molecular data support Levitonius, new genus, to be most closely related to Myersophis and Oxyrhabdium, and it shares multiple skeletal characteristics with these genera; Levitonius, new genus, differs from all of these taxa in body size, scalation, and other characters. Skeletal and other phenotypic data suggest that Levitonius, new genus, is fossorial and likely has a diet that is specialized on earthworms. Levitonius mirus, new genus and species, has a maximum total length of 172 mm and is at present the smallest known species in Elapoidea. Our results highlight the need for future work on Samar and Leyte Islands, which have received relatively little attention from systematists, in part because of a prevailing biogeographic paradigm that predicted (not necessarily correctly) that these islands would simply have a nested faunal subset of the Mindanao faunal region land vertebrates. The discovery of a strikingly distinct and phylogenetically divergent snake lineage on these landmasses joins numerous related studies calling for a wholesale reconsideration of the Pleistocene Aggregate Island Complex model (the PAIC paradigm of diversification) biogeographic framework.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45780787","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Katie R. Nickles, Yinan Hu, J. Majoris, P. Buston, J. Webb
Gobies (family Gobiidae) have a complex mechanosensory lateral line system characterized by reduced lateral line canals and a dramatic proliferation of small superficial neuromasts (on “sensory papillae”), which are arranged in lines on the head, trunk, and tail. A suite of morphological methods was used to describe the distribution and morphology of canal and superficial neuromasts in the neon goby, Elacatinus lori, and to describe the ontogeny of the lateral line system for the first time for any gobiiform fish. Portions of only three cranial lateral line canals are retained and they contain a total of eight canal neuromasts. In addition, 128–155 superficial neuromasts are found in six head series (comprising 33 neuromast lines or rows). Superficial neuromasts are found in one body series (65–80 neuromasts arranged in three groups of vertical lines or “stitches”) and one caudal fin series (3 lines, each located between fin rays and comprised of many small neuromasts; total of 27–53 neuromasts) extending to the tip of the caudal fin. The general distribution of neuromasts is established early during the larval stage, and neuromast numbers increase within and among lines resulting in an increase in overall complexity of the system. On day-of-hatch, a total of 22 neuromasts are present. At ∼15 days post-hatch, all eight cranial canal neuromasts are present, and, in post-settlement juveniles (“settlers”), they are enclosed in canals and a total of ∼185 neuromasts are found on the head, trunk, and tail. All neuromasts are small (∼40 lm long) and diamond-shaped, but three subpopulations (canal neuromasts, canal neuromast homologs, superficial neuromasts) are defined based on their location and their arrangement within lines (“tip-to-tip” or “side-by-side”). The ontogeny of the lateral line system and distinctions among neuromast subpopulations help to reveal the structural and functional organization of the complex lateral line system in Elacatinus and will contribute to the interpretation of neuromast patterns in other gobiiforms. A comparison of superficial neuromast number in 12 species of Elacatinus and Tigrigobius (sister genera) revealed variation among species that live in different reef microhabitats, which suggests that adaptive evolution in the lateral line system is evident among closely related taxa.
{"title":"Organization and Ontogeny of a Complex Lateral Line System in a Goby (Elacatinus lori), with a Consideration of Function and Ecology","authors":"Katie R. Nickles, Yinan Hu, J. Majoris, P. Buston, J. Webb","doi":"10.1643/CG-19-341","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CG-19-341","url":null,"abstract":"Gobies (family Gobiidae) have a complex mechanosensory lateral line system characterized by reduced lateral line canals and a dramatic proliferation of small superficial neuromasts (on “sensory papillae”), which are arranged in lines on the head, trunk, and tail. A suite of morphological methods was used to describe the distribution and morphology of canal and superficial neuromasts in the neon goby, Elacatinus lori, and to describe the ontogeny of the lateral line system for the first time for any gobiiform fish. Portions of only three cranial lateral line canals are retained and they contain a total of eight canal neuromasts. In addition, 128–155 superficial neuromasts are found in six head series (comprising 33 neuromast lines or rows). Superficial neuromasts are found in one body series (65–80 neuromasts arranged in three groups of vertical lines or “stitches”) and one caudal fin series (3 lines, each located between fin rays and comprised of many small neuromasts; total of 27–53 neuromasts) extending to the tip of the caudal fin. The general distribution of neuromasts is established early during the larval stage, and neuromast numbers increase within and among lines resulting in an increase in overall complexity of the system. On day-of-hatch, a total of 22 neuromasts are present. At ∼15 days post-hatch, all eight cranial canal neuromasts are present, and, in post-settlement juveniles (“settlers”), they are enclosed in canals and a total of ∼185 neuromasts are found on the head, trunk, and tail. All neuromasts are small (∼40 lm long) and diamond-shaped, but three subpopulations (canal neuromasts, canal neuromast homologs, superficial neuromasts) are defined based on their location and their arrangement within lines (“tip-to-tip” or “side-by-side”). The ontogeny of the lateral line system and distinctions among neuromast subpopulations help to reveal the structural and functional organization of the complex lateral line system in Elacatinus and will contribute to the interpretation of neuromast patterns in other gobiiforms. A comparison of superficial neuromast number in 12 species of Elacatinus and Tigrigobius (sister genera) revealed variation among species that live in different reef microhabitats, which suggests that adaptive evolution in the lateral line system is evident among closely related taxa.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45042481","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
D. Purwandana, M. Imansyah, Achmad Ariefiandy, Heru Rudiharto, C. Ciofi, T. Jessop
We studied annual trends and characteristics of nesting activities and hatchling production by female Komodo Dragons (Varanus komodoensis) in Komodo National Park, Indonesia between 2002 and 2006. During this period, we recorded 12, 16, 15, 13, and 6 females nesting annually at 42 potential nesting sites. An average female nesting periodicity was estimated at 1.2±0.4 years. This result arose because most females bred annually and some biennially. Some females reused nest sites in successive years while others did not. Nesting females had significantly lower body mass compared to when they were recaptured again in a non-nesting state. All-female nesting activities were conducted within their resident valleys and suggested a strong tendency for spatial fidelity. Komodo Dragons were generally considered solitary nesters as only on one occasion were two nesting females observed to use the same nesting site. On average, 21.0±3.6 Komodo Dragon hatchlings emerged from each nest. We estimated that within the study area, nesting female Komodo Dragons produced between 129.0±21.8 and 344.0±58.16 hatchlings per annum. We discuss the ecological and evolutionary significance of these attributes. However, the main conservation management implications drawn from this study are that there are a low annual number of nesting females and associated hatchling production in Komodo National Park. Hence, a continuation of more extensive nesting surveys could provide a cost-effective and accurate way to gather important long-term demographic information for this species.
{"title":"Insights into the Nesting Ecology and Annual Hatchling Production of the Komodo Dragon","authors":"D. Purwandana, M. Imansyah, Achmad Ariefiandy, Heru Rudiharto, C. Ciofi, T. Jessop","doi":"10.1643/CH-19-337","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CH-19-337","url":null,"abstract":"We studied annual trends and characteristics of nesting activities and hatchling production by female Komodo Dragons (Varanus komodoensis) in Komodo National Park, Indonesia between 2002 and 2006. During this period, we recorded 12, 16, 15, 13, and 6 females nesting annually at 42 potential nesting sites. An average female nesting periodicity was estimated at 1.2±0.4 years. This result arose because most females bred annually and some biennially. Some females reused nest sites in successive years while others did not. Nesting females had significantly lower body mass compared to when they were recaptured again in a non-nesting state. All-female nesting activities were conducted within their resident valleys and suggested a strong tendency for spatial fidelity. Komodo Dragons were generally considered solitary nesters as only on one occasion were two nesting females observed to use the same nesting site. On average, 21.0±3.6 Komodo Dragon hatchlings emerged from each nest. We estimated that within the study area, nesting female Komodo Dragons produced between 129.0±21.8 and 344.0±58.16 hatchlings per annum. We discuss the ecological and evolutionary significance of these attributes. However, the main conservation management implications drawn from this study are that there are a low annual number of nesting females and associated hatchling production in Komodo National Park. Hence, a continuation of more extensive nesting surveys could provide a cost-effective and accurate way to gather important long-term demographic information for this species.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42106302","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
M. Maddalena, J. Row, Matthew E. Dyson, G. Blouin‐Demers, B. Fedy
Habitat loss and fragmentation are among the greatest threats to wildlife and biodiversity. Reptiles are particularly susceptible to these threats due to high site fidelity, large home ranges, and slow movement rates. To understand behavioral responses of Eastern Milksnakes (Lampropeltis triangulum) to fragmentation, we compared home range size and movement rates between a fragmented habitat and an intact habitat. Additionally, we quantified road avoidance and habitat selection in the fragmented habitat. In 2015 and 2016, we collected 453 locations from 17 individuals from Rouge National Urban Park (RNUP), the fragmented study area, using radio-telemetry. We compared our results to a previous study with 1,001 locations from 30 individuals at Queen's University Biological Station (QUBS), our intact study area, collected from 2003 to 2004. We found that home ranges were smaller, but daily movement rate (DMD) and distance-per-move (DPM) were greater in the fragmented study area. We also observed that road crossings by snakes occurred less than expected, suggesting active avoidance of roads. Milksnakes in the fragmented habitat selected locations with a greater number of cover objects within open patches surrounded by high density vegetation, which is consistent with previous findings from the intact habitat. Our findings suggest that Eastern Milksnakes benefit from heterogeneous microhabitats and an abundance of available anthropogenic or natural cover.
{"title":"Movement and Habitat Selection of Eastern Milksnakes (Lampropeltis triangulum) at Intact and Fragmented Sites","authors":"M. Maddalena, J. Row, Matthew E. Dyson, G. Blouin‐Demers, B. Fedy","doi":"10.1643/CE-19-187","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CE-19-187","url":null,"abstract":"Habitat loss and fragmentation are among the greatest threats to wildlife and biodiversity. Reptiles are particularly susceptible to these threats due to high site fidelity, large home ranges, and slow movement rates. To understand behavioral responses of Eastern Milksnakes (Lampropeltis triangulum) to fragmentation, we compared home range size and movement rates between a fragmented habitat and an intact habitat. Additionally, we quantified road avoidance and habitat selection in the fragmented habitat. In 2015 and 2016, we collected 453 locations from 17 individuals from Rouge National Urban Park (RNUP), the fragmented study area, using radio-telemetry. We compared our results to a previous study with 1,001 locations from 30 individuals at Queen's University Biological Station (QUBS), our intact study area, collected from 2003 to 2004. We found that home ranges were smaller, but daily movement rate (DMD) and distance-per-move (DPM) were greater in the fragmented study area. We also observed that road crossings by snakes occurred less than expected, suggesting active avoidance of roads. Milksnakes in the fragmented habitat selected locations with a greater number of cover objects within open patches surrounded by high density vegetation, which is consistent with previous findings from the intact habitat. Our findings suggest that Eastern Milksnakes benefit from heterogeneous microhabitats and an abundance of available anthropogenic or natural cover.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46893985","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lepadichthys conwayi, new species, is described on the basis of 42 specimens (13.0–42.0 mm in standard length [SL]) collected from the central South Pacific and characterized by the following combination of characters: head sensory canal pores well developed, including 2 nasal, lacrimal and postorbital, and 3 preopercular pores; 13–16 (modally 15, rarely 16) dorsal-fin rays; 11–14 (12, rarely 14) anal-fin rays; 27–30 (28) pectoral-fin rays; 8 or 9 (9), 8–11 (9), and 8–11 (9) gill rakers on first to third arches, respectively; upper end of gill membrane level with base of 7th to 10th (usually 9th) pectoral-fin ray in lateral view; disc length and width 15.0–17.1 (mean 16.0) and 11.1–16.1 (13.9) % SL, respectively, disc length plus disc width 27.8–33.2 (30.0) % SL; dorsal and anal fins with very weak membranous connections to (rarely separated from) caudal fin, posteriormost points of membranes usually just short of or just reaching vertical through caudal-fin base, otherwise very slightly beyond fin base; dorsal- and anal-caudal membrane lengths 3.4–7.1 (4.8) and 3.0–6.0 (4.8) % of caudal-fin length, respectively; black stripe on snout tip through eye to posterior region of head. In addition, examination of the type specimens of Lepadichthys springeri Briggs, 2001 revealed them to be conspecific with L. misakius (Tanaka, 1908), a valid species recently resurrected from the synonymy of L. frenatus Waite, 1904. Accordingly, L. springeri is regarded as a junior synonym of L. misakius.
{"title":"A New Species of Lepadichthys from the Central South Pacific and Comments on the Taxonomic Status of Lepadichthys springeri Briggs, 2001 (Gobiesocidae)","authors":"Kyoji Fujiwara, H. Motomura","doi":"10.1643/CI2020036","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1643/CI2020036","url":null,"abstract":"Lepadichthys conwayi, new species, is described on the basis of 42 specimens (13.0–42.0 mm in standard length [SL]) collected from the central South Pacific and characterized by the following combination of characters: head sensory canal pores well developed, including 2 nasal, lacrimal and postorbital, and 3 preopercular pores; 13–16 (modally 15, rarely 16) dorsal-fin rays; 11–14 (12, rarely 14) anal-fin rays; 27–30 (28) pectoral-fin rays; 8 or 9 (9), 8–11 (9), and 8–11 (9) gill rakers on first to third arches, respectively; upper end of gill membrane level with base of 7th to 10th (usually 9th) pectoral-fin ray in lateral view; disc length and width 15.0–17.1 (mean 16.0) and 11.1–16.1 (13.9) % SL, respectively, disc length plus disc width 27.8–33.2 (30.0) % SL; dorsal and anal fins with very weak membranous connections to (rarely separated from) caudal fin, posteriormost points of membranes usually just short of or just reaching vertical through caudal-fin base, otherwise very slightly beyond fin base; dorsal- and anal-caudal membrane lengths 3.4–7.1 (4.8) and 3.0–6.0 (4.8) % of caudal-fin length, respectively; black stripe on snout tip through eye to posterior region of head. In addition, examination of the type specimens of Lepadichthys springeri Briggs, 2001 revealed them to be conspecific with L. misakius (Tanaka, 1908), a valid species recently resurrected from the synonymy of L. frenatus Waite, 1904. Accordingly, L. springeri is regarded as a junior synonym of L. misakius.","PeriodicalId":10701,"journal":{"name":"Copeia","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2020-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43355714","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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