Filogenia de Hexapoda

Fil: Lanteri, Analía Alicia. División Entomología. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Del Río, María Guadalupe. División Entomología. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; Argentin

Evolution of insect flight

Kukci su evolucijski stara, a po broju vrsta najveća skupina životinja s vrlo velikim utjecajem na ekosustave i čovjeka. Jedini su beskralješnjaci koji su razvili sposobnost leta što im je, uz neke druge specifične prilagodbe, omogućilo da postanu najuspješnija skupina životinja. Tvore većinu faune u svim staništima, osim otvorenih mora i polarnih krajeva. U ovom radu je dan kratak pregled evolucijske povijesti najvećih skupina letećih kukaca, uz naglasak na njihov let i evolucijske prilagodbe vezane uz njega.Insects are an evolutionary very old animal group with more species than any other. They have a major effect on ecosystems and respectively on humans. Also they are the only invertebrates that have developed the ability to fly, which besides other specific adaptations has allowed them to become the most successful animal group. They form the majority in fauna of all habitats, except in polar circles and open seas. This article presents short review of evolutionary history of the largest groups of flying insects, with emphasis on their ability to fly and adaptations related to it

Global diversity of mayflies (Ephemeroptera, Insecta) in freshwater

The extant global Ephemeroptera fauna is represented by over 3,000 described species in 42 families and more than 400 genera. The highest generic diversity occurs in the Neotropics, with a correspondingly high species diversity, while the Palaearctic has the lowest generic diversity, but a high species diversity. Such distribution patterns may relate to how long evolutionary processes have been carrying on in isolation in a bioregion. Over an extended period, there may be extinction of species, but evolution of more genera. Dramatic extinction events such as the K-T mass extinction have affected current mayfly diversity and distribution. Climatic history plays an important role in the rate of speciation in an area, with regions which have been climatically stable over long periods having fewer species per genus, when compared to regions subjected to climatic stresses, such as glaciation. A total of 13 families are endemic to specific bioregions, with eight among them being monospecific. Most of these have restricted distributions which may be the result of them being the relict of a previously more diverse, but presently almost completely extinct family, or may be the consequence of vicariance events, resulting from evolution due to long-term isolation

Global diversity of mayflies (Ephemeroptera, Insecta) in freshwater

The extant global Ephemeroptera fauna is represented by over 3,000 described species in 42 families and more than 400 genera. The highest generic diversity occurs in the Neotropics, with a correspondingly high species diversity, while the Palaearctic has the lowest generic diversity, but a high species diversity. Such distribution patterns may relate to how long evolutionary processes have been carrying on in isolation in a bioregion. Over an extended period, there may be extinction of species, but evolution of more genera. Dramatic extinction events such as the K-T mass extinction have affected current mayfly diversity and distribution. Climatic history plays an important role in the rate of speciation in an area, with regions which have been climatically stable over long periods having fewer species per genus, when compared to regions subjected to climatic stresses, such as glaciation. A total of 13 families are endemic to specific bioregions, with eight among them being monospecific. Most of these have restricted distributions which may be the result of them being the relict of a previously more diverse, but presently almost completely extinct family, or may be the consequence of vicariance events, resulting from evolution due to long-term isolation

Ein neuer Insekten-Rest (Megasecoptera) aus dem Ober-Karbon von Osnabrück

Ein neuer isolierter Insekten-Flügel aus dem Westfalium D vom Piesberg N' Osnabrück gehört zu einer neuen Art: Aspidothorax aestatis n. sp. (Megasecoptera: Aspidothoracidae). Diese ist nahe verwandt mit Aspidothorax triangularis BRONGNIART 1894 aus dem Stephanium B von Commentry (Zentral-Frankreich), unterscheidet sich aber vor allem durch (1) den weniger deutlich markierten Apex, (2) die breitere Praeradial-Area, (3) die ungeteilten Adern MP- und CuP- sowie (4) die unregelmäßiger angeordneten Queradern.A new isolated insect wing from the Westphalian D sequence of the Piesberg N' Osnabrück (Lower Saxony, West Germany) belongs to a new species, Aspidothorax aestatis n. sp. (Megasecoptera: Aspidothoracidae). It is closely related to Aspidothorax triangularis BRONGNIART 1894 Irom the Stephanian B of Commentry (Central France), but differs mainly by (1) less marked apex, (2) wider preradial area, (3) simple MP- and CuP-, and (4) more irregular cross veins

Inducible Defenses Stay Up Late: Temporal Patterns of Immune Gene Expression in Tenebrio molitor

The course of microbial infection in insects is shaped by a two-stage process of immune defense. Constitutive defenses, such as engulfment and melanization, act immediately and are followed by inducible defenses, archetypically the production of antimicrobial peptides, which eliminate or suppress the remaining microbes. By applying RNAseq across a 7-day time course, we sought to characterize the long-lasting immune response to bacterial challenge in the mealworm beetle Tenebrio molitor, a model for the biochemistry of insect immunity and persistent bacterial infection. By annotating a hybrid de novo assembly of RNAseq data, we were able to identify putative orthologs for the majority of components of the conserved insect immune system. Compared with Tribolium castaneum, the most closely related species with a reference genome sequence and a manually curated immune system annotation, the T. molitor immune gene count was lower, with lineage-specific expansions of genes encoding serine proteases and their countervailing inhibitors accounting for the majority of the deficit. Quantitative mapping of RNAseq reads to the reference assembly showed that expression of genes with predicted functions in cellular immunity, wound healing, melanization, and the production of reactive oxygen species was transiently induced immediately after immune challenge. In contrast, expression of genes encoding antimicrobial peptides or components of the Toll signaling pathway and iron sequestration response remained elevated for at least 7 days. Numerous genes involved in metabolism and nutrient storage were repressed, indicating a possible cost of immune induction. Strikingly, the expression of almost all antibacterial peptides followed the same pattern of long-lasting induction, regardless of their spectra of activity, signaling possible interactive roles in vivo

The Evolution of a Response to Smoke within the Arthropoda

Many animals have a survival instinct to flee in response to fire, but do they respond to smoke alone? Many arthropods respond to fire or smoke by moving in the opposite direction (a negative taxis) to obtain shelter. At the species level, taxa that have adapted a behavioral response to fire increase their fitness. This response behavior has been observed in many terrestrial arthropods. Still, the behavior is currently unknown for marine, aquatic, or cave arthropods, which are atypically exposed to smoke or fire. This project assesses how often behavioral adaptation to smoke avoidance may have evolved within Arthropoda. Twenty-two different orders within Arthropoda were used to assess how many times a behavioral response to smoke may have evolved. The data collected was the total amount of time that an individual moved during the control and experimental trials, measured in seconds. Pairwise t-tests were performed on orders and selected families to assess which taxa had a response to smoke. The insect orders that significantly responded to smoke in the experimental trials and included members of the Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, Orthoptera, Plecoptera, Archaeognatha, and Hemiptera. Based on these results, the behavioral trait of responding to smoke seen in an increase in movement is polyphyletic within Arthropoda; six different evolutionary hypotheses were proposed from these results. The most parsimonious hypothesis outside of the Insecta involves two gains of a behavioral adaptation to smoke - in both the Araneae and Opiliones – and is based on earlier studies. In this study, two hypotheses within the Insecta for the evolution of a behavioral response to smoke are equally parsimonious. The first involves one gain in the common ancestor of all insects with a loss in the Paleoptera (old winged insects), while the second involves two separate gains of a response in both the apterygotes (wingless insects) and neopterans (new winged insects)

Primera addenda al catàleg de fòssils castellonencs

S'amplia el catàleg dels fòssils castellonencs amb 25 espècies. Es publica la llista completa amb tota la bibliografia de les descripcions respectives. Es completa amb informació addicional dels autors, figures, situació dels holotips i diversos aspectes de la descripció.First addendum to the catalogue of Castelló's fossilWe expan the fossil catalogue of Castellon with 25 news species. The complete list is published adding the bibliography or every descriptions, and with additional information about the authors, figures, holotype situation and various other aspects of the original descriptio

Insekten-Funde aus dem Westfalium D (Ober-Karbon) des Piesberges bei Osnabrück (Deutschland). Teil 1: Palaeoptera

In diesem ersten Teil einer Monographie der Insekten (ausschließlich der Blattodea) aus Schichten des Westfalium D vom Piesberg bei Osnabrück (Niedersachsen, Deutschland) werden die Angehörigen der Palaeoptera beschrieben. Sie verteilen sich auf die Palaeodictyoptera (Homoioptera kortumi n. sp., Breyeria brevis n. sp.,B. bistrata Brauckmann, 1995, B. solida Brauckmann & Herd, 2000, Hasala inferiorsaxonica Brauckmann, 1995), Megasecoptera (Aspidothorax tristrata n. sp., A. aestatis Brauckmann, 1991, Pyebrodia martinsnetoi n. gen. n. sp.), Diaphanopterodea (Piesbergala leipnerae n. gen. n. sp.) und Odonatoptera (Erasipterella piesbergensis Brauckmann, 1983).In this first part of a monograph on the hitherto known fossil insects (exclusively Blattodea) from Westphalian D beds of the Piesberg quarry near Osnabrück (Lower Saxony,Germany) the palaeopteran taxa are described. They are distributed among the Palaeodictyoptera (Homoioptera kortumi n. sp., Breyeria brevis n. sp., B. bistrata Brauckmann, 1995, B. solida Brauckmann & Herd, 2000, Hasala inferiorsaxonica Brauckmann, 1995), Megasecoptera (Aspidothorax tristrata n. sp., A. aestatis Brauckmann, 1991, Pyebrodia martinsnetoi n. gen. n. sp.), Diaphanopterodea (Piesbergala leipnerae n. gen. n. sp.), and Odonatoptera (Erasipterella piesbergensis Brauckmann, 1983)

Insectos del Mioceno inferior de Ribesalbes (Castellón, España). Interacciones planta-insecto

This paper carries out the study of ichnofossils originated by insects found in the Lower Miocene locality of 'La Rinconada', near Ribesalbes (Province of Castellón, Spain). The main fossil record is integrated by plant-insect interactions that are observed in leaves and leaflets: ovipositions, mines and a chew mark. The insect ovipositions, on leaves of Laurophyllum, Caesalpiniaceae and Populus, show ovate to oblong eggs with 0.9-1.1 mm length and 0.2-0.3 mm width. They occur in eccentric arcs, sometimes with a zigzagged pattern. These ovipositions were produced by damselflies of the family Coenagrionidae. Insect mines are reported in leaves of Laurophyllum and Celtis?, and show a blotch shape in Laurophyllum sp., with a channel-structure, and a linear shape in Celtis sp.? Insect larvae, which were endophytophagous, i.e. internal plant parasites, produced these channel marks of leaf-mines. The mine patterns observed in Laurophyllum leaf are similar to those produced by the recent larvae of the Nepticulidae (Lepidoptera). Such a diverse set of plant-insect interactions are uncommon in the fossil record. In addition, one level with bioturbation, possibly produced by aquatic larval chironomids, is also described here. Key words: Insecta, Odonata, Coenagrionidae, ovipositions, Lepidoptera, Nepticulidae, leaf-mines, leaf chew marks, Miocene, Spain.En el presente trabajo se realiza el estudio de icnofósiles originados por insectos que se han encontrado en el yacimiento de 'La Rinconada', del Mioceno Inferior, en Ribesalbes (Castellón). El registro fósil más importante está constituido por interacciones planta-insecto observadas en hojas y folíolos: puestas, minas y una marca de mordedura en el margen foliar. Las puestas, en hojas de Laurophyllum, Caesalpiniaceae y Populus, muestran huevos con una forma aovada-oblonga con una longitud de 0,9-1,1 mm y una anchura de 0,2-0,3 mm. Su disposición muestra un patrón linear y curvo, ocasionalmente las líneas se disponen en zigzag. Estas ovoposiciones fueron producidas por odonatos de la familia Coenagrionidae. Las minas han sido observadas en hojas de Laurophyllum y Celtis?, y tienen forma de mancha en Laurophyllum sp., con estructura de galería, y una forma linear en Celtis sp.? Estas marcas de minas en las hojas fueron producidas por larvas endofitófagas que por ello eran también parásitos internos de las plantas. Los patrones de las minas en la hoja de Laurophyllum son similares a los producidos actualmente por larvas de la familia Nepticulidae (Lepidoptera). Las diferentes interacciones entre plantas e insectos aquí descritas son poco comunes en el registro fósil. Asimismo, se describe un nivel con bioturbación debida a larvas acuáticas de insectos, posiblemente quironómidos. Palabras clave: Insecta, Odonata, Coenagrionidae, puestas, Lepidoptera, Nepticulidae, hojas minadas, marcas de mordedura, Mioceno, España