SOME ASPECTS OF THE POPULATION ECOLOGY OF THE EXOTIC AMPHIPOD, TALITROIDES TOPITOTUM, IN AN ATLANTIC FOREST RESERVE IN BRAZIL

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'Species' from two different butterfly genera combined into one: description of a new genus of Euptychiina (Nymphalidae: Satyrinae) with unusually variable wing pattern

Sepona Freitas and Barbosa, gen. nov. is proposed for the Neotropical satyrine butterfly species Euptychia punctata Weymer, 1911 and its junior subjective synonyms Euptychia griseola Weymer, 1911 and Taygetis indecisa Ribeiro, 1931. The new genus has a distinctive wing pattern and shape of the valvae in the male genitalia, the latter being a unique autapomorphy within the subtribe Euptychiina. Based on molecular data, this genus is not sister to any other single euptychiine genus, instead appearing as the sister to all remaining genera in the Taygetis clade. The present paper illustrates the complexity of the taxonomy of Euptychiina, and the importance of using different sources of evidence in taxonomic studies. (C) 2016 Sociedade Brasileira de Entomologia. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda

Morphology and behavior of the early stages of the skipper, Urbanus esmeraldus, on Urera baccifera, an ant-visited host plant

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)The Neotropical genus Urbanus (Hubner) (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) contains around 34 described species, and is widely distributed from the extreme southern United States to Argentina. Here, we describe the larval morphology and behavior of Urbanus esmeraldus (Hubner)(Hesperiidae) in Urera baccifera (Urticaceae), a plant producing food rewards and fleshy fruits that attract ants (including predacious species) in a Brazilian forest. Larvae pass through five instars and construct two kinds of leaf shelters. Experiments with ejected fecal pellets showed that these can serve as cues to ground-dwelling ants that climb onto host plants and potentially attack the larvae. Manipulation with pellets placed at different distances suggests that ejection behavior decreases larval vulnerability to ant predation. Larval preference for mature leaves may be related with increased predation risk at ant-visited young leaves. The study shows that a combination of natural history and experimental data can help understand the life history of a butterfly using a plant with high predation risk.12Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundo de Apoio ao Ensino, a Pesquisa e a Extensao (FAEPEX)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)FAPESP [00/01484-1, 04/05269-9]FAPESP [98/05101-8

Chromosomal evolution in the South American nymphalidae

We give the chromosome numbers of about 80 species or subspecies of Biblidinae as well as of numbers of neotropical Libytheinae (one species), Cyrestinae (4) Apaturinae (7), Nymphalinae (about 40), Limenitidinae (16) and Heliconiinae (11). Libytheana has about n=32, the Biblidinae, Apaturinae and Nymphalinae have in general n=31, the Limenitidinae have n=30, the few Argynnini n=31 and the few species of Acraeni studied have also mostly n=31. The results agree with earlier data from the Afrotropical species of these taxa. We supplement these data with our earlier observations on Heliconiini, Danainae and the Neotropical Satyroid taxa. The lepidopteran modal n=29-31 represents clearly the ancestral condition among the Nymphalidae, from which taxa with various chromosome numbers have differentiated. The overall results show that Neotropical taxa have a tendency to evolve karyotype instability, which is in stark contrast to the otherwise stable chromosome numbers that characterize both Lepidoptera and Trichoptera.144413714

Hybrid speciation driven by multilocus introgression of ecological traits

Hybridization allows adaptations to be shared among lineages and may trigger the evolution of new species1,2. However, convincing examples of homoploid hybrid speciation remain rare because it is challenging to demonstrate that hybridization was crucial in generating reproductive isolation3. Here we combine population genomic analysis with quantitative trait locus mapping of species-specific traits to examine a case of hybrid speciation in Heliconius butterflies. We show that Heliconius elevatus is a hybrid species that is sympatric with both parents and has persisted as an independently evolving lineage for at least 180,000 years. This is despite pervasive and ongoing gene flow with one parent, Heliconius pardalinus, which homogenizes 99% of their genomes. The remaining 1% introgressed from the other parent, Heliconius melpomene, and is scattered widely across the H. elevatus genome in islands of divergence from H. pardalinus. These islands contain multiple traits that are under disruptive selection, including colour pattern, wing shape, host plant preference, sex pheromones and mate choice. Collectively, these traits place H. elevatus on its own adaptive peak and permit coexistence with both parents. Our results show that speciation was driven by introgression of ecological traits, and that speciation with gene flow is possible with a multilocus genetic architecture

North Andean origin and diversification of the largest ithomiine butterfly genus

The Neotropics harbour the most diverse flora and fauna on Earth. The Andes are a major centre of diversification and source of diversity for adjacent areas in plants and vertebrates, but studies on insects remain scarce, even though they constitute the largest fraction of terrestrial biodiversity. Here, we combine molecular and morphological characters to generate a dated phylogeny of the butterfly genus $\textit{Pteronymia}$ (Nymphalidae: Danainae), which we use to infer spatial, elevational and temporal diversification patterns. We first propose six taxonomic changes that raise the generic species total to 53, making $\textit{Pteronymia}$ the most diverse genus of the tribe Ithomiini. Our biogeographic reconstruction shows that $\textit{Pteronymia}$ originated in the Northern Andes, where it diversified extensively. Some lineages colonized lowlands and adjacent montane areas, but diversification in those areas remained scarce. The recent colonization of lowland areas was reflected by an increase in the rate of evolution of species' elevational ranges towards present. By contrast, speciation rate decelerated with time, with no extinction. The geological history of the Andes and adjacent regions have likely contributed to $\textit{Pteronymia}$ diversification by providing compartmentalized habitats and an array of biotic and abiotic conditions, and by limiting dispersal between some areas while promoting interchange across others.ME acknowledges financial support from ANR SPECREP and CNRS (France) and the Leverhulme trust (UK). LDS’s postdoc was funded by an ATIP (CNRS, France) grant awarded to ME. NC was funded by a doctoral grant from the Doctoral School 227 (Sciences de la Nature et de l’Homme: Evolution et Ecologie, France). KW acknowledges funding from NSF (DEB-0639861, DEB-0103746), the National Geographic Society, the Darwin Initiative and the Leverhulme Trust. A.V.L.F. thanks CNPq (fellowships 302585/2011-7 and 303834/2015-3), RedeLep-SISBIOTABrasil/CNPq (563332/2010-7), BR-BoL (MCT/CNPq/FNDCT 50/2010) and FAPESP (BIOTA-FAPESP Programs 2011/50225-3, 2012/50260-6 and 2013/50297-0). KLSB acknowledges support by FAPESP (2012/16266-6). Support for components of this work was provided through a collaborative grant, Dimensions US-Biota-São Paulo, supported by the US National Science Foundation (NSF DEB 1241056), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP Grant 2012/50260-6). Molecular work was performed at the GenePool (University of Edinburgh, UK), UCL (UK) and the Service of Molecular Systematics UMS2700 of the MNHN (France). Work by SK and TS to construct the original Solanaceae phylogeny was funded by the National Science Foundation (DEB-0316614)

Sotaque e telejornalismo: representações de comunicadores de mídia nordestinos

RESUMO: Objetivo: descrever o conteúdo das representações sociais do comunicador de mídia nordestino acerca do seu sotaque. Métodos: a coleta de dados foi realizada em duas etapas. Na primeira, foi empregada a técnica de associação livre, na qual 50 universitários apresentaram o que pensavam diante da palavra "sotaque". Na segunda, por meio do Procedimento de Classificações Múltiplas (PCM), 25 comunicadores atuantes na Região Metropolitana do Recife classificaram as 15 palavras mais associadas pelos estudantes de duas maneiras, classificação livre e dirigida. Na classificação livre, os comunicadores agruparam as palavras segundo critérios por eles estabelecidos, enquanto que na classificação dirigida, as palavras foram classificadas de acordo com o grau de associação com o termo MEU SOTAQUE. A análise foi realizada utilizando-se métodos estatísticos multidimensionais, que permitiram construir a estruturação do campo das Representações Sociais. Resultados: três regiões delimitadas expressam a representação dos sujeitos sobre sotaque: Conceito, Identidade e Espaço. Na primeira, há seis categorias (engraçado, diferente, arrastado, matuto, preconceito, oxente), na segunda, as palavras são identidade, característica, língua, fala e cultura, próximas ao termo meu sotaque e, na terceira, região, regionalismo, nordeste e localidade. Identidade foi o termo mais relacionado ao termo MEU SOTAQUE, enquanto que os itens menos relacionados são os presentes na região conceito, exceto pelo termo oxente. Conclusão: o sotaque nordestino é tido como uma marca da identidade e cultura da região Nordeste. Os comunicadores suavizam características do falar nordestino durante o exercício profissional para se adequar ao padrão preconizado pelo mercado de trabalho sem perder a sua identidade