Découverte remarquable dans une grotte du sud-ouest du Maroc : Siagona taggadertensis n.sp. (Carabidae : Siagoninae)

[EN] Five species of the genus Siagona Latreille 1804 (Carabidae: Siagoninae) are known from Morocco. Siagona taggadertensis n. sp., a remarkable species of Carabidae from a Moroccan cave is described. This insect is spectacular by its large size (one of the largest species of the genus), its external morphology, which isolates it from all the north african representant of the genus, and for the conditions of its discovery: its only known from the remains of six specimens, all of them found in the cave of Taggadert, western Atlas. Hypotheses concerning the ecology of this species are discussed.[FR] Le genre Siagona Latreille 1804 (Carabidae: Siagoninae), compte 5 espèces au Maroc. Siagona taggadertensis n. sp., remarquable espèce collectée dans une grotte marocaine est décrite. Cet insecte est spectaculaire tant par sa grande taille, sa morphologie externe qui l’isole au premier coup d’oeil des représentants nord africains du genre Siagona, que par les conditions de sa découverte : aucun des spécimens n’ont été collectés en dehors de la grotte de Taggadert, Atlas occidental. Des hypothèses concernant l’écologie de cette espèce sont fournies.AF was supported by a postdoctoral Research Fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.Peer reviewe

A new microphthalmic stygobitic Graptodytes Seidlitz from Morocco, with a molecular phylogeny of the genus (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae)

14 páginas, 13 figuras, 2 tablas.-- Articulo Open Access.We describe Graptodytes eremitus n.sp. (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae), a depigmented, microphthalmic stygobitic species found in a pool in the deep area of a cave in the High Atlas of Morocco. To establish its phylogenetic position we inferred a molecular phylogeny of the genus Graptodytes Seidlitz, using ca. 1.7 Kb of four mitochondrial genes for 18 of the 23 previously known species and subspecies of the genus. Graptodytes can be separated in three well supported main lineages, 1) the G. flavipes lineage (apex of median lobe narrow in ventral view), 2) the G. granularis lineage (apex of median lobe expanded and strongly asymmetrical in ventral view), and 3) the G. varius lineage (apex of median lobe expanded but symmetrical in ventral view). The G. varius lineage includes the G. aequalis and G. varius groups, the latter including G. eremitus n.sp. as sister to G. delectus Wollaston (Canary Islands) plus the G. varius complex. A molecular clock approach, using a calibration rate of 2.3% divergence/MY for the combined mitochondrial sequence, estimated the origin of the diversification within the genus at ca. 7MY (late Miocene), and the origin of G. eremitus n.sp. at ca. 2 MY (Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary).This work was partly funded with projects CGL2004-00028 and CGL2007-61665 to IR.Peer reviewe

A Molecular phylogeny of Alpine subterranean <i>Trechini</i> (Coleoptera: Carabidae)

Background: The Alpine region harbours one of the most diverse subterranean faunas in the world, with many species showing extreme morphological modifications. The ground beetles of tribe Trechini (Coleoptera, Carabidae) are among the best studied and widespread groups with abundance of troglobionts, but their origin and evolution is largely unknown. Results: We sequenced 3.4 Kb of mitochondrial (cox1, rrnL, trnL, nad1) and nuclear (SSU, LSU) genes of 207 specimens of 173 mostly Alpine species, including examples of all subterranean genera but two plus a representation of epigean taxa. We applied Bayesian methods and maximum likelihood to reconstruct the topology and to estimate divergence times using a priori rates obtained for a related ground beetle genus. We found three main clades of late Eocene-early Oligocene origin: (1) the genus Doderotrechus and relatives; (2) the genus Trechus sensu lato, with most anisotopic subterranean genera, including the Pyrenean lineage and taxa from the Dinaric Alps; and (3) the genus Duvalius sensu lato, diversifying during the late Miocene and including all subterranean isotopic taxa. Most of the subterranean genera had an independent origin and were related to epigean taxa of the same geographical area, but there were three large monophyletic clades of exclusively subterranean species: the Pyrenean lineage, a lineage including subterranean taxa from the eastern Alps and the Dinarides, and the genus Anophthalmus from the northeastern Alps. Many lineages have developed similar phenotypes independently, showing extensive morphological convergence or parallelism. Conclusions: The Alpine Trechini do not form a homogeneous fauna, in contrast with the Pyrenees, and show a complex scenario of multiple colonisations of the subterranean environment at different geological periods and through different processes. Examples go from populations of an epigean widespread species going underground with little morphological modifications to ancient, geographically widespread lineages of exclusively subterranean species likely to have diversified once fully adapted to the subterranean environment

New insights into the evolution of the surface antennal sensory equipment in free-living and cave-dwelling beetles (Leiodidae: Leptodirini)

The stable environment of subterranean realms is characterized by constant darkness, temperature and humidity, and scarcity of resources. This led to similar adaptations in different lineages of animals, such as the reduction of eyes and pigmentation. It is common textbook knowledge that blindness in cave insects is compensated for by transformations of other sensorial structures, especially the antennae with their rich array of sensilla. We tested this hypothesis with 33 species of Leiodidae of the tribe Leptodirini (Coleoptera) with and without eyes and from hypogean and epigean environments. We documented and compared the number, types, arrangement and density of smooth and furrowed antennal sensilla on certain flagellomeres. Our statistical analysis that took effects of body size and phylogeny into consideration showed that (1) the number of these sensilla does not differ between hypogean or epigean beetles; (2) the same applies to length and diameter of the antennal sensilla; (3) there is a difference in density, but unexpectedly it is lower in hypogean species. Our finding thus contrasts with widely accepted earlier interpretations for those external antennal sensilla in the studied Leptodirini, showing that sensillar patterns are scarcely affected in these subterranean beetles if at all, and even less dense in blind and cave-living species. Our results thus add a new facet to the evolution of cave animals

Explosive radiation versus old relicts: The complex history of Ethiopian Trechina, with description of a new genus and a new subgenus (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Trechini)

The trechine beetle fauna (Coleoptera, Carabidae) of the Ethiopian Highlands is known to be highly diverse in species, and many species groups were recognized to be characterized by unusual character states of external and genital morphology. Earlier authors described several genera and subgenera of Ethiopian Trechina endemic to certain high mountains of the country. However, the relationships of these species groups and their evolutionary history are unknown so far. Here, we present the first molecular phylogenetic analysis of Ethiopian Trechina, detect several synonymic names under Trechus sensu lato, and introduce two new species groups to the country’s fauna: the monotypic genus Baehria Schmidt &amp;amp; Faille, gen. nov., with the type species B. separata sp. nov. from Mt. Choke in northern Ethiopia, and the Trechus subgenus Abunetrechus Schmidt &amp;amp; Faille, subgen. nov., with the type species T. bipartitus Raffray, 1885; this subgenus includes three species of northern Ethiopia. We show that the composition of the Ethiopian fauna is based on multiple events of immigration, which started simultaneously with or some million years after the Oligocene-Early Miocene orogenic events north and south of the Rift Valley. Our results support the habitat island hypothesis for the evolution of the Ethiopian highland fauna. We found no evidence for an alternative hypothesis assuming a close connection of the Trechina immigration to Ethiopia and Pleistocene cooling. We, thus, conclude that the geomorphological development rather than the climatic changes are the main drivers of the diversification of the high-altitude Trechina fauna in Ethiopia

The deep subterranean environment as a potential model system in ecological, biogeographical and evolutionary research

One of the main challenges in ecology, biogeography and evolution is to understand and predict how species may respond to environmental changes. Here we focus on the deep subterranean environment, a system that minimizes most of the typical uncertainties of studies on epigean (surface) environments. Caves are relatively homogeneous habitats with nearly constant environmental conditions and simplified biological communities, allowing to control for biotic interactions. Thus, this particular system could be considered a natural habitat whose environmental conditions are similar to what can be reproduced in a laboratory, being an ideal model system for ecological, biogeographical and evolutionary studies. Subterranean species may potentially be used to assess the capability to persist in situ in a global change scenario, as they cannot accommodate to drastic changing conditions by behavioural plasticity, microhabitat use or by migrating to distant, more suitable areas, something frequent in epigean environments. In order to provide accurate predictions of the response of the subterranean biodiversity to climate change, we encourage evolutionary biologist, biogeographers and conservation biologist to work in this interesting ecosystem.DS-F was supported by a post-doctoral contract funded by Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha and the European Social Fund (ESF). This work was partly funded by two projects funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (CGL2016-76995-P to DSF and CGL2016-76705-P to IR).Peer reviewe

Flourishing in subterranean ecosystems: Euro-Mediterranean Plusiocampinae and tachycampoids (Diplura, Campodeidae)

Este artículo contiene 138 páginas, 213 figuras, 14 tablas.Diplura is a group of entognathous hexapods, often considered a sister group to insects. They play an important role in recycling organic matter in soil and subterranean terrestrial ecosystems. The Campodeidae is the most diverse family, divided into four subfamilies. The subfamily Plusiocampinae has a subterranean life-style with many species distributed in the Euro-Mediterranean area. The incertae sedis tachycampoids (“lignée Tachycampoïde”) is a group within the family Campodeidae that share with the Plusiocampinae a strong preference for subterranean habitats and several morphological characters, such as slender body shape, elongated appendages, considerable increment in the number of antennomeres and cercal articles, and complexity of sensorial structures. The present monograph provides a taxonomic revision of the subfamily Plusiocampinae and the genera belonging to the tachycampoid lineage from Europe and the Mediterranean region. It comprises detailed morphological descriptions and illustrations together with data on the habitats and distributions of 87 species, 10 subspecies and 11 affinis forms. Seven new species are described among those, namely: Plusiocampa (Plusiocampa) apollo Sendra, Giachino & Vailati sp. nov., P. (P.) chiosensis Sendra & Gasparo sp. nov., P. (P.) dublanskii Sendra & Turbanov sp. nov., P. (P.) hoffmanni Sendra & Paragamian sp. nov., P. (P.) rhea Sendra sp. nov., P. (P.) ternovensis Sendra & Borko sp. nov. and P. (Venetocampa) ferrani Sendra & Delić sp. nov.DS’s field trips were funded by the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (Grant 173038); KP was partially funded by the HISR project “Conservation of the Cave Fauna of Greece” funded by the MAVA Foundation and WWF Greece; PMG and DV carried out sampling in Greece using permits from the Ministry of Environment no. 124085/1362/2015, 135366/373/2016 and 166238/248/2018; IT was funded within the framework of the state assignment of FASO Russia (themes no. АААА-А18-118012690106-7 and АААА-А18-118012690105), supported in part by RFBR (project no. 17-54-40017Абх_а); sampling efforts by AF and colleagues resulted from various projects on the evolution of cave fauna diversity, some of them funded by the German Research Foundation, DFG (DFG FA 1042/1-1 and DFG BA 2152/14-1); PMG and DV were partly supported by the program “Research Missions in the Mediterranean Basin” sponsored by the World Biodiversity Association onlus XLI contribution; ASPSR was supported by a research grant (15471) from Villum Fonden.Peer reviewe

A conservation roadmap for the subterranean biome

The 15th UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) (COP15) will be held in Kunming, China in October 2021. Historically, CBDs and other multilateral treaties have either alluded to or entirely overlooked the subterranean biome. A multilateral effort to robustly examine, monitor, and incorporate the subterranean biome into future conservation targets will enable the CBD to further improve the ecological effectiveness of protected areas by including groundwater resources, subterranean ecosystem services, and the profoundly endemic subsurface biodiversity. To this end, we proffer a conservation roadmap that embodies five conceptual areas: (1) science gaps and data management needs; (2) anthropogenic stressors; (3) socioeconomic analysis and conflict resolution; (4) environmental education; and (5) national policies and multilateral agreements.Peer reviewe

Taxonomy based on science is necessary for global conservation

Peer reviewe

Les Coléoptères troglobies de l'île de Sulawesi (Indonésie) ; description du mâle du Paussidae cavernicole Eustra saripaensis Deuve, 2002 (Coleoptera)

Troglobitic Coleoptera of Sulawesi (Indonesia) ; description of the male of the cavernicolous Paussidae Eustra saripaensis Deuve, 2002 (Coleoptera). We present here results of biospeleological prospections realized in August and September 2007 in caves of Maros area, Sulawesi. New localities for the Carabidae Mateuellus troglobioticus Deuve are given and the male of Eustra saripaensis Deuve is described. Study of the aedeagus of this insect suggests hypothesis of phylogenetic affinities with the other species of the genus. A distribution map of the genus Eustra is presented, and its distribution is discussed.Nous présentons ici les résultats de prospections biospéléologiques réalisées en août et septembre 2007 dans les grottes de la région de Maros, Sulawesi. De nouvelles localités du Carabidae Mateuellus troglobioticus Deuve sont citées et le mâle d'Eustra saripaensis Deuve est décrit. L'étude de l'édéage de cet insecte permet d''émettre des hypothèses quant à ses affinités phylogénétiques avec les autres espèces du genre. Une carte de répartition des espèces d'Eustra connues à ce jour est présentée, et la distribution du genre est discutée.Faille Arnaud. Les Coléoptères troglobies de l'île de Sulawesi (Indonésie) ; description du mâle du Paussidae cavernicole Eustra saripaensis Deuve, 2002 (Coleoptera). In: Bulletin de la Société entomologique de France, volume 115 (3),2010. pp. 375-380