Mating effort function of the spermatophore in the bushcricket Poecilimon veluchianus (Orthoptera, Phaneropteridae): Support from a comparison of the mating behaviour of two subspecies

Heller K-G, Reinhold K. Mating effort function of the spermatophore in the bushcricket Poecilimon veluchianus (Orthoptera, Phaneropteridae): Support from a comparison of the mating behaviour of two subspecies. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 1994;53(2):153-163.To analyse spermatophore function, various aspects of the mating behaviour (e.g. spermatophore mass, duration of sperm transfer, mating frequency) were compared in two subspecies of the bushcricket P. veluchianus. Body mass was significantly different in both subspecies and had a strong effect on spermatophore mass, resulting in a large difference in absolute and relative (percentage of male body mass) spermatophore mass in both subspecies. After copulation the small P. v. minor spermatophores were consumed much faster by the female than the larger ones of P. v. veluchianus. The time necessary for sperm transfer from the spermatophore to the female spermatheca was much shorter in the subspecies with small spermatophores than in that with large spermatophores, and in both subspecies similar to the time required to consume the spermatophores. Mating frequency varied also between the subspecies and was murh higher in P. v. minor than in P. v. veluchianus. Differences in body mass between the two subspecies therefore resulted in changes in several aspects of mating behaviour. However, despite large differences in the mass of the spermatophore, its main function seems to be to ensure sperm transfer. This can be concluded from the similarity between the duration of sperm transfer and the time period necessary for spermatophore consumption in each of the subspecies. The spermatophore is thus considered to be male mating effort

Karyotype evolution in the horseshoe bat Rhinolophus sedulus by whole-arm reciprocal translocation (WART)

Robertsonian (centric) fusion or fission is one of the predominant modes of chromosomal rearrangement in karyotype evolution among mammals. However, in karyotypes composed of only bi-armed chromosomes, creation of new chromosomal arm combinations in one step is possible only via whole-arm reciprocal translocation (WART). Although this type of rearrangement has often been proposed to play an important role in chromosomal evolution, direct observations of WARTs remained rare, and, in most cases, were found in hybrids of chromosomal races in the genera Mus and Sorex. For the first time, we present the karyotype of the horseshoe bat species Rhinolophus sedulus (2n = 28, FNa = 52), where a WART between 2 metacentric autosomes was detected by G-banding and confirmed by FISH with painting probes of the vespertilionid bat Myotis myotis. Among the 6 specimens analyzed, 2 showed the heterozygous condition of the WART, 1 showed the presumed ancestral, and 3 specimens showed the derived homozygous state. As the existence of a hybrid zone at the sampling locality is thought to be rather improbable, the WART may indicate ongoing karyotype evolution in this taxon

Check-list of European Orthoptera

List of all 974 recognized species of Ensifera (Tettigonioidea: 458, Rhaphidophoroidea: 44, Grylloidea: 91) and Caelifera (Tetrigoidea: 12, Tridactyloidea: 6, Acridoidea: 363) in Europe including information about their distribution.Aufstellung aller 974 derzeitig anerkannten Arten der Ensifera (Tettigonioidea: 458, Rhaphidophoroidea: 44, Grylloidea: 91) and Caelifera (Tetrigoidea: 12, Tridactyloidea: 6, Acridoidea: 363) in Europa mit Angabe der Verbreitungsgebiete

Bush-crickets with very special ears and songs – review of the East African Phaneropterinae genus Dioncomena Brunner von Wattenwyl, 1878, with notes on its biogeography and the description of new species

This study focuses on the genus Dioncomena and its acoustics, particularly the unique songs produced by male Dioncomena that consist of several distinct elements in a fixed sequence, culminating in a coda that typically elicits a response from a receptive female. We also examine the inflated pronotal lobes, which we term prebullae, that are prominently developed in some Dioncomena species but not in others. We discuss the role of prebullae in the context of acoustic communication in Dioncomena and other related Phaneropterini genera that have similar lateral pronotal lobes. We found that prebullae size is correlated with habitat distribution, with larger prebullae occurring in isolated species while aggregation-prone species have smaller or less pronounced prebullae. Using micro-computer tomography we show sexual dimorphism in the 3D geometry of the acoustic tracheae, being larger in the male. Interestingly, the tracheae are coupled by a septum, like in field crickets, which suggests potential cross talk. We define three groups of Dioncomena based on altitude preferences, ecology, color patterns, and songs: the jagoi-, tanneri-, and ornata-groups. We describe the songs of several species, including newly identified species such as D. flavoviridis sp. nov., D. magombera sp. nov., D. ngurumontana sp. nov., D. sanje sp. nov., D. tanneri, D. versicolor sp. nov., and D. zernyi. We also provide information on the nymphs, development time, and mating behavior of various species reared in the laboratory, shedding light on their phenology and adaptations to their habitats

Cytogenetic investigations in Bornean Rhinolophoidea revealed cryptic diversity in Rhinolophus sedulus entailing classification of Peninsular Malaysia specimens as a new species

Classical and molecular cytogenetic methods were applied to study the karyotypes of one species of Hipposideridae and three taxa of the Rhinolophidae subgenus Aquias from Malaysian Borneo. Except for four chromosomal pairs with autapomorphic arm combinations, the karyotype of Coelops robinsoni was found to be similar to the closely related Aselliscus stoliczkanus. From the three Rhinolophus taxa studied, only R. trifoliatus was found to share the karyotype with conspecifics from Peninsular Malaysia. In contrast, the karyotype of R. luctus foetidus from Sarawak, Borneo differed in the composition of the Y-autosomal translocation products from the closely related R. morio from Peninsular Malaysia, formerly also a subspecies of R. luctus. Therefore, elevation to specific rank is suggested for R. l. foetidus. Examination of the chromosomal set of male R. sedulus specimens from Borneo with 2n = 45 and a Neo-X1X2Y sex chromosome system revealed extreme differences to the karyotype of specimens from Peninsular Malaysia with 2n = 28, to date also classified as R. sedulus. Therefore, with Sarawak, Borneo, as the type locality for R. sedulus, the taxon from Peninsular Malaysia is here described as a new species

New Species in the Old World: Europe as a Frontier in Biodiversity Exploration, a Test Bed for 21st Century Taxonomy

The number of described species on the planet is about 1.9 million, with ca. 17,000 new species described annually, mostly from the tropics. However, taxonomy is usually described as a science in crisis, lacking manpower and funding, a politically acknowledged problem known as the Taxonomic Impediment. Using data from the Fauna Europaea database and the Zoological Record, we show that contrary to general belief, developed and heavily-studied parts of the world are important reservoirs of unknown species. In Europe, new species of multicellular terrestrial and freshwater animals are being discovered and named at an unprecedented rate: since the 1950s, more than 770 new species are on average described each year from Europe, which add to the 125,000 terrestrial and freshwater multicellular species already known in this region. There is no sign of having reached a plateau that would allow for the assessment of the magnitude of European biodiversity. More remarkably, over 60% of these new species are described by non-professional taxonomists. Amateurs are recognized as an essential part of the workforce in ecology and astronomy, but the magnitude of non-professional taxonomist contributions to alpha-taxonomy has not been fully realized until now. Our results stress the importance of developing a system that better supports and guides this formidable workforce, as we seek to overcome the Taxonomic Impediment and speed up the process of describing the planetary biodiversity before it is too late

The European union’s 2010 target: Putting rare species in focus

P. 167-185The European Union has adopted the ambitious target of halting the loss of biodiversity by 2010. Several indicators have been proposed to assess progress towards the 2010 target, two of them addressing directly the issue of species decline. In Europe, the Fauna Europaea database gives an insight into the patterns of distribution of a total dataset of 130,000 terrestrial and freshwater species without taxonomic bias, and provide a unique opportunity to assess the feasibility of the 2010 target. It shows that the vast majority of European species are rare, in the sense that they have a restricted range. Considering this, the paper discusses whether the 2010 target indicators really cover the species most at risk of extinction. The analysis of a list of 62 globally extinct European taxa shows that most contemporary extinctions have affected narrow-range taxa or taxa with strict ecological requirements. Indeed, most European species listed as threatened in the IUCN Red List are narrow-range species. Conversely, there are as many wide-range species as narrow-range endemics in the list of protected species in Europe (Bird and Habitat Directives). The subset of biodiversity captured by the 2010 target indicators should be representative of the whole biodiversity in terms of patterns of distribution and abundance. Indicators should not overlook a core characteristic of biodiversity, i.e. the large number of narrow-range species and their intrinsic vulnerability. With ill-selected indicator species, the extinction of narrowrange endemics would go unnoticedS

Analysis of shared heritability in common disorders of the brain

ience, this issue p. eaap8757 Structured Abstract INTRODUCTION Brain disorders may exhibit shared symptoms and substantial epidemiological comorbidity, inciting debate about their etiologic overlap. However, detailed study of phenotypes with different ages of onset, severity, and presentation poses a considerable challenge. Recently developed heritability methods allow us to accurately measure correlation of genome-wide common variant risk between two phenotypes from pools of different individuals and assess how connected they, or at least their genetic risks, are on the genomic level. We used genome-wide association data for 265,218 patients and 784,643 control participants, as well as 17 phenotypes from a total of 1,191,588 individuals, to quantify the degree of overlap for genetic risk factors of 25 common brain disorders. RATIONALE Over the past century, the classification of brain disorders has evolved to reflect the medical and scientific communities' assessments of the presumed root causes of clinical phenomena such as behavioral change, loss of motor function, or alterations of consciousness. Directly observable phenomena (such as the presence of emboli, protein tangles, or unusual electrical activity patterns) generally define and separate neurological disorders from psychiatric disorders. Understanding the genetic underpinnings and categorical distinctions for brain disorders and related phenotypes may inform the search for their biological mechanisms. RESULTS Common variant risk for psychiatric disorders was shown to correlate significantly, especially among attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder (MDD), and schizophrenia. By contrast, neurological disorders appear more distinct from one another and from the psychiatric disorders, except for migraine, which was significantly correlated to ADHD, MDD, and Tourette syndrome. We demonstrate that, in the general population, the personality trait neuroticism is significantly correlated with almost every psychiatric disorder and migraine. We also identify significant genetic sharing between disorders and early life cognitive measures (e.g., years of education and college attainment) in the general population, demonstrating positive correlation with several psychiatric disorders (e.g., anorexia nervosa and bipolar disorder) and negative correlation with several neurological phenotypes (e.g., Alzheimer's disease and ischemic stroke), even though the latter are considered to result from specific processes that occur later in life. Extensive simulations were also performed to inform how statistical power, diagnostic misclassification, and phenotypic heterogeneity influence genetic correlations. CONCLUSION The high degree of genetic correlation among many of the psychiatric disorders adds further evidence that their current clinical boundaries do not reflect distinct underlying pathogenic processes, at least on the genetic level. This suggests a deeply interconnected nature for psychiatric disorders, in contrast to neurological disorders, and underscores the need to refine psychiatric diagnostics. Genetically informed analyses may provide important "scaffolding" to support such restructuring of psychiatric nosology, which likely requires incorporating many levels of information. By contrast, we find limited evidence for widespread common genetic risk sharing among neurological disorders or across neurological and psychiatric disorders. We show that both psychiatric and neurological disorders have robust correlations with cognitive and personality measures. Further study is needed to evaluate whether overlapping genetic contributions to psychiatric pathology may influence treatment choices. Ultimately, such developments may pave the way toward reduced heterogeneity and improved diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders