First record of the beetle family Throscidae (Insecta: Coleoptera), a new species of i\u3eAulonothroscus\u3c/i\u3e Horn, and new species records to the fauna of Peru / Primer registro de la familia de escarabajos Throscidae (Insecta: Coleoptera), una nueva especie de \u3ci\u3eAulonothroscus\u3c/i\u3e Horn y tres nuevos registros de especies para la fauna de Perú

The beetle family Throscidae is documented from Peru for the first time, based on specimens collected in the regions of Cajamarca, Junín, Loreto and Madre de Dios. Aulonothroscus tambopata new species is descri­bed from Madre de Dios. Also, three additional species of Aulonothroscus are reported from Peru for the first time – A. alvarengai Cobos new country record, A. freudi Cobos new country record, and A. oculatissimus Cobos new country record. A key separating these four species is given. This report is part of the “Beetles of Peru” project. Se documenta por primera vez la familia de escarabajos Throscidae para el Perú, a partir de ejemplares reco­lectados en las regiones de Cajamarca, Junín, Loreto y Madre de Dios. Aulonothroscus tambopata sp. nov. se describe a partir de ejemplares recolectados en Madre de Dios. Igualmente, se reporta por primera vez para el Perú tres especies adicionales del género Aulonothroscus – A. alvarengai Cobos registro nuevo del país, A. freudi Cobos registro nuevo del país, A. oculatissimus Cobos registro nuevo del país y se presenta una clave que separa las cuatro especies. Este artículo forma parte del proyecto “Escarabajos del Perú.

Primer registro de la familia de escarabajos Throscidae (Insecta: Coleoptera), una nueva especie de Aulonothroscus Horn y tres nuevos registros de especies para la fauna de Perú

The beetle family Throscidae is documented from Peru for the first time, based on specimens collected in the regions of Cajamarca, Junín, Loreto and Madre de Dios. Aulonothroscus tambopata new species is described from Madre de Dios. Also, three additional species of Aulonothroscus are reported from Peru for the first time – A. alvarengai Cobos new country record, A. freudi Cobos new country record, and A. oculatissimus Cobos new country record. A key separating these four species is given. This report is part of the “Beetles of Peru” project.Se documenta por primera vez la familia de escarabajos Throscidae para el Perú, a partir de ejemplares recolectados en las regiones de Cajamarca, Junín, Loreto y Madre de Dios. Aulonothroscus tambopata sp. nov. se describe a partir de ejemplares recolectados en Madre de Dios. Igualmente, se reporta por primera vez para el Perú tres especies adicionales del género Aulonothroscus – A. alvarengai Cobos registro nuevo del país, A. freudi Cobos registro nuevo del país, A. oculatissimus Cobos registro nuevo del país y se presenta una clave que separa las cuatro especies. Este artículo forma parte del proyecto “Escarabajos del Perú.

Especies nuevas de Elateridae (Coleoptera) de Madre de Dios, Perú, con nuevos cambios taxonómicos y registros de distribución

The Elateridae fauna of Peru is updated with species new to science, new country records and new taxonomic combinations from the Madre de Dios region. Ten species representing eight genera are described as new: Conoderus wachiperi new species (Agrypninae, Oophorini) Cosmesus aca new species (Elaterinae, Pomachilini), Dipropus amarakaeri new species and Dipropus losamigos new species (Elaterinae, Ampedini, Dicrepidiina), Esthesopus machiguenga new species (Cardiophorinae), Glyphonyx peruanus new species (Elaterinae, Adrastini), Lissomus carmen new species (Lissominae), Paradonus kosnipata new species (Negastriinae), and Pomachilius qusqu new species and Pomachilius wayqecha new species (Elaterinae, Pomachilini). Aeolus platynotus Candèze is changed to Conoderus platynotus (Candèze) new combination and Aeolus ticuna Johnson is changed to Conoderus ticuna (Johnson) new combination (Agrypninae, Oophorini); and Crigmus brunnipilis (Candèze) is changed to Probothrium brunnipilis (Candèze) new combination (Elaterinae, Elaterini). Twenty-seven (27) species, the genera Glyphonyx Candèze and Paradonus Stibick, the tribe Adrastini, and the subfamily Negastriinae are added to the Peru faunal list. There are now 201 species representing 48 genera and 9 subfamilies recorded from Peru.La fauna Elateridae del Perú se actualiza con especies nuevas para la ciencia, nuevos registros de países y nuevas combinaciones taxonómicas de la región de Madre de Dios. Diez especies que representan ocho géneros se describen como nuevas: Conoderus wachiperi nueva especie, Cosmesus aca nueva especie, Dipropus amarakaeri nueva especies, Dipropus losamigos, nueva especie, Esthesopus machiguenga nueva especie, Glyphonyx peruanus nueva especie, Lissomus carmen nueva especie, Paradonus kosnipata nueva especie, Pomachilius qusqu nueva especie, Pomachilius wayqecha nueva especie. Aeolus ticuna Johnson se cambia a Conoderus ticuna (Johnson) nueva combinación, Aeolus platynotus Candèze se cambia a Conoderus platynotus (Candèze) nueva combinación, y Crigmus brunnipilis (Candèze) se cambia a Probothrium brunnipilis (Candèze). Veintisiete (27) especies, los géneros Glyphonyx Candèze y Paradonus Stibick, la tribu Adrastini y la subfamilia Negastriinae se agregan a la lista de fauna de Perú. Ahora hay 201 especies que representan 48 géneros y 9 subfamilias se registran en el Perú

New species of Elateridae (Coleoptera) from Madre de Dios, Peru, with new taxonomic changes and distribution records

The Elateridae fauna of Peru is updated with species new to science, new country records and new taxonomic combinations from the Madre de Dios region. Ten species representing eight genera are described as new: Conoderus wachiperi new species (Agrypninae, Oophorini) Cosmesus aca new species (Elaterinae, Pomachilini), Dipropus amarakaeri new species and Dipropus losamigos new species (Elaterinae, Ampedini, Dicrepidiina), Esthesopus machiguenga new species (Cardiophorinae), Glyphonyx peruanus new species (Elaterinae, Adrastini), Lissomus carmen new species (Lissominae), Paradonus kosnipata new species (Negastriinae), and Pomachilius qusqu new species and Pomachilius wayqecha new species (Elaterinae, Pomachilini). Aeolus platynotus Candèze is changed to Conoderus platynotus (Candèze) new combination and Aeolus ticuna Johnson is changed to Conoderus ticuna (Johnson) new combination (Agrypninae, Oophorini); and Crigmus brunnipilis (Candèze) is changed to Probothrium brunnipilis (Candèze) new combination (Elaterinae, Elaterini). Twenty-seven (27) species, the genera Glyphonyx Candèze and Paradonus Stibick, the tribe Adrastini, and the subfamily Negastriinae are added to the Peru faunal list. There are now 201 species representing 48 genera and 9 subfamilies recorded from Peru

Ecological Associations of Littoraria irrorata with Spartina cynosuroides and Spartina alterniflora

It is well-documented that marsh periwinkles (Littoraria irrorata) consume and inhabit smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora), but their interactions with big cordgrass (Spartina cynosuroides) remain unknown. Plant communities in mesohaline marshes will change as sea-level rise shifts species from salt-intolerant (e.g., S. cynosuroides) plants to salt-tolerant (e.g., S. alterniflora) ones. Therefore, understanding how L. irrorata interacts with different habitats provides insight into this species’ generalist nature and allows us to predict the potential impacts of changing plant communities on L. irrorata. We show, for the first time, that L. irrorata inhabits, climbs, and grazes S. cynosuroides. We compared both habitats and found snails were larger, plant tissue was tougher, and sediment surface temperatures were higher in S. alterniflora than S. cynosuroides. Snails had greater survivorship from predators in S. cynosuroides than in S. alterniflora. Further, snails grazed S. cynosuroides more than S. alterniflora, evidenced by a greater number of radulation scars. Despite these differences, snail densities were equal between habitats suggesting functional redundancy between S. cynosuroides and S. alterniflora for L. irrorata. Our results indicate L. irrorata is a habitat generalist that uses both S. alterniflora and S. cynosuroides, which may allow it to gain an ecological foothold as sea-level rises

Rapid detection of snakes modulates spatial orienting in infancy

Recent evidence for an evolved fear module in the brain comes from studies showing that adults, children and infants detect evolutionarily threatening stimuli such as snakes faster than non-threatening ones. A decisive argument for a threat detection system efficient early in life would come from data showing, in young infants, a functional threat-detection mechanism in terms of “what” and “where” visual pathways. The present study used a variant of Posner’s cuing paradigm, adapted to 7–11-month-olds. On each trial, a threat-irrelevant or a threat-relevant cue was presented (a flower or a snake, i.e., “what”). We measured how fast infants detected these cues and the extent to which they further influenced the spatial allocation of attention (“where”). In line with previous findings, we observed that infants oriented faster towards snake than flower cues. Importantly, a facilitation effect was found at the cued location for flowers but not for snakes, suggesting that these latter cues elicit a broadening of attention and arguing in favour of sophisticated “what–where” connections. These results strongly support the claim that humans have an early propensity to detect evolutionarily threat-relevant stimuli

Mycobacterium ulcerans DNA Not Detected in Faecal Samples from Buruli Ulcer Patients: Results of a Pilot Study

It has recently been shown that in a Buruli ulcer (BU) endemic region of southeastern Australia, significant numbers of possums (native tree-dwelling marsupials) have clinical BU disease. Furthermore, based on quantitative PCR (qPCR) analysis, animals with BU lesions (and some without) shed M. ulcerans DNA in their faeces, indicative of bacterial loads of up to 108 organisms/gram. These findings led us to propose that humans might also harbour M. ulcerans in their gastrointestinal tract and shed the bacterium in their faeces. We conducted a pilot study and collected faecal swabs from 26 patients with confirmed BU and 31 healthy household controls. Faecal samples were also collected from 10 healthy controls from non-endemic regions in Ghana. All 67 specimens were negative when tested by IS2404 PCR. The detection sensitivity of this method was ≥104 bacteria per gram (wet-weight) of human faecal material. We conclude that the human gastrointestinal tract is unlikely to be a significant reservoir of M. ulcerans

The costs of integrating reproductive health services: An example using syndromic management of STIs in family planning clinics in Zimbabwe

Estimates from the United Nations Population Fund indicate that the costs of family planning (FP) and other reproductive health (RH) services are increasing and that it will be difficult for donors and countries to meet these costs. Many institutions delivering RH services operate significantly below their physical capacity to see clients, and much of the equipment required for expanding RH services may already be available for use. The marginal costs of adding infrastructure could be low. Many institutions have staff that are not fully occupied, and thus the staff necessary to expand RH services may also be in place. In this paper, we examine the cost implications for labor of expanding the provision of syndromic management services in FP clinics in Zimbabwe. Syndromic management of sexually transmitted infections allows health care workers to make a diagnosis without sophisticated laboratory tests because it is based on clinical syndromes and, in some cases, assessments of an individual patient’s risk for STI infection