Caracterización molecular, morfológica y morfometrica del complejo Nephelomys albigularis Tomes, 1860 (Rodentia: Cricetidae), y su distribución en el Ecuador

El ratón de garganta blanca de Tomes, Nephelomys albigularis se distribuye desde el norte de Ecuador hasta el sur de Perú. En Ecuador se distribuye a ambos lados de la cordillera de los Andes. Esta especie es considerada monotípica. En este trabajo se aclara la identidad taxonómica y las relaciones filogenéticas de N. albigularis, basados en análisis filogenéticos del gen mitocondrial citocromo b y el intrón del gen nuclear beta fibrinógeno; además con la finalidad de identificar patrones morfológicos se revisaron caracteres cráneo mandibulares y se realizó un análisis morfométrico craneal. Los resultados filogenéticos y morfológicos fueron congruentes entre sí, y determinaron la existencia de cinco entidades, agrupadas en tres clados nombrados A, B y C. El clado A se distribuye al norte del Ecuador, y presentó dos subclados altamente soportados AI y AII, el clado B se distribuye al noroccidente del país, y el clado C, que se distribuye desde el centro hasta el sur del Ecuador, presentó dos subclados altamente soportados, CI y CII. De las cinco entidades identificadas dos son especies descritas formalmente, N. moerex (clado B) y N. albigularis (subclado CII), mientras que las otras tres entidades podrían ser serían consideradas como especies candidatas no confirmadas

Relación entre competencias en tecnología de la información y comunicación y desempeño docente en el área de matemática de la I.E. N° 151 Micaela Bastidas-San Juan de Lurigancho-2013

El presente trabajo de investigación tuvo como finalidad demostrar la relación existente entre las competencias en tecnología de la información y comunicación y el desempeño docente en profesores del área de matemática. El estudio se focalizó en este grupo específico de maestros, quienes dada la naturaleza y dificultad de su área requieren habilidades especiales para llegar a sus estudiantes. Fueron 290 sujetos elegidos por muestreo aleatorio simple quienes expresaron las relaciones entre el empleo de los recursos tecnológicos y el dominio de los mismos, así como la evaluación del quehacer pedagógico cotidiano de los docentes en las aulas del nivel secundario de la I.E. Micaela Bastidas en San Juan de Lurigancho. Como resultado se ha podido determinar que existe una relación positiva de grado fuerte entre ambas variables; es decir que a una mayor aplicación de las competencias en Tic es mayor el desempeño docente en el área de matemática

A new genus of oryzomyine rodents (Cricetidae, Sigmodontinae) with three new species from montane cloud forests, western Andean cordillera of Colombia and Ecuador

The Andean cloud forests of western Colombia and Ecuador are home to several endemic mammals; members of the Oryzomyini, the largest Sigmodontinae tribe, are extensively represented in the region. However, our knowledge about this diversity is still incomplete, as evidenced by several new taxa that have been described in recent years. Extensive field work in two protected areas enclosing remnants of Chocó montane forest recovered a high diversity of small mammals. Among them, a medium-sized oryzomyine is here described as a new genus having at least three new species, two of them are named and diagnosed. Although externally similar to members of the genera Nephelomys and Tanyuromys, the new genus has a unique molar pattern within the tribe, being characterized by a noticeable degree of hypsodonty, simplification, lamination, and third molar compression. A phylogeny based on a combination of molecular markers, including nuclear and mitochondrial genes, and morphological data recovered the new genus as sister to Mindomys, and sequentially to Nephelomys. The new genus seems to be another example of a sigmodontine rodent unique to the Chocó biogeographic region. Its type species inhabits cloud forest between 1,600 and 2,300 m in northernmost Ecuador (Carchi Province); a second species is restricted to lower montane forest, 1,200 m, in northern Ecuador (Imbabura Province); a third putative species, here highlighted exclusively by molecular evidence from one immature specimen, is recorded in the montane forest of Reserva Otonga, northern Ecuador (Cotopaxi Province). Finally, the new genus is also recorded in southernmost Colombia (Nariño Department), probably represented there also by a new species. These species are spatially separated by deep river canyons through Andean forests, resulting in marked environmental discontinuities. Unfortunately, Colombian and Ecuadorian Pacific cloud forests are under rapid anthropic transformation. Although the populations of the type species are moderately abundant and occur in protected areas, the other two persist in threatened forest fragments.Fil: Brito, Jorge. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; EcuadorFil: Koch, Claudia. Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum Alexander Koenig.; AlemaniaFil: Reis Percequillo, Alexandre. Universidade do Sao Paulo. Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz; BrasilFil: Tinoco, Nicolás. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador; EcuadorFil: Weksler, Marcelo. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro; BrasilFil: Pinto, C. Miguel. Observatorio de Biodiversidad Ambiente y Salud; EcuadorFil: Pardiñas, Ulises Francisco J.. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; Ecuador. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto de Diversidad y Evolución Austral; Argentin

Unlocking Andean sigmodontine diversity: five new species of Chilomys (Rodentia: Cricetidae) from the montane forests of Ecuador

The Andean cloud forests of Ecuador are home to several endemic mammals. Members of the Thomasomyini rodents are well represented in the Andes, with Thomasomys being the largest genus (47 species) of the subfamily Sigmodontinae. Within this tribe, however, there are genera that have escaped a taxonomic revision, and Chilomys Thomas, 1897, constitutes a paradigmatic example of these “forgotten” Andean cricetids. Described more than a century ago, current knowledge of this externally unmistakable montane rodent is very limited, and doubts persist as to whether or not it is monotypic. After several years of field efforts in Ecuador, a considerable quantity of specimens of Chilomys were collected from various localities representing both Andean chains. Based on an extensive genetic survey of the obtained material, we can demonstrate that what is currently treated as C. instans in Ecuador is a complex comprising at least five new species which are described in this paper. In addition, based on these noteworthy new evidence, we amend the generic diagnosis in detail, adding several key craniodental traits such as incisor procumbency and microdonty. These results indicate that Chilomys probably has a hidden additional diversity in large parts of the Colombian and Peruvian territories, inviting a necessary revision of the entire genus.Fil: Brito, Jorge. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; EcuadorFil: Tinoco, Nicolás. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador; EcuadorFil: Pinto, C. Miguel. Observatorio de Biodiversidad Ambiente y Salud; EcuadorFil: García, Rubí. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; EcuadorFil: Koch, Claudia. Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Chang; AlemaniaFil: Fernandez, Vincent. Natural History Museum; Reino UnidoFil: Burneo, Santiago. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador; EcuadorFil: Pardiñas, Ulises Francisco J.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto de Diversidad y Evolución Austral; Argentin

Improving area of occupancy estimates for parapatric species using distribution models and support vector machines

As geographic range estimates for the IUCN Red List guide conservation actions, accuracy and ecological realism are crucial. IUCN’s extent of occurrence (EOO) is the general region including the species’ range, while area of occupancy (AOO) is the subset of EOO occupied by the species. Data‐poor species with incomplete sampling present particular difficulties, but species distribution models (SDMs) can be used to predict suitable areas. Nevertheless, SDMs typically employ abiotic variables (i.e., climate) and do not explicitly account for biotic interactions that can impose range constraints. We sought to improve range estimates for data‐poor, parapatric species by masking out areas under inferred competitive exclusion. We did so for two South American spiny pocket mice: Heteromys australis (Least Concern) and Heteromys teleus (Vulnerable due to especially poor sampling), whose ranges appear restricted by competition. For both species, we estimated EOO using SDMs and AOO with four approaches: occupied grid cells, abiotic SDM prediction, and this prediction masked by approximations of the areas occupied by each species’ congener. We made the masks using support vector machines (SVMs) fit with two data types: occurrence coordinates alone; and coordinates along with SDM predictions of suitability. Given the uncertainty in calculating AOO for low‐data species, we made estimates for the lower and upper bounds for AOO, but only make recommendations for H. teleus as its full known range was considered. The SVM approaches (especially the second one) had lower classification error and made more ecologically realistic delineations of the contact zone. For H. teleus, the lower AOO bound (a strongly biased underestimate) corresponded to Endangered (occupied grid cells), while the upper bounds (other approaches) led to Near Threatened. As we currently lack data to determine the species’ true occupancy within the post‐processed SDM prediction, we recommend that an updated listing for H. teleus include these bounds for AOO. This study advances methods for estimating the upper bound of AOO and highlights the need for better ways to produce unbiased estimates of lower bounds. More generally, the SVM approaches for post‐processing SDM predictions hold promise for improving range estimates for other uses in biogeography and conservation

Diversidad insospechada en los andes de ecuador: Filogenia del grupo “cinereus” de thomasomys y descripción de una nueva especie (rodentia, cricetidae)

Con base en ejemplares recolectados en los Andes surorientales de Ecuador, Parque Nacional Sangay, pero también integrando otros materiales de colecciones, se efectuó una revisión del grupo “cinereus” del género de cricétidos Thomasomys Coues, 1884 (Sigmodontinae, Thomasomyini). Como resultado de dicha revisión, además de proponerse una hipótesis logenética basada en el marcador molecular Cyt-b, se reconoce una nueva especie. Se trata de un Thomasomys de tamaño corporal mediano dentro del género, que se distingue, entre otros caracteres, por presentar una cola larga, amplia separación entre almohadillas tenar e hipotenar, largo de la serie molar superior < 5.6 mm, ancho de placa cigomática < 2.9 mm, vacuidades esfenopalatinas en forma de suras, margen posterior de los nasales sobrepasando el nivel de los lacrimales, M1 con anterolofo grueso y mesolofo estrecho, M2 con mesolofo corto, m1 con mesoló do delicado y m2 con mesoló do diminuto. Esta nueva especie de Thomasomys, por el momento endémica del Parque Nacional Sangay, presenta una distancia genética de 9.18% con respecto a T. caudivarius, su especie hermana que habita en los Andes suroccidentales de Ecuador. Con este hallazgo, la riqueza de Thomasomys en Ecuador asciende a 15 especies, comparable con la registrada en Colombia. Finalmente, se propone la necesidad de mancomunar esfuerzos para generar avances sustanciales en el conocimiento de este complejo género de sigmodontinos andinos.Based on specimens collected in the southeastern Andes of Ecuador, at Parque Nacional Sangay, but also including animals from mammal collections, a revision of the species of the group “cinereus” of the cricetid genus Thomasomys Coues, 1884 (Sigmodontini, Thomasomyini) was made. As a result, concomitantly to a new phylogeny based on a molecular marker (Cytb), a new species is recognized. It corresponds to a medium-sized Thomasomys which can be distinguished from the other species of the genus by the following traits: long tail, broad space between thenar and hypothenar pads, length of the maxillary toothrow < 5.6 mm, breadth of zygomatic plate < 2.9 mm, sphenopalatine vacuities as slits, posterior margin of nasals surpassing the level of the lacrimals, M1 with broad anteroloph and narrow mesoloph, M2 with short mesoloph, m1 with delicate mesolophid, and m2 with minute mesolophid. The new species of Thomasomys, at the moment endemic for the Parque Nacional Sangay, shows a genetic distance of 9.18% with respect to its sister species, T. caudivarius, which inhabits the southwestern Andes of Ecuador. With the reported nding, the richness of Thomasomys in Ecuador increases to 15 species, and rivals the one registered in Colombia. Finally, we pose the necessity to join e orts in order to produce a signi cant advance in the knowledge of this complex genus of Andean sigmodontines.Fil: Brito, Jorge. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; EcuadorFil: Tinoco, Nicolás. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador; EcuadorFil: Curay, Jenny. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; EcuadorFil: Vargas, Rocío. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; EcuadorFil: Reyes Puig, Carolina. Universidad San Francisco de Quito; EcuadorFil: Romero, Víctor. Universidad Tecnica Particular de Loja; Ecuador. Universidad Simón Bolívar; VenezuelaFil: Pardiñas, Ulises Francisco J.. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; Ecuador. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto de Diversidad y Evolución Austral; Argentin

Systematics and diversification of the Ichthyomyini (Cricetidae, Sigmodontinae) revisited: evidence from molecular, morphological, and combined approaches

Ichthyomyini, a morphologically distinctive group of Neotropical cricetid rodents, lacks an integrative study of its systematics and biogeography. Since this tribe is a crucial element of the Sigmodontinae, the most speciose subfamily of the Cricetidae, we conducted a study that includes most of its recognized diversity (five genera and 19 species distributed from southern Mexico to northern Bolivia). For this report we analyzed a combined matrix composed of four molecular markers (RBP3, GHR, RAG1, Cytb) and 56 morphological traits, the latter including 15 external, 14 cranial, 19 dental, five soft-anatomical and three postcranial features. A variety of results were obtained, some of which are inconsistent with the currently accepted classification and understanding of the tribe. Ichthyomyini is retrieved as monophyletic, and it is divided into two main clades that are here recognized as subtribes: one to contain the genus Anotomys and the other composed by the remaining genera. Neusticomys (as currently recognized) was found to consist of two well supported clades, one of which corresponds to the original concept of Daptomys. Accordingly, we propose the resurrection of the latter as a valid genus to include several species from low to middle elevations and restrict Neusticomys to several highland forms. Numerous other revisions are necessary to reconcile the alpha taxonomy of ichthyomyines with our phylogenetic results, including placement of the Cajas Plateau water rat (formerly Chibchanomys orcesi) in the genus Neusticomys (sensu stricto), and the recognition of at least two new species (one in Neusticomys, one in Daptomys). Additional work is necessary to confirm other unanticipated results, such as the non-monophyletic nature of Rheomys and the presence of a possible new genus and species from Peru. Our results also suggest that ichthyomyines are one of the main Andean radiations of sigmodontine cricetids, with an evolutionary history dating to the Late Miocene and subsequent cladogenesis during the Pleistocene

Evaluation of appendicitis risk prediction models in adults with suspected appendicitis

Background Appendicitis is the most common general surgical emergency worldwide, but its diagnosis remains challenging. The aim of this study was to determine whether existing risk prediction models can reliably identify patients presenting to hospital in the UK with acute right iliac fossa (RIF) pain who are at low risk of appendicitis. Methods A systematic search was completed to identify all existing appendicitis risk prediction models. Models were validated using UK data from an international prospective cohort study that captured consecutive patients aged 16–45 years presenting to hospital with acute RIF in March to June 2017. The main outcome was best achievable model specificity (proportion of patients who did not have appendicitis correctly classified as low risk) whilst maintaining a failure rate below 5 per cent (proportion of patients identified as low risk who actually had appendicitis). Results Some 5345 patients across 154 UK hospitals were identified, of which two‐thirds (3613 of 5345, 67·6 per cent) were women. Women were more than twice as likely to undergo surgery with removal of a histologically normal appendix (272 of 964, 28·2 per cent) than men (120 of 993, 12·1 per cent) (relative risk 2·33, 95 per cent c.i. 1·92 to 2·84; P < 0·001). Of 15 validated risk prediction models, the Adult Appendicitis Score performed best (cut‐off score 8 or less, specificity 63·1 per cent, failure rate 3·7 per cent). The Appendicitis Inflammatory Response Score performed best for men (cut‐off score 2 or less, specificity 24·7 per cent, failure rate 2·4 per cent). Conclusion Women in the UK had a disproportionate risk of admission without surgical intervention and had high rates of normal appendicectomy. Risk prediction models to support shared decision‐making by identifying adults in the UK at low risk of appendicitis were identified

Records of bats predated by Leopardus pardalis (Carnivora: Felidae) in eastern Ecuador

Despite its wide distribution, the natural history of the ocelot, Leopardus pardalis, is poorly known. Studies of diet and hunting strategies have determined that ocelots walk in search of prey, which include mostly small terrestrial and nocturnal mammals, especially rodents. The objective of this short article is report an event of predation on bats by an ocelot in a tropical rainforest in eastern Ecuador. Methodology: We analyzed stomach contents of an adult male ocelot that was hunted by members of a Huaorani community in Pastaza Province, Ecuador. After macroscopic analysis, four bat carcasses were retrieved (including incomplete skulls pieces). Once in the laboratory, skeletons were cleaned by dermestid beetles, which allowed the taxonomic identification of the skulls using morphological characteristics. Results: Morphological examination, mainly from cranial characters, of the bat skeletons recovered from the ocelot’s stomach contents confirmed the presence of two species: three individuals of Saccopteryx bilineata and one individual of Micronycteris megalotis. Conclusion: The stomach contents from this ocelot demonstrate that bats are items in the diet of this predator. We suggest that the ocelot may search for bats in their roosts and use these species in a higher frequency than previously reported.A pesar de su amplia distribución, la historia natural del ocelote, Leopardus pardalis, es poco conocida. Los estudios de dieta y estrategias de caza han determinado que los ocelotes buscan presas que incluyen mamíferos pequeños, terrestres y nocturnos, sobre todo roedores. El objetivo de este artículo es reportar un evento de depredación sobre murciélagos por un ocelote en una selva tropical en el este de Ecuador. Metodología: Se analizaron los contenidos estomacales de un ocelote macho adulto cazado por miembros de una comunidad Huaorani en la provincia de Pastaza, Ecuador. Después de un análisis macroscópico, se recuperaron cuatro cuerpos de murciélagos (incluyendo cráneos incompletos). Una vez en el laboratorio, los esqueletos se limpiaron por escarabajos derméstidos, lo que permitió la identificación taxonómica de los cráneos utilizando caracteres morfológicos. Resultados: El examen morfológico, sobre todo de los caracteres craneales de los esqueletos de los murciélagos recuperados de los contenidos del estómago del ocelote confirmó la presencia de dos especies: tres individuos de Saccopteryx bilineata y uno de Micronycteris megalotis. Conclusión: Los contenidos estomacales de este ocelote demuestran que los murciélagos son elementos de la dieta de este depredador. Se sugiere que el ocelote puede buscar murciélagos en sus dormideros y utilizar estas especies en una frecuencia más alta que la previamente reportada