Biology, distribution and conservation of green carpenter bee (Xylocopa aeratus: Apidae) on Kangaroo Island, South Australia: Technical report

Richard V. Glatz, Remko Leijs & Katja Hogendoor

DNA barcoding of euryglossine bees and the description of new species of Euhesma Michener (Hymenoptera, Colletidae, Euryglossinae)

This paper launches an open access DNA barcoding project "AUSBS" under the Barcoding of Life Datasystems (BOLD). The aims of the project are to help scientists who lack the necessary morphological knowledge to identify known species using molecular markers, to aid native bee specialists with the recognition of species groups that morphologically are difficult to define, and, eventually, to assist with the recognition of new species among known species. Using integrative taxonomy, i.e. morphological comparison to type specimens in Australian museum collections combined with phylogenetic analysis of a fragment of the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (mtCOI) gene sequences led to the recognition of four new species of Euhesma Michener (Hymenoptera: Colletidae: Euryglossini) collected during intensive surveys in remote Australian conservation areas, which are described. The new species are Euhesma micans, Euhesma lyngouriae, and Euhesma aulaca in a species group associated with Eremophila flowers, and Euhesma albamala in the walkeriana species group.Katja Hogendoorn, Mark Stevens, Remko Leij

The Evolution of Functionally Redundant Species; Evidence from Beetles

While species fulfill many different roles in ecosystems, it has been suggested that numerous species might actually share the same function in a near neutral way. So-far, however, it is unclear whether such functional redundancy really exists. We scrutinize this question using extensive data on the world’s 4168 species of diving beetles. We show that across the globe these animals have evolved towards a small number of regularly-spaced body sizes, and that locally co-existing species are either very similar in size or differ by at least 35%. Surprisingly, intermediate size differences (10–20%) are rare. As body-size strongly reflects functional aspects such as the food that these generalist predators can eat, these beetles thus form relatively distinct groups of functional look-a-likes. The striking global regularity of these patterns support the idea that a self-organizing process drives such species-rich groups to self-organize evolutionary into clusters where functional redundancy ensures resilience through an insurance effect

Evolution of Blind Beetles in Isolated Aquifers: A Test of Alternative Modes of Speciation

Evidence is growing that not only allopatric but also sympatric speciation can be important in the evolution of species. Sympatric speciation has most convincingly been demonstrated in laboratory experiments with bacteria, but field-based evidence is limited to a few cases. The recently discovered plethora of subterranean diving beetle species in isolated aquifers in the arid interior of Australia offers a unique opportunity to evaluate alternative modes of speciation. This naturally replicated evolutionary experiment started 10-5 million years ago, when climate change forced the surface species to occupy geographically isolated subterranean aquifers. Using phylogenetic analysis, we determine the frequency of aquifers containing closely related sister species. By comparing observed frequencies with predictions from different statistical models, we show that it is very unlikely that the high number of sympatrically occurring sister species can be explained by a combination of allopatric evolution and repeated colonisations alone. Thus, diversification has occurred within the aquifers and likely involved sympatric, parapatric and/or microallopatric speciation

The evolution of epigean and stygobitic species of Koonunga Sayce, 1907 (Syncarida: Anaspidacea) in Southern Australia, with the description of three new species

Three new species of Koonunga were discovered in surface and subterranean waters in southern Australia, and were defined using mtDNA analyses and morphology. The new species are: Koonunga hornei Leijs & King; K. tatiaraensis Leijs & King and K. allambiensis Leijs & King. Molecular clock analyses indicate that the divergence times of the species are older than the landscape that they currently inhabit. Different scenarios explaining this apparent discrepancy are discussed in the context of the palaeography of the area. A freshwater epigean origin for Koonunga is considered the most likely hypothesis, whereby some lineages made the transition to the subterranean environment within the last few million years influenced by significant climatic cooling/drying. We discuss the possibility that one stygobitic lineage secondarily regained some of its body pigmentation as adaptation to increased photic conditions after cave collapse and forming of cenotes during the last glacial maximum.Remko Leijs, Tessa Bradford, James G. Mitchell, William F. Humphreys, Steven J. B. Cooper, Peter Goonan, Rachael A. Kin

Dr. G. J. D. Aalders. Het derde Boek van Plato's Leges. Deel 1. Prolegomena

Leijs R. Dr. G. J. D. Aalders. Het derde Boek van Plato's Leges. Deel 1. Prolegomena. In: L'antiquité classique, Tome 13, fasc. 1, 1944. pp. 148-149

Dr. G. J. De Vries, Spel bij Plato

Leijs R. Dr. G. J. De Vries, Spel bij Plato. In: L'antiquité classique, Tome 19, fasc. 1, 1950. pp. 258-259

Dr. G. J. D. Aalders. Het derde Boek van Plato's Leges. Deel 1. Prolegomena

Leijs R. Dr. G. J. D. Aalders. Het derde Boek van Plato's Leges. Deel 1. Prolegomena. In: L'antiquité classique, Tome 13, fasc. 1, 1944. pp. 148-149

Edouard des Plages, S. J. Diadoque de Photicé, Cent chapitres sur la perfection spirituelle. Vision. Sermon sur l'Ascension. Introduction et traduction. (Collection Sources chrétiennes)

Leijs R. Edouard des Plages, S. J. Diadoque de Photicé, Cent chapitres sur la perfection spirituelle. Vision. Sermon sur l'Ascension. Introduction et traduction. (Collection Sources chrétiennes). In: L'antiquité classique, Tome 14, fasc. 1, 1945. pp. 197-198