The Victoria Falls, a species boundary for the Zambezi Parrotfish, Cyphomyrus discorhynchus (Peters, 1852), and the resurrection of Cyphomyrus cubangoensis (Pellegrin, 1936) (Mormyridae: Teleostei)

Cyphomyrus discorhynchus occurs in the Zambezi River and in the linked systems of the Kwando and the Okavango. We collected specimens from both above and below the Victoria Falls and recorded Electric Organ Discharges. We found a marked degree of anatomical differentiation among the specimens from the Zambezi delta to the Victoria Falls that represents a subspecific, geographical cline, reflecting the great length (1400 km) and high ecological diversity of that river section (Lower and Middle Zambezi). We confirm that the populations above the Falls (i.e. Upper Zambezi, Kwando and Okavango) are differentiated from those below, possessing fewer dorsal fin rays (a median of 30–31 rather than 33–34). The waveforms of the electric organ discharge pulses have four phases and show geographic variation but were briefer for specimens from below the Falls. We resurrect Cyphomyrus cubangoensis (Pellegrin, 1936) for the Upper Zambezi/Kwando/Okavango system

Hippopotamyrus ansorgii species complex in the Upper Zambezi River System with a description of a new species, H. szaboi (Mormyridae)

Specimens referable to Hippopotamyrus ansorgii sampled from the Upper Zambezi River System within Caprivi (Namibia) represent a complex of three species, two of which coexist in the Upper Zambezi River, and a third that inhabits a nearby river, the Kwando, with which the Zambezi has been connected during periods of flooding. All three are indistinguishable in terms of their general appearance, but differ consistently in electric organ discharges (EOD), morphology, and molecular genetic characters. All phenotypes display a monopolar, headpositive EOD pulse with specific post- or prepotentials. For H. ansorgii from the Zambezi River (HaZ), pulse duration is less than 0.5 ms (down to 0.205 ms; N = 34); for the syntopic H. szaboi sp. n., it is greater than 0.6 ms (up to 1.8 ms at 10% peak amplitude; N = 19). The parapatric phenotype of H. ansorgii from the Kwando River (HaK) has pulses shorter than 0.215 ms (down to 0.105 ms; N = 36). All three members of the species complex may be distinguished from each other by 7 − 9 anatomical characters, analysed by MANOVA. Based on 22 enzymes and proteins studied, the moderate to high Wright’s fixation index and the significant (P < 0.05) allele differentiation between EOD phenotypes provide additional evidence for incipient speciation. Pairwise analyses of the three different phenotypes showed the two parapatric species of H. ansorgii grouped together, and distinguishable from individuals of H. szaboi . Analyses of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene revealed that all specimens which were attributed to H. szaboi form a well-supported monophyletic basal clade (bootstrap support 73% or 82%). The genetic distances (uncorrected p distances) between H. szaboi and the two species of H. ansorgii are between 0.6% and 1.7%. Within the derived H. ansorgii clade some phylogeographical differentiation can be seen for fishes from the Zambezi and Kwando Rivers, but the respective groups are not consistent or supported by significant bootstrap values. The question of which of the two parapatric morphological and EOD phenotypes of H. ansorgii recognized in the present paper represents H. ansorgii (Boulenger, 1905) cannot be resolved at present because of the paucity and unclear origin of the historical type material

Ephrem of Syria, power, truth, and construction of orthodoxy: modelling theory and method in critical historiography of the making of religious tradition

Hymns can and have functioned as powerful strategic tools to change social and religious landscapes, and to inform and transform people’s notions about ‘doing church’. A few words about Ephrem the Syrian, which emphasised liturgical singing and accentuated the force of truth, the power of persuasion and socio-religious transformation was the starting point and connecting thread, which formed the backbone of this dissertation throughout—a research project that was also guided by some principles of new historicism to view Ephrem as a textual construct, living in a particular context and dealing with specific religious issues in a particular way. His trump card was the female choirs he founded, which became a distinct feature of orthodox Syrian Christianity. Through their singing performances, he ‘silenced’ the unorthodox voices of—especially Bardaisan—and created a community of believers where each person had a part to fulfil, where women and men would become ‘two harps’, ‘singing one praise’.M. Th. (New Testament

Allopatric differentiation in the Marcusenius macrolepidotus species complex in southern and eastern Africa: the resurrection of M. pongolensis and M. angolensis, and the description of two new species (Mormyridae, Teleostei)

We critically compared local populations of the bulldog fish, Marcusenius macrolepidotus (Peters 1852), from different watersheds, from the furthest south (28° South, South Africa) to the Equator in Kenya. We ascertained allopatric differentiation from topotypical M. macrolepidotus from the Lower Zambezi River (Mozambique) in morphology, electric organ discharges, and molecular genetics for: (1) samples from the Okavango and Upper Zambezi Systems (Botswana and Namibia), (2) samples from South Africa's rivers draining into the Indian Ocean, and (3) samples from the East African Tana River (Kenya). Significant genetic distances in the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene and differing ISSR-PCR profiles corroborate differentiation between the four taxa. We resurrect M. pongolensis (Fowler, 1934) for South Africa (sample 2), and M. angolensis (Boulenger, 1905) for the Quanza River/Angola. We recognize M. altisambesi sp. n. for the Upper Zambezi/Okavango specimens (sample 1), and M. devosi sp. n. for those from Kenya (sample 3)

The impact of social media: advantages or disadvantages

The role and use of social media in travellers' decision making and tourism operations and management are widely discussed. The strategic importance of social media are high for tourism competitiveness. Slow progress are made by the industry in responding to business opportunities by social media. The online world is rapidly evolving and some companies may embrace new technologies due to the pressure to be digital but are not thinking about what it means to the business in a virtual environment. Theoretically, the increasing significance and attention of social media in tourism was coined as the growing number of articles was found over the past years.There are some challenges of intellectual property and data control for the development and dissemination of social-media-sources-involved. The phenomenon of social networking and the development of social media (web-based and mobile technologies that turn text communications into active dialog) has been the most dramatic development in the information age over recent years.Citizen Journalists (individuals who tweet opinions and comments on the internet for others to see) need to be aware that they could be subject to law suits