Formal Record of Mecopus hopei Rosenschöld, 1838 (Curculionidae: Conoderinae) in Taiwan

Abstract: Mecopus hopei Rosenschöld, 1838 is a common species in Taiwan. However, it has been frequently misspelled in Taiwanese records, leading to its omission from regional catalogs. In this study, we formally record M. hopei in Taiwan and provide dorsal habitus photos and barcode sequences to improve species identification

Phenotypic diversity of Thuridilla hopei (Verany, 1853) (Gastropoda Heterobranchia Sacoglossa). A DNA-barcoding approach

The sacoglossan Thuridilla hopei (Verany, 1853) shows highly diverse chromatic patterns. Based on the morphological examination of specimens from different Mediterranean localities, we have observed that in spite of this great variability in colours of T. hopei, two major chromatic morphotypes are related to bathymetry. Specimens from deeper water exhibit blue darker and more uniform patterns than individuals from shallower water, which show a more variable, dashed and spotted arrangement of light blue, yellow, orange, white and black pigmentation. A molecular genetic analysis using the mitochondrial COI and 16S rDNA markers has confirmed that all these extremely different chromatic morphotypes belong to a single specific entity, i.e. T. hopei, a sacoglossan with a wide distribution, from Macaronesia in the Atlantic, to the easternmost Mediterranean Sea

Contribución al conocimiento de la ictiología fósil de España

Abstract not availabl

Community composition and depth distribution of benthic scavenging amphipods (Lysianassoidea) in sub-Arctic fjords

Master i biovitenskap - Nord universitet 202

Révision de quelques Odontaspididae (Neoselachii: Lamniformes) du Paléocène et de l'Eocène du Bassin de la mer du Nord

The revision of some Odontaspididae species from the Paleocene and the Eocene of the North sea Basin has clarified the generic status of some of them and to precise their dental morphologies. A species from the Lutetian of Belgium, Carcharias sp., can be considered as the first representative of the lineage leading to the Recent species C. taurus. Three new genera are described: Brachycarcharias nov. gen. (Lutetian of Belgium), Orpodon nov. gen. (Selandian of Belgium) and Sylvestrilamia nov. gen. (Ypresian of England). The validity of the genus Hypotodus is confirmed and it is recommended that the poorly defined species hopei is abandoned in favour of the species verticalis in order to avoid confusion

Preliminary Revision of the Genus Systella Westw. (Orth. Pyrgom.)

3 láminasThe genus Systella was established by Westwood in 1841, with two species, i. e. rafflesii and hopei. Bolivar placed in 1884 the latter species into the subgenus Trigonopteryx Charp., together with its genotypical species punctata.Peer reviewe

The Strategic Placement of Mobile Agents on a Hexagonal Graph using Game Theory.

This paper considers an application of Dynamic Game Theory with the goal of increasing the performance of a Mobile Ad Hoc Network in relation to increasing packet delivery ratio and reducing end-to-end delay by the strategic placement of drones. A multi-stage sequential game of two players, each with one drone is played out in a scenario depicted by a hexagonal graph, obstacles such as forests are also included. The algorithm for the game has been implemented in JavaScript and the results show that the best strategic locations of the placement of the drones can be established during the sequential moves of the players. Results also show that the Nash Equilibrium is achieved during play

The Phenomenon of Functional Retention of Incorporated Chloroplasts in Sea Slugs (Sacoglossa, Heterobranchia, Mollusca) and Evolutionary Adaptations : Aspects of Photobiology, Cell Biology, Ecology and Behavior

The phenomenon of retention of functional chloroplasts from their food algae in sacoglossan sea slugs - also called kleptoplasty - is a challenge for research, still leaving many questions unsolved, e. g. concerning differences between various sacoglossan species in their capacities of retention of functional chloroplasts. To investigate these differences and potential influencing factors in more detail, this thesis combined photobiological investigations with cell biological, ecological and behavioral analyses. Photosynthetic activity, i. e. the ongoing functioning of incorporated chloroplasts within the slug cells, was analyzed with a Pulse Amplitude Modulated Fluorometer (PAM). The analyses included several chloroplast-incorporating sea slug species, especially most of the few which are known as “top-performers” of long-term functional retention of chloroplasts: Elysia timida, Elysia crispata (mangrove type and reef type), Elysia viridis and Plakobranchus ocellatus. As further comparative species, Bosellia mimetica, Thuridilla hopei and Placida dendritica were included. Overall, relevant differences between species-specific spectra of photosynthetic capacities in various sacoglossan species could be confirmed and also considerable variation within. For P. ocellatus, PAM measurements of functional chloroplast retention for over seven months were reported, the longest time period documented up to now. Feeding experiments indicated that in addition to its known food algae Codium fragile, E. viridis also fed on and could incorporate chloroplasts from Flabellia petiolata, with even partly better capacities of chloroplast retention than with C. fragile/vermilara. Photobehavioral analyses, testing a former hypothesis that chloroplast retention potentially implies stronger phototactic behavior in sea slugs, in which the non-sacoglossan sea slug species Cratena peregrina and Flabellina affinis were additionally included as comparison without incorporation of chloroplasts, indicated a different coherence of photobehavior, as some sea slug species without chloroplasts or with rather fast digestion of chloroplasts reacted stronger positively phototactic than species with long-term kleptoplast retention. For E. timida, nevertheless a positive phototactic behavior could be observed, which might be connected to special adaptations in this species. With PAM-measurements could be demonstrated e. g. the efficiency to regulate fluorescence F emission of incorporated chloroplasts by varying opening and closing positions of the parapodial lobes in E. timida. Furthermore, effects of temperature on capacities of long-term photosynthetic activity were indicated by experimental trials under controlled laboratory conditions. The advantages of the laboratory culture system with E. timida as a model organism that could be successfully established could be revealed. In trials within the laboratory culture system, the capacity of E. timida to acquire kleptoplasts from another chloroplast donor – the alga Acetabularia peniculus – with similar retention capacities compared to their food alga Acetabularia acetabulum, could be demonstrated. On a cell biological level, indices for factors concerning special adaptations in relation to incorporation of chloroplasts were elucidated with transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The very first uptake of chloroplasts from the food alga A. acetabulum in juvenile E. timida could be illustrated with TEM. Furthermore, ecological parameters in the natural environment, especially concerning light conditions, could be demonstrated to affect photosynthetic activity of incorporated chloroplasts, which constituted the first demonstration of this kind. Two sea slug species, E. timida and E. crispata mangrove type, were investigated underwater with a Diving PAM Fluorometer in their natural habitat in France and in Florida, respectively, concerning kleptoplast photosynthetic activity and combined environmental and behavioral parameters. These represent to the current knowledge the first photosynthetic measurements of incorporated chloroplasts in sacoglossan sea slugs in their natural environment published so far

A late Eocene age proposal for the Loreto Formation (Brunswick Peninsula, southernmost Chile), based on fossil cartilaginous fishes, paleobotany and radiometric evidence

We present new data on the paleoichthyology, paleobotany and radiometric results of the Loreto Formation in the Brunswick Peninsula of southernmost Chile, that allow us to propose a Late Eocene age. The rich diversity of fossil cartilaginous fishes (Chondrichthyes, Elasmobranchii) recognized in upper levels of this unit includes the taxa Carcharias aff. 'hopei' (Agassiz), Odontaspis sp., Carcharoides catticus (Philippi), Striatolamia macrota (Agassiz), Anomotodon sp., Macrorhizodus praecursor (Leriche), Galeorhinus sp., Abdounia sp., Hexanchus sp., Squatina sp., Hexanchidae indet., Myliobatis sp., Myliobatoidea indet., and Ischyodus dolloi Leriche. This assemblage has clear ecological affinities with Eocene Tethyan fauna previously described in the Northern Hemisphere, and also has common elements with Eocene cartilaginous fishes from Antarctica. Additionally, a paleobotanic study of this unit identified leaf imprints of Asplenium sp., Pteris sp., Podocarpus sp., and abundant angiosperms including Nothofagus lanceolata Dusén, N. simplicidens Dusén, N. variabilis Dusén, N. cf. alessandri Espinosa, N. subferruginea (Dusén), Hydrangea sp. and Phyllites spp. Wood remains of Nothofagoxylon scalariforme Gothan and Araucariaceae cf. Araucarioxylon Kraus were also identified. Additionally, pollen grains indicate gymnosperms and angiosperms: Podocarpidites otagoensis Couper, Retitricolpites sp., Tricolpites sp., Liliacidites sp., Polyporina sp., Nothofagidites cincta Cookson, and Nothofagidites cranwellae Couper, having affinities with Eocene florae, and being consistent with the age of the fossil fishes. Finally, a SHRIMP U-Th-Pb analysis of two samples collected from the studied beds provided thirty-eight and sixty zircon grains, indicating a clear main peak at 36.48±0.47 Ma (MSWD=1.5) and 36,73±0.50 Ma (MSWD=0.65). The integrated results indicate that the upper part of the Loreto Formation has a minimum Priabonian age, supporting previous reassignations of this part of the formation into the Late Eocene, and differing from the Oligocene age proposed in its original definition

Sistemática de los gasterópodos de la familia plakobranchidae (Heterobranchia, Sacoglossa), con especial atención a las especies de ámbito europeo

Texto en español de la Introducción, la Discusión general y las Conclusiones.Los Sacoglossa constituyen un grupo de más de 300 especies de heterobranquios marinos distribuidos desde la zona somera a la intermareal, en estrecha asociación con las macroalgas que constituyen la fuente de su alimento. La diversidad de sus miembros aumenta desde las regiones templadas hasta las tropicales y, además, presentan una gran variabilidad morfológica a pesar de ocupar nichos ecológicos similares. Desde un punto de vista fisiológico, han sido objeto de numerosos estudios debido a su capacidad de retención de cloroplastos funcionales derivados de la dieta (cleptoplastia), tras la pérdida secundaria de la concha en diferentes linajes. Plakobranchidae es la familia más numerosa dentro de Sacoglossa, incluyendo más de un tercio de la riqueza de las especies del grupo. Muchas de ellas se caracterizan por presentar unas coloraciones crípticas verdosas y/u ocres, dadas por los pigmentos de las algas de las que se alimentan, que les permiten confundirse con el entorno. Esta capacidad críptica unida a la falta de descripciones detalladas ha desembocado en la propuesta de muchos taxones no válidos que han dificultado en gran medida la estimación real de la diversidad del grupo y la comprensión de la historia evolutiva de este linaje. Con la finalidad de elaborar una hipótesis filogenética actualizada para la familia Plakobranchidae y esclarecer las relaciones evolutivas entre las especies presentes en el océano Atlántico y mar Mediterráneo, se utilizaron un total de 1430 secuencias correspondientes a 486 ejemplares de 201 especies en un contexto filogenético global. Combinando el conocimiento sobre el registro fósil de sacoglosos, las distribuciones geográficas de sus especies y los métodos filogeográficos discretos bayesianos, se propone una hipótesis sobre el origen y especiación de algunos taxones del grupo. La nueva hipótesis filogenética de Plakobranchidae y sus géneros se reconstruye según los criterios de Inferencia Bayesiana y Máxima Verosimilitud basada en secuencias parciales moleculares de dos genes mitocondriales (COI, 16S) y dos nucleares (H3, 28S). Además, estos análisis fueron complementados con estudios de morfología externa e interna, con especial atención al aparato reproductor y observación de rádulas con microscopía electrónica de barrido. Los resultados obtenidos confirmaron la monofilia de la familia Plakobranchidae Gray, 1840 y de los géneros que la integran: Elysia Risso, 1818, Plakobranchus van Hasselt,1824, Thuridilla Bergh, 1872; así como la monofilia de Bosellia Trinchese, 1891 integrado en la familia Boselliidae Ev. Marcus, 1982. En Thuridilla se ha detectado la existencia de un complejo de especies crípticas que incluye 9 especies nuevas para la Ciencia mediante análisis de delimitación de especies. Además, se reestableció la validez de dos taxones que hasta la fecha habían sido considerados sinónimos. La hipótesis filogenética más actualizada del género Elysia es presentada por primera vez en esta memoria, con la descripción de dos nuevas especies para la Ciencia en el Atlántico oriental y el Mediterráneo, respectivamente, así como la detección de 29 potenciales nuevas especies distribuidas por el Indo-Pacífico que requieren de estudios adicionales futuros. También se aborda la filogenia del género Bosellia que hasta ahora sólo había sido representado por la especie B. mimetica Trinchese, 1891 en algunos análisis filogenéticos. Esta especie se había considerado anfiatlántica, pero aquí se demuestra que bajo ese nombre existirían dos especies diferentes: una distribuida por el mar Mediterráneo y otra por el Caribe. Asimismo, se han detectado cuatro especies más desconocidas o no descritas hasta el momento. A excepción del género Bosellia, las especies de Thuridilla y Elysia con distribución atlántica y/o mediterránea no tienen un ancestro común. Así, en el caso de Thuridilla, estas radiaciones probablemente fueron impulsadas por un evento vicariante como el cierre del mar de Tetis. Los análisis filogenéticos combinados con múltiples genes han demostrado ser más robustos al incluir secuencias nucleares del gen 28S, otorgando valores de soporte más altos para los nodos más profundos y permitiendo así esclarecer las relaciones entre taxones cogenéricos. Este hecho define la utilidad de este marcador en los sacoglosos. Desde un punto de vista morfológico, caracteres como la presencia y forma de un estilete penial han demostrado ser taxonómicamente informativos en Bosellia a nivel específico, mientras que en Thuridilla han sido relevantes el patrón de coloración del cuerpo y de los rinóforos. La morfología radular en algunos miembros de la familia y la coloración de algunas especies de Elysia y Bosellia han resultado ser caracteres plásticos, reflejo de sus dietas. Por todo ello, cabe destacar la importancia de un enfoque integrador que asocie las divergencias que sostienen los análisis filogenéticos y los caracteres diagnóstico de especies conflictivas, para evitar la realización de descripciones indiscriminadas de especies que generen problemas en ulteriores estudios evolutivos y biogeográficos