scholarly journals Forensic application of DNA barcoding for identification of illegally traded African pangolin scales

Genome ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 272-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Mwale ◽  
Desire L. Dalton ◽  
Raymond Jansen ◽  
Marli De Bruyn ◽  
Darren Pietersen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Barcoding ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Central Africa ◽  
Wildlife Trade ◽  
African Species ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Anthropogenic Habitat ◽  
Manis Javanica ◽  
D Loop ◽  
Specific Species

The escalating growth in illegal wildlife trade and anthropogenic habitat changes threaten the survival of pangolin species worldwide. All eight extant species have experienced drastic population size reductions globally with a high extinction risk in Asia. Consequently, forensic services have become critical for law enforcement, with a need for standardised and validated genetic methods for reliable identifications. The seizure of three tonnes of pangolin scales, believed to have originated from Africa, by Hong Kong Customs Authorities provided an opportunity for the application of DNA barcoding in identifying scales. Three mitochondrial DNA gene regions (COI, Cyt b, and D-loop) were amplified for a subsample of the confiscated material and compared with taxonomically verified references. All four African species were recovered as monophyletic with high interspecific uncorrected p-distance estimates (0.048–0.188) among genes. However, only three of four African species (Phataginus tricuspis, Phataginus tetradactyla, and Smutsia gigantea, originating from West and Central Africa) and one of four Asian species (Manis javanica from Southeast Asia) were identified among scales. Although the assignment of unknown scales to specific species was reliable, additional genetic tools and representative reference material are required to determine geographic origins of confiscated pangolin specimens.

scholarly journals Taxonomic monograph of Oxygyne (Thismiaceae), rare achlorophyllous mycoheterotrophs with strongly disjunct distribution

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4828 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Cheek ◽  
Hirokazu Tsukaya ◽  
Paula J. Rudall ◽  
Kenji Suetsugu
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Central Africa ◽  
Ex Situ ◽  
Disjunct Distribution ◽  
Herbarium Specimens ◽  
African Species ◽  
Japanese Species ◽  
In The Wild

Oxygyne Schltr. (Thismiaceae) is a rare and little-known genus of achlorophyllous mycoheterotrophic perennial herbs with one of the most remarkable distributions of all angiosperm plant genera globally, being disjunct between Japan and West–Central Africa. Each species is known only from a single location, and in most cases from a single specimen. This monographic study names, describes and maps two new species, Oxygyne duncanii Cheek from cloud forest in SW Region Cameroon and O. frankei Cheek from gallery forest in the Central African Republic, representing the first new Oxygyne species described from Africa in 112 years, and raising the number of described Oxygyne species from four to six. Oxygyne duncanii is remarkable for sharing more morphological characters with two of the three Japanese species (O. hyodoi C.Abe & Akasawa, O. shinzatoi (H. Ohashi) Tsukaya) than with the geographically much closer type species of the genus, O. triandra from Mt Cameroon. Based mainly on herbarium specimens and field observations made in Cameroon and Japan during a series of botanical surveys, we provide descriptions, synonymy, mapping and extinction risk assessments for each species of Oxygyne, together with keys to the genera of Thismiaceae and the species of Oxygyne. The subterranean structures of African Oxygyne are described for the first time, and found to be consistent with those of the Japanese species. We review and reject an earlier proposal that the Japanese species should be segregated from the African species as a separate genus, Saionia Hatus. The only character that separates the two disjunct species groups is now flower colour: blue or partly-blue in the Japanese species compared with orange-brown in the African species. Studies of the pollination biology and mycorrhizal partners of Oxygyne are still lacking. Two of the six species, O. triandra Schltr. and O. hyodoi, appear to be extinct, and the remaining four are assessed as Critically Endangered using the IUCN 2012 criteria. To avoid further extinction, an urgent requirement is for conservation management of the surviving species in the wild. Since few achlorophyllous mycoheterotrophs have been successfully cultivated from seed to maturity, ex situ conservation will not be viable for these species and protection in the wild is the only viable option. While natural habitat survives, further botanical surveys could yet reveal additional new species between Central Africa and Japan.

scholarly journals Phylogenetic and Spatial Distribution of Evolutionary Isolation and Threat in Turtles and Crocodilians (Non-Avian Archosauromorphs)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy J. Colston ◽  
Pallavi Kulkarni ◽  
Walter Jetz ◽  
R. Alexander Pyron
Keyword(s):  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Morphological Evidence ◽  
Mass Extinctions ◽  
Turtle Species ◽  
Terrestrial Vertebrates ◽  
Terrestrial Vertebrate ◽  
Threat Status ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Anthropogenic Habitat ◽  
Evolutionary Distinctiveness

AbstractThe origin of turtles and crocodiles and their easily recognized body forms dates to the Triassic. Despite their long-term success, extant species diversity is low, and endangerment is extremely high compared to other terrestrial vertebrate groups, with ~ 65% of ~25 crocodilian and ~360 turtle species now threatened by exploitation and habitat loss. Here, we combine available molecular and morphological evidence with machine learning algorithms to present a phylogenetically-informed, comprehensive assessment of diversification, threat status, and evolutionary distinctiveness of all extant species. In contrast to other terrestrial vertebrates and their own diversity in the fossil record, extant turtles and crocodilians have not experienced any mass extinctions or shifts in diversification rate, or any significant jumps in rates of body-size evolution over time. We predict threat for 114 as-yet unassessed or data-deficient species and identify a concentration of threatened crocodile and turtle species in South and Southeast Asia, western Africa, and the eastern Amazon. We find that unlike other terrestrial vertebrate groups, extinction risk increases with evolutionary distinctiveness: a disproportionate amount of phylogenetic diversity is concentrated in evolutionarily isolated, at-risk taxa, particularly those with small geographic ranges. Our findings highlight the important role of geographic determinants of extinction risk, particularly those resulting from anthropogenic habitat-disturbance, which affect species across body sizes and ecologies.

First occurrence of the ‘hunting hyena’ Chasmaporthetes in the Late Miocene fossil bearing localities of Toros Menalla, Chad (Africa)

2007 ◽  
Vol 178 (4) ◽  
pp. 317-326 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis de Bonis ◽  
Stephane Peigne ◽  
Andossa Likius ◽  
Hassane T. Makaye ◽  
Michel Brunet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Late Miocene ◽  
Central Africa ◽  
Crocuta Crocuta ◽  
Spotted Hyena ◽  
African Species ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
The Family ◽  
First Occurrence ◽  
First Time

Abstract Late Miocene localities of Toros Menalla (Chad) have yielded many bones of fossil vertebrates with a lot of mammalian remains. Among the mammals, there are several Carnivora taxa, especially hyenids. The family Hyaenidae is very well developed during this period with classical bone crusher species but also with flesh eater taxa which are called hunting hyenas. The genus Chasmaporthetes is one of these taxa. It was described from North America, Asia, Euro-pa and South Africa but it is recorded for the first time in central Africa. The Chadian specimens are close to the South African species C. australis (Hendey, 1974) but differs through some morphological and metrical details. C. australis is a huge hunting hyena, a little bigger than the extant species Crocuta crocuta, the spotted hyena. An isolated premolar recorded in the locality Sahabi (Libya) belongs probably to the same group. The spreading of this large hunting species is probably correlated with the abundance of large ungulates in the local faunas.

West Palearctic cobras of the genus Naja (Serpentes: Elapidae): interrelationships among extinct and extant species

1990 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 385-400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean-Claude Rage ◽  
Zbigniew Szyndlar
Keyword(s):  
Monophyletic Group ◽  
Close Relative ◽  
African Species ◽  
Naja Naja ◽  
Extinct Species ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Asiatic Species ◽  
Extinct Genus

AbstractSome basic osteological cranial features of living and fossil members of the genus Naja are described. The extinct genus Palaeonaja Hoffstetter, 1939, is synonymized with the modern Naja Laurenti, 1768, and the extinct species Palaeonaja crassa Hoffstetter, 1939, is synonymized with Naja romani (Hoffstetter, 1939). Anatomically, the genus Naja can be divided into two main complexes, composed of: (1) living African species, N. antiqua from the Moroccan Miocene, and N. iberica from the Spanish Miocene; (2) living Asiatic species and N. romani from the Miocene of France, Austria, and Ukraine. Living members of the Asiatic complex make up a monophyletic group; they belong to at least three distinct lineages: N. oxiana, N. naja s.s. ( = N. naja naja), and the remaining taxa named here informally the 'East Asiatic Naja'. The African complex is thought to be most primitive and perhaps paraphyletic; Africa is presumed to be the centre of earliest radiation of the genus. The precise relationships of Walterinnesia, a close relative of Naja occupying the area between Asiatic and African ranges of Naja, remain unclear.

scholarly journals Adding fossil occupancy trajectories to the assessment of modern extinction risk

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 20150813 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Kiessling ◽  
Ádám T. Kocsis
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Record ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Strong Predictor ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Species Traits ◽  
Latent Extinction ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Temporal Trajectory

Besides helping to identify species traits that are commonly linked to extinction risk, the fossil record may also be directly relevant for assessing the extinction risk of extant species. Standing geographical distribution or occupancy is a strong predictor of both recent and past extinction risk, but the role of changes in occupancy is less widely assessed. Here we demonstrate, based on the Cenozoic fossil record of marine species, that both occupancy and its temporal trajectory are significant determinants of risk. Based on extinct species we develop a model on the additive and interacting effects of occupancy and its temporal changes on extinction risk. We use this model to predict extinction risk of extant species. The predictions suggest a moderate risk for marine species on average. However, some species seem to be on a long-term decline and potentially at a latent extinction risk, which is not considered in current risk assessments.

scholarly journals Brain size is correlated with endangerment status in mammals

2016 ◽  
Vol 283 (1825) ◽  
pp. 20152772 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric S. Abelson
Keyword(s):  
Brain Size ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Small Body ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Metabolic Cost ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Body Sizes ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Relationship

Increases in relative encephalization (RE), brain size after controlling for body size, comes at a great metabolic cost and is correlated with a host of cognitive traits, from the ability to count objects to higher rates of innovation. Despite many studies examining the implications and trade-offs accompanying increased RE, the relationship between mammalian extinction risk and RE is unknown. I examine whether mammals with larger levels of RE are more or less likely to be at risk of endangerment than less-encephalized species. I find that extant species with large levels of encephalization are at greater risk of endangerment, with this effect being strongest in species with small body sizes. These results suggest that RE could be a valuable asset in estimating extinction vulnerability. Additionally, these findings suggest that the cost–benefit trade-off of RE is different in large-bodied species when compared with small-bodied species.

scholarly journals COVID-19, Systemic Crisis, and Possible Implications for the Wild Meat Trade in Sub-Saharan Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 76 (4) ◽  
pp. 1045-1066
Author(s):  
James McNamara ◽  
Elizabeth J. Z. Robinson ◽  
Katharine Abernethy ◽  
Donald Midoko Iponga ◽  
Hannah N. K. Sackey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complex Dynamics ◽  
Central Africa ◽  
Rural Livelihoods ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Wildlife Trade ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Policy Perspective ◽  
Systemic Crisis ◽  
Wild Meat

Abstract Wild animals play an integral and complex role in the economies and ecologies of many countries across the globe, including those of West and Central Africa, the focus of this policy perspective. The trade in wild meat, and its role in diets, have been brought into focus as a consequence of discussions over the origins of COVID-19. As a result, there have been calls for the closure of China’s “wet markets”; greater scrutiny of the wildlife trade in general; and a spotlight has been placed on the potential risks posed by growing human populations and shrinking natural habitats for animal to human transmission of zoonotic diseases. However, to date there has been little attention given to what the consequences of the COVID-19 economic shock may be for the wildlife trade; the people who rely on it for their livelihoods; and the wildlife that is exploited. In this policy perspective, we argue that the links between the COVID-19 pandemic, rural livelihoods and wildlife are likely to be more complex, more nuanced, and more far-reaching, than is represented in the literature to date. We develop a causal model that tracks the likely implications for the wild meat trade of the systemic crisis triggered by COVID-19. We focus on the resulting economic shockwave, as manifested in the collapse in global demand for commodities such as oil, and international tourism services, and what this may mean for local African economies and livelihoods. We trace the shockwave through to the consequences for the use of, and demand for, wild meats as households respond to these changes. We suggest that understanding and predicting the complex dynamics of wild meat use requires increased collaboration between environmental and resource economics and the ecological and conservation sciences.

scholarly journals Climate cooling and clade competition likely drove the decline of lamniform sharks

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (41) ◽  
pp. 20584-20590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabien L. Condamine ◽  
Jules Romieu ◽  
Guillaume Guinot
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Apex Predators ◽  
Extinction Rates ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
Speciation Rates ◽  
Sister Relationships ◽  
Abiotic And Biotic Factors ◽  
Climate Cooling

Understanding heterogeneity in species richness between closely related clades is a key research question in ecology and evolutionary biology. Multiple hypotheses have been proposed to interpret such diversity contrasts across the tree of life, with most studies focusing on speciation rates to explain clades’ evolutionary radiations, while often neglecting extinction rates. Here we study a notorious biological model as exemplified by the sister relationships between mackerel sharks (Lamniformes, 15 extant species) and ground sharks (Carcharhiniformes, ∼290 extant species). Using a comprehensive fossil dataset, we found that the diversity dynamics of lamniforms waxed and waned following repeated cycles of radiation phases and declining phases. Radiation phases peaked up to 3 times the current diversity in the early Late Cretaceous. In the last 20 million years, the group declined to its present-day diversity. Along with a higher extinction risk for young species, we further show that this declining pattern is likely attributed to a combination of abiotic and biotic factors, with a cooling-driven extinction (negative correlation between temperature and extinction) and clade competition with some ground sharks. Competition from multiple clades successively drove the demise and replacement of mackerel sharks due to a failure to originate facing the rise of ground sharks, particularly since the Eocene. These effects came from ecologically similar carcharhiniform species inhibiting diversification of medium- and large-sized lamniforms. These results imply that the interplay between abiotic and biotic drivers had a substantial role in extinction and speciation, respectively, which determines the sequential rise and decline of marine apex predators.

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