scholarly journals Norrisanima miocaena, a new generic name and redescription of a stem balaenopteroid mysticete (Mammalia, Cetacea) from the Miocene of California

PeerJ ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e7629 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew S. Leslie ◽  
Carlos Mauricio Peredo ◽  
Nicholas D. Pyenson
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Original Description ◽  
Type Specimen ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Size Evolution

Rorqual whales are among the most species rich group of baleen whales (or mysticetes) alive today, yet the monophyly of the traditional grouping (i.e., Balaenopteridae) remains unclear. Additionally, many fossil mysticetes putatively assigned to either Balaenopteridae or Balaenopteroidea may actually belong to stem lineages, although many of these fossil taxa suffer from inadequate descriptions of fragmentary skeletal material. Here we provide a redescription of the holotype of Megaptera miocaena, a fossil balaenopteroid from the Monterey Formation of California, which consists of a partial cranium, a fragment of the rostrum, a single vertebra, and both tympanoperiotics. Kellogg (1922) assigned the type specimen to the genus Megaptera Gray (1846), on the basis of its broad similarities to distinctive traits in the cranium of extant humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae (Borowski, 1781)). Subsequent phylogenetic analyses have found these two species as sister taxa in morphological datasets alone; the most recent systematic analyses using both molecular and morphological data sets place Megaptera miocaena as a stem balaenopteroid unrelated to humpback whales. Here, we redescribe the type specimen of Megaptera miocaena in the context of other fossil balaenopteroids discovered nearly a century since Kellogg’s original description and provide a morphological basis for discriminating it from Megaptera novaeangliae. We also provide a new generic name and recombine the taxon as Norrisanima miocaena, gen. nov., to reflect its phylogenetic position outside of crown Balaenopteroidea, unrelated to extant Megaptera. Lastly, we refine the stratigraphic age of Norrisanima miocaena, based on associated microfossils to a Tortonian age (7.6–7.3 Ma), which carries implications for understanding the origin of key features associated with feeding and body size evolution in this group of whales.

A new Crocus L. (Iridaceae) species from SE Turkey, based on morphological and molecular data

Phytotaxa ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 239 (3) ◽  
pp. 223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Osman Erol ◽  
Doerte Harpke ◽  
Hasan Yıldırım
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Type Specimen ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
Molecular Data ◽  
Nuclear Ribosomal Dna ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Full Description ◽  
New Taxon ◽  
Internal Transcribed Spacer Region ◽  
Se Turkey

Crocus musagecitii is described as a new species. Diagnostic morphological characters, a full description and detailed illustrations are provided on the basis of the type specimen and wild specimens. Morphologically, C. musagecitii is close to Crocus biflorus subsp. pseudonubigena. Crocus musagecitii differs from C. biflorus subsp. pseudonubigena by the lack of stripes or narrow purplish tongue on outside of outer tepals, wider tepals, and homogenously yellow anthers. In order to clarify the phylogenetic position of this species within the Crocus adamii species complex, we sequenced the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS: ITS1 + 5.8SrDNA + ITS2) and 5’ external transcribed spacer (ETS) of the nuclear ribosomal DNA (rDNA). A phylogenetic tree obtained by Bayesian phylogenetic inference is given. Phylogenetic analyses revealed that the new taxon is close to C. munzurensis. Crocus musagecitii differs from its phylogenetically closest relative C. munzurensis by the corm tunics (C. musagecitii: coriaceus; C. munzurensis: membranous), the number of leaves (C. musagecitii: up to 8; C. munzurensis: up to 4) and non-hairy leaf margins.

Selected Ordovician Trilobites from the Lake St. John District of Quebec and Their Bearing on Systematics

1995 ◽  
Vol 69 (S42) ◽  
pp. 1-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre J. Lespérance ◽  
Sylvain Desbiens
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Large Data ◽  
Minimal Length ◽  
Large Data Sets ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Eye Position ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Close Relationship ◽  
The Status

The thorax of Hypodicranotus has ten segments and a spine on the eighth. The ages of Erratencrinurus s.l. spicatus and Erratencrinurus (Erratencrinurus?) vigilans in the Lake St. John district do not confirm their temporal roles leading to subgenera of Erratencrinurus, as has been recently suggested. Phylogenetic analyses of large data sets of species previously referred to Encrinuroides and Physemataspis yield a minimal length cladogram containing 18 species. Encrinuroides is restricted to four species, two of which have biogeographic affinities with Iapetus. These results lead to three clades, named the Walencrinuroides n. gen. clade, Frencrinuroides n. gen. clade, and finally the Physemataspis clade, with an enlarged concept of the genus with the erection of Physemataspis (Prophysemataspis) n. subgen. These last three clades are restricted to North America and Scotland, with alternating predominance of one region. Walencrinuroides s.l. gelaisi n. gen. n. sp. is described. New morphological data on Erratencrinurus s.l. spicatus confirm its close relationship with the clades discussed above. Data are insufficient for phylogenetic analysis of selected cheirurine species here surveyed. Eye position, glabellar segmentation, and pygidial shape differentiate the genera Ceraurus and Gabriceraurus; emended diagnoses of these genera are presented. Ceraurus globulobatus and C. matranseris are distinct, but morphologically close to one another. The status of Gabriceraurus dentatus can be stabilized on its extant types.

scholarly journals Social survival: humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) use social structure to partition ecological niches within proposed critical habitat

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janie Wray ◽  
Eric Keen ◽  
Éadin N. O’Mahony
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Social Structure ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Fjord System ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Niche

ABSTRACTAnimal culture and social bonds are relevant to wildlife conservation because they influence patterns of geography, behavior, and strategies of survival. Numerous examples of socially-driven habitat partitioning and ecological-niche specialization can be found among vertebrates, including toothed whales. But such social-ecological dynamics, described here as ‘social niche partitioning’, are not known among baleen whales, whose societies -- particularly on foraging grounds -- are largely perceived as unstructured and incidental to matters of habitat use and conservation. However, through 16 years of behavioral and photo-identification observations of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding within a fjord system in British Columbia, Canada, we have documented long-term pair bonds (lasting up to 12 years) as well as a complex societal structure, which corresponds closely to persistent patterns in feeding strategy, long-term site fidelity (extended seasonal occupancy and annual rate of return up to 75%), specific geographic preferences within the fjord system, and other forms of habitat use. Randomization tests of network congruency and clustering algorithms were used to test for overlap in patterns of social structure and habitat use, which confirmed the occurrence of social niche partitioning on the feeding grounds of this baleen whale. In addition, we document the extensive practice of group bubble net feeding in Pacific Canada. This coordinated feeding behavior was found to strongly mediate the social structure and habitat use within this humpback whale society. Additionally, during our 2004 – 2019 study, we observed a shift in social network structure in 2010 – 2012, which corresponded with environmental and demographic shifts including a sudden decline in the population’s calving rate. Our findings indicate that the social lives of humpback whales, and perhaps baleen whales generally, are more complex than previously supposed and should be a primary consideration in the assessment of potential impacts to important habitat.

scholarly journals Total-Evidence Framework Reveals Complex Morphological Evolution in Nightbirds (Strisores)

Diversity ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Albert Chen ◽  
Noor D. White ◽  
Roger B.J. Benson ◽  
Michael J. Braun ◽  
Daniel J. Field
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Sequence Data ◽  
Morphological Evolution ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Total Evidence ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Anatomical Data ◽  
Evidence Framework

Strisores is a clade of neoavian birds that include diurnal aerial specialists such as swifts and hummingbirds, as well as several predominantly nocturnal lineages such as nightjars and potoos. Despite the use of genome-scale molecular datasets, the phylogenetic interrelationships among major strisorean groups remain controversial. Given the availability of next-generation sequence data for Strisores and the clade’s rich fossil record, we reassessed the phylogeny of Strisores by incorporating a large-scale sequence dataset with anatomical data from living and fossil strisoreans within a Bayesian total-evidence framework. Combined analyses of molecular and morphological data resulted in a phylogenetic topology for Strisores that is congruent with the findings of two recent molecular phylogenomic studies, supporting nightjars (Caprimulgidae) as the extant sister group of the remainder of Strisores. This total-evidence framework allowed us to identify morphological synapomorphies for strisorean clades previously recovered using molecular-only datasets. However, a combined analysis of molecular and morphological data highlighted strong signal conflict between sequence and anatomical data in Strisores. Furthermore, simultaneous analysis of molecular and morphological data recovered differing placements for some fossil taxa compared with analyses of morphological data under a molecular scaffold, highlighting the importance of analytical decisions when conducting morphological phylogenetic analyses of taxa with molecular phylogenetic data. We suggest that multiple strisorean lineages have experienced convergent evolution across the skeleton, obfuscating the phylogenetic position of certain fossils, and that many distinctive specializations of strisorean subclades were acquired early in their evolutionary history. Despite this apparent complexity in the evolutionary history of Strisores, our results provide fossil support for aerial foraging as the ancestral ecological strategy of Strisores, as implied by recent phylogenetic topologies derived from molecular data.

scholarly journals ‘Megapclicks’: acoustic click trains and buzzes produced during night-time foraging of humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae )

2007 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 467-470 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison K Stimpert ◽  
David N Wiley ◽  
Whitlow W.L Au ◽  
Mark P Johnson ◽  
Roland Arsenault
Keyword(s):  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Baleen Whale ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Acoustic Behaviour ◽  
Suction Cup ◽  
Form Part ◽  
Acoustic Tags ◽  
Feeding Area

Humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) exhibit a variety of foraging behaviours, but neither they nor any baleen whale are known to produce broadband clicks in association with feeding, as do many odontocetes. We recorded underwater behaviour of humpback whales in a northwest Atlantic feeding area using suction-cup attached, multi-sensor, acoustic tags (DTAGs). Here we describe the first recordings of click production associated with underwater lunges from baleen whales. Recordings of over 34 000 ‘megapclicks’ from two whales indicated relatively low received levels at the tag (between 143 and 154 dB re 1 μPa pp), most energy below 2 kHz, and interclick intervals often decreasing towards the end of click trains to form a buzz. All clicks were recorded during night-time hours. Sharp body rolls also occurred at the end of click bouts containing buzzes, suggesting feeding events. This acoustic behaviour seems to form part of a night-time feeding tactic for humpbacks and also expands the known acoustic repertoire of baleen whales in general.

A cybertaxonomic revision of the new dung beetle tribe Parachoriini (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) and its phylogenetic assessment using molecular and morphological data

Zootaxa ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 4329 (2) ◽  
pp. 101 ◽  
Author(s):  
SERGEI TARASOV
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Taxonomic Revision ◽  
Dung Beetle ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Tribal Classification ◽  
New Tribe ◽  
The Stability ◽  
New Synonymy

Two Oriental dung beetle genera: Parachorius Harold, 1873 and Cassolus Sharp, 1875 have long had an ambiguous tribal position in Scarabaeinae (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), but have never been considered as closely related. A recently discovered species representing the morphological link between the two genera gave a hint to their possible close affiliation. To assess phylogenetic and taxonomic placement of these genera, I conducted phylogenetic analyses of global dung beetle samples using morphological (134 taxa, 232 characters) and molecular (551 terminals, 8 gene regions) data. Both morphological and molecular analyses strongly support the monophyly of Parachorius + Cassolus. This leads to the synonymy of Parachorius with Cassolus new synonymy, and resulted in the new generic concept for Parachorius. The isolated phylogenetic position of Parachorius and its morphological distinctiveness from all other known Scarabaeinae tribes suggest recognition of a new tribe, Parachoriini new tribe, to maintain the stability of tribal classification in dung beetles. Investigation of old and recent material of Parachorius revealed a large number of undescribed species and the need for a taxonomic revision of this genus. The revision of Parachorius, powered by the 3i cybertaxonomic tool, is presented in this study. The revised Parachorius is comprised of 19 species from the Oriental and southeastern Palaearctic Regions, of which seven are newly described (P. asymmetricus new species, P. bolavensis new species, P. longipenis new species, P. newthayerae new species, P. pseudojavanus new species, P. schuelkei new species, and P. solodovnikovi new species). Three species names in Parachorius are synonymized, namely, P. fungorum Kryzhanovsky & Medvedev, 1966 = P. krali Utsunomiya & Masumoto, 2001 new synonymy; P. thomsoni Harold, 1873 = P. lannathai Hanboonsong & Masumoto, 2001 new synonymy; and P. peninsularis (Arrow, 1907) = C. pongchaii Masumoto, 2001 new synonymy. Two species originally described in Cassolus (C. sumatranus and C. minutus) are transferred to the genus Panelus Lewis, 1895. The rank of the genus Macropanelus is lowered to a subgenus within Panelus (i.e. Panelus (Macropanelus) new status). 

Maluti Mystery: A systematic review of Amietia vertebralis (Hewitt, 1927) and Strongylopus hymenopus (Boulenger, 1920) (Anura: Pyxicephalidae)

Zootaxa ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 1962 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
JEANNE TARRANT ◽  
MICHAEL J. CUNNINGHAM ◽  
LOUIS H. DU PREEZ
Keyword(s):  
Sequence Data ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Taxonomic Status ◽  
Original Description ◽  
Type Specimen ◽  
Systematic Position ◽  
Type Specimens ◽  
Morphological Examination ◽  
Species Type ◽  
Original Application

The taxonomic status of Amietia vertebralis and Strongylopus hymenopus, two frogs restricted to the Maluti-Drakensberg highlands in southern Africa, is unclear. Here, morphological examination and phylogenetic analyses elucidate the systematic position of these two species. Type specimens of both species were examined and compared with more recent collections to clarify their identity. These comparisons revealed discrepancies between the original application of these names and their current usage. The holotype and original description of A. vertebralis match specimens from an extant population at that species’ type locality that are currently assigned to S. hymenopus. Furthermore, the type specimen of S. hymenopus is of uncertain provenance and does not match well with either of the forms currently associated with these names. We assessed both intraspecific and interspecific variability using DNA sequence data. Broad sampling of the form currently assigned to A. vertebralis revealed very little genetic variation thereby dispelling the hypothesis that this is a compound taxon. The generic placement of both species within the family Pyxicephalidae was resolved using a combined dataset of mitochondrial 16S rDNA and nuclear RAG1 gene sequences. The form currently recognised as S. hymenopus was excluded from the otherwise monophyletic genus Strongylopus, and was placed instead within Amietia. Based on these data a revised application of both species names is recommended here. Populations currently assigned to Amietia vertebralis are referred to Amietia umbraculata and those attributed to Strongylopus hymenopus are referred instead to Amietia vertebralis.

scholarly journals Phylogenetically informative length polymorphism and sequence variability in mitochondrial DNA of Australian songbirds (Pomatostomus).

Genetics ◽  
1990 ◽  
Vol 126 (3) ◽  
pp. 695-711 ◽  
Author(s):  
S V Edwards ◽  
A C Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Cytochrome B ◽  
Length Polymorphism ◽  
Phylogenetic Trees ◽  
Restriction Analysis ◽  
Direct Sequencing ◽  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Restriction Enzymes ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
12S Rrna ◽  
Data Sets

Abstract A combination of restriction analysis and direct sequencing via the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to build trees relating mitochondrial DNAs (mtDNAs) from 50 individuals belonging to five species of Australian babblers (Pomatostomus). The trees served as a quantitative framework for analyzing the direction and tempo of evolution of an intraspecific length polymorphism from a third mitochondrial ancestor. The length polymorphism lies between the cytochrome b and 12S rRNA (srRNA) genes. Screening of mtDNAs within and between the five species with restriction enzymes showed that Pomatosomus temporalis was polymorphic for two smaller size classes (M and S) that are completely segregated geographically, whereas mtDNAs from the other four species were exclusively of a third, larger size (L). Inter- and intraspecific phylogenetic trees relating mtDNAs based on restriction maps, cytochrome b sequences obtained via PCR, and the two data sets combined were compared to one another statistically and were broadly similar except for the phylogenetic position of Pomatosomus halli. Both sets of phylogenies imply that only two deletion events can account for the observed intraspecific distribution of the three length types. High levels of base-substitutional divergence were detected within and between northern and southern lineages of P. temporalis, which implies a low level of gene flow between northern and southern regions as well as a low rate of length mutation. These conclusions were confirmed by applying coalescent theory to the statistical framework provided by the phylogenetic analyses.

scholarly journals Social survival: Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) use social structure to partition ecological niches within proposed critical habitat

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (6) ◽  
pp. e0245409
Author(s):  
Janie Wray ◽  
Eric Keen ◽  
Éadin N. O’Mahony
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Social Structure ◽  
Niche Partitioning ◽  
Megaptera Novaeangliae ◽  
Humpback Whales ◽  
Baleen Whales ◽  
Fjord System ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Niche

Animal culture and social bonds are relevant to wildlife conservation because they influence patterns of geography, behavior, and strategies of survival. Numerous examples of socially-driven habitat partitioning and ecological-niche specialization can be found among vertebrates, including toothed whales. But such social-ecological dynamics, described here as ‘social niche partitioning’, are not known among baleen whales, whose societies—particularly on foraging grounds—are largely perceived as unstructured and incidental to matters of habitat use and conservation. However, through 16 years of behavioral observations and photo-identifications of humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) feeding within a fjord system in the Canadian Pacific (primarily within Gitga’at First Nation waters), we have documented long-term pair bonds (up to 12 years) as well as a complex societal structure, which corresponds closely to persistent patterns in feeding strategy, long-term site fidelity (extended occupancy and annual rate of return up to 75%), specific geographic preferences within the fjord system, and other forms of habitat use. Randomization tests of network congruency and clustering algorithms were used to test for overlap in patterns of social structure and habitat use, which confirmed the occurrence of social niche partitioning on the feeding grounds of this baleen whale species. In addition, we document the extensive practice of group bubble net feeding in Pacific Canada. This coordinated feeding behavior was found to strongly mediate the social structure and habitat use within this humpback whale society. Additionally, during our 2004–2019 study, we observed a shift in social network structure in 2010–2012, which corresponded with environmental and demographic shifts including a sudden decline in the population’s calving rate. Our findings indicate that the social lives of humpback whales, and perhaps baleen whales generally, are more complex than previously supposed and should be a primary consideration in the assessment of potential impacts to important habitat.

scholarly journals Reclassification of Pterulaceae Corner (Basidiomycota: Agaricales) introducing the ant-associated genus Myrmecopterula gen. nov., Phaeopterula Henn. and the corticioid Radulomycetaceae fam. nov.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caio A. Leal-Dutra ◽  
Gareth W. Griffith ◽  
Maria Alice Neves ◽  
David J. McLaughlin ◽  
Esther G. McLaughlin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analyses ◽  
Type Specimen ◽  
The Other ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
New Combinations ◽  
Ant Nests ◽  
The Family ◽  
Molecular Studies ◽  
Molecular Investigation ◽  
The Relationship

ABSTRACTPterulaceae was formally proposed to group six coralloid and dimitic genera [Actiniceps (=Dimorphocystis), Allantula, Deflexula, Parapterulicium, Pterula and Pterulicium]. Recent molecular studies have shown that some of the characters currently used in Pterulaceae Corner do not distinguish the genera. Actiniceps and Parapterulicium have been removed and a few other resupinate genera were added to the family. However, none of these studies intended to investigate the relationship between Pterulaceae genera. In this study, we generated 278 sequences from both newly collected and fungarium samples. Phylogenetic analyses support by morphological data allowed a reclassification of Pterulaceae where we propose the introduction of Myrmecopterula gen. nov. and Radulomycetaceae fam. nov., the reintroduction of Phaeopterula, the synonymisation of Deflexula in Pterulicium and 51 new combinations. Pterula is rendered polyphyletic requiring a reclassification; thus, it is split into Pterula, Myrmecopterula gen. nov., Pterulicium and Phaeopterula. Deflexula is recovered as paraphyletic alongside several Pterula species and Pterulicium, and is sunk into the latter genus. Phaeopterula is reintroduced to accommodate species with darker basidiomes. The neotropical Myrmecopterula gen. nov. forms a distinct clade adjacent to Pterula, and most members of this clade are associated with active or inactive attine ant nests. The resupinate genera Coronicium and Merulicium are recovered in a strongly supported clade close to Pterulicium. The other resupinate genera previously included in Pterulaceae, and which form basidiomes lacking cystidia and with monomitic hyphal structure (Radulomyces, Radulotubus and Aphanobasidium), are reclassified into Radulomycetaceae fam. nov. Allantula is still an enigmatic piece in this puzzle known only from the type specimen that requires molecular investigation. A key for the genera of Pterulaceae and Radulomycetaceae fam. nov. is provided here.

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