Taxonomy and redescription of the Swamp Antechinus, Antechinus minimus (E. Geoffroy) (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae)

We provide a taxonomic redescription of the dasyurid marsupial Swamp Antechinus, Antechinus minimus (Geoffroy, 1803). In the past, A. minimus has been classified as two subspecies: the nominate A. minimus minimus (Geoffroy, 1803), which is found throughout much of Tasmania (including southern Bass Strait islands) and A. minimus maritimus (Finlayson, 1958), which is found on mainland Australia (as well as some near-coastal islands) and is patchily distributed in mostly coastal areas between South Gippsland (Victoria) and Robe (South Australia). Based on an assessment of morphology and DNA, we conclude that A. minimus is both distinctly different from all extant congeners and that the two existing subspecies of Swamp Antechinus are appropriately taxonomically characterised. In our genetic phylogenies, the Swamp Antechinus was monophyletic with respect to all 14 known extant congeners; moreover, A. minimus was well-positioned in a large clade, together with all four species in the Dusky Antechinus complex, to the exclusion of all other antechinus. Within A. minimus, between subspecies there were subtle morphological differences (A. m. maritimus skulls tend to be broader, with larger molar teeth, than A. m. minimus, but these differences were not significant); there was distinct, but only moderately deep genetic differences (3.9–4.5% at mtDNA) between A. minimus subspecies. Comparatively, across Bass Strait, the two subspecies of A. minimus are morphologically and genetically markedly less divergent than recently recognised species pairs within the Dusky Antechinus complex, found in Victoria (A. mimetes) and Tasmania (A. swainsonii) (9.4–11.6% divergent at mtDNA)

Taxonomy and redescription of the Atherton Antechinus, Antechinus godmani (Thomas) (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae)

We provide a taxonomic redescription of the dasyurid marsupial Atherton Antechinus, Antechinus godmani (Thomas). A. godmani is only rarely encountered and limited to wet tropical rainforests of north-east Queensland, Australia, between the towns of Cardwell and Cairns (a distribution spanning 135 kilometres from north to south). The distinctive species occurs at altitudes of over 600 meters asl, in all major rainforest types, and can be found with both the northern subspecies of the Yellow-footed Antechinus, A. flavipes rubeculus Van Dyck and the Rusty Antechinus, A. adustus (Thomas). A. god-mani is clearly separated from all congeners on the basis of both morphometrics and genetics. A. godmani can be distin-guished from all extant congeners based on external morphology by a combination of large size, naked-looking tail and reddish fur on the face and head. A. godmani skulls are characteristically large, with a suite of long features: basicranium, palate, upper premolar tooth row, inter-palatal vacuity distance and dentary. Phylogenies generated from mt- and nDNA data position Antechinus godmani as monophyletic with respect to other members of the genus; A. godmani is strongly supported as the sister-group to a clade containing all other antechinus, but excluding the south-east Australian Dusky An-techinus, A. swainsonii (Waterhouse) and Swamp Antechinus, A. minimus (Geoffroy). Antechinus godmani are genetically very divergent compared to all congeners (mtDNA: range 12.9–16.3%).