The skull of the Upper Cretaceous snake Dinilysia patagonica Smith-Woodward, 1901, and its phylogenetic position revisited

The cranial anatomy of Dinilysia patagonica, a terrestrial snake from the Upper Cretaceous of Argentina, is redescribed and illustrated, based on high-resolution X-ray computed tomography and better preparations made on previously known specimens, including the holotype. Previously unreported characters reinforce the intriguing mosaic nature of the skull of Dinilysia, with a suite of plesiomorphic and apomorphic characters with respect to extant snakes. Newly recognized plesiomorphies are the absence of the medial vertical flange of the nasal, lateral position of the prefrontal, lizard-like contact between vomer and palatine, floor of the recessus scalae tympani formed by the basioccipital, posterolateral corners of the basisphenoid strongly ventrolaterally projected, and absence of a medial parietal pillar separating the telencephalon and mesencephalon, amongst others. We also reinterpreted the structures forming the otic region of Dinilysia, confirming the presence of a crista circumfenestralis, which represents an important derived ophidian synapomorphy. Both plesiomorphic and apomorphic traits of Dinilysia are treated in detail and illustrated accordingly. Results of a phylogenetic analysis support a basal position of Dinilysia, as the sister-taxon to all extant snakes. The fossil taxa Yurlunggur, Haasiophis, Eupodophis, Pachyrhachis, and Wonambi appear as derived snakes nested within the extant clade Alethinophidia, as stem-taxa to the crown-clade Macrostomata. The hypothesis of a sister-group relationship between Dinilysia and Najash rionegrina, as suggested by some authors, is rejected by the results of our analysis.

A new species of Callicebus Thomas, 1903 (Primates, Pitheciidae) from the states of Mato Grosso and Pará, Brazil

A new species of titi monkey, genus Callicebus Thomas, 1903, is described based on four individuals, one from a small tributary of the left bank of Rio Teles Pires, northern state of Mato Grosso, and three others from Largo do Souza, Rio Iriri, Pará, Brazil. The new species belongs to the Callicebus moloch species group, and the main diagnostic characteristics of the new species are the whitish forehead, sideburns and beard coloration, which are contiguous, forming a frame around the blackish face; overall body pelage coloration is pale grayish-brown agouti; hands, feet and tip of the tail whitish; belly and inner sides of fore and hind limbs uniformly orange. The pattern of pelage coloration and qualitative and quantitative skull morphology are described and compared to the other species of the Callicebus moloch group. Species of the Callicebus moloch group show great similarity in skull morphology and morphometrics, making the external morphological characters, specially the chromatic fields, the most reliable diagnostic trait to identify the species.

Efeito da azadiractina sobre Chaetosiphon fragaefolli (Cockerell, 1901) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) na cultura do morangueiro

O pulgão-verde Chaetosiphon fragaefolli é o principal inseto-praga da cultura do morangueiro. Neste trabalho, foi avaliado o efeito da azadiractina para o controle do inseto em laboratório e casa de vegetação. Os tratamentos avaliados foram a azadiractina (Azamax®, 100; 200 e 300 ml.100L-1) comparado com o tiametoxam (Actara 250 WG®, 10 g.100L-1), lambda-cialotrina (Karate Zeon 50 CS®, 80 ml.100L-1) e uma testemunha (água). Os produtos foram pulverizados sobre plantas de morangueiro da cultivar Aromas infestadas artificialmente em casa de vegetação. A azadiractina foi equivalente a lambda-cialotrina e ao tiametoxam no controle de C. fragaefolii desde que realizada uma segunda pulverização sete dias após a primeira. A persistência biológica dos inseticidas lambda-cialotrina e tiametoxam foi superior a 28 dias, com um controle de 75% da população de pulgões, enquanto azadiractina apresentou menor persistência biológica, controlando 70% da população por sete dias.