New species of Bokermannohyla (Anura, Hylidae) from Central Bahia, Brazil

A new species of treefrog closely related to Bokermannohyla alvarengai is described from Chapada Diamantina centrally located in the State of Bahia, Brazil. In comparison to B. alvarengai, the new species is smaller in size, with less developed forearm and prepollexes, and smaller tympani. We describe the tadpole, advertisement call and provide information on its natural history. We propose the B. alvarengai group to accommodate this species and the new species described here.

4 SPECIES OF BRAZILIAN POISON FROGS RELATED TO EPIPEDOBATES-PICTUS (DENDROBATIDAE) - TAXONOMY AND NATURAL-HISTORY OBSERVATIONS

We present morphological and natural history data on Epipedobates pictus and three additional taxa currently regarded as synonyms of the former: Epipedobates braccatus, E. flavopictus, and E. hahneli. Topotypes of the four species were examined. Morphological data on tadpoles and adults, in addition to distribution patterns and vocalizations, indicate that the four taxa represent distinct species. Two groups are evident within them: (1) the slender-bodied, Amazonian E. hahneli with small flash marks on the thighs and a low-finned tadpole, and (2) the robust bodied, almost extra-Amazonian E. braccatus, E. flavopictus, and E. pictus with large flash marks on the thighs and tadpoles with fins of moderate height.

NEW SPECIES OF CROSSODACTYLUS (ANURA, LEPTODACTYLIDAE) FROM THE ATLANTIC RAIN-FOREST OF SOUTHEASTERN BRAZIL

A new species of leptodactylid frog, Crossodactylus caramaschii, is described from the southern part of the state of São Paulo, southeastern Brazil. The new species, a member of the Crossodactylus gaudichaudii group, is characterized by having a short snout, a distinct and straight canthus rostralis, and reticulated belly.

Diversity of fish species in the River Paranapanema Jurumirim Reservoir transition region (São Paulo, Brazil)

The diversity of fish species in an transition zone between the River Paranapanema and the head mouth of the Jurumirim Reservoir was evaluated. Fish samples were collected from October 1995 to September 1996, by experimental fishing (gill-nets and sieve), in three marginal shallow lagoons and two channel river zones, Gill-net collections resulted in 21 taxons of native fishes. Detritivorous Characiformes such as Steindachnerina insculpta were predominant Sieve collections resulted in 31 taxa and the Tetragonopterinae subfamily was the most representative group, which included small species as Cheirodon stenodon. The equitability index characterized the high heterogeneity of fish numeric abundance, reflecting the dominance of a few groups. A significant relationship between biotic and abiotic variables was indicated by the first canonical function. In comparison with other regions of the drainage basin, the ecotone zone studied indicated a higher species richness and, in the case of some species, fishes in all stages of development. This study demonstrated the necessity to preserve the ecological zone for the fishing and fishery management in the reservoir.

The tadpole of Scinax catharinae (Anura : Hylidae) with description of the internal oral morphology, and a review of the tadpoles from the Scinax catharinae group

We present a description of the external morphology and internal oral features of the tadpole of Scinax catharinae and comparisons with the known tadpoles of the S. catharinae group. Two characters of the external morphology present some intraspecific variation: the row of submarginal papillae, which can be uniseriate or absent, and the tail tip, which can be large or small, truncated or not. That said, the tadpole of S. catharinae presents some distinguishing features that differentiate it from other tadpoles in the S. catharinae group: i) the marginal row of papillae with alternate disposition, ii) the spiracle opening on the midline of the body, iii) longest snout length, and iv) largest interorbital distance. The studied species were segregated into five ecomorphological guilds, characterized by external morphological features, tadpole habitat use and vegetation formation of species range. The taxonomy of the S. catharinae group is complex, due to the morphological similarities among the adults. Larval characters could help in the resolution of the taxonomic and phylogenetic complexities, since the morphological differences among the tadpoles in this group seem more conspicuous than those found among the adults.

CYTOGENETIC STUDIES ON THE SUBFAMILY HYPOPTOPOMATINAE (PISCES, SILURIFORMES, LORICARIIDAE) .3. ANALYSIS OF 7 SPECIES

Cytogenetic studies carried out on nine species belonging to five genera of the subfamily Hypoptopomatinae showed that this group has a relatively constant diploid number, 2n = 54, with only one species having 2n = 72 chromosomes. Nevertheless, the karyotypic formulae, NOR position and C-band pattern are very different among species and sometimes among local populations, with species having undifferentiated sex chromosomes and species having the XX/XY or the ZZ/ZW mechanisms. The population structure of species belonging to the subfamily Hypoptopomatinae suggests that many chromosome rearrangements have been fixed in the different species and populations due to their geographic isolation and these karyotypic differences may be very important today for species definition.

Inversion polymorphism in laboratory strains and natural samples of Drosophila sturtevanti (saltans group, sturtevanti subgroup)

Drosophila sturtevanti (37 strains) showed eighteen inversions, five new and thirteen previously described. Among these strains, 24 were maintained for seven to 21 years under laboratory conditions, eight for less than 1 year, and six were natural samples analysed in the first generation after collection. Flies from natural samples were the most polymorphic in the number of different inversions as well as in the frequency of flies bearing heterozygous inversions. In all cases, chromosome III presented the greatest number of inversions, and most of them occurred in strains from the Amazonian region. The data obtained were consistent with the hypothesis that the inversion variability of a species is proportional to the variability of its habitats.

A NEW SPECIES OF HYLODES FROM SOUTHEASTERN BRAZIL (AMPHIBIA, LEPTODACTYLIDAE)

A new species of leptodactylid frog is described from the Serra das Cabras in São Paulo, southeastern Brazil. The new species is a member of the Hylodes lateristrigatus group and is characterized by its small size and high number of notes per call. Descriptions of the tadpole and advertisement call and information on natural history are provided.

Biological and DNA evidence of two dissimilar populations of the Rhipicephalus sanguineus tick group (Acari : Ixodidae) in South America

In this work, the biology, mitochondrial DNA and fertility of hybrids from two strains of Rhipicephalus sanguineus, from Brazil and Argentina, were compared. Engorged larvae, nymphs and adults from Argentina weighed more and the engorgement period of adult females was significantly longer than those of their Brazilian counterparts, whereas adult female tick yield rate was higher for the Brazilian strain. High intraspecific divergence of mitochondrial DNA was detected between R. sanguineus from Brazil and Argentina. on the other hand, a strong genetic relationship was detected between European and Argentinean R. sanguineus populations while the Brazilian population appeared to be related to the African Rhipicephalus turanicus. Adult hybrid females laid eggs, which were mostly unviable, whereas a mean of more than 1400 larvae hatched per egg mass from pure Brazilian and Argentinean strains. These results showed that differences between these strains are greater than previously assumed and that the biosysternatic status of R. sanguineus ticks from South America should be re-evaluated. Wide variations, such as these might account for the reported worldwide differences in biology and vector capacity of this species. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sequence heterogeneity and phylogenetic relationships between the copia retrotransposon in Drosophila species of the repleta and melanogaster groups

Although the retrotransposon copia has been studied in the melanogaster group of Drosophila species, very little is known about copia dynamism and evolution in other groups. We analyzed the occurrence and heterogeneity of the copia 5' LTR-ULR partial sequence and their phylogenetic relationships in 24 species of the repleta group of Drosophila. PCR showed that copia occurs in 18 out of the 24 species evaluated. Sequencing was possible in only eight species. The sequences showed a low nucleotide diversity, which suggests selective constraints maintaining this regulatory region over evolutionary time. on the contrary, the low nucleotide divergence and the phylogenetic relationships between the D. willistoni/Zaprionus tuberculatus/melanogaster species subgroup suggest horizontal transfer. Sixteen transcription factor binding sites were identified in the LTR-ULR repleta and melanogaster consensus sequences. However, these motifs are not homologous, neither according to their position in the LTR-ULR sequences, nor according to their sequences. Taken together, the low motif homologies, the phylogenetic relationship and the great nucleotide divergence between the melanogaster and repleta copia sequences reinforce the hypothesis that there are two copia families.

Organization of 5S rDNA in species of the fish Leporinus: two different genomic locations are characterized by distinct nontranscribed spacers

To address understanding the organization of the 5S rRNA multigene family in the fish genome, the nucleotide sequence and organization array of 5S rDNA were investigated in the genus Leporinus, a representative freshwater fish group of South American fauna. PCR, subgenomic library screening, genomic blotting, fluorescence in situ hybridization, and DNA sequencing were employed in this study. Two arrays of 5S rDNA were identified for all species investigated, one consisting of monomeric repeat units of around 200 bp and another one with monomers of 900 bp. These 5S rDNA arrays were characterized by distinct NTS sequences (designated NTS-I and NTS-II for the 200- and 900-bp monomers, respectively); however, their coding sequences were nearly identical. The 5S rRNA genes were clustered in two chromosome loci, a major one corresponding to the NTS-I sites and a minor one corresponding to the NTS-II sites. The NTS-I sequence was variable among Leporinus spp., whereas the NTS-II was conserved among them and even in the related genus Schizodon. The distinct 5S rDNA arrays might characterize two 5S rRNA gene subfamilies that have been evolving independently in the genome.

P elements in the saltans group of Drosophila: a new evaluation of their distribution and number of genomic insertion sites

Few are studies on P elements that have addressed the saltans group. These studies had shown that species from the cordata and elliptica subgroups were devoid of any discernible P homologous sequences, while species from the parasaltans, sturtevanti, and saltans subgroups all contain P element sequences. Our analyses showed the presence of one to 15 P element insertion sites in species of the saltans group, including Drosophila neocordata and Drosophila emarginata (cordata and elliptica subgroups, respectively). From these species, only those from the parasaltans, sturtevanti, and saltans subgroups harbor canonical P elements and, only those of the last two subgroups seem to harbor putative full-sized elements. Due to the low similarity of the sequences found in D. neocordata and D. emarginata to those earlier described, we suggest that these sequences might be rudimental P element derivatives that were present in the ancestral of the subgenus Sophophora. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

PHYLOGENETIC STUDIES OF SOME SPECIES OF THE GENUS COFFEA .2. NUMERICAL-ANALYSIS OF ISOENZYMATIC DATA

Thirteen species of Coffea were studied for five enzymes systems, including alpha and beta esterase, alkaline phosphatase, acid phosphatase, malate dehydrogenase and acid dehydrogenase. Three coefficients of similarity: Simple Matching, Jaccard and Ochiai and three different clustering methods: Single Linkage, Complete Linkage and Unweighted Pair Group, using Arithmetic Averages (UPGMA) were used to analyse the data.The phylogenetic relationships among the twelve diploid species and between them and the tetraploid species C. arabica showed that similarity among species of the same subsection is not always greater than among species of different subsections. In addition, although there are several similarity groups in common, established by isoenzymatic polymorphism, morphological characteristics, chemical data, crossability and geographic distribution, there is no common trend among the phylogenetic relationships as indicated by all these different evaluating procedures.

A New Species of Proceratophrys (Anura: Cycloramphidae) from Midwestern Brazil

We describe adult morphology, advertisement call, and natural history aspects of a new frog species from riparian habitats alongside intermittent headwater streams in southwestern Cerrado, the second largest biome in Brazil. Presently known from three localities in Mato Grosso State, the new species belongs to the Proceratophrys cristiceps group. It is characterized mainly by small size (adult snout vent length approximately 46 mm), snout rounded in dorsal view and obtuse in lateral view, absence of flared lips, dorsal skin granular, and absence of both postocular swellings and prominent palpebral appendages. The advertisement call of the new species consists of a single note with 19-25 pulses. Calls are repeated at mean intervals of 0.7 sec. Mean dominant frequency is 1,250.2 Hz, with ascendant modulation.

Moenkhausia celibela: a new species from the Amazon basin, Brazil (Characiformes: Characidae)

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