Historical biogeography and cryptic diversity in the Callichthyinae (Siluriformes, Callichthyidae)

The family Callichthyidae, divided into the subfamilies Corydoradinae and Callichthyinae, contains more than 200 species of armoured catfishes distributed throughout the Neotropics, as well as fossil species dating from the Palaeocene. Both subfamilies are very widely distributed throughout the continent, with some species ranges extending across multiple hypothesized biogeographical barriers. Species with such vast geographical ranges could be made up of multiple cryptic populations that are genetically distinct and have diverged over time. Although relationships among Callichthyinae genera have been thoroughly investigated, the historical biogeography of the Callichthyinae and the presence of species complexes have yet to be examined. Furthermore, there is a lack of fossil-calibrated molecular phylogenies providing a time frame for the evolution of the Callichthyinae. Here, we present a novel molecular data set for all Callichthyinae genera composed of partial sequences of mitochondrial and nuclear markers. These data were used to construct a fossil-calibrated tree for the Callichthyinae and to reconstruct patterns of spatiotemporal evolution. All phylogenetic analyses [Bayesian, maximum likelihood and maximum parsimony (MP)] resulted in a single fully resolved and well-supported hypothesis for the Callichthyinae, where Dianema is the sister group of all the remaining genera. Results suggest that the ancestry of most Callichthyinae genera originated in the Amazonas basin, with a number of subsequent ancestral dispersal events between adjacent basins. High divergences in sequences and time were observed for several samples of Hoplosternum littorale, Megalechis picta and Callichthys callichthys, suggesting that these species may contain cryptic diversity. The results highlight the need for a taxonomic revision of species complexes within the Callichthyinae, which may reveal more diversity within this relatively species-poor lineage. © 2013 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Well, what about intraspecific variation? Taxonomic and phylogenetic characters in the genus Synoeca de Saussure (Hymenoptera, Vespidae)

Cely and Sarmiento (2011) took issue with the cladistic analysis of relationships among species of the genus Synoeca by Andena et al. (2009a), and presented a reanalysis. They claimed that intraspecific variation in the genus is meaningful, and proper consideration yields a conclusion different from that of Andena et al. Both their critique and reanalysis are vitiated by numerous errors, as is shown in the present paper. © 2013 Magnolia Press.

Leaf anatomical traits are correlated with tree dominance in a Neotropical deciduous forest

Deciduous forests from the neotropics are one of the most endangered forest types in the world due to the exploitation of their natural resources by mankind. Many aspects of these ecosystems have been studied; however, there is a lack of information about leaf structure and the effects of tree dominance on their structural leaf patterns. In this article, we examine leaf anatomy and specific leaf areas (SLA) in 13 tree species differing in their dominance in a Dry Forest site in Central Brazil, relating leaf anatomical traits with phytosociological aspects. Leaf anatomical traits differed according to tree dominance: greater leaf thickness (achieved through greater thickness of the mesophyll), low values of SLA and bigger stomata were found for the most dominant species, whereas the less dominant species showed thinner leaves with high SLA, as well as numerous and small stomata. These responses suggest that tree dominance is an important indirect effect associated with vertical light availability in the forest. These strategies are probably related to the accomplishment of a high performance in carbon gain and water economy, given the distinction in irradiance that the leaves of different species are subject to in the dry forest. © 2013 Copyright The Royal Society of New Zealand.

Microsatellite loci characterized in the leaf-cutter ant Atta laevigata

Background: The leaf-cutter ant Atta laevigata (Formicidae: Attini) is an agricultural pest largely distributed in the Neotropics and a model organism for studies of evolution, speciation and population genetics. Microsatellites are a very powerful tool for these kind of studies, but such markers are not available for studies on A. laevigata. In the present report, we describe the isolation and characterization of nine microsatellite loci in A. laevigata and the testing of these markers across other species of leaf-cutter ants. Findings. Nine microsatellite loci, consisting of six dinucloeotide, one trinucleotide, one tetranucleotide, and one di/trinucleotide repeat motifs, were isolated and characterized. Primers and protocols were successfully designed to selectively amplify these markers. To test effectiveness of these markers for detailed population genetic studies, we genotyped female workers collected from 36 monogynic nests of A. laevigata and found that eight loci were within Hardy-Weinberg expectations, while the remaining locus had a deficiency of heterozygotes. Micro-Checker analysis of individuals from 55 monogynic nests indicated that loci Alae11, Alae24, Alae18 showed signs of null alleles. For the remaining six loci, the number of alleles per locus ranged between 2 and 11, with expected heterozygosity ranging between 0.07 and 0.88. All of these loci cross-amplified in other species of Atta. Conclusions: These six polymorphic microsatellite loci should prove useful for future genetic investigations of the pest species Atta laevigata, as well as studies of other species of leaf-cutter ants in the genus Atta. © 2013 Kakazu et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

Context-dependence in seed removal by lekking and non-lekking frugivorous birds in Brazilian Atlantic forest

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Biogeografia histórica do gênero Brachygastra Perty, 1833 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae: Polistinae: Epiponini)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

A importância de fatores fenológicos e químicos na escolha de frutos por filostomídeos frugívoros

Pós-graduação em Biologia Animal - IBILCE

Estudos taxonômicos e anatômicos em Mayacaceae kunth

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Dryinidae (Hymenoptera, Chrysidoidea) de áreas de preservação da Mata Atlântica do estado de São Paulo, com especial referência a Dryinus Latreille

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Entomologia Agrícola) - FCAV

Diferenças moleculares entre citótipos de Mazama americana (Artiodactyla: Cervidae)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Caracterização das trilhas de forrageamento em formigas cortadeiras de gramíneas (Formicidae, Attini): transferência de informações durante o recrutamento em Atta bisphaerica

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Novos táxons de Grylloidea da Floresta Latifoliada semidecídua da região de Foz do Iguaçu-PR (Orthoptera, Ensifera)

Pós-graduação em Ciências Biológicas (Zoologia) - IBB

Variação morfofisiológica das castas da vespa enxameante neotropical Polybia (Trichothorax) ignobilis durante sua ontogenia colonial (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Epiponini)

Pós-graduação em Ciências Biológicas (Zoologia) - IBRC

Estudo da fauna de Euglossini (Hymenoptera, Apidae) em paisagem fragmentada na Serra da Forquilha, Jacutinga, região sul de Minas Gerais: diversidade de espécies e uso de habitats

Pós-graduação em Ciências Biológicas (Zoologia) - IBRC

Serpentes da Caatinga: diversidade, história natural, biogeografia e conservação

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)