Phylogenetic relationships among four species of the guarani group of Drosophila (Diptera, Drosophilidae) as inferred by molecular and morphological analyses

Traditionally, the Drosophila guarani species group has been divided into two subgroups: the guarani and the guaramunu subgroups. Two, out of the four species included in this research, are members of the guarani subgroup (D. ornatifrons Duda, 1927 and D. subbadia Paterson & Mainland, 1943) and two are included in the guaramunu subgroup (D. maculifrons Duda, 1927 and D. griseolineata Duda, 1927). However, some authors have suggested that D. maculifrons and D. griseolineata are much closer to some species of the Drosophila tripunctata group than to some of the species of the guarani group. To add new data to the matter under dispute, Polyacrylamide Gel Eletrophoresis (PAGE-SDS) was used for the analysis and comparison of protein composition and Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis to find differences in genomic DNA, in addition to the analysis of quantitative morphological characters previously described. Analysis of PAGE-SDS results in a dendrogram that pointed out D. subbadia as being the most distant within the Drosophila guarani group. However, these results were not supported either by RAPD analysis or by the analysis of continuous morphological characters, which supplied the clustering of D. subbadia with D. ornatifrons. Although our data give strong support to the clustering of D. subbadia and D. ornatifrons, none of the dendrograms provided a clade comprising D. maculifrons and D. griseolineata. Thus, this research does not support the traditional subdivision of the D. guarani group into those two subgroups.

Comparative morphological study of the Neotropical Cleomenini genera and their transference to the tribes Rhopalophorini Blanchard and Rhinotragini Thomson (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae, Cerambycinae)

In order to investigate the affinities of the hitherto considered Neotropical Cleomenini genera, a detailed morphological comparative study was carried out based on representatives of their type species and other congeneric species. The results, when compared with representatives of Cleomenes Thomson and other non Neotropical Cleomenini genera together with representatives of Rhopalophorini Blanchard and Rhinotragini Thomson, show that: 1) Listroptera Audinet-Serville, 1834, Dihammaphora Chevrolat, 1859, Haenkea Tippmann, 1953, Aguassay Napp & Mermudes, 2001 and Timabiara Napp & Mermudes, 2001 form a very homogeneous group, not related to other Cleomenini, but sharing several synapomorphies with the Rhopalophorini; therefore they are herein transferred to this tribe; 2) the affinities of Dihammaphoroides Zajciw, 1967, were not clearly defined, needing further investigations; nevertheless, the genus is tentatively included in Rhopalophorini due to its morphological similarity with Dihammaphora and allied genera; 3) Pandrosos Bates, 1867 is brought back to Rhinotragini, in which it was originally placed. Therefore, the tribe Cleomenini Lacordaire is no longer represented in the New World.

Morphological study of the thorax of the five nymphal instars of Triatoma arthurneivai Lent & Martins (Hemiptera, Reduviidae, Triatominae)

Scanning electron microscope (SEM) was done in order to study dorsal, ventral and lateral sides of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th nymphal instars of Triatoma arthurneivai. The five nymphal instar can be recognized based on different pronotum, mesonotum and metanotum shapes and characteristics. In the 1st instar collar, hairless areas and tubercles are absent. The 2 nd instar presents collar, hairless areas and tubercles. In the 3rd instar occurs the development of wing pads. In the 4 th instar the four wing pads are expanded, but do not reach the abdomen and in the 5th instar the anterior wing pads almost overlap the posterior ones. At the ventral side, two metasternal glands openings (1+1) were found in all five nymphal instars. Brindley's gland evaporation areas (1+1) are located at the mesopleuron, as well as an evaporation area is located at the propleuron in all nymphal instars (1+1).

Morphological, chemical and developmental aspects of the Dufour gland in some eusocial bees (Hymenoptera, Apidae): a review

Morphological, chemical and developmental aspects of the Dufour gland in some eusocial bees (Hymenoptera, Apidae): a review. The present revision focused on the more recent data about the Dufour gland in some eusocial bees, taking in account general aspects of its morphology, secretion chemical nature, bio-synthetic pathway and development. Many functions have been attributed to this gland in eusocial bees, but none are convincing. With the new data about this gland, not only the secretion chemical pathway of the Dufour gland may be reasonable understood, as its function in some eusocial bees, especially Apis mellifera Linné, 1758, which has been extensively studied in the last years.

Biogeographic analysis of Crocidiinae (Diptera, Bombyliidae): finding congruence among morphological, molecular, fossil and paleogeographical data

Biogeographic studies dealing with Bombyliidae are rare in the literature and no information is available on its origin and early diversification. In this study, we found evidence from molecular phylogeny and from fossil record supporting a Middle Jurassic origin of the Bombylioidea, taken as a starting point to discuss the biogeography and diversification of Crocidiinae. Based on a previously published phylogenetic hypothesis, we performed a Brooks Parsimony Analysis (BPA) to discuss the biogeographical history of Crocidiinae lineages. This subfamily is mostly distributed over arid areas of the early components of the Gondwanaland: Chile and southern Africa, but also in southwestern Palaearctic and southwestern Nearctic. The vicariant events affecting the Crocidiinae biogeography at the generic level seems to be related to the sequential separation of a Laurasian clade from a Gondwanan clade followed by the splitting of the latter into smaller components. This also leads to a hypothesis of origin of the Crocidiinae in the Middle Jurassic, the same period in which other bombyliid lineages are supposed to have arisen and irradiated.

Morphological studies on castes of Protopolybia chartergoides (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Epiponini) observed in colonies during male production stage

Social wasps are important for the study of social behavior evolution because their colonies present different degrees of caste differentiation, from morphologically similar to highly conspicuous, associated with the occasional presence of intermediate females, which bears developed ovaries but no insemination. In the Polistinae, depending on the taxon, such differentiation can be discreet or conspicuous. This work intended to study morphological and physiological differences between castes in Protopolybia chartergoides by using morphometric analyses associated with multivariate statistical analyses and physiological evaluations from females' ovarian development. Results evidence low morphological and physiological differences among the castes in P. chartergoides, indicating three groups of females: queens, workers and intermediates. In this way, it was possible to suggest that Protopolybia chartergoides presents post-imaginal caste differentiation (or a very subtle form of pre-imaginal determination).

Morphological and physiological variation between queens and workers of Protonectarina sylveirae (de Saussure) (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Epiponini)

Morphological and physiological variation between queens and workers of Protonectarina sylveirae (de Saussure) (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Epiponini). The Neotropical swarm-founding wasps, Epiponini, range from the absence of morphological differentiation between castes to highly distinct castes. We measured eight body parts of females of two colonies of Protonectarina sylveirae (de Saussure, 1854). ANOVA and Discriminant Analysis evidenced significant differences between castes, as previously observed by other authors for other species of Epiponini. However, some females previously categorized as queens, were actually workers, supported by our statistic analyses. These individuals showed intermediate morphological features between queens and workers, having distinct patterns of hairs and clypeal spots. The castes of P. sylveirae are distinct, however intermediate individuals may be found in colonies promoting social flexibility.

Morphological aspects of the genitalia of seven species of Heilus Kuschel (Coleoptera, Curculionidae)

Morphological aspects of the male and female genitalia and their associated sclerites, abdominal tergite and sternite 8, are described, illustrated and discussed for seven species of Heilus Kuschel 1955 of tribe and subtribe Hylobiini-Hylobiina. The seven species are H. faldermanni (Boheman, 1836); H. fasciculatus (Boheman, 1843); H. freyreissi (Boheman, 1836); H. myops (Boheman, 1836); H. pupillatus (Olivier, 1790); H. rufescens (Boheman, 1836) and H. tuberculosus (Perty, 1832).

First report and morphological redescription of Teleonemia morio (Stål) (Hemiptera, Tingidae) in Annona squamosa L. (Annonaceae) in Brazil

First report and morphological redescription of Teleonemia morio (Stål) (Hemiptera, Tingidae) in Annona squamosa L. (Annonaceae) in Brazil. This is the first report of a severe attack of Teleonemia morio (Stål, 1855) (Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Tingidae) on Annona squamosa L. (custard apple), causing up to 80% of losses of infested trees. In order to facilitate the identification of this insect pest, the adult female of T. morio is redescribed based on specimens collected in Palmeira dos Índios, Alagoas, Brazil.

Scale-dependent adaptive evolution and morphological convergence to climatic niche in Californian eriogonoids (Polygonaceae)

Aim Macroevolutionary patterns and processes change substantially depending on levels of taxonomic and ecological organization, and the resolution of environmental and spatial variability. In comparative methods, the resolution of environmental and spatial variability often defines the number of selective regimes used to test whether phenotypic characteristics are adaptively correlated with the environment. Here, we examine how investigator choice of the number of selective regimes, determined by varying the resolution of among-species variability in the species climatic niche (hereafter called ecological scale'), influences trait morphological diversification among Eriogonoideae species. We assess whether adaptive or neutral processes drive the evolution of several morphological traits in these species. Location South-western North America. Methods We applied a phylogenetic framework of three evolutionary models to four morphological traits and the climatic niches of Eriogonoideae (in the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae). We tested whether morphological traits evolve in relation to climate by adaptive or neutral process, and whether the resulting patterns of morphological variability are conserved or convergent across the clade. We inspected adaptive models of evolution under different levels of resolution of among-species variability of the climatic niche. Results We show that morphological traits and climate niches of Eriogonoideae species are not phylogenetically conserved. Further, adaptive evolution of phenotypic traits is specific to climatic niche occupancy across this clade. Finally, the likely evolutionary process and the level of detectable niche conservatism change depending on the resolution of environmental variability of the climatic niche. Main conclusions Our study demonstrates the need to consider both the resolution of environmental variability and alternative evolutionary models to understand the morphological diversification that accompanies divergent adaptive evolution of lineages to climatic conditions.

A neuronal gamma oscillatory signature during morphological unification in the left occipitotemporal junction.

Morphology is the aspect of language concerned with the internal structure of words. In the past decades, a large body of masked priming (behavioral and neuroimaging) data has suggested that the visual word recognition system automatically decomposes any morphologically complex word into a stem and its constituent morphemes. Yet the reliance of morphology on other reading processes (e.g., orthography and semantics), as well as its underlying neuronal mechanisms are yet to be determined. In the current magnetoencephalography study, we addressed morphology from the perspective of the unification framework, that is, by applying the Hold/Release paradigm, morphological unification was simulated via the assembly of internal morphemic units into a whole word. Trials representing real words were divided into words with a transparent (true) or a nontransparent (pseudo) morphological relationship. Morphological unification of truly suffixed words was faster and more accurate and additionally enhanced induced oscillations in the narrow gamma band (60-85 Hz, 260-440 ms) in the left posterior occipitotemporal junction. This neural signature could not be explained by a mere automatic lexical processing (i.e., stem perception), but more likely it related to a semantic access step during the morphological unification process. By demonstrating the validity of unification at the morphological level, this study contributes to the vast empirical evidence on unification across other language processes. Furthermore, we point out that morphological unification relies on the retrieval of lexical semantic associations via induced gamma band oscillations in a cerebral hub region for visual word form processing.

External morphology of the adult of Dynamine postverta (Cramer) (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Biblidinae) and patterns of morphological similarity among species from eight tribes of Nymphalidae

External morphology of the adult of Dynamine postverta (Cramer) (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Biblidinae) and patterns of morphological similarity among species from eight tribes of Nymphalidae. The external structure of the integument of Dynamine postverta postverta (Cramer, 1779) is based on detailed morphological drawings and scanning electron microscopy. The data are compared with other species belonging to eight tribes of Nymphalidae, to assist future studies on the taxonomy and systematics of Neotropical Biblidinae.

A morphological reappraisal of the immature stages and life history of Elachista synethes Meyrick (Lepidoptera, Elachistidae), an Australian leaf miner alien to Chile

ABSTRACT Elachista synethes was recently recognized as an alien species in northern Chile, where its larvae mine the rescue grass Bromus catharticus (Poaceae). In order to provide the necessary information to allow field detection of E. synethes during early ontogeny, we conducted a morphological reappraisal of the immature stages of this leaf-miner moth, based on light and scanning electron microscopy, including the first descriptions of the egg and the first-instar larva. This is the first report of the existence of an apodal early larva for a species of Elachista Treitschke. The legs and prolegs are absent in the first two instars, but are well developed in the last two. Additional observations on the life history are also provided, including a description of the mine.

Two new species of Mycodrosophila (Diptera, Drosophilidae) proposed by molecular and morphological approaches, with a key to American species

ABSTRACT There are approximately 130 species of MycodrosophilaOldenberg, 1914 worldwide, although only nine species were recorded in American countries so far, three of which are exclusively Nearctic, five exclusively Neotropical and one found in both biogeographic regions (Mycodrosophila projectans). Such a small number of American species is likely a consequence of collecting bias, which favors the capture of frugivorous drosophilids, and to the general absence of Neotropical Mycodrosophila studies in the last 50 years. Here, we describe two commonly sampled species of Mycodrosophila from the Amazonian and Pampa Brazilian biomes, which share morphological similarities with Mycodrosophila neoprojectans and M. projectans, respectively. We compared sequences of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI), external morphology characteristics and male terminalia among these species. Based on a DNA barcoding approach coupled to morphological differences, we proposed the delimitation of two new species, Mycodrosophila hofmanni sp. nov. and Mycodrosophila valentae sp. nov. An updated key to identifying Neotropical and Nearctic Mycodrosophila species is also provided.

Clearing and dissecting insects for internal skeletal morphological research with particular reference to bees

ABSTRACT A detailed protocol for chemical clearing of bee specimens is presented. Dry specimens as well as those preserved in liquid media can be cleared using this protocol. The procedure consists of a combined use of alkaline solution (KOH or NaOH) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), followed by the boiling of the cleared specimens in 60–70% EtOH. Clearing is particularly useful for internal skeletal morphological research. This procedure allows for efficient study of internal projections of the exoskeleton (e.g., apodemes, furcae, phragmata, tentoria, internal ridges and sulci), but this process makes external features of the integument, as some sutures and sulci, readily available for observation as well. Upon completion of the chemical clearing process the specimens can be stored in glycerin. This procedure was developed and evaluated for the preparation of bees and other Apoidea, but modifications for use with other insect taxa should be straightforward after some experimentation on variations of timing of steps, concentration of solutions, temperatures, and the necessity of a given step. Comments on the long-term storage, morphological examination, and photodocumentation of cleared specimens are also provided.