Phylogeny of the Asian spiny frog tribe Paini (Family Dicroglossidae) sensu Dubois

The anuran tribe Paini, family Dicroglossidae, is known in this group only from Asia. The phylogenetic relationships and often the taxonomic recognition of species are controversial. In order to stabilize the classification, we used approximately 2100bp o

BOBLME Fisheries Statistics Working Group Meeting, Bangkok, Thailand 28-29 April, 2010

Recent and current initiatives in Southeast Asia for data harmonization, country reports, statistcs, data collection, stock assessment initiatives, recommendations and workplan

Status of the shrimp sector in Bangladesh in the context of HACCP and trade issues: a review

Shrimp culture in Bangladesh has emerged as an important aquaculture industry over the last three decades although its culture in greater parts of the farming area is done in traditional ways. In the meantime, the government of Bangladesh has taken necessary measures along with the private sectors to increase production, upgrade processing industries and to promote export performance. Long supply chain in raw material collection, inadequate infrastructure facilities, poor level of cool chain and lack of adequate HACCP-based training on hygiene and sanitation of different groups of people involved in the field level are the main problems of quality loss of raw materials. Shortage of raw materials results in poor capacity utilization of the processing plants. The growth of bagda (P. monodon) hatchery has expanded rapidly over the last few years, remaining mostly concentrated in Cox's Bazar region is enough to meet the target production. However, there is a shortage of pelleted shrimp feed in Bangladesh. A large number of export processors are now producing increasing amounts of value-added products such as individually quick-frozen, peeled and divined, butterfly cut shrimp, as well as cooked products. The export earnings from value added products is about half of the total export value. About 95% of total fish products are exported to European countries, USA and Japan and the remaining to the Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Most of the EU approved shrimp processing industries have been upgraded with laboratory facilities and provided HACCP training to their workers. As of now, HACCP is applied on the processing plants, but to ensure the quality of raw materials and to reduce risks, shrimp farms are also required to adopt HACCP plan. There is increased pressure time to time from importing countries for fish processors to establish effective quality assurance system in processing plants. Fish Inspection and Quality Control (FIQC) of the Department of Fisheries while having moderately equipped laboratories with chemical, bio-chemical and microbiological testing facilities and qualified technical personnel, the creation of facilities for testing of antibiotics is underway. FIQC mainly supervises quality aspects of the processing plants and has little or no control over raw material supply chains from farm to processing plants. Bangladesh export consignments sometimes face rejection due to reported poor quality of the products. Three types of barriers are reported for export of shrimp to EU countries. These are:(1) government participation in trade and restrictive practices (state aid, countervailing duties, state trading enterprises, government monopoly practices), customs and administrative entry procedures (anti-dumping duties, customs valuation, classification, formalities, rules of origin); (2) technical barriers to trade or TBT (technical regulations, standards, testing, certification arrangement); (3) specific limitations (quantitative restrictions, import licensing, embargoes, exchange control, discriminatory sourcing, export restraints, measures to regulate domestic prices, requirements concerning marking, labeling and packaging).

The state of mangroves

The article presents the current state of mangroves in Southeast Asia. In several countries lost mangrove areas were due to the conversion of mangrove forest into aquaculture and other uses. The ecological and socioeconomic effects of mangrove destruction are also presented.

Phylogenetic relationships of the mustache toads inferred from mtDNA sequences

Species of the genus Vibrissaphora are unique among all annurans in that males exhibit external cornified spines in the maxillary region during the breeding season. They were separated from species of the genus Leptobrachium based on this unique character. We construct a phylogeny using the 16S, ND4, and cytochrome b mitochondrial genes of 42 individuals from eight species of Vibrissaphora and five species of Leptobrachium from mainland China, Southeast Asia, and Hainan Island. Species of both Oreolalax and Scutiger were used as outgroups. The results indicate that: L. huashen and L. chapaense form a clade that is nested within Vibrissaphora, and L. hainanense is the sister taxon to the clade comprising all Vibrissaphora plus L. chapaense and L. huashen; V. boringiae is grouped with a clade consisting of V. leishanensis, V. liui, and V. yaoshanensis; and V. yaoshanensis is a species separate from V. liui. We propsed taxonomix changes that reflect these findings. Also based on the resulting phylogenetic trees, we propose that the mustache toads originated in the trans-Himalayan region of southwest China, and that the evolution of maxillary spines, large body size, and reverse sexual size dimorphism in these frogs was influenced by intrasexual selection due to adopting a resource-defense polygyny matting system.

Molecular systematics and historical biogeography of the Black-browed Barbet species complex (Megalaima oorti)

Although Southeast Asia is a global biodiversity hotspot, the tempo and mode of avian diversification there has not been well studied. We investigated the history of the diversification of an endemic Asian tropical bird, the Black-browed Barbet Megalaima

Generic allocation of Indian and Sri Lankan Philautus (Anura: Rhacophoridae) inferred from 12S and 16S rRNA genes

The generic allocation of Indian and Sri Lankan Philautus needs further examination. In this study, a comprehensive understanding of the phylogeny of Indian and Sri Lankan Philautus is obtained based on 125 and 16S rRNA genes. All phylogenetic analyses indicate that Indian-Sri Lankan Philautus, Philautus menglaensis, Philautus longchuanensis, and Philautus gryllus form a well supported clade, separate from Philautus of Sunda Islands that form another well supported clade representing true Philautus. This result supports the designation of the genus Pseudophilautus to accommodate the Indian and Sri Lankan species. Pseudophilautus consists of two major lineages, one comprises the majority of Indian species, Chinese species, and Southeast Asian species, and one comprises all Sri Lankan species and a few Indian species. Pseudophilautus may have originated in South Asia and dispersed into Southeast Asia and China. Based on the results, we further suggest that Philautus cf. gryllus (MNHN1997.5460) belongs to the genus Kurixalus. (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Agri-aqua farming in Thailand

Integrated agriculture-aquaculture systems have been in existence in Thailand for centuries. This country has the most varied integrated farming operations in southeast Asia; pig, cattle, buffalo, chicken, duck, vegetable, aquatic plant, rice and orchard in combination with fish are practices. The systems most preferred by subsistence farmers are rice-fish, duck-fish and chicken-fish culture. A brief outline is given of these 3 systems.

The culture of seabass

Seabass (Lates calcarifer) are raised in ponds and cages in Southeast Asia. Details are given of the 2 phases involved in the pond and culture culture systems -- nursery and grow-out. Both monoculture and polyculture systems are used for pond production of seabass. Polyculture may involve milkfish and tilapia, groupers, seaweed, tilapia or snapper, grouper and shrimp.

Sustainability in aquaculture

Sustainable aquaculture in Asia is discussed, considering in particular the loss of mangroves associated with the rapid increase in production of cultured shrimp. Southeast Asia's development and population growth brought non-sustainable exploitation of its coastline; the destruction has increased through the years as development proceeded and the international markets entered the scenario. An outline is given of the current status of mangroves in some Asian countries. Some worldwide remedies for sustainable aquaculture are described.

CLASSIFICATION AND EVOLUTION OF ASIAN COLOBINES

In order to study the differentiation of Asian colobines, 14 variables measured on 123 skulls, including Rhinopithecus, Presbytis, Presbytiscus (Rhinopithecus avunculus), Pygathrix and Nasalis were analyzed by one-way, cluster and discriminant function analyses. Information on paleoenvironmental changes in China and southeast Asia since the late Tertiary was used to examine the influences of migratory routes and range of distribution in Asian colobines. A cladogram for 6 genera of Asian colobines was constructed from the results of various analyses. Some new points or revisions were suggested: (1) Following one of two migratory routes, ancient species of Asian colobines perhaps passed through Xizang (Tibet) along the northern bank of the Tethys sea and through the Heng Duan Shan regions of Yunnan into Vietnam. An ancient landmass linking Yunnan and Xizang was already present on the east bank of the Tethys sea. Accordingly, Asian colobines would have two centers of evolutionary origin: Sundaland and the Heng Duan Shan regions of China. (2) Pygathrix shares more cranial features with Presbytiscus than with Rhinopithecus. This differs somewhat from the conclusion reached by Groves. (3) Nasalis (karyotype: 2n = 48) may be the most primitive genus among Asian colobines. Certain features shared with Rhinopithecus, e.g. large body size, terrestrial activity and limb proportions, can be interpreted as symple-siomorphic characters. (4) Rhinopithecus, with respect to craniofacial features, is a special case among Asian colobines. It combines a high degree of evolutionary specialization with retention of some primitive features thought to have been present in the ancestral Asian colobine.

Mandibular variation among Chinese macaques

In order to clarify the degree to which mandibular variation among Chinese macaques results from functional adaptation and phylogenetic inertia, 13 mandibular variables were analyzed by bivariate and multivariate techniques. The results indicate, not surprisingly, that the main differences in the mandible are associated with size. The study further implies that the variation between species is not closely associated with differences in functional adaptation even though the dietary and related differences are large compared to the situation in other macaques. The great variety in diet and related factors among Chinese macaques may not have yet resulted in a significant variation in the mandible. This may be because their radiation in Asia, though involving considerably greater differences in habitat, climate, and so on, has occurred more recently than for other macaque species in Southeast Asia. Mandibular variation between these species, therefore, is likely to be more closely tied to their immediate prior phylogenetic history. For example, the two stump-tailed macaques are closely similar and are also closely similar to the Assam species. Function in the mandible in these species is quite different. The results, therefore, seem to support the hypothesis that these three macaque species should be placed in a single species-group (sinica) as proposed by Delson [1980], Pan [1998], and Pan et al. [1998]. (C) 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

A taxonomic revision of the genus Pseudostegana Okada, 1978 (Diptera, Drosophilidae)

The genus Pseudostegana is revised, with descriptions of 20 new species from Southeast Asia: P. angustifasciata Chen and Wang, sp. n., P. atrofrons Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. bifasciata Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. bisetosa Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. curvata Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. dactylis Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. dolichopoda Chen and Wang, sp. n., P. hamata Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. latifasciata Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. leptoptera Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. melanogaster Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. melanopogonias Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. myrmecoformis Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. nitidifrons Chen and Wang, sp. n., P. nitidiventris Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. orbicapitata Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. oxycephala Chen and Toda, sp. n., P. pallidimaculata Chen and Wang, sp. n., P. philoga Chen and Wang, sp. n. and P xanthoptera Chen and Wang, sp. n. On the basis of the wing patterns, six species-groups are established: the atrofrons, grandipalpis, fleximediata, javana, latiparma and zonaria groups. A key to the all species of this genus is provided.

The Phylogenetic Relationships of the Chinese and Vietnamese Waterfall frogs of the genus Amolops

Ranid frogs of the genus Amolops occur in Southeast Asia and are typically found near waterfalls. Their phylogenetic relationships have not been resolved. We include 2,213 aligned nucleotide sites of the 12S, 16S and tRNA(val) gene regions of the mitochondrial DNA genome from 43 individuals of Chinese and Vietnamese Amotops, Huia, Hylarana, Meristogenys, Odorrana and Rana. The outgroup species were from the genera Chaparana, Limnonectes, Nanorana, and Paa. The data were analyzed within the framework of a refutationist philosophy using maximum parsimony. Four clades of waterfall frogs were resolved. Meristogenys was not resolved as the sister group to either Huia nor Amolops. The hypothesis Of evolutionary relationships placed Amolops chapaensis and Huia nasica in the genus Odorrana.

Garra bispinosa, a new species of cyprinid fish (Teleostei : Cypriniformes) from Yunnan, Southwest China

Garra bispinosa, a new species of cyprinid fish from the Irrawaddy River basin in Yunnan, Southwest China is described here. It has a conspicuous, quadrate and forwards pointed proboscis reflected downwards against the snout and anteriorly bilobed with one large, uniscupid and acanthoid tubercle on the distal end of each lobe, a character unique among all other congeners in Southeast Asia and China, and further differs from them in having the following combination of characters: snout with a deep groove across its tip to form a transverse lobe, 16 circumpeduncular scales, 34-35 lateral line scales, a smaller mental disc (length 38.1-43.8 % of head length), a forwards situated anus (anus to anal distance 25.9-30.6 % of pelvic to anal distance), and a slightly pointed snout.