The use of diplopods in soil ecotoxicology - A review

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

Tubo digestório de Urostreptus atrobunneus (Diplopoda): estrutura e função

Millipedes are macro-arthropods of soil which perform a important role in maintaining the balance of the ecosystem, since they feed on decaying organic matter and because they promotes the soil enrichment, aeration and humidification. These animals are usually found in humid with low light places, under rocks and trunks. The diplopods exoskeleton is much resistant and impregnated with calcium salts. Due the secretion of defense, with strong and unpleasant smell, the animals of this class have few or no predators. Large diplopods populations are not observed, but explosions population can occur for unbalances enviromnmental, by climate change and by use of pesticides that may eliminate potential competitors. In this sense, the millipede Urostreptus atrobrunneus Pierozzi & Fontanetti, 2006, has presented points of infestation in urban centers of Sao Paulo state, causing many disorders of the human population. Because it is a newly described species, little is known of its aspects biological and morphological. Thus, the purpose of this study was to describe the structure and function of the digestive tract of the species U. atrobrunneus by means of histological, histochemistry and ultrastructural techniques. The results demonstrated that the digestive tract of U. atrobrunneus is similar to the descriptions given for other species. The foregut consists of a simple epithelium, composed of cells of different heights, covered by a cuticular intima, leaning on a thin basal membrane, followed by a well-developed muscular layer and an external membrane, around the foregut have a pair of salivary glands. The midgut epithelium has a pseudostratified, supported by a thick basal membrane, followed by a muscular layer and a layer of hepatic cells. The muscle is distributed unevenly coated with an external membrane, this portion is marked by the absence of cuticular intima... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

Anatomia e morfologia do sistema nervoso do diplópodo Gymnostreptus olivaceus (Spirostreptida, Spirostreptidae) e avaliação dos efeitos do inseticida deltametrina neste sistema

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

Comparative study of the ovarian morphology in the order Polydesmida (Diplopoda) and description of unusual structures in the female reproductive system

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

Anointing variation across wild capuchin populations: a review of material preferences, bout frequency and anointing sociality in Cebus and Sapajus

The frequency of anointing bouts and the materials used for self- and social anointing vary across capuchin species in captivity, but there is little published data on capuchin anointing in the wild. Here we present previously unpublished data on anointing behaviors from capuchin monkey populations at ten different field sites and incorporate these data into a review of the anointing literature for captive and wild capuchins. Using a comparative phylogenetic framework, we test four hypotheses derived primarily from captive literature for variation in anointing between wild untufted capuchins (Cebus) and tufted capuchins (Sapajus), including that (1) the frequency of anointing is higher in Cebus, (2) Cebus uses a higher proportion of plant species to insect species for anointing compared with Sapajus, (3) anointing material diversity is higher in Cebus, and (4) social indices of anointing are higher in Cebus. We found that wild Cebus anoints more with plant parts, including fruits, whereas wild Sapajus anoints more with ants and other arthropods. Cebus capucinus in particular uses more plant species per site for anointing compared with other capuchins and may specialize in anointing as an activity independent from foraging, whereas most other capuchin species tend to eat the substances they use for anointing. In agreement with captive studies, we found evidence that wild Cebus anoints at a significantly higher frequency than Sapajus. However, contrary to the captive literature, we found no difference in the range of sociality for anointing between Cebus and Sapajus in the wild. We review anointing in the context of other Neotropical primate rubbing behaviors and consider the evidence for anointing as self-medication; as a mechanism for enhanced sociality; and as a behavioral response to chemical stimuli. Am. J. Primatol. 74:299314, 2012. (c) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Millipede defense: use of detachable bristles to entangle ants.

The millipede Polyxenus fasciculatus (Diplopoda; Polyxenida) defends itself against ants by use of a pair of bristle tufts at its rear. When attacked, it wipes the tufts against the ants, thereby causing these to become encumbered by bristles that detach from the tufts. Ants contaminated with bristles desist from their assault. The bristles have grappling hooks at the tip by which they lock onto setae of the ants and barbs along their length by which they interlink. In attempting to rid themselves of bristles, ants may succeed only in further entangling themselves by causing the bristles to become enmeshed. Ants heavily contaminated may remain entangled and die. Most millipedes have chemical defenses; polyxenids, instead, have a mechanical weapon.

Die diplopoden Deutschlands, zusammenfassend bearbeitet, zugleich eine allgemeine einführung in die kenntnis der diplopoden-systematik, der organisation, entwickelung, biologie, geographie.

Issued in 8 parts, 1911-14.

The Thelastomatoidea (Nematoda : Oxyurida) of two sympatric Panesthiinae (Insecta : Blattodea) from southeastern Queensland, Australia: taxonomy, species richness and host specificity

The thelastomatoid fauna of two species of wood-burrowing cockroach (Blattodea, Blaberidae), Panesthia cribrata and Panesthia tryoni tryoni, from Lamington National Park, Australia, is described. The following eight new species and three new genera of thelastomatid are proposed: Bilobostoma exerovulva n. g., n. sp.; Cordonicola gibsoni n. sp.; Coronostoma australiae n. sp.; Desmicola ornata n. sp.; Hammerschmidtiella hochi n. sp.; Malaspinanema goateri n. g., n. sp.; Travassosinema jaidenae n. sp.; and Tsuganema cribratum n. g., n. sp. Additional data are given for Blattophila sphaerolaima and Leidynemella fusiformis. Of the 11 species reported, nine were found in P. cribrata and ten in P. tryoni tryoni. Such levels of thelastomatoid species richnessness in single host species are exceptional. Only the mole cricket, Gryllotalpa africana (23), and the domestic cockroach, Periplaneta americana (20), have higher reported richness. Three species, T jaidenae, C. australiae and D. ornata, were found either exclusively or significantly more prevalently in P tryoni tryoni than in R cribrata. Species of Travassosinema, Coronostoma and Desmicola have been found previously only in millipedes (Diplopoda), a fact that suggests that there is a greater degree of niche overlap between R tryoni tryoni and millipedes than for R cribrata.

The relationship between alkaloid-based chemical defenses and diet in dendrobatid poison frogs

Chemical defenses are common among organisms and represent some of the most complex adaptations for avoiding predation, yet our understanding of the ecological nature of these systems remains incomplete. Poison frogs are a group of chemically defended organisms that are dependent entirely on diet for chemical defense. In this study, I identified the dietary arthropods responsible for chemical defense in poison frogs, described spatial and temporal patterns in alkaloid composition of poison frogs, and established links between patterns of variation in alkaloid defense and arthropod diet in poison frogs. Identifying dietary sources and studying patterns of variation in alkaloid composition is fundamental to understanding the ecology and evolution of chemical defense in poison frogs. ^ The dendrobatid poison frog Oophaga pumilio shares many alkaloids in common with other poison frogs and is known to vary in alkaloid composition throughout its geographic range. I designed my dissertation to take advantage of these characteristics and use O. pumilio as a model species for the study of chemical defense in poison frogs. Here, I identified siphonotid millipedes as a source for spiropyrrolizidine alkaloids, formicine ants as a source for pumiliotoxin alkaloids, and oribatid mites as dietary sources for the majority of alkaloids found in poison frogs. I found that alkaloid composition varied spatially and temporally, on both small and large scales, within and among populations of O. pumilio. Alkaloid variation between populations was related to geographic distance, and closer populations tended to have alkaloid compositions more similar to each other than to distant populations. ^ The findings of my study suggest that oribatid mites are the most important dietary source of alkaloids in poison frogs. However, overall alkaloid defense in poison frogs is based on a combination of dietary arthropods, including mites, ants, millipedes, and beetles. Variation in chemical defenses of poison frogs is due to (1) spatial and temporal differences in the presence of alkaloids in certain arthropods and (2) differences in the availability of certain alkaloid-containing arthropods, which are likely the result of differences as well as successional changes in forest structure among locations and through time. ^