Species New to Science

Abstract

Five new species of Microchirita are described: Microchirita purpurea D.J.Middleton & Triboun, Microchirita karaketii D.J.Middleton & Triboun, Microchirita suddeei D.J.Middleton & Triboun, Microchirita albiﬂora D.J.Middleton & Triboun and Microchirita woodii D.J.Middleton & Triboun.

KEY WORDS:Gesneriaceae, Microchirita, new species, Thailand.

รายละเอียดของพืชวงศ์ชาฤาษีชนิดใหม่ ดังนี้

เนตรม่วง

Microchirita purpurea ไมโครชิริตา พัวร์พูเรีย

ไม้ล้มลุกปีเดียว สูง 0.25-1 ม. ใบเรียงตรงข้าม ช่อดอกเกิดบนใบ ดอกสีม่วงบานช่วงเดือนสิงหาคมถึงเดือนตุลาคม ค้นพบทางภาคตะวันออกเฉียงใต้ ในเขตจังหวัดจันทบุรี (อำเภอแก่งหางแมว) พบตามหน้าผาหินปูนแบบเปิดหรือบริเวณปากถ้ำ

บุหงาการะเกตุ

Microchirita karaketii ไมโครชิริตา คาราเกติ

ไม้ล้มลุกปีเดียว สูงได้ถึง 60 ซม. ใบเรียงตรงข้าม ช่อดอกเกิดบนใบ ดอกสีขาวมีแต้มสีม่วงและสีเหลือง บานช่วงปลายเดือนสิงหาคมถึงเดือนพฤศจิกายน ค้นพบทางภาคเหนือ ในเขตจังหวัดเชียงใหม่ (อำเภอเชียงดาว) พบตามป่าผลัดใบแบบผสม ตามภูเขาหินปูน ที่ความสูง 530-750 ม. จากระดับน้ำทะเล

สุดดีดาว

Microchirita suddeei ไมโครชิริตา สุดดีอิ

ไม้ล้มลุกปีเดียว ตั้งตรง สูงได้ถึง 40 ซม. ใบเรียงตรงข้าม แผ่นใบบาง รูปไข่ ช่อดอกเกิดบนใบที่รอยต่อของก้านใบกับแผ่นใบ ดอกสีขาวนวลหรือสีมาวงอ่อนบานช่วงเดือนสิงหาคมถึงเดือนตุลาคม ค้นพบทางภาคเหนือ ในเขตอ.ร้องกวาง จ.แพร่ และ อ.งาว อ.แจ้ห่ม และอ.บ้านสา จ.ลำปาง พบตามหินปูนในป่าดิบแล้งและป่าผลัดใบแบบผสม ที่ความสูง 200-600 เมตร จากระดับน้ำทะเล

ข้าวตอกโยนก

Microchirita albiflora ไมโครชิริตา อัลบิฟลอรา

ไม้ล้มลุกปีเดียว ลำต้นฉ่ำน้ำ สีเขียวอ่อน ใบเรียงตรงข้าม ดอกสีขาวบานช่วงต้นเดือน ส.ค.-ปลายเดือน ต.ค. ค้นพบทางภาคเหนือ ในเขต อ.แม่ฟ้าหลวง และ อ.แม่สาย จ.เชียงราย ที่ความสูง 500-1,000 เมตร จากระดับน้ำทะเล

มาลัยฟ้อนเล็บ

Microchirita woodii ไมโครชิริตา วูดี

ไม้ล้มลุกปีเดียว ลำต้นสูงได้ถึง 50 เซ็นติเมตร ใบเรียงตรงข้าม แผ่นใบรูปไข่ ช่อดอกเกิดบนใบ ดอกสีเหลืองอ่อนมีแต้มสีน้ำตาลแดง บานช่วงต้นเดือน ส.ค.ถึงปลายเดือน ต.ค. ค้นพบทางภาคเหนือ ในเขต อ.เมือง จ.น่าน ขึ้นตามเขาหินปูน ในป่าดิบแล้งและป่าผลัดใบ

D.J. Middleton and P. Triboun. 2013. New species of Microchirita (Gesneriaceae) from Thailand. THAI FOR. BULL. (BOT.). 41: 13–22.
http://web3.dnp.go.th/botany/PDF/TFB/TFB41/TFB41_03_Microchirita.pdf

เปิดตัวพืชไทย “วงศ์ชาฤาษี” พันธุ์ใหม่ 6 ชนิด

http://www.manager.co.th/science/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9560000155362

http://www.dailynews.co.th/Content/IT/202721/วว.ค้นพบ+6+พืชชนิดใหม่ของโลกวงศ์ชาฤาษี

Profile of a Central African Mecistops, a newly recognized cryptic species of slender-snouted crocodile, from Akaka, Loango National Park, Gabon

| Photo: Zaid Fadul

paper by Matthew H. Shirley et al. 2014, DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2013.2483

A slender-snouted crocodile in Gabon

| Photo: Matt Shirley

Abstract

Accurate species delimitation is a central assumption of biology that, in groups such as the Crocodylia, is often hindered by highly conserved morphology and frequent introgression. In Africa, crocodilian systematics has been hampered by complex regional biogeography and confounded taxonomic history. We used rigorous molecular and morphological species delimitation methods to test the hypothesis that the slender-snouted crocodile (Mecistops cataphractus) is composed of multiple species corresponding to the Congolian and Guinean biogeographic zones. Speciation probability was assessed by using 11 mitochondrial and nuclear genes, and cranial morphology for over 100 specimens, representing the full geographical extent of the species distribution. Molecular Bayesian and phylogenetic species delimitation showed unanimous support for two Mecistops species isolated to the Upper Guinean and Congo (including Lower Guinean) biomes that were supported by 13 cranial characters capable of unambiguously diagnosing each species. Fossil-calibrated phylogenetic reconstruction estimated that the species split ± 6.5–7.5 Ma, which is congruent with intraspecies divergence within the sympatric crocodile genus Osteolaemus and the formation of the Cameroon Volcanic Line. Our results underscore the necessity of comprehensive phylogeographic analyses within currently recognized taxa to detect cryptic species within the Crocodylia. We recommend that the community of crocodilian researchers reconsider the conceptualization of crocodilian species especially in the light of the conservation ramifications for this economically and ecologically important group.

Keywords: Mecistops, Osteolaemus, African biogeography, speciation, probability phylogeography

Seven Distinct African Crocodile Species, Not Just Three, Biologists Show

— African crocodiles, long thought of as just three known species, are among the most iconic creatures on that continent. But recent University of Florida research now finds that there are at least seven distinct African crocodile species.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/12/131218130150.htm

Matthew H. Shirley, Kent A. Vliet, Amanda N. Carr and James D. Austin. 2014. Rigorous Approaches to Species Delimitation have Significant Implications for African crocodilian Systematics and Conservation. Proc. R. Soc. B. 281(1776) 20132483. doi: dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2013.2483

Acheroraptor temertyorum, the new Hell Creek dromaeosaurid. Closely related to the Asian genus Velociraptor, this theropod approached Deinonychus in size and lived alongside Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops. "I worked closely with Dr. David Evans to restore the life appearance of the animal," here shown pissing off a Tyrannosaurus for beating it to the carcass of a Triceratops, and also snacking on a scavenging mammal.

Evans, Larson and Currie (2013) DOI: 10.1007/s00114-013-1107-5

Illustration: Julius Csotonyi | 10151747146201396

Abstract

Dromaeosaurids from the Maastrichtian of North America have a poor fossil record and are known largely from isolated teeth, which have typically been referred to taxa based on more complete material from earlier Campanian strata. An almost complete maxilla with well-preserved dentition and an associated dentary from the Hell Creek Formation of Montana are used to establish a new dromaeosaurid taxon in the latest Maastrichtian, immediately prior to the end-Cretaceous extinction event. Acheroraptor temertyorum gen. et sp. nov. is differentiated from other dromaeosaurids on the basis of a hypertrophied postantral wall that projects posteriorly into the antorbital fenestra, a maxillary fenestra positioned low in the antorbital fossa and directly posterior to the promaxillary fenestra, and distinctive dentition with marked apicobasal ridges. The new material allows a dromaeosaurid from the Maastrichtian of North America to be placed within a phylogenetic framework for the first time. Phylogenetic analysis suggests Acheroraptor is a velociraptorine that is more closely related to Asian dromaeosaurids, including Tsaagan and Velociraptor, than it is to Dromaeosaurus, Saurornitholestes, or any other taxon from North America. As part of the Lancian Tyrannosaurus–Triceratops fauna, A. temertyorum is the latest occurring dromaeosaurid. Its relationships and occurrence suggest a complex historical biogeographic scenario that involved multiple, bi-directional faunal interchanges between Asia and North America during the Late Cretaceous.

Keywords: Dromaeosauridae, Theropoda, Cretaceous, Biogeography

Acheroraptor

by EWilloughby on deviantART

Evans, D. C., D. Larson, and P. J. Currie. 2013. A New dromaeosaurid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) with Asian Affinities from the latest Cretaceous of North America. Naturwissenschaften. 100 (11): 1041-1049. doi: dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00114-013-1107-5

New Hell Creek Dromaeosaurid Described
http://evanslab.wordpress.com/2013/12/16/hell-creek-dromaeosaurid-acheroraptor-described

Caenolestes condorensis

Andean caenolestid or Andean Shrew Opossum

: a species of shrew opossum (family Caenolestidae).

It is known from one location at an altitude of 2000 m in the Cordillera del Cóndor in Ecuador.

Albuja, V. L. and Patterson, B. D. 1996. A New Species of northern Shrew Opossum (Paucituberculata: Caenolestidae) from the Cordillera del Condor, Ecuador. Journal of Mammalogy. 77(1): 41-53.

http://bibdigital.epn.edu.ec/bitstream/15000/4750/1/Caenolestes-Cordillera%20del%20Cóndor1996.pdf

https://sites.google.com/a/fieldmuseum.org/bruce-pattersons-lab/Home/publications/prior-publications

http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/mammalsrevealed/species/shrew.html

Caenolestes sangaySangay Shrew-Opossum

Abstract

The 4 known species of northern shrew-opossums, Caenolestes (Paucituberculata: Caenolestidae), are restricted to the northern Andes of South America. Five specimens of a new species of Caenolestes were collected in Sangay National Park on the eastern slopes of the Andes in Ecuador. Review of museum specimens revealed 6 additional specimens of this species, here named Caenolestes sangay. All specimens were collected in cloud forest habitats from 2,050 to 3,500 m above sea level along a recently constructed highway. The new species appears to be uncommon. Inadequate sampling on the eastern slopes of the Andes limits our understanding of the distributional limits of the new species, but it occurs in a region of high endemism. New roads and land conversion threaten mature habitats near the type locality. The new species is medium sized with a narrow antorbital vacuity. It is distinguished from congeners by its large major palatine foramen and a diastema between I4 and C, among other characters. A phylogeny of Caenolestidae based on molecular and morphological characters shows a sister-group relationship between Lestoros and Rhyncholestes and indicates that the new species is likely closest to C. caniventer.

Keywords: Andes, Caenolestes, cloud forest, cytochrome b, Eastern Versant, Ecuador, new species, phylogeny, Sangay National Park

Reed Ojala-Barbour, C. Miguel Pinto, Jorge Brito M., Luis Albuja V., Thomas E. Lee, Jr. and Bruce D. Patterson. 2013. A New Species of Shrew-Opossum (Paucituberculata: Caenolestidae) with A Phylogeny of Extant caenolestids. Journal of Mammalogy. 94 (5): 967–982.

doi: dx.doi.org/10.1644/13-MAMM-A-018.1. http://www.mammalogy.org/caenolestes-sangay-2076

A New Species of Shrew-Opossum Located in the Eastern Andes Mountains

An article featured in the Journal of Mammalogy reports on a new species of the marsupial, Caenolestes sangay, which was discovered in the Sangay National Park.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/mamm/94-5/prweb11232650.htm

http://news.mongabay.com/2013/1220-barrett-new-marsupial-discovered.html

Descubren nueva especie de ratón marsupial en Sangay

http://www.lahora.com.ec/index.php/noticias/show/1101579261

Special Volume Zootaxa 3752

Systematics and Biodiversity of Sharks, Rays, and Chimaeras

(Chondrichthyes) of Taiwan

Zootaxa 3752: 1–386 (24 Dec. 2013)

Edited by MARCELO R. DE CARVALHO, DAVID A. EBERT, HSUAN-CHING HO & WILLIAM T. WHITE

http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/list/2013/3752(1).html

Table of Contents

http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2013/f/zt03752p004.pdf

A, B.: Sterropristes metallicus (Verhoeff, 1937) from Penang Hill, Penang, Malaysia
C. Sterropristes violaceus Muadsub & Panha 2012 | ตะขาบม่วงจิ๋วสิมิลัน

from islands in the Andaman Sea, south-western Thailand

ABSTRACT

The genus Sterropristes Attems, 1934, currently classified in the scolopendrid subfamily Otostigminae and tribe Sterropristinae, is revised. The monotypic genus Malaccolabis Verhoeff, 1937, is synonymized with Sterropristes. S. sarasinorum Attems, 1934 from Tomohon, Celebes, Indonesia (type species of Sterropristes) and S. metallicus (Verhoeff, 1937) from Penang Hill, Penang, Malaysia (type species of Malaccolabis) are redescribed based on their type material, together with newly collected topotypes of S. metallicus. Sterropristes violaceus Muadsub and Panha n. sp., found under leaves on islands in the Andaman Sea, south-western Thailand, is described.

Keywords: Revision, Systematics, Taxonomy, Malaysia, Morphology, Myriapoda

Sawitree Muadsub, Chirasak Sutcharit, Piyatida Pimvichai, Henrik Enghoff, Gregory D. Edgecombe and Somsak Panha. 2012. Revision of the Rare Centipede Genus Sterropristes Attems, 1934, with Description of A New Species from Thailand (Chilopoda: Scolopendromorpha: Scolopendridae). Zootaxa. 3484:35-52.

http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2012/f/z03484p052f.pdf

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236009665_Revision_of_the_rare_centipede_genus_Sterropristes_Attems_1934_with_description_of_a_new_species_from_Thailand_(Chilopoda_Scolopendromorpha_Scolopendridae)

สาวิตรี หมวดทรัพย์: อนุกรมวิธานของตะขาบอันดับ Scolopendromorpha ในพื้นที่จังหวัดพังงา (TAXONOMY OF CENTIPEDES ORDER SCOLOPENDROMORPHA IN PHANG NGA PROVINCE AREAS) อ. ที่ปรึกษาวิทยานิพนธ์หลัก: ศ. ดร. สมศักดิ์ ปัญหา, อ. ที่ปรึกษาวิทยานิพนธ์ร่วม: Prof. Henrik Enghoff, Ph.D., 113 หน้า.

รายงานฉบับสมบูรณ์ การสํารวจทรัพยากรกายภาพชีวภาพ คณะปฏิบัติงานวิทยาการ อพ.สธ.

[โครงการอนุรักษ์พันธุกรรมพืชอันเนื่องมาจากพระราชดําริ สมเด็จพระเทพรัตนราชสุดาฯ สยามบรมราชกุมารี]

พื้นที่อุทยานแห่งชาติหมู่เกาะสิมิลัน ต. เกาะพระทอง อ. คุระบุรี จ. พังงา พ.ศ. 2553

http://www.dnp.go.th/otec/Research_permit/uploads/final_5310802.pdf

ปลิงควาย Hirudinaria bpling Phillips 2012
from Phang-Nga, peninsular Thailand

ABSTRACT

A new species of the genus Hirudinaria from Thailand is distinguished from its congeners by the dorsal colour pattern and reproductive structures. Scanning electron microscopy provided novel information on the jaw morphology of Hirudinaria bpling, sp. nov. and also of the previously described Hirudinaria manillensis. During the study, the genus name Hirudinaria in reference to leeches was found to be a homonym and, in this case, precedence is reversed. Phylogenetic analyses based on the nuclear genes 18S rDNA and 28S rDNA as well as the mitochondrial genes 12S rDNA and cytochrome c oxidase I, supported the new species as nested within the monophyletic genus Hirudinaria. Two individuals from the Caribbean, nominally identified as H. manillensis, included in the phylogenetic analyses were strongly supported as members of that species.

Anna J Phillips. 2012. Phylogenetic Placement of A New Species of Asian Buffalo Leech (Arhynchobdellida: Hirudinidae), and Confirmation of Human- Mediated Dispersal of A Congener to the Caribbean. Invertebrate Systematics. 26:293-302.

DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1071/IS12004 http://www.publish.csiro.au/paper/IS12004.htm

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259366237_Phylogenetic_placement_of_a_new_species_of_Asian_buffalo_leech_%28Arhynchobdellida__Hirudinidae%29_and_confirmation_of_human-_mediated_dispersal_of_a_congener_to_the_Caribbean

Abstract

We describe Halmyrapseudes gutui sp. nov. from a mangrove area on Lidee Island, southern Thailand. This species closely resembles H. cooperi, H. killaiyensis, and H. thaumastocheles, but differs in having the lacinia mobilis with three teeth, and the pereopod 1 carpus with 0,1 or 1,1 ventral simple setae proximal to each spiniform seta. We redescribed and synonymized two species of questionable affiliation, Apseudes cooperi and A. digitalis, placing them in Halmyrapseudes, and partly redescribed Halmyrapseudes killaiyensis. Halmyrapseudes and Pseudohalmyrapseudes have disjunct distributions. Halmyrapseudes is similar in distribution to two freshwater fish taxa whose distributions are considered to reflect the breakup of Gondwana and subsequent continental drift. Pseudohalmyrapseudes occurs around Australia, and its distribution seems to be separated from that of Halmyrapseudes by Wallace’s Line or Huxley’s Line, which are distributional barriers for both terrestrial organisms and an amphidromous shrimp. The adjacent distributions and morphological similarities suggest that Halmyrapseudes and Pseudohalmyrapseudes are sister taxa.

Keywords: Tanaidacea, Halmyrapseudes, new species, mangrove, Thailand, Gondwana, Wallace’s Line, Huxley’s Line

Keiichi Kakui and Saowapa Angsupanich. 2013. Description of three species of Halmyrapseudes (Crustacea: Tanaidacea: Parapseudidae), with a Discussion of Biogeography. Zootaxa. 3736(4):345–367. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3736.4.3

ม.อ.ค้นพบ “สัตว์พื้นใต้น้ำ” ชนิดใหม่ คล้ายกุ้งขนาดเล็ก บริเวณเกาะลิดี

http://www.manager.co.th/Campus/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9570000000464

Propalaeocastor irtyshensis

by sinammonite on @deviantART

Abstract

A new species of castorids, Propalaeocastor irtyshensis, n.sp., from the Burqin Basin of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, is described. The new species, represented by a right maxilla with well-preserved P4–M3, is the earliest and northernmost occurrence of castorids in China. It is characterized mainly by the cheek tooth crown being higher than that of P. butselensis but lower than that of Steneofiber aff. dehmi (probably a new species of Propalaeocastor), and by lingual confluence of the mesoflexus to the lingual fossette of the premesoflexus. Comparison with known species previously assigned to Steneofiber from Europe and Kazakhstan leads to the conclusion that the early Oligocene forms previously assigned to the genus, such as “S. butselensis” and “S. kazachstanicus”, differ significantly from those represented by S. eseri from the Late Oligocene and Early Miocene of Europe. We consider Propalaeocastor a valid genus, provide an emended diagnosis for it, and discuss its evolutionary trend in relation to Steneofiber. Preliminary analysis of Burqin fauna suggests an age of early Early Oligocene. Faunal transformations across the Eocene–Oligocene boundary in the Burqin region are comparable to those of Europe and the Mongolian Plateau and suggest linkage of faunal turnovers and global climate changes.

Wu, W., Meng, J., Ye, J. and Ni, X. 2002. Propalaeocastor (Rodentia, Mammalia) from the early Oligocene of Burqin Basin, Xinjiang. American Museum Novitates. 3461: 1–16. doi: dx.doi.org/10.1206/0003-0082(2004)461<0001:PRMFTE>2.0.CO;2
http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/handle/2246/2771

http://researchgate.net/publication/232689988_Propalaeocastor_(Rodentia_Mammalia)_from_the_Early_Oligocene_of_Burqin_Basin_Xinjiang

“บีเวอร์สยาม” Steneofiber siamensis

reconstruction by Namosaurus

Abstract

Today and in the Tertiary, the geographical distribution of castorids is limited throughout all of the northern continents. Fossils of the Castoridae genus Steneofiber are abundant in many localities of Eurasia from the late Oligocene to Pliocene period. Recently, Steneofiber fossils were discovered in two localities of northern Thailand, Mae Moh and Chiang Muan coal mines, in layers of late middle Miocene age. These discoveries represent the first records of castorids from Southeast Asia and correspond to their southernmost known range. The focus of this study is to describe this new Thai species of Steneofiber and to define its wear stages from the molar occlusal surfaces by using micro-CT scan analysis. The CT scan technique permits the analysis of the virtual occlusal surface changes from wear, allowing easier comparison to related species of Steneofiber cheek teeth without destroying the teeth. The new species, Steneofiber siamensis n. sp., can be distinguished from the other species of Steneofiber by several distinct characters, longer mesostriid on p4, presence of premesostria and metastria on P4, which are smaller than most of the other known species. The occurrence of this new castorid also supports a subtropical to tropical paleoclimate for these two localities of northern Thailand.

Keywords: Steneofiber, Castoridae, Micro CT scan, Late middle Miocene, Thailand

Steneofiber siamensis fossils discovered from the late middle Miocene of Mae Moh and Chiang Muan coal mines, northern Thailand

http://geothai.net/gneiss/?p=3023 | DOI: 10.1007/s00114-011-0769-0

Systematic Paleontology

Class MAMMALIA Linnaeus 1758

Order RODENTIA Bowdich 1821

Family CASTORIDAE Hemprich 1820

Subfamily CASTORINAE Hemprich 1820

Genus Steneofiber Geoffroy 1833

Steneofiber siamensis

Suraprasit, Chaimanee, Martin & Jaeger 2011

Type locality: “I”coal layer, Mae Moh coal mine, Lampang province, Thailand.

Etymology: In relation to its geographical origin, Siam being the former name of the Kingdom of Thailand

Suraprasit, K., Y. Chaimanee, T. Martin, and J. -J. Jaeger. 2011. First Castorid (Mammalia, Rodentia) from the middle Miocene of Southeast Asia. Naturwissenschaften. 98(4):315-28. DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00114-011-0769-0

http://researchgate.net/publication/50229172_First_castorid_(mammalia_rodentia)_from_the_middle_miocene_of_southeast_Asia

บีเวอร์สยาม หลักฐานการเปลี่ยนแปลงสภาพภูมิอากาศโลกในอดีต

by กันตภณ สุระประสิทธิ์ | http://geothai.net/gneiss/?p=3023

Fig. 1. Pollinating small mammal and floral display of the bertam palm.
(A) Anesthetized pentailed treeshrew Ptilocercuslowii with a radio-collar.
(B) A medium-sized inflorescence, cut from a palm Eugeissona tristis.
(C) A pencil-shaped, woody flower ≈5 cm in length with its three petals still closed and exuded nectar. Nectar is produced for periods averaging (± SE) 46.0 ± 5.8 days before flowers open to expose pollen-bearing stamens later followed by the exposure of receptive stigmas (female receptive phase of a flower). doi: dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0801628105

Abstract

For humans alcohol consumption often has devastating consequences. Wild mammals may also be behaviorally and physiologically challenged by alcohol in their food. Here, we provide a detailed account of chronic alcohol intake by mammals as part of a coevolved relationship with a plant. We discovered that seven mammalian species in a West Malaysian rainforest consume alcoholic nectar daily from flower buds of the bertam palm (Eugeissona tristis), which they pollinate. The 3.8% maximum alcohol concentration (mean: 0.6%; median: 0.5%) that we recorded is among the highest ever reported in a natural food. Nectar high in alcohol is facilitated by specialized flower buds that harbor a fermenting yeast community, including several species new to science. Pentailed treeshrews (Ptilocercus lowii) frequently consume alcohol doses from the inflorescences that would intoxicate humans. Yet, the flower-visiting mammals showed no signs of intoxication. Analysis of an alcohol metabolite (ethyl glucuronide) in their hair yielded concentrations higher than those in humans with similarly high alcohol intake. The pentailed treeshrew is considered a living model for extinct mammals representing the stock from which all extinct and living treeshrews and primates radiated. Therefore, we hypothesize that moderate to high alcohol intake was present early on in the evolution of these closely related lineages. It is yet unclear to what extent treeshrews benefit from ingested alcohol per se and how they mitigate the risk of continuous high blood alcohol concentrations.

Keywords: alcohol self-administration, bertam palm, nectar feeding, pollination

Wiens, Frank; Zitzmann, A., Lachance, M.-A., Yegles, M., Pragst, F., Wurst, F. M., von Holst, D., Guan, S. L., Spanagel, R. 2008. Chronic Intake of Fermented Floral Nectar by Wild Tree-Shrews. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 105 (30): 10426–10431.

doi: dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0801628105

Pen-tailed treeshrews (Ptilocercus lowii) consume fermented nectar on a daily basis from the flower buds of the bertam palm (Eugeissona tristis). The alcohol content of the fermented nectar averages 0.6% but gets as high as 3.8%. A proportionate amount of alcohol consumed by a human would be intoxicating but the treeshrews show no signs of intoxication.

| http://monkeysuncle.stanford.edu/?p=107

Lagomeryx manai

Suraprasit, Chaimanee, Bocherens, Chavasseau & Jaeger 2014

illustration: Pattnapong Pansi

Abstract

The primitive deer (subfamily Lagomerycinae) Lagomeryx and Stephanocemas are characterized primarily by their palmate antlers. Two lagomerycines, Lagomeryx manai, sp. nov., and Stephanocemas rucha, are described for the first time from Q and K coal layers of the late middle Miocene (13.4–13.2 Ma) Mae Moh Basin in northern Thailand. A species-level phylogeny of the Ligeromeryx-Lagomeryx clade, based on cranial appendages, reconstructs Lagomeryx manai, n. sp., as a derived species of Lagomeryx, sister group of Lagomeryx complicidens. This study suggests that the large species of Lagomeryx are restricted geographically to Asia and dispersed to Southeast Asia at the latest during late middle Miocene, where they are represented by Lagomeryx manai, n. sp. The paleoenvironmental studies of five Mae Moh mammalian taxa, a cervid (Lagomeryx manai, n. sp.), an indeterminate bovid, a suid (Conohyus thailandicus), a rhinoceros (Gaindatherium sp.), and a proboscidean (Stegolophodon sp.), investigated with stable carbon and oxygen isotope analyses of tooth enamel, indicate that the Mae Moh mammals inhabited a wide range of habitats from woodlands to grasslands in a C3-plant-dominated environment. The new species of Lagomeryx seems to have been living in an open environment, contrary to its European relatives. The serial isotopic samples also support that Mae Moh herbivores probably lived in a low-seasonal climate during the late middle Miocene of northern Thailand.

Kantapon Suraprasit, Yaowalak Chaimanee, Herve Bocherens, Olivier Chavasseau & Jean-Jacques Jaeger. 2014. Systematics and Phylogeny of middle Miocene Cervidae (Mammalia) from Mae Moh Basin (Thailand) and a Paleoenvironmental Estimate using Enamel Isotopy of Sympatric Herbivore Species.
Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 34:1, 179-194.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02724634.2013.789038

The Cervidae from the Middle Miocene of Mae Moh (Thailand): Systematic, Phylogeny, and Paleoenvironments

http://sfa.univ-poitiers.fr/master-paleontologie/images/sujets-stages-M2-2010/Kantapon%20Suraprasit.pdf

facebook: Dom Paleoworld

Dormaalocyon latouri (Quinet, 1966)

Art by Charlène Letenneur (MNHN) and

Pascale Golinvaux (RBINS)

ABSTRACT

One of the earliest basal carnivoraforms, Miacis latouri, previously known by only two teeth from the earliest Eocene of Dormaal, Belgium, is here described based on about 280 new specimens from Dormaal, allowing illustration of almost the entire deciduous and permanent dentition and thus giving information on the dentition of an early basal carnivoraform species and its variability. Based on the dental features, we refer the species to a new genus, Dormaalocyon. We identify possible sexual dimorphism in D. latouri that is less pronounced than in Uintacyon rudis. We also describe for the first time the tarsal bones (calcaneum and astragalus) of D. latouri; these indicate arboreal capabilities for this species. In order to ascertain the position of Dormaalocyon among basal carnivoraforms, we performed a phylogenetic analysis of the carnivoramorphans. Among basal carnivoraforms, three groups are recovered: the Uintacyon group, Oodectes group, and the Vulpavus group. Dormalocyon is one of the most primitive carnivoraforms and is closely related to North American Vulpavus and Miacis species. We propose that the two latter genera are North American with an ancestry that involves the European Dormaalocyon; this implies a dispersal of carnivoraforms from Europe to North America near the Paleocene-Eocene boundary. Finally, the topology of the phylogenetic tree supports a Paleocene radiation of the carnivoraforms, which is presently unknown.

CARNIVORAMORPHA Wyss and Flynn, 1993

CARNIVORAFORMES Flynn, Finarelli, and Spaulding, 2010

Dormaalocyon gen. nov.

Type Species: Dormaalocyon latouri (Quinet, 1966), comb. nov.

Localities: Dormaal (Flemish Brabant), Belgium; earliest Eocene, MP7.

Etymology: From Dormaal, type locality of the species; from Greek Kyon, dog.

Dormaalocyon latouri (Quinet, 1966), comb. nov.

[Miacis latouri Quinet, 1966]

FIGURE 1 Dentaries of Dormaalocyon latouri (Quinet, 1966), comb. nov.

Floréal Solé, Richard Smith, Tiphaine Coillot, Eric de Bast & Thierry Smith. 2014. Dental and Tarsal Anatomy of ‘Miacis’ latouri and a Phylogenetic Analysis of the Earliest carnivoraforms (Mammalia, Carnivoramorpha). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 34:1, 1-21.

DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1080/02724634.2013.793195

New Fossils Shed Light On the Origins of Lions, Tigers, and Bears

— New fossils from Belgium have shed light on the origin of some of the most well-known, and well-loved, modern mammals. Cats and dogs, as well as other carnivorous mammals (like bears, seals, and weasels), taxonomically called 'carnivoraformes', trace their ancestry to primitive carnivorous mammals dating back to 55 million years ago (the beginning of the time period called the Eocene). A study, published in the most recent issue of the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, discusses the origins of this group and describes new specimens of one of the earliest of these primitive taxa.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140106160029.htm

Abstract

The first geophilomorph centipede to be documented from Mesozoic amber and the second Mesozoic member of the order is described as Buziniphilus antiquus n. gen., n. sp. It is represented by a single, probably immature specimen from Early Cenomanian amber at La Buzinie, Champniers, Charentes, France. Buziniphilus n. gen. is most probably a member of either Schendylidae or Geophilidae, though documentation of the labrum and mandibles is required to make a definitive familial assignment. Referral of Buziniphilus n. gen. to the crown-group Adesmata, together with a reinterpretation of the structure of the forcipulae in the Jurassic Eogeophilus Schweigert & Dietl, 1997, reinforces the modern aspect of Mesozoic chilopods that had been indicated by Cretaceous scutigeromorph and scolopendromorph fossils.

Keywords: Europe; Western Europe; Invertebrata; Arthropoda; Mandibulata; Cenomanian; Phanerozoic ; Mesozoic; Cretaceous; Charente France; France; Myriapoda; biostratigraphy; lower Cenomanian; new taxa; Upper Cretaceous; amber

ETYMOLOGY. — For the type locality, La Buzinie, compounded with the usual geophilomorph suﬃx -philus; Antiquus, with reference to the age of the species, one of two known Mesozoic geophilomorphs.

Edgecombe G. D., Minelli A. & Bonato L. 2009. A geophilomorph Centipede (Chilopoda) from La Buzinie amber (Late Cretaceous, Cenomanian), SW France. Geodiversitas. 31 (1) : 29-39.

http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=21305644

http://www.nhm.ac.uk/resources-rx/files/edgecombe-et-al-2009-buziniphilus-94072.pdf

Figure 1. Kachinophilus pereiraigen. nov. sp. nov.
A–B, holotype AMNH Bu-Ba41a, male, complete body, dorsal (A) and ventral (B) views.
C, paratype AMNH Bu-Ba50a, sex unknown, complete body, dorsal view.
D, paratype AMNH Bu-Ba63a, sex unknown, incomplete body (only anterior part), ventral view.

All scales 1 mm. Abbreviations: an, antenna; fo, forcipule; le-1, leg of the first pair;
le-u, leg of the ultimate pair. DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1111/pala.12051

ABSTRACT
The only previously known Mesozoic fossils of the chilopod order Geophilomorpha are two species from the Late Jurassic and Late Cretaceous, both known from single specimens that cannot be assigned with precision to a family. Four specimens from the Late Cretaceous (earliest Cenomanian) amber of Burma include three that can be identified as conspecific, described here as Kachinophilus pereirai gen. nov. sp. nov. These specimens preserve greater morphological detail in comparison with other fossil geophilomorphs: the form and fine features of the head, the maxillary complex, the trunk sternites with associated glandular pores and the ultimate pair of legs defend the assignment of the species to the extant family Geophilidae, and most probably to a derived subgroup including well-known extant genera such as Ribautia Brölemann, 1909. Confocal laser scanning microscopy supplements examination under incident and transmitted light to document details of high taxonomic relevance in the head and the forcipular segment. The modern appearance of this species and its membership among deeply nested extant clades are consistent with molecular estimates that most of the diversity of crown-group Geophilomorpha originated before the Late Cretaceous.

Keywords: Geophilidae; Cenomanian; Kachinophilus; evolutionarily conserved morphology

Order GEOPHILOMORPHA Pocock, 1895
Family GEOPHILIDAE Leach, 1815

Genus KACHINOPHILUS gen. nov.
Type species: Kachinophilus pereirai sp. nov.

Derivation of name: Compounding the geographical source of the fossils (Kachin, Burma) and the frequent geophilomorph generic termination – philus.
; pereirai -- for our colleague Luis A. Pereira (Museo de La Plata, Argentina), in recognition of his exemplary systematic work on Geophilomorpha.

Lucio Bonato, Gregory D. Edgecombe, Alessandro Minelli. 2013. Geophilomorph Centipedes from the Cretaceous amber of Burma. Palaeontology. DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1111/pala.12051

http://researchgate.net/publication/259554775_Geophilomorph_centipedes_from_the_Cretaceous_amber_of_Burma

Figure 1. Rain forest covered islands in Chiew Larn reservoir (A–D) were originally inhabited by 12 species of small mammals. As a result of forest fragmentation, the area effect, and the invasion of a rat species not found in undisturbed forest, all native species went extinct locally in less than 25 years.

Chiew Larn Reservoir in southern Thailand was created in the forested interior of Khao Sok National Park and Khlong Saeng Wildlife Sanctuary in 1987. A study of small mammals isolated on the islands in the reservoir showed the near complete local extinction of the fauna in the 25 years after forest fragmentation. Wildlife conservation management and protected area policy implications of this study of fragmented forests are discussed as they will affect the next 50 years of Thai protected area management.

Keywords: area effect, conservation, environmental policy, extinction, genetic erosion, habitat fragmentation, invasive species, mammals, protected areas, sustainability

DAVID S. WOODRUFF. 2013. Wildlife Conservation in Protected Areas in Thailand: Lessons from Chiew Larn, Khao Sok and Khlong Saeng. Nat. Hist. Bull. Siam Soc. 59(2): 91–107

http://www.siamese-heritage.org/nhbsspdf/vol051-060/NHBSS_059_2f_WildlifeConservation.pdf

Luke Gibson, Antony J. Lynam, Corey J. A. Bradshaw, Fangliang He, David P. Bickford, David S. Woodruff, Sara Bumrungsri & William F. Laurance. 2013. Near-Complete Extinction of Native Small Mammal Fauna 25 Years After Forest Fragmentation. Science. 341 (6153): 1508-1510. DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.1240495

Ecological Armageddon

A.J. Lynam and I. Billick. 1999. Differential responses of small mammals to fragmentation in a Thailand tropical forest. Biological Conservation. 91 (2–3): 191–200.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0006-3207(99)00082-8

Lake Disappointment Dragon
Ctenophorus nguyarna Doughty, Maryan, Melville & Austin 2007

photo: fotobytom.com

Abstract

Ctenophorus is the largest genus of Australian agamid lizards, with an extensive radiation in the arid zone. Here we describe a distinctive new dragon species— Ctenophorus nguyarna— from the isolated Lake Disappointment in Western Australia. The new species is characterised by heterogeneous dorsal scales tending to form vertical rows on the flanks, a reticulated orange and black background color, and black bars on the dorsum and black vertical bars on the tail. To provide a molecular context as to the distinctiveness and placement of the new species we analysed five sequences of Ctenophorus sp. nov., two new sequences of C. salinarum and 11 previously published sequences of Ctenophorus species, representing 1573 bases of the mitochondrial genome. Our phylogeny strongly supports at least two independent origins of salt lake specialization in both the western and eastern arid zone. Based on molecular data the sister taxon is C. salinarum, which is also associated with salt lakes in Western Australia. The other specialist is the Lake Eyre Dragon (C. maculosus) from South Australia that lives on and under the salt crust itself, and has a number of unique derived characters for Ctenophorus. There are likely to be other new species of agamid lizards in Australia's vast and little-explored arid zone.

Keywords: Agamidae; Arid zone; Ctenophorus; Molecular phylogeny; Salt lakes, Western Australia

Doughty, P., Maryan, B., Melville, J. and Austin, J. J. 2007. A New Species of Ctenophorus (Lacertilia: Agamidae) from Lake Disappointment, Western Australia. Herpetologica. 63 (1):72-86.

http://digital.library.adelaide.edu.au/dspace/handle/2440/43087

male Barrier Range Dragon Ctenophorus mirrityana sp. nov.
from Silverton Wind Farm site, 35 km north west of Broken Hill, NSW

(photo S. Sass)

Abstract

We describe a new species of agamid lizard, Ctenophorusmirrityana sp.nov. currently known from two disjunct populations in western New South Wales. The species is a member of the C. decresii species complex, and was formerly recognized as an outlying population of C. decresii due to similarities in dorsal colour pattern and adjacent distributions. Previous work documented deep molecular divergence, across multiple loci, with no genetic admixture between the new species and proximal C. decresii populations. We find that the new species differs in morphology from all other members of the species complex and is characterized by distinct male throat and lateral coloration, a small head size relative to snout-vent length, a large number of labial scales, and a lack of tubercular scales. We also identify two geographically structured lineages (northern and southern) within C. decresii as requiring further taxonomic investigation, based on notable genetic and morphological (including colour) divergence. We find that divergence in coloration is associated with genetic and body form differentiation within the C. decresii species complex.

Keywords: Agamidae; Barrier Range; colour variation; Ctenophorus mirrityana; reptilian morphology

Barrier Range Dragon Ctenophorus mirrityana

Etymology. The specific epithet mirrityana is a word meaning “out in the sunlight” in the local Aboriginal language (Paakantyi; Hercus, 1993), in reference to the conspicuousness of the species during hot weather. There are several rock engravings depicting lizards at Mutawintji National Park (McCarthy & Macintosh, 1962), some of which may represent this species given it’s prominence in the area. We propose Barrier Range Dragon as the species’ common name.

McLean, Claire A., Adnan Moussalli, Steve Sass, and Devi Stuart-Fox. 2013. Taxonomic Assessment of the Ctenophorus decresii complex (Reptilia: Agamidae) reveals A New Species of Dragon Lizard from western New South Wales. Records of the Australian Museum. 65(3): 51–63.

http://australianmuseum.net.au/journal/McLean-2013-Rec-Aust-Mus-653-5163

http://australianmuseum.net.au/Uploads/Journals/29833/1600_complete.pdf

New species of lizard found with help of locals

http://www.merimbulanewsonline.com.au/story/2009510/new-species-of-lizard-found-with-help-of-locals/?cs=12

Abstract

The eagle ray Aetobatus flagellum (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) is redescribed based on new material from the Persian Gulf (Kuwait), Indonesia and Malaysia. A related but distinct species of Aetobatus from the western North Pacific, previously referred to as A. flagellum, is reported. Aetobatus flagellum is a medium-sized eagle ray which attains about 900 mm DW; males mature at approximately 500 mm DW. Aetobatus flagellum appears to be uncommon and restricted to estuary-influenced waters of the Indo–West Pacific. It is caught as gillnet bycatch where its habit of schooling, combined with probable small litter size, may make it particularly vulnerable to impacts from fisheries.

Keywords: Myliobatidae, Aetobatus flagellum, batoid, Indo–West Pacific, Aetobatus sp., estuarine

FIGURE 1.Aetobatus flagellum. A. original illustration from Bloch & Schneider (1801)

White, William T. & Alec B. M. Moore. 2013. Redescription of Aetobatus flagellum (Bloch & Schneider, 1801), An Endangered Eagle Ray (Myliobatoidea: Myliobatidae) from the Indo–West Pacific. Zootaxa. 3752(1): 199–213.

http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3752.1.12
http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2013/f/zt03752p213.pdf

[Herpetology • 2014] Rigorous Approaches to Species Delimitation have Significant Implications for African crocodilian Systematics and Conservation | Seven Distinct African Crocodile Species Mecistops, Not Just Three

[Paleontology • 2013] Acheroraptor temertyorum • A New dromaeosaurid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) with Asian Affinities from the latest Cretaceous of North America

[Mammalogy • 1996] Caenolestes condorensis • A New Species of northern Shrew Opossum (Paucituberculata: Caenolestidae) from the Cordillera del Condor, Ecuador

[Mammalogy • 2013] Caenolestes sangay • A New Species of Shrew-Opossum (Paucituberculata: Caenolestidae) from the eastern slopes of the Andes in Ecuador, with A Phylogeny of Extant caenolestids

[Ichthology • 2013] Systematics and Biodiversity of Sharks, Rays, and Chimaeras (Chondrichthyes) of Taiwan

[Invertebrate • 2012] ตะขาบม่วงจิ๋วสิมิลัน | Sterropristes violaceus • Revision of the Rare Centipede Genus Sterropristes Attems, 1934, with Description of A New Species from Thailand (Chilopoda: Scolopendromorpha: Scolopendridae)

[Invertebrate • 2012] Hirudinaria bpling • Phylogenetic Placement of A New Species of Asian Buffalo Leech (Arhynchobdellida: Hirudinidae), and Confirmation of Human- Mediated Dispersal of A Congener to the Caribbean

[Crustacea • 2013] Halmyrapseudes gutui • Description of three species of Halmyrapseudes (Crustacea: Tanaidacea: Parapseudidae), with a Discussion of Biogeography

[PaleoMammalogy • 2002] Propalaeocastor irtyshensis • Propalaeocastor (Rodentia, Mammalia) from the early Oligocene of Burqin Basin, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China

[PaleoMammalogy • 2011] บีเวอร์สยาม | Steneofiber siamensis • First Castorid (Mammalia, Rodentia) from the middle Miocene of Southeast Asia

[Mammalogy • 2008] Chronic Intake of Fermented Floral Nectar by Wild Tree-Shrews | Pen-tailed treeshrews Ptilocercus lowii consume fermented nectar of the bertam palm Eugeissona tristis

[PaleoMammalogy • 2014] Lagomeryx manai • Systematics and Phylogeny of middle Miocene Cervidae (Mammalia) from Mae Moh Basin (Thailand) and a Paleoenvironmental Estimate using Enamel Isotopy of Sympatric Herbivore Species

[PaleoMammalogy • 2014] Dormaalocyon latouri • Dental and Tarsal Anatomy of ‘Miacis’ latouri and a Phylogenetic Analysis of the Earliest carnivoraforms (Mammalia, Carnivoramorpha) from the Eocene of Dormaal, Belgium

[Paleontology / Invertebrate • 2009] Buziniphilus antiquus • A geophilomorph Centipede (Chilopoda) from La Buzinie amber (Late Cretaceous, Cenomanian), SW France

[Paleontology / Invertebrate • 2013] Kachinophilus pereirai • Geophilomorph Centipedes from the Cretaceous Amber of Myanmar (Burma)

[Conservation / Ecology • 2013] Wildlife Conservation in Protected Areas in Thailand: Lessons from Chiew Larn, Khao Sok and Khlong Saeng

[Herpetology • 2007] Ctenophorus nguyarna | Lake Disappointment Dragon • A New Species of Ctenophorus (Lacertilia: Agamidae) from Lake Disappointment, Western Australia

[Herpetology • 2013] Ctenophorus mirrityana | Barrier Range Dragon • Taxonomic Assessment of the Ctenophorus decresii complex (Reptilia: Agamidae) reveals A New Species of Dragon Lizard from western New South Wales

[Ichthology • 2013] Redescription of Aetobatus flagellum (Bloch & Schneider, 1801), An Endangered Eagle Ray (Myliobatoidea: Myliobatidae) from the Indo–West Pacific