3000 miles from home: a new Gastrosericus baobabicus Pulawski, 1995 (Hymenoptera, Larridae) distribution record highlights that the Sahel has a distinct entomofaunal signature
- Clitheroe, Crystal-Leigh, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Clitheroe, Crystal-Leigh , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2011
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6846 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011099
- Description: [from introduction] On October 30, 1953, an unidentified female wasp (Fig. 1) was collected from ‘Belet Uen, Somaliland’ (= Beledweyne, 4°44’N 45°12’E), situated in the valley of the Shebelle River, HiraanProvince,Somalia. It was deposited in the aculeate Hymenoptera collection of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown by D. Greathead prior to 1968. Apart from the words ‘Somaliland’ and ‘Desert Locust Survey’ the label is handwritten and the collector’snameis not recorded. Greathead’s sister, S. Gess (Albany Museum), deciphered the label and stated that he had worked for the Desert Locust Survey, investigating the natural enemies of locusts and had been in Somalia (then Somaliland) at that time (Murphy & Cock 2007). The specimen was sent in 2004 by F. Gess to W. Pulawski, who determined it as Gastrosericus baobabicus Pulawski, 1995. Gastrosericus species prey on spiders and a variety of small insects (Pulawski 1995), including Orthoptera (Krombein & Pulawski 1986), so it is likely that Greathead collected the specimen in connection with his interest in the insect enemies of Acridoidea (Orthoptera) (Greathead 1962).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
- Authors: Clitheroe, Crystal-Leigh , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2011
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6846 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011099
- Description: [from introduction] On October 30, 1953, an unidentified female wasp (Fig. 1) was collected from ‘Belet Uen, Somaliland’ (= Beledweyne, 4°44’N 45°12’E), situated in the valley of the Shebelle River, HiraanProvince,Somalia. It was deposited in the aculeate Hymenoptera collection of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown by D. Greathead prior to 1968. Apart from the words ‘Somaliland’ and ‘Desert Locust Survey’ the label is handwritten and the collector’snameis not recorded. Greathead’s sister, S. Gess (Albany Museum), deciphered the label and stated that he had worked for the Desert Locust Survey, investigating the natural enemies of locusts and had been in Somalia (then Somaliland) at that time (Murphy & Cock 2007). The specimen was sent in 2004 by F. Gess to W. Pulawski, who determined it as Gastrosericus baobabicus Pulawski, 1995. Gastrosericus species prey on spiders and a variety of small insects (Pulawski 1995), including Orthoptera (Krombein & Pulawski 1986), so it is likely that Greathead collected the specimen in connection with his interest in the insect enemies of Acridoidea (Orthoptera) (Greathead 1962).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
Molecular systematics of the African snake family Lamprophiidae Fitzinger, 1843 (Serpentes: Elapoidea), with particular focus on the genera Lamprophis Fitzinger 1843 and Mehelya Csiki 1903
- Kelly, Christopher M R, Branch, William R, Broadley, Donald G, Barker, Nigel P, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Kelly, Christopher M R , Branch, William R , Broadley, Donald G , Barker, Nigel P , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2011
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6861 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011151
- Description: The snake family Lamprophiidae Fitzinger (Serpentes: Elapoidea) is a putatively Late Eocene radiation of nocturnal snakes endemic to the African continent. It incorporates many of the most characteristic and prolific of Africa's non-venomous snake species, including the widespread type genus Lamprophis Fitzinger, 1843 (house snakes). We used approximately 2500 bases of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequence data from 28 (41%) of the approximately 68 recognised lamprophiid species in nine of the eleven genera to investigate phylogenetic structure in the family and to inform taxonomy at the generic level. Cytochrome b, ND4 and tRNA gene sequences (mitochondrial) and c-mos sequences (nuclear) were analysed using Maximum Likelihood, Bayesian Inference and Maximum Parsimony methods. The genus Mehelya Csiki, 1903 was paraphyletic with respect to Gonionotophis Boulenger, 1893. To address this, the concept of Gonionotophis is expanded to include all current Mehelya species. The genus Lamprophis emerged polyphyletic: the enigmatic Lamprophis swazicus was sister to Hormonotus modestus from West Africa, and not closely related to its nominal congeners. It is moved to a new monotypic genus (Inyoka gen. nov.). The remaining Lamprophis species occur in three early-diverging lineages. (1) Lamprophis virgatus and the widely distributed Lamprophis fuliginosus species complex (which also includes Lamprophis lineatus and Lamprophis olivaceus) formed a clade for which the generic name Boaedon Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854 is resurrected. (2) The water snakes (Lycodonomorphus) were nested within Lamprophis (sensu lato), sister to Lamprophis inornatus. We transfer this species to the genus Lycodonomorphus Fitzinger, 1843. (3) We restrict Lamprophis (sensu strictissimo) to a small clade of four species endemic to southern Africa: the type species of Lamprophis Fitzinger, 1843 (Lamprophis aurora) plus Lamprophis fiskii, Lamprophis fuscus and Lamprophis guttatus.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
- Authors: Kelly, Christopher M R , Branch, William R , Broadley, Donald G , Barker, Nigel P , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2011
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6861 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011151
- Description: The snake family Lamprophiidae Fitzinger (Serpentes: Elapoidea) is a putatively Late Eocene radiation of nocturnal snakes endemic to the African continent. It incorporates many of the most characteristic and prolific of Africa's non-venomous snake species, including the widespread type genus Lamprophis Fitzinger, 1843 (house snakes). We used approximately 2500 bases of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequence data from 28 (41%) of the approximately 68 recognised lamprophiid species in nine of the eleven genera to investigate phylogenetic structure in the family and to inform taxonomy at the generic level. Cytochrome b, ND4 and tRNA gene sequences (mitochondrial) and c-mos sequences (nuclear) were analysed using Maximum Likelihood, Bayesian Inference and Maximum Parsimony methods. The genus Mehelya Csiki, 1903 was paraphyletic with respect to Gonionotophis Boulenger, 1893. To address this, the concept of Gonionotophis is expanded to include all current Mehelya species. The genus Lamprophis emerged polyphyletic: the enigmatic Lamprophis swazicus was sister to Hormonotus modestus from West Africa, and not closely related to its nominal congeners. It is moved to a new monotypic genus (Inyoka gen. nov.). The remaining Lamprophis species occur in three early-diverging lineages. (1) Lamprophis virgatus and the widely distributed Lamprophis fuliginosus species complex (which also includes Lamprophis lineatus and Lamprophis olivaceus) formed a clade for which the generic name Boaedon Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854 is resurrected. (2) The water snakes (Lycodonomorphus) were nested within Lamprophis (sensu lato), sister to Lamprophis inornatus. We transfer this species to the genus Lycodonomorphus Fitzinger, 1843. (3) We restrict Lamprophis (sensu strictissimo) to a small clade of four species endemic to southern Africa: the type species of Lamprophis Fitzinger, 1843 (Lamprophis aurora) plus Lamprophis fiskii, Lamprophis fuscus and Lamprophis guttatus.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
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