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Tuesday, December 19th, 2023
| Time | Event | ||||
| 2:04a | [Botany • 2022] Argostemma tortilobum (Rubiaceae: Argostemmateae) • A New Species from Vietnam
Abstract Argostemma tortilobum, a new species endemic to Vietnam, is described and illustrated. The species is morphologically most similar to A. sarmentosum, but differs in having erect stem without runners, densely pilose peduncle and twisted corolla lobes with ciliate margins. Keywords: Du Gia Nature Reserve, plant taxonomy, star-shaped corolla, Eudicots   Argostemma tortilobum K.Y.Fang, K.S.Nguyen & Y.H.Tong, sp. nov. Etymology:—The specific epithet refers to the twisted corolla lobes of this new species. Ke-Yi Fang, Yi-Hua Tong, Tien-Chin Vu, Khang-Sinh Nguyen and Nian-He Xia. 2022. Argostemma tortilobum (Rubiaceae), A New Species from Vietnam. Phytotaxa. 567(1); 105-109. DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.567.1.11 | ||||
| 10:17a | [Herpetology • 2023] A Taxonomic Hide and Seek: Phylogenetic and Phylogeographic Relationships in the Southeast Asian Box Turtle, Cuora amboinensis (Riche in Daudin, 1801)
Abstract Cuora amboinensis is considered to be the most wide-ranging member of its genus and has one of the widest distributions of all geoemydid turtle species. The range of Cuora amboinensis spans major biogeographic barriers and encompasses diverse habitats. The genetics (nuDNA and mtDNA) and morphometry of 288 Cuora amboinensis sensu lato (s.l.) specimens from across its range were analyzed, and we identified five divergent species-level clades and two subspecies-level clades. One of the two identified potential subspecies lacked reliable locality data, requiring further field research before taxonomic steps can be undertaken. We designate a neotype for Cuora amboinensis sensu stricto and elevate both Cuora amboinensis couro and Cuora amboinensis lineata to species-level taxa. In addition, we describe two new species and one new subspecies from the «Cuora amboinensis» complex. The wide distribution of Cuora amboinensis s.l. is problematic because it is indigenous to many Pacific and Indian Ocean islands. We sought to clarify plausible dispersal hypotheses across islands using phylogeographic analyses. Keywords: Testudines; Geoemydidae; Cuora; taxonomy; phylogeography; phylogenetics; conservation; species description; neotype; species complex; cryptic species  Cuora amboinensis aurantiae ssp. nov. Cuora praschagi sp. nov. Torsten Blanck, Daniel Gaillard, Tomáš Protiva, Madeleine Wheatley, Haitao Shi, Lin Liu, Parimal Chandra Ray and Ben Anders. 2023. A Taxonomic Hide and Seek: Phylogenetic and Phylogeographic Relationships in the Southeast Asian Box Turtle, Cuora amboinensis (Riche in Daudin, 1801). Russian Journal of Herpetology. 30(6-S); 1-52. DOI: 10.30906/1026-2296-2023-30-6-S-1-52 facebook.com/100088301342746/posts/303415369278506  | ||||
| 10:30a | [PaleoMammalogy • 2023] Lumakoala blackae • A probable Koala (Diprotodontia: ?Phascolarctidae) from the Oligocene of central Australia provides insights into early diprotodontian Evolution
Abstract Diprotodontians are the morphologically and ecologically most diverse order of marsupials. However, an approximately 30-million-year gap in the Australian terrestrial vertebrate fossil record means that the first half of diprotodontian evolution is unknown. Fossil taxa from immediately either side of this gap are therefore critical for reconstructing the early evolution of the order. Here we report the likely oldest-known koala relatives (Phascolarctidae), from the late Oligocene Pwerte Marnte Marnte Local Fauna (central Australia). These include coeval species of Madakoala and Nimiokoala, as well as a new probable koala (?Phascolarctidae). The new taxon, Lumakoala blackae gen. et sp. nov., was comparable in size to the smallest-known phascolarctids, with body-mass estimates of 2.2–2.6 kg. Its bunoselenodont upper molars retain the primitive metatherian condition of a continuous centrocrista, and distinct stylar cusps B and D which lacked occlusion with the hypoconid. This structural arrangement: (1) suggests a morphocline within Phascolarctidae from bunoselenodonty to selenodonty; and (2) better clarifies the evolutionary transitions between molar morphologies within Vombatomorphia. We hypothesize that the molar form of Lumakoala blackae approximates the ancestral condition of the suborder Vombatiformes. Furthermore, it provides a plausible link between diprotodontians and the putative polydolopimorphians Chulpasia jimthorselli and Thylacotinga bartholomaii from the early Eocene Tingamarra Local Fauna (eastern Australia), which we infer as having molar morphologies consistent with stem diprotodontians.
 Systematic palaeontology Infraclass Marsupialia Illiger, 1811 Order Diprotodontia Owen, 1877 Suborder Vombatiformes Woodburne, 1984 Infraorder ?Phascolarctomorphia Aplin & Archer, 1987 Family ?Phascolarctidae Owen, 1839 Lumakoala blackae gen. et sp. nov. Genus Etymology. Luma is Latin for ‘thorn’, in reference to the morphology of stylar cusps B and D, and their distinction from the postparacrista and premetacrista, respectively. The gender of the genus is feminine. Species Etymology. Named for Karen Black, whose research has greatly extended our understanding of fossil phascolarctids and other vombatiforms. Specific Diagnosis. A new species that appears most similar in upper molar morphology to members of the Phascolarctidae, with: a deep, U-shaped longitudinal valley between the primary buccal and lingual cusps, rather than being shallow and V-shaped as in selenodont vombatomorphians; and a paraconule on M1 (Fig. 3a–h). ...  Arthur I. Crichton, Robin M. D. Beck, Aidan M. C. Couzens, Trevor H. Worthy, Aaron B. Camens and Gavin J. Prideaux. 2023. A probable Koala from the Oligocene of central Australia provides insights into early diprotodontian Evolution. Scientific Reports. 13: 14521. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-41471-0 |
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