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Saturday, August 3rd, 2024
| Time | Event | ||||||
| 2:22a | [Ichthyology • 2024] Parauchenoglanis stiassnyae (Siluriformes: Auchenoglanididae) • A New Species of Giraffe Catfish from Mfimi-Lukenie Basin, central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo
Abstract A new, distinctively short-bodied giraffe catfish of Parauchenoglanis is described from the Ndzaa River, a small left-bank tributary of the Mfimi-Lukenie basin in the Central basin of the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The new species can be distinguished from all congeners by having 29 or fewer (vs. 33 or more) total vertebrae. It can further be distinguished from all congeners, except Parauchenoglanis zebratus Sithole et al., 2023 and Parauchenoglanis ngamensis (Boulenger 1911), by having 13 or 14 (vs. 16 or more) pre-anal vertebrae. The species is endemic to the Mfimi River basin, where it has been collected mainly in blackwater tributaries. Keywords: Congo basin, CT scan, DNA barcoding, morpholog,y Ndzaa River, Parauchenoglanis
  Parauchenoglanis stiassnyae, sp. nov. Diagnosis: P. stiassnyae is distinguished from all congeners by having 28–29 vertebrae (vs. 33 or more). P. stiassnyae is also distinguished from all congeners by the possession of 13–14 pre-anal vertebrae (vs. 15 or more) except for Parauchenoglanis zebratus (14–17) and Parauchenoglanis ngamensis (13, holotype). The new species can further be distinguished from P. cf. punctatus_L3, P. balayi, P. longiceps, P. pantherinus, P. punctatus, and P. ubangensis by a narrower supraoccipital process–nuchal plate interdistance (1.4%–2.9% vs. >3% HL); from P. cf. punctatus_L3, P. guttatus, P. longiceps, P. pantherinus, and P. punctatus by a wider orbital HW (64.7%–76.2% vs. 54.9%–63.9% HL); from P. guttatus, P. longiceps, and P. ubangensis by a wider mouth (37.8%–50.8% vs. 25.9%–35.7% HL); from P. guttatus, P. punctatus, P. ubangensis, and P. zebratus by a wider premaxillary toothplate (12.9%–18.6% vs. 6.6%–12.5% HL); from P. guttatus, P. longiceps, P. pantherinus, and P. zebratus by a wider head (HW: 70.1%–81.1% vs. 58.9%–69.3% HL); from P. balayi and P. pantherinus by a shorter dorsal-fin spine (10.8%–16% vs. 16.1%–18.8% SL); from P. guttatus and P. pantherinus by a smaller orbital diameter (9.5%–14.2% vs. 14.4%–16.9% HL) and a wider interpectoral distance (16.7%–21.4% vs. 15.3%–16.6% SL); from P. balayi, P. ngamensis (holotype), and P. ubangensis by a shorter adipose-fin–caudal-fin interdistance (2.7%–5.2% vs. 6.2%–10.5% SL); and from P. balayi by a longer head (HL: 31.3%–35% vs. 28.1%–30.6% SL) and a narrower interorbital (IOD: 19.5%–27.1% vs. 27.3%–28% HL). Biology and ecology: Most specimens of P. stiassnyae were collected in forested habitats over mud and plant debris in tributaries of the Mfimi River. The rivers where specimens of P. stiassnyae have been collected are characterized by a humic, moderately acidic (pH 4.1–5.3), and dark-brown water with low conductivity (10–50 μS/cm) and low concentrations of dissolved solids (TDS: 10–30 mg/L). These observations, combined with the species body colouration, suggest that P. stiassnyae is adapted to forested habitats, muddy, humic, and dark-brown waters of the Mfimi River tributaries. Etymology: P. stiassnyae is named after Melanie L. J. Stiassny (MLJS) of the AMHN. MLJS is the initiator of the AMNH Congo Project that resulted in significant documentation and an improved systematic, biological, and evolutionary understanding of the Congo River basin ichthyofauna with an extensive collection deposited at the AMNH, the University of Kinshasa, and the University of Marien Ngouabi. Additionally, MLJS trained and continues to train numerous Congolese ichthyologists, including the authors of the present paper. We dedicate this species to her outstanding work and commitment to biodiscovery and conservation in the Congo River basin. Myriam Y. Modimo, Maxwell J. Bernt, Raoul J. C. Monsembula Iyaba, José J. M. M. Mbimbi and Tobit L. D. Liyandja. 2024. Parauchenoglanis stiassnyae (Siluriformes: Auchenoglanididae): A New Species of Giraffe Catfish from Mfimi-Lukenie Basin, central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: doi.org/10.1111/jfb.15885 | ||||||
| 2:26a | [Paleontology • 2024] Cranial Anatomy and Phylogenetic Affinities of Bolosaurus major, with new information on the unique bolosaurid feeding apparatus and evolution of the impedance-matching ear
Abstract Resolving the phylogenetic relationships of early amniotes, in particular stem reptiles, remains a difficult problem. Three-dimensional morphological analysis of well-preserved stem-reptile specimens can reveal important anatomical data and clarify regions of phylogeny. Here, we present the first thorough description of the unusual early Permian stem reptile Bolosaurus major, including the first comprehensive description of a bolosaurid braincase. We describe previously obscured details of the palate, allowing for insight into bolosaurid feeding mechanics. Aspects of the rostrum, palate, mandible, and neurocranium suggest that B. major had a particularly strong bite. We additionally found B. major has a surprisingly slender stapes, similar to that of the middle Permian stem reptile Macroleter poezicus, which may suggest enhanced hearing abilities compared to other Paleozoic amniotes (e.g., captorhinids). We incorporated our new anatomical information into a large phylogenetic matrix (150 OTUs, 590 characters) to explore the relationship of Bolosauridae among stem reptiles. Our analyses generally recovered a paraphyletic “Parareptilia,” and found Bolosauridae to diverge after Captorhinidae + Araeoscelidia. We also included B. major within a smaller matrix (10 OTUs, 27 characters) designed to explore the interrelationships of Bolosauridae and found all species of Bolosaurus to be monophyletic. While reptile relationships still require further investigation, our phylogeny suggests repeated evolution of impedance-matching ears in Paleozoic stem reptiles. Keywords: amniote, fossil, hearing, Paleozoic, reptile   Kelsey M. Jenkins, William Foster, James G. Napoli, Dalton L. Meyer, Gabriel S. Bever and Bhart-Anjan S. Bhullar. 2024. Cranial Anatomy and Phylogenetic Affinities of Bolosaurus major, with new information on the unique bolosaurid feeding apparatus and evolution of the impedance-matching ear. The Anatomical Record. DOI: doi.org/10.1002/ar.25546 | ||||||
| 3:20a | [Paleontology • 2024] The Axial Biomechanics of Trigonosaurus pricei (Neosauropoda: Titanosauria) and the importance of the cervical–dorsal region to Sauropod high-browser Feeding Strategy
Abstract Trigonosaurus pricei is a small to medium-sized sauropod dinosaur (Sauropoda: Titanosauria) from the Late Cretaceous Bauru Group of Brazil that is known from a significant amount of recovered axial elements [four cervical vertebrae, 10 dorsal vertebrae, sacrum (MCT 1488-R), and 10 caudal vertebrae (MCT 1719-R)]. In this biomechanical work, we approach the hypothesis of the cartilaginous neutral pose and the range of motion of the axial series of Trigonosaurus. The results show that this sauropod could be capable of high elevation of the neck resulting from morphological adaptations of the cervicodorsal region on dorsal (D) vertebrae D2 and D3 (e.g. postzygapophyses of D2 positioned over the vertebral centrum and prezygapophyses of D3 over the anterior vertebral centrum). This implies that D2 articulates (cartilaginous neutral posture) with D3 only at a strong dorsally directed angle, resulting in a shift in the direction of the neck to a more elevated posture. Furthermore, the tail attributed to Trigonosaurus as a paratype could be oriented in the horizontal ‘direction’ and presented a sigmoidal ‘shape’. This work contributes generally to the understanding of variation in the body plan of sauropods and, more specifically, to the feeding strategy of small and medium-sized titanosaurs from semi-arid regions of Gondwana. vertebrate palaeontology, Suropodomorpha, biomechanics, palaeoecology    Trigonosaurus pricei Luciano S Vidal, Lílian P Bergqvist, Carlos R A Candeiro, Kamila L N Bandeira, Sandra Tavares, Stephen L Brusatte and Paulo V L G C Pereira. 2024. The Axial Biomechanics of Trigonosaurus pricei (Neosauropoda: Titanosauria) and the importance of the cervical–dorsal region to Sauropod high-browser Feeding Strategy. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 201(3); zlae087. DOI: doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlae087  | ||||||
| 3:22a | [Botany • 2024] Bufonia darvishii (Caryophyllaceae) • A Novel endemic Species from Zagros Mountains, Iran
Abstract A new subalpine species of Bufonia sect. Longipedicellata from the Zagros Mountains in west Iran is described and illustrated here. It colonizes mountain slopes with gravelly, stony, and scree substrates in one locality of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, preferably with a western and north-west orientation, at elevations between 2700 and 3100 m a.s.l. The new species, B. darvishii, is diagnosed against the morphologically similar B. macrocarpa. The two species share similarities such as filiform and long pedicels, a lax panicle-cyme inflorescence, distribution pattern of trichomes, and long peduncles. However, the new species stands out with semi-shrub life form, its greater height, retention of the previous year's stems, cymes bearing more flowers, orbicular petals, larger petals, a broadly ovate ovary, larger sepals with more pronounced nervation, shorter pedicels, larger flowers, etc. Bufonia darvishii is proposed to be Critically Endangered (CR) following the guidelines of the IUCN. Keywords: alpine flora, Bakhtiari, endangered species, Mount Kallar, steno-endemic species
Bufonia darvishii Zeraatkar sp. nov. Diagnosis: A species related to Bufonia macrocarpa Ser. but exhibiting a significantly greater height (30–50 versus 20–35 cm), semi-shrub life form (versus erect chamaephyte), while retaining previous year's stems, longer leaves (up to 13 versus up to 10 mm), cymes bearing more flowers (10–25 versus mostly 3–10), orbicular petals (versus ovate or obovate), larger (3.0–3.5 mm in diameter, versus (1.5) 1.8–2.0 (3.0) × 1.5–2.0 mm), and broadly ovate ovary (versus elliptic or rounded) petals, different petal length/filament length ratio (shorter versus longer), larger sepals (2.5–3.0 × 1.0–1.6 versus 1.5–2.0 (3.0) × ca 0.8 mm) and with more pronounced nervature (7–9-veined versus 3–7-veined), shorter pedicels (up to 15 mm versus up to 30 mm), and possessing larger flower (ca 5–6 mm in diameter versus 3–4 mm). Etymology: The specific epithet honors Mohammad Darvish, a desert researcher from the Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, and an Iranian environmentalist who has made comprehensive and diverse efforts to preserve the environment in Iran. His environmental leadership includes the protection of ecosystems, plant and animal species, as well as the reduction of waste and pollution. He and like-minded associates are primarily directed towards recognizing and addressing how actions related to environmental protection can impact human health and well-being. Amin Zeraatkar. 2024. Bufonia darvishii (Caryophyllaceae), A Novel endemic Species from Zagros Mountains, Iran. Nordic Journal of Botany. DOI: doi.org/10.1111/njb.04440 |
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