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Wednesday, June 25th, 2025
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| 4:13a | [Botany • 2025] Begonia nyishiorum (Begoniaceae, sect. Platycentrum) • A New Species from Arunachal Pradesh, Northeast India
Keywords: Begonia, Eastern Himalaya, Indian Himalayan Region, IUCN, Platycentrum
  Ashish K. Soni, Akshath Shenoy, Abhinav Kumar, Misso Anu, Dipankar Borah and Althaf Ahamed Kabeer. 2025. Begonia nyishiorum (Begoniaceae), a New Species from Arunachal Pradesh, Northeast India. Novon: A Journal for Botanical Nomenclature. 33; 83 - 88. DOI: doi.org/10.3417/2025991 Researchgate.net/publication/392928068_Begonia_nyishiorum_a_New_Species_from_Arunachal_Pradesh_No  | ||||||
| 7:59a | [Mammalogy • 2025] Nagasorex albidens • The Shrew of Nagaland: A Remarkable New Genus and Species from Northeast India, With A Discussion of The Phylogeny and Classification of The Soricidae (Mammalia)
Abstract A new genus and species of extant shrew, Nagasorex albidens, is described based on a single specimen obtained in Nagaland, northeastern India, in 1950. The new species shows novel characters, such as a total tooth number of 34, not found in any extant genus though they are found in extinct genera such as †Miosorex, †Lartetium, †Pseudotrimylus, and †Domnina. To determine the phylogenetic relationships of the new species, we first analyzed craniodental characters from all extant and many extinct genera of Soricidae. Although statistical support for most nodes was low, the nearest relatives of the new taxon appear to be certain Miocene and Pliocene taxa from Europe and Asia—†Dobenflorinia (new name), †Clapasorex, †Miosorex, and †Crocidosorex—followed by the extant African genera Congosorex, Myosorex, and Surdisorex, all of which we treat as members of the Myosoricinae. We then conducted a molecular phylogenetic study of extant genera using mitochondrial and nuclear genes. Although the genetic data we obtained from the new shrew are limited, our results place Nagasorex as the sister taxon of Crocidurinae (mitochondrial genes), or sister to Myosoricinae + Crocidurinae (nuclear genes). We tentatively place the new genus in the Myosoricinae. Additionally, we replace the preoccupied generic name Soricella with a new name, Dobenflorinia. Based on these results, we present a new systematic arrangement of the Soricidae. Keywords: Shrews, India, Nāgāland, Classification, Phylogeny, Nagasorex albidens Order Eulipotyphla Waddel et al. (1999)
Family Soricidae Fischer, 1814
Nagasorex, new genus
Type Species: Nagasorex albidens, new species. Included Species: The type species only.
Etymology: The generic name combines the place of origin (Naga Hills) with the Latin sorex (shrew); the gender is masculine. The specific epithet combines the Latin albus (white) and dens (tooth).
 Nagasorex albidens, new species
Diagnosis: A small dark shrew with narrow tail covered by very short hairs (fig. 8); cross section of guard hairs with H-profile (fig. 13); ear conch small, round and almost naked (fig. 8); skull roof with traces of the foramina vascularia (fig. 9); 34 nonpigmented teeth, tooth formula I 3/1 C 1/1 P 3/2 M 3/3 (figs. 10, 11); p4 with a distinct “myosoricine” Y-pattern (fig. 12B); mandibular articulation with upper and lower facets (fig. 11); plus the unique combination of characters described in the following section. Rainer Hutterer, Mark T. Swanson, Jacob A. Esselstyn and Lawrence R. Heaney. 2025. The Shrew of Nagaland: A Remarkable New Genus and Species from Northeast India, With A Discussion of The Phylogeny and Classification of The Soricidae (Mammalia). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. (474); 1-72. DOI: doi.org/10.1206/0003-0090.474.1.1 [18 June 2025]
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| 9:17a | [Paleontology • 2025] Paleoophiocordyceps gerontoformicae & P. ironomyiae • Cretaceous Entomopathogenic Fungi illuminate the early Evolution of Insect–fungal Associations
Abstract Throughout evolution, entomopathogenic (insect-pathogenic) fungi have played a pivotal role in regulating insect populations. However, little is known about ancient entomopathogenic fungi due to the scarcity of fossils displaying typical pathogenic structures on their presumed hosts. Here, we report two new fungi, Paleoophiocordyceps gerontoformicae sp. nov. and Paleoophiocordyceps ironomyiae sp. nov., from mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber (approx. 99 million years old). They share common traits with Ophiocordyceps and are associated with an ant pupa and a fly, respectively. These fossils are among the oldest fossil records of animal-pathogenic fungi. In addition, we performed a divergence time estimation analysis showing that Ophiocordyceps likely originated during the Early Cretaceous. We further compiled the hosts of extant Ophiocordyceps and inferred the evolution of host associations within the genus based on ancestral character state reconstruction. Our results suggest that Ophiocordyceps made a host jump from Coleoptera to Lepidoptera and Hymenoptera during the Cretaceous, and its subsequent speciation was probably related to the increase in diversity and abundance of its moth and ant hosts. Our results not only highlight the ecological significance of pathogenic fungi in Mesozoic terrestrial ecosystems, but also provide new insights into the coevolution between entomopathogenic fungi and host insects. Keywords: fossil, Mesozoic, host–parasite association, ant, amber   Paleoophiocordyceps gerontoformicae sp. nov. Paleoophiocordyceps ironomyiae sp. nov.  Yuhui Zhuang, Cihang Luo, Dexiang Tang, João Paulo Machado de Araújo, Hong Yu, Jing Zhao, Danny Haelewaters, Thet Tin Nyunt, Qingqing Zhang, Edmund A. Jarzembowski, Guoliang Meng, Hao Ran, Yu Liu and Bo Wang. 2025. Cretaceous Entomopathogenic Fungi illuminate the early Evolution of Insect–fungal Associations. Proc. R. Soc. B. 292; 20250407. DOI: doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2025.0407 [11 June 2025] https://www.sciencenews.org/article/zomb https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2025/j | ||||||
| 10:51a | [Paleontology • 2025] Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae • A neornithischian Dinosaur from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation of the western USA
Abstract Although their remains have been known since the 1870s, the small, bipedal ornithischian dinosaurs from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation of the western USA remain poorly known. The historic type specimens are incomplete and poorly preserved and have recently been designated as nomina dubia. Here, we describe a recently collected, partial but three-dimensionally preserved skeleton of a new small-bodied ornithischian from the Morrison Formation of Colorado, USA, that we name Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae gen. et sp. nov. The skeleton includes substantial portions of the axial and appendicular skeleton and, when scored into a phylogenetic analysis, is shown to be a non-cerapodan neornithischian, whose closest relative is Yandusaurus hongheensis from the Late Jurassic of China. The discovery of Enigmacursor enhances the diversity of ornithischian dinosaurs from the Morrison Formation and provides new information on their anatomy. In addition, it demonstrates that there is additional cryptic diversity of small-bodied Morrison Formation ornithischians, suggesting they were a more diverse component of these Late Jurassic ecosystems than was previously realized.   Systematic palaeontology Dinosauria (Owen 1842) Ornithischia (Seeley 1888) Neornithischia (Cooper 1985) Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae gen. et sp. nov. Holotype—NHMUK PV R 39000, a partial skeleton that includes three teeth, three cervical, 11 dorsal, two dorsosacral and five caudal vertebrae, 10 dorsal ribs, five chevrons, right sternum, both scapulae, both humeri, both radii, both ulnae, three metacarpals, left ilium, right ischium, right pubis, both femora, both tibiae, both fibulae, right astragalus and both pedes. Diagnosis—Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae differs from all other ornithischian dinosaurs in possessing the following unique combination of features and one potential autapomorphy (the latter marked with an asterisk): (1) posterior articular facets offset ventrally relative to anterior articular facets on proximal dorsal vertebrae*; (2) absence of a supracetabular crest on the ilium; (3) femoral head separated from the greater trochanter by a trochanteric fossa; (4) apex of anterior trochanter situated level with the ventral margin of the femoral head; (5) absence of a ligament sulcus on the posterior surface of the femoral head; (6) ventral surface of fourth trochanter straight or slightly convex in medial or posterior view; (7) medially directed, hook-like posterior condyle of the proximal end of the tibia. Etymology—Enigma, meaning a puzzle or mystery, in reference to the convoluted taxonomic history of small-bodied ornithischians from the Morrison Formation; cursor, from the Latin for ‘runner’, in reference to the cursorial morphology of the elongated hind limb and pes. The species name honours Molly Borthwick, whose generous donation allowed the NHMUK to acquire the specimen.
Susannah C. R. Maidment and Paul M. Barrett. 2025. Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae, a neornithischian dinosaur from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation of the western USA. R. Soc. Open Sci. 12: 242195. DOI: doi.org/10.1098/rsos.242195 [25 June 2025] https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2025/j   | ||||||
| 2:53p | [Ichthyology • 2025] Neotrygon romeoi • A New Blue-spotted Maskray Species (Myliobatiformes: Dasyatidae: Neotrygon) from Fiji
Abstract Neotrygon romeoi n. sp. (Dasyatidae), a new species of blue-spotted maskray from Fiji, previously confused with Neotrygon kuhlii (Müller and Henle 1841) or Neotrygon trigonoides (Castelnau 1873), is described based on nine specimens (310–397 mm disc width) from Fiji. Neotrygon romeoi n. sp. is a large maskray with a broadly angled snout, long claspers in adult males and a median row of thornlets extending from the nape to the tail base. Fresh specimens have a brownish dorsal surface with dark mask-like marking covering across and between the eyes (sometimes indistinct), two large brown to black branchial blotches posterior to the spiracles, numerous black pepper-like spots mainly concentrated in masked area and the branchial blotches, and sometimes having small, dark-edged pale blue to whitish spots. The new species is further characterized by ocellated spots in the medial belt usually absent. Molecular analysis based on 570 bp of partial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) mitochondrial gene also supports that N. romeoi n. sp. is a distinct species from other congeners. The new species, known only from the Fiji Islands, may thus warrant inclusion in Fiji's Endangered and Protected Species Act. Keywords: Fiji, endemic, new species, Oceania, South Pacific Ocean, species complex
Neotrygon romeoi n. sp. Etymology: The epithet is dedicated to the late Romeo Glaus, the father of the first author, in recognition of his lasting inspiration, enduring support and deep respect for nature. Vernacular: Fiji Maskray. Kerstin Glaus, William T. White, Helen L. O'Neill, Sarah Thurnheer and Sharon A. Appleyard. 2025. A New Blue-spotted Maskray Species (Neotrygon, Dasyatidae) from Fiji. Journal of Fish Biology. DOI: doi.org/10.1111/jfb.70094 [09 June 2025] | ||||||
| 2:58p | [Mammalogy • 2025] Marmosa chachapoya • A New Species of Marmosa (Marsupialia: Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae) from Parque Nacional del Río Abiseo, Peru
Abstract We describe a new species in the didelphid marsupial genus Marmosa based on a single specimen collected at 2664 m on the eastern side of the Andes in San Martín department, Peru. The new species is closely related to Marmosa lepida (Thomas, 1888) and M. andersoni Pine,1972, in the subgenus Stegomarmosa, but differs from these and other congeneric taxa by mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences and by unique external and cranial characters. Diagnostic morphological traits of the new species include gray-based buffy-reddish ventral fur without a midventral zone of self-whitish fur; a remarkably narrow and long rostrum with a very long premaxillary process; absence of postorbital processes; and presence of diastemata among the canines, first premolars, and second premolars in both upper and lower dentitions. Marmosa chachapoya, sp. nov., is one of several recently discovered new species from the Parque Nacional del Río Abiseo, a protected area with remarkably high mammalian diversity. Keywords: Marmosa chachapoya, Marmosa, Peru, Classification, Opossums
Pavan, Silvia E.; Abreu, Edson F.; Sánchez-Vendizú, Pamela Y. and Voss, Robert S. 2025. A New Species of Marmosa (Mammalia, Didelphimorphia, Didelphidae) from Parque Nacional del Río Abiseo, Peru. American Museum novitates. no. 4037. https://hdl.handle.net/2246/7511 [2025-06-19] | ||||||
| 3:36p | [Mammalogy • 2025] Apomys veluzi, A. crinitus & A. minor • Three New Species of Philippine forest mice (Mammalia: Muridae: Apomys), members of A Clade endemic to Mindoro Island
Abstract Apomys, a Philippine endemic genus of forest mice, occurs throughout most oceanic portions of the archipelago and is its most speciose mammal genus, with 18 species currently recognized. Recent extensive surveys of mammals on Mindoro Island have produced specimens that document the presence of three genetically and morphologically distinct candidate species of Apomys (subgenus Megapomys) previously unknown. These three, plus one previously described relative from Mindoro, constitute a clade of well-supported, reciprocally monophyletic units based on cytochrome b sequence data, all of which are strongly supported using BPP species delimitation. Data from three nuclear genes show less divergence, but species delimitation analyses are consistent with results from cytochrome b. These four taxa are easily diagnosed on the basis of pelage and cranial morphology. Each of the four species occurs allopatrically, though two occur along a single elevational gradient. In this paper, we formally describe the three new species. We estimate that the common ancestor of the four species arrived on Mindoro from Luzon roughly 4.7 Ma, with initial diversification beginning roughly 2.7 Ma, and increasing to the current four species about 1.3 Ma. The three new species increase the number of mammals currently recognized as endemics on Mindoro from nine to twelve. This is a remarkably high number of endemic mammals from an island of its size, and reflects Mindoro’s status as a geologically old island permanently isolated from other oceanic islands in the Philippines by deep water, while also corroborating Mindoro as the smallest island within which endemic speciation by small mammals is known to have occurred. Mammalia, Asia, biodiversity, biogeography, diversification, elevation, morphometrics, phylogeny, Rodentia, speciation, surveys
Large Mindoro forest mouse, A. gracilirostris Ruedas, 1995 Long-haired forest mouse, A. crinitus Small mindoro forest mouse, A. minor Veluz's forest mouse, A. veluzi Lawrence R. HEANEY, Danilo S. BALETE, Mariano Roy M. DUYA, Melizar V. DUYA, Christopher C. KYRIAZIS, Eric A. RICKART, Scott J. STEPPAN and Dakota M. ROWSEY. 2025. Three New Species of Philippine forest mice (Apomys, Muridae, Mammalia), members of A Clade endemic to Mindoro Island. Zootaxa. 5647(1); 1-26. DOI: doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5647.1.1 [2025-06-12] discovery of Philippine forest mice—all belonging to the Apomys genus. |
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