Description of a new species of Nannopus Brady, 1880 (Copepoda: Harpacticoida: Nannopodidae) from Argentinean waters, including an updated key to species

Both sexes of a new brackish-water species, Nannopus sinusalbi sp. nov. (Nannopodidae) are described from the Bahía Blanca estuary (38°53’S, 62°07’W) in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. The only previous record of the genus in the study area was identified as the type species, Nannopus palustris Brady, 1880, with no description or illustrations, hence its authenticity cannot be confirmed. Nannopus brasiliensis Jakobi, 1956 is relegated to species inquirenda in the genus rather than being considered a junior synonym of the type species. Nomenclatural issues related to the usage of the alternative spellings Iliophilus Lilljeborg, 1902 and Ilyophilus sensu Sars (1909) and the unavailability of Ilyophilus canui Kim, Choi & Yoon, 2017 are discussed. An updated key to the 18 identifiable species of Nannopus (excluding the type species N. palustris) is presented. The harpacticoid assemblage at the type locality showed a distinct seasonality with N. sinusalbi sp. nov. representing about 8% of the community. The new species showed densities below 5 ind.cm‑2 during most of the year, reaching an abrupt peak of 40.17 ind.cm‑2 towards the end of the summer, when the maximum proportion of ovigerous females was recorded.

The genus Stammericaris Jakobi (Copepoda: Harpacticoida: Parastenocarididae) in the Nearctic subregion: description of Stammericaris remotaepatriae sp. nov., proposal of Stammericaris palmerae (Reid 1992) comb. nov., and remarks on other North American Parastenocarididae

We describe a new harpacticoid, Stammericaris remotaepatriae sp. nov., collected from the hyporheic habitat of a stream in Nantucket, MA, USA. The new species is characterized by the size of the caudal rami of both sexes, which are shorter than the anal somite, by the morphology and armature of the P3 and, mainly, by the P4 endopod of males, represented by a curved plate with a strongly bifid tip, the distal proximal outgrowth of the distal margin spiniform and denticled, the proximal outgrowth missing. The study of the new species allowed us to review the systematic position of Parastenocaris palmerae Reid, 1992, which we transferred to Stammericaris Jakobi, 1972 as Stammericaris palmerae (Reid, 1992) comb. nov., based mainly on the structure of the male P4 endopod complex and the setation of the caudal rami. We also discussed the taxonomic position and affinities of Parastenocaris trichelata Reid, 1955, suggesting that this species is related to the two former ones for a set of diagnostic features, but can not be attributed to the genus due to the peculiar morphology of the male P4 endopod complex; P. trichelata is therefore considered species inquirenda. We also discussed Parastenocaris sp. 1 and Parastenocaris sp. 3, two taxa only partially described and drawn in Strayer (1988). In fact, Parastenocaris sp. 1 can be related to Stammericaris and might represent a third species of the genus in the Nearctic region. Remarkably, the structure of the male P4 endopod of Parastenocaris sp. 3 is typical of Proserpinicaris Jakobi, 1972; this hypothetical assignment of the species to Proserpinicaris, if confirmed, would be of relevant taxonomic and biogeographic value. Finally, we provide an updated distribution map of the genus Stammericaris and brief remarks on the faunistic and ecological characteristics of the taxa presented and discussed in this paper.

The identity of an elusive Chilean harvestman, Pachylus crassus (Roewer, 1943) (Opiliones: Gonyleptidae: Pachylinae), with taxonomic and distribution notes

The long-neglected Chilean harvestman species Pachylus crassus (Roewer, 1943) (Gonyleptidae, Pachylinae) is redescribed and illustrated from the types and additional material. A lectotype is designated from the original syntype series. Until now P. crassus was only known from its brief original description. Moreover, its generic affiliation remained obscure for decades, as it was successively placed in different genera until it was determined to be a member of Pachylus C.L. Koch, 1839. Aside some taxonomic remarks on the genus, it is here proposed to exclude from Pachylus one doubtful nominal species, Pachylus acanthops (Gervais, 1849), and to consider it a species inquirenda. A thorough comparison of P. crassus with its presumed close relative, P. quinamavidensis Muñoz, 1969, is provided. New records for both species and a map with all known localities of the genus are also given.

<i>Selenogonus narinoensis</i> Stirton, 1947 (Tayassuidae, Cetartiodactyla, Mammalia): taxonomic status and paleobiogeographic implications

The species Selenogonus narinoensis was described by Stirton (1947) based on a single specimen which comes from sediments cropping out in the Cocha Verde locality, Nariño Department (Colombia), tentatively referred to the late Pliocene–Pleistocene (MGN 931; IGM p002118, Museo Geológico Nacional, Servicio Geológico Colombiano, Bogotá). However, morphological studies and comparative morphometric observations of the specimen suggest that (1) no diagnostic character supports the validity of the species Selenogonus narinoensis (here considered species inquirenda); (2) a combination of features (e.g., the mandibular condyle located behind the posterior edge of the vertical mandibular ramus, the angular process which projects laterally outwards, a bunolophodont crown morphology, a mesodont crown height, and a simple crown morphology of the third lobe of m3) indicates it belongs to the genus Platygonus; (3) this specimen corresponds to one of the largest South American peccaries; (4) taking into account certain anatomical characters as well as its morphometric range, this specimen is assigned to Platygonus cf. marplatensis. Even though the stratigraphic provenance of the specimen is still doubtful, it can be proposed that (1) it could be one of the most ancient records of tayassuids in South America, as would be expected given its geographical position, and (2) considering the new taxonomic proposal, this specimen represents the first record of Platygonus cf. marplatensis in Colombia and represents one of the northernmost South American records of the genus. This new interpretation would be of great relevance in the Great American Biotic Interchange due to its strategic geographical proximity to the Isthmus of Panama.

The myobiid mites (Acariformes, Eleutherengona, Myobiidae) from Mexico: hosts, distribution and identification key for the genera and species

The family Myobiidae Mégnin, 1878 includes permanent parasites of the fur of different orders of mammals. Because the information on this family is scarce and scattered, in this work, we compile the available information on Myobiidae in Mexico. In total, we recorded 41 species (one undetermined, one a species inquirenda) belonging to 13 genera and three subfamilies, associated with four orders of mammals: Chiroptera, Didelphimorphia, Rodentia and Soricomorpha. We also reported for the first time in Mexico Eudusbabekia jimenezi (Dusbábek, 1967) and E. saguei (Dusbábek, 1967), parasitizing bats of the family Mormoopidae in the States of Colima, Nayarit and San Luis Potosí, and Acanthophthirius lasiurus (Fain & Whitaker, 1976) associated with the bat Lasiurus cinereus (Palisot de Beauvois) (family Vespertilionidae) in Ciudad de México. We recorded new associations with bat hosts: E. provirilia Morales-Malacara, Guzmán-Cornejo & López-Ortega, 2002 with Leptonycteris yerbabuenae Martínez & Villa (Phyllostomidae); E. saguei with Pteronotus davyi Gray (Mormoopidae), and Ioannela leptonycteris (Fain, 1973) with L. yerbabuenae. In this work, Zacaltepetla hoffmannae Basurto-R., 1973 is treated as a species inquirenda for the first time. We also provide an identification key to the genera and species of Myobiidae found in Mexico.

Mosquitoes of the Maculipennis complex in Northern Italy

The correct identification of mosquito vectors is often hampered by the presence of morphologically indiscernible sibling species. The Maculipennis complex is one of these groups that include both malaria vectors of primary importance and species of low/negligible epidemiological relevance, of which distribution data in Italy are outdated. Our study was aimed at providing an updated distribution of Maculipennis complex in Northern Italy through the sampling and morphological/molecular identification of specimens from five regions. The most abundant species was Anopheles messeae (2032), followed by Anopheles maculipennis s.s. (418), Anopheles atroparvus (28) and Anopheles melanoon (13). Taking advantage of ITS2 barcoding, we were able to finely characterize tested mosquitoes, classifying all the Anopheles messeae specimens as Anopheles daciae, a taxon with debated rank to which we referred as species inquirenda (sp. inq.). The distribution of species was characterized by Ecological Niche Models (ENMs), fed by recorded points of presence. ENMs provided clues on the ecological preferences of the detected species, with An. daciae sp. inq. linked to stable breeding sites and An. maculipennis s.s. more associated to ephemeral breeding sites. We demonstrate that historical Anopheles malaria vectors are still present in Northern Italy.

Revision of Indian wolf spiders: I. Genus Arctosa C.L. Koch, 1847 (Araneae: Lycosidae, Tricassinae)

Indian species in the wolf spider genus Arctosa C.L. Koch, 1847 are revised based on the type material deposited in the National Zoological Collection, Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, Entomology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Calcutta, and Naturhistorisches Museum, Vienna. Arctosa tappaensis Gajbe, 2004 is proposed as a junior synonym of Arctosa himalayensis Tikader & Malhotra, 1980. Arctosa quinquedens Dhali, Roy, Sen, Saha & Raychaudhuri, 2012 is provisionally transferred to Ovia Sankaran, Malamel & Sebastian, 2017 and Arctosa mulani (Dyal, 1935) is considered as species inquirenda. Digital images of all the examined type material are presented and supplementary descriptions for A. himalayensis, Arctosa indica Tikader & Malhotra, 1980 and Arctosa khudiensis (Sinha, 1951) are provided.

A review of Triops granarius (Lucas, 1864) sensu lato (Notostraca: Triopsidae) of southern Africa and Madagascar, with comments on the group

We review the current knowledge surrounding the Triops granarius morphological species group globally, and present a revision of the southern African T. granarius forms based on collections from southern Africa and Madagascar. We also provide comparisons with other material of T. granarius from outside this region. We revise the morphological descriptions of T. numidicus (Grube, 1865) and T. namaquensis (Richters, 1886) using modern standards, and resurrect T. sakalavus Nobili, 1905 from synonymy, using both morphological and molecular techniques. Morphological definitions focus primarily on the form of the apical portion of the thoracopod II endite. Differential diagnoses are presented for the three species, including characters that separate them from the other members with similar morphology. Furthermore, we treat T. dybowskii (Braem, 1893), T. orientalis (Tiwari, 1951), and T. mavliensis (Tiwari, 1951), which had been recently resurrected, as species inquirenda.

LISTA DE CESTODA DO BRASIL

Se presenta una lista completa de las 432 especies de Cestoda que se han descrito y / o registrados en Brasil. Se distribuyen através de 15 órdenes y 36 familias; 50 especies no fueron identificadas y 9 se consideran species inquirenda. Entre los peces, Zungaro zungaro (Humboldt in Humboldt & Valenciennes, 1821) fue el hospedador que fue más parasitadas (con 18 especies de cestodos); entre los anfibios, fue Rhinella icterica Spix, 1824, con 3 especies; y entre los reptiles, fue Bothrops jararaca (Wied-Neuwied, 1824), con 7 especies. Entre las aves, Gallus gallus (Linnaeus, 1758) presentó el mayor numero de asociaciones con cestodos, de tal manera que 13 especies se han registrado en Brasil y teniendo en cuenta los mamíferos, Homo sapiens (Linnaeus, 1758) presentan 13 especies diferentes. Pocos representantes de estas especies de cestode se reportaran de invertebrados. El pequeño número de los helmintos parásitos descritos es probablemente debido al submuestreo de hospedadores potenciales, junto con el pequeño número de expertos en la taxonomía de los parásitos.

Taxonomy of the genus Cyrtopholis Simon, 1892 (Araneae, Mygalomorphae, Theraphosidae): Cuban species described by Pelegrín Franganillo Balboa

Cyrtopholis Simon 1892 is a spider genus from the Caribbean islands characterized by the presence of stridulatory setae on trochanter of palps and legs I. Franganillo Balboa described eight species of Cyrtopholis Simon 1892 from Cuba between 1926–1936. The type-material is deposited in the Instituto de Ecología y Sistematica do Ministerio de Ciencias, Tecnologia e Meio Ambiente, La Habana, Cuba. Four species are redescribed here: Cyrtopholis plumosa Franganillo, 1931, Cyrtopholis major Franganillo, 1926, Cyrtopholis unispina Franganillo, 1926 and Cyrtopholis gibbosa Franganillo, 1936. Cyrtopholis ischnoculoformis Franganillo, 1926 is based on a juvenile specimen without stridulatory setae, and it is therefore considered here as species inquirenda. The type-material of two other species were not located: Cyrtopholis anacanta Franganillo, 1935 and Cyrtopholis obsoleta (Franganillo, 1935), and are considered to be lost. These two species are here considered as species inquirenda, since the original descriptions do not permit identification. Cyrtopholis respina Franganillo 1935 is considered a nomen dubium, due to the lack of a formal description and a doubtful citation.