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A new species of mecochirid lobster from the Late Cretaceous of France, preserved with its eggs
Geodiversitas 45 (23)
The discovery of Mecochirus cenomanicus n. sp. (Decapoda, Glypheoidea, Mecochiridae) from the Cenomanian stratotype (Le Mans, France) extends the biostratigraphic range of Mecochirus Germar, 1827 from the Early to the Late Cretaceous. The holotype preserves under the pleon about 80 large eggs carried by the pleopods, and thus represents the second record of a decapod crustacean fossilized with clusters of eggs. The size and number of eggs suggest an ontogenetic development like that of the extant decapod crustaceans with short larval stage.
Synthèse des connaissances sur les Isopodes et Diplopodes terrestres du Parc national des Écrins (SE France)
Naturae 2023 (9)
The Écrins National Park (PNE), a high mountain territory with several peaks reaching more than 3000 meters above sea level, is very diverse in terms of landscape, geology and local climate. The first inventories of diplopod arthropods (Class Diplopoda de Blainville in Gervais, 1844) of the Écrins national Park were carried out by Jean-Jacques Geoffroy during the years 1976 to 1979. It will take nearly 38 years for a new survey campaign on this group to be implemented again. From 2017, park agents began to collect various species of arthropods, including myriapods and terrestrial isopods. Serious taxonomic expertise is urgently required and a research partnership based on the opportunistic collection of taxa is implemented from 2019 to 2021.
Resampling Bouché’s historical localities reveals three new species and helps identifying a new genus of earthworms (Oligochaeta, Hormogastridae and Lumbricidae) in Southeastern France
Zoosystema 45 (23)
Southern France has been highlighted as an important hotspot of earthworm diversity mostly by the work of Marcel Bouché, who sampled more than 1300 localities in mainland France including Corsica in the 1960s. We resampled some of the Bouché’s localities and conducted molecular phylogenetic analyses. It leads to the identification of a new Lumbricidae Rafinesque, 1815 genus (Flabellodrilus Gérard, Decaëns & Marchán, n. gen.), for which Flabellodrilus luberonensis Gérard, Decaëns & Marchán, n. gen., n. sp. is the type species. We propose the new combination Flabellodrilus bartolii bartolii (Bouché, 1970) n.
A new platyrostrine sperm whale from the Early Miocene of the southeastern Pacific (East Pisco Basin, Peru) supports affinities with the southwestern Atlantic cetacean fauna
Geodiversitas 45 (22)
Contrasting with their suction feeding modern relatives in the families Kogiidae and Physeteridae, Miocene physeteroids display a broad range of feeding strategies. Despite the continuous improvements of the fossil record, the transition from the earliest sperm whales to suction feeding forms as well as the once prominent macroraptorial forms remains poorly understood. In the present work, we investigate a partial sperm whale skull from Lower Miocene (Burdigalian) strata of the Chilcatay Formation of the East Pisco Basin, along the southern coast of Peru.
Suivis acoustiques de biodiversité : perspectives et défis en milieu continental terrestre
Naturae 2023 (8)
Animals produce sounds during their activities or to perform various biological functions such as defending territories, attracting mates or deterring predators. By recording these acoustic data, scientists obtain essential information on the presence of species. New technologies for species identification are more affordable, efficient and versatile than conventional methods and can thus meet the urgent need to document biodiversity in the current environmental crisis. Automated acoustic recorders are increasingly used in biodiversity monitoring to address the limitations of more traditional methods, and the emergence of ethical considerations advocating the development of non-destructive (i.e. non-lethal) traps.
Spatial Distribution and Substrate Preferences of Bryophyte Species in Mangrove Ecosystems of the East Coast of Marajó Island, Brazil
Cryptogamie, Bryologie 44 (11)
We evaluated bryophytes composition between the fringe and inland zones and spatial distribution in mangrove ecosystems, and determined bryophytes composition in Brazilian mangroves. To calculate the composition between zones, we used species richness, density, Shannon-Wiener index, Pielou’s evenness, analysis of similarities and indicator species. We calculated sex expression, light-tolerance guilds and type of substrate colonized between zones using two-way ANOVA. We compiled floristic articles with lists of bryophyte species occurring in other mangroves and we calculated the similarity between the areas with the Jaccard index and the UPGMA.
Monograph of Acalypha L. (Euphorbiaceae) of the Western Indian Ocean Region, with the description of a new species from Mayotte
Adansonia 45 (26)
This work presents a monographic revision of the genus Acalypha L. (Euphorbiaceae) from the Western Indian Ocean Region, including Madagascar, the Comoros Archipelago, the Mascarene Islands, the Seychelles Archipelago, and the Scattered Islands. Forty-nine species are recognized, with 42 native and seven probably introduced; 39 are found in Madagascar, eight in the Comoros, eight in the Mascarene Islands, four in the Seychelles, and one in the Scattered Islands. For each species, we provide a description, information about distribution and habitat, a distribution map, and a preliminary conservation assessment. Original illustrations and the first identification key for Acalypha species of this region are also included. Lectotypes are designated for 10 names.
An inventory of Bramble sharks Echinorhinus brucus (Bonnaterre, 1788) (Elasmobranchii, Echinorhinidae) in natural history collections worldwide for conservation status assessment
Zoosystema 45 (22)
Many elasmobranch populations were already depleted well before fishery surveys had even started, which means historical investigations are needed to reveal their ignored declines. This is probably the case for the Bramble shark Echinorhinus brucus (Bonnaterre, 1788) whose populations in Europe are suspected of having decreased significantly. In order to document this data deficiency, an inventory of Bramble shark material that had been preserved in natural history collections, was conducted in the period 2014-2022. A total of 128 collections were contacted around the world, and additional sources of information were traced and consulted (e.g. collection labels, museum registers, digital databases, index cards, pictures, manuscripts and publications).
Marine cyanobacteria diversity and biotechnological potential in Caribbean waters
Cryptogamie, Algologie 44 (8)
Marine cyanobacteria are producers of structurally diverse secondary metabolites, many have intriguing biological properties. These compounds represent a series of different chemical entities, such as alkaloids, polyketides, peptides or mixed NRPS/PKS metabolites, exhibiting a variety of antifouling, anticancer, antimicrobial, allelopathic and anti-inflammatory properties. Nevertheless, cyanobacteria have been less used as sources of marine natural products when compared with sponges or macroalgae. Cyanobacteria studies in Caribbean marine waters are still scarce and scattered, but reveal an interesting diversity with a total of 76 genera and 119 species reported.
New insights into the fossil record of the turtle genus Chelus Duméril, 1806 including new specimens with information on cervicals and limb bones
Comptes Rendus Palevol 22 (34)
Matamata turtles (Chelus Duméril, 1806) are composed of two extant species, Chelus fimbriata Schneider, 1783 and Chelus orinocensis Vargas-Ramírez, Caballero, Morales-Betancourt, Lasso, Amaya, Martínez, Silva-Viana, Vogt, Farias, Hrbek, Campbell & Fritz, 2020, inhabitants of the main freshwater drainages of northern South America. The systematics and palaeobiogeography of Chelus is still unresolved. Here, we describe several new fossil specimens from the Late Miocene of Urumaco (Venezuela) and Tatacoa (Colombia). The fossils are mostly complete, articulated shells that allow reestablishing validity of two extinct taxa, Chelus colombiana Wood, 1976 and Chelus lewisi Wood, 1976. One of the specimens of C.
Savoirs, observations et expériences sur l’animal exotique captif (IXe-XVe siècle)
Anthropozoologica 58 (12)
An article by Michel Pastoureau (2008) laid the foundations for a reflection on the relationship between medieval princely menageries and zoological knowledge, between observation of rare species, verification of ancient legends, scholarly discourse and possible experimentation, relying mainly on the cases of the elephant and the bear. The present article explores the few hypotheses put forward in this study, relying, in addition to the elephant, on the cases of the lion (frequently included in medieval menageries) and the ostrich.
Shifting shell morphology in a Late Miocene-Pliocene land snail species lineage (Gastropoda: Stylommatophora: Spiraxidae), with the description of a new species
Geodiversitas 45 (21)
The genus Palaeoglandina Wenz, 1914 (Gastropoda: Stylommatophora: Spiraxidae) is a common member of land snail communities in the European Cenozoic. It has been reported from numerous stratigraphic horizons in the Iberian Peninsula ranging from the Middle Eocene (Lutetian) to the Early Pleistocene (Calabrian). Investigating Late Miocene to Early Pliocene communities in the Teruel Basin in eastern Spain, we found that previous species records proved to be misidentifications of a yet undescribed species. Based on a thorough review of contemporaneous European species of the genus we introduce a new species, Palaeoglandina turolensis n. sp.
Tropical Deep-Sea Benthos volume 33
Deep-Sea Crustaceans from South-West Indian Ocean
Les îles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam (océan Indien sud)
Environnement marin et pêcheries
Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu (1748-1836)
fabrique d'une science botanique
L’art des ghostnets
approche anthropologique et esthétique des filets-fantômes
Atlas des oiseaux migrateurs de France
Museum manifesto.
On the Origins of Gender
Les palmes du savoir-faire
la vannerie dans les oasis du Sahara
Atlas des papillons de jour d'Aquitaine
