Search results for "Biogeography"

Molecular phylogeny of the families Campulidae and Nasitrematidae (Trematoda) based on mtDNA sequence comparison.

1998

Abstract Historically, the systematic arrangement of the genera within the family Campulidae, and its relationship with its allied family Nasitrematidae have been rather confused, particularly because only adult morphology has been available to classical taxonomic analysis. In this paper we provide a partial phylogeny of the genera of these families based on mtDNA from five campulid species: Campula oblonga, Zalophotrema atlanticum, Hadwenius tursionis, Oschmarinella rochebruni and ; and one nasitrematid, Nasitremaglobicephalae . Fasciola hepatica and Dicrocoelium dendriticum were used as outgroups. Maximum parsimony and neighbour-joining methods were applied. Both methods produced similar …

Paleobiology and paleobiogeography of sclerorhynchid sawfishes (Chondrichthyes, Batomorphii)

2021

Sclerorhynchid sawfishes are a monophyletic group of Cretaceous selachians. They resemble modern sawfishes in the outer morphology and by having a hypertrophic rostral cartilage armed with lateral rows of spines. Generally, sclerorhynchid sawfishes were inhabitants of warm, shallow tropical and subtropical marine environments. Teeth of the oldest sclerorhynchid sawfishes from Spain are presented. They belong to Onchopristis Stromer and come from the lower Barrernian of eastern Spain. The paleobiology and paleogeographic pattern of sclerorhynchid sawfishes is reviewed and discussed.

MONOTROPA HYPOPHEGEA WALLR., A NEW RECORD FOR THE SICILIAN FLORA

2014

During field investigations in the Mountains around Palermo, an unusual population of Monotropa sp. was found. After revision of the taxonomic literature and herbarium specimens, it was referred to Monotropa hypophegea Wallr. This species is closely related to M. hypopytis L., and in the past was considered only a variety (Pignatti 1982) or a subspecies (Křisa 1972) ) of it. More recently this entity has been considered an independent taxon deserving the rank of species (Conti et al. 2005). The most important morphological differences between the two taxa are the number of flowers in the raceme and the hairiness of sepals, petals and capsule. The individuals of the observed population have …

Historical biogeography of olive domestication (Olea europaea L.) as revealed by geometrical morphometry applied to biological and archaeological mat…

2003

Aim  This study intends to improve our understanding of historical biogeography of olive domestication in the Mediterranean Basin, particularly in the north-western area. Location  Investigations were performed simultaneously on olive stones from extant wild populations, extant cultivated varieties from various Mediterranean countries, and archaeological assemblages of Spanish, French and Italian settlements. Methods  A combination of morphometrics (traditional and geometrical) allowed us to study both the size and shape of endocarp structure. Concerning shape, a size-standardized method coupled with fitted polynomial regression analysis was performed. Results  We found morphological criter…

Multiple overseas dispersal in amphibians

2003

Amphibians are thought to be unable to disperse over ocean barriers because they do not tolerate the osmotic stress of salt water. Their distribution patterns have therefore generally been explained by vicariance biogeography. Here, we present compelling evidence for overseas dispersal of frogs in the Indian Ocean region based on the discovery of two endemic species on Mayotte. This island belongs to the Comoro archipelago, which is entirely volcanic and surrounded by sea depths of more than 3500 m. This constitutes the first observation of endemic amphibians on oceanic islands that did not have any past physical contact to other land masses. The two species of frogs had previously been tho…

Oldest Homo and Pliocene biogeography of the Malawi Rift

1993

The Malawi Rift and Pliocene palaeofaunas, which include a hominid mandible attributed to Homo rudolfensis, provide a biogeographical link between the better known Plio-Pleistocene faunal records of East and Southern Africa. The Malawi Rift is in a latitudinal position suitable for recording any hominid and faunal dispersion towards the Equator that was brought on by increased aridity of the Late Pliocene African landscape. The evidence suggests that Pliocene hominids originated in the eastern African tropical domain and dispersed to southern Africa only during more favourable ecological circumstances.

The overlapping burden of the three leading causes of disability and death in sub-Saharan African children

2022

Publisher Copyright: © 2022, The Author(s). Despite substantial declines since 2000, lower respiratory infections (LRIs), diarrhoeal diseases, and malaria remain among the leading causes of nonfatal and fatal disease burden for children under 5 years of age (under 5), primarily in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The spatial burden of each of these diseases has been estimated subnationally across SSA, yet no prior analyses have examined the pattern of their combined burden. Here we synthesise subnational estimates of the burden of LRIs, diarrhoea, and malaria in children under-5 from 2000 to 2017 for 43 sub-Saharan countries. Some units faced a relatively equal burden from each of the three diseas…

BIOGEOGRAPHY OF TERTIARY PRIMATES: DISCUSSION OF AN UPDATED DATABASE

2009

Biogeography of Tertiary Primates: Discussion over an updated Data Base

2009

A preliminary taxonomic evaluation of the Tertiary Primate fossil record of the Old World is presented. The dataset has been compiled using the information and the structure presented by the NOW database (Neogene Mammalian of the Old World; Academy of Finland, 2007), strongly updated with the additional information derived from different literature sources. A quantitative methodology for compilation and analysis of the data has been applied following the methodology described in Petruso et al. (2008). The adopted numerical treatment of data is particularly effective in synthesizing and analyzing the large amount of information contained in the data set. This analysis gives a synthetic pictu…

Taxas de substituições das Annonaceas: uma perspectiva do modelo códon

2014

The Annonaceae includes cultivated species of economic interest and represents an important source of information for better understanding the evolution of tropical rainforests. In phylogenetic analyses of DNA sequence data that are used to address evolutionary questions, it is imperative to use appropriate statistical models. Annonaceae are cases in point: Two sister clades, the subfamilies Annonoideae and Malmeoideae, contain the majority of Annonaceae species diversity. The Annonoideae generally show a greater degree of sequence divergence compared to the Malmeoideae, resulting in stark differences in branch lengths in phylogenetic trees. Uncertainty in how to interpret and analyse these…