A century ago,tigers(Panthera tigris Linnaeus,1758)were so common in parts of Southeast Asia as to be considered pests,and governments sponsored their killing.Habitat loss and fragmentation,market-driven poaching and ...A century ago,tigers(Panthera tigris Linnaeus,1758)were so common in parts of Southeast Asia as to be considered pests,and governments sponsored their killing.Habitat loss and fragmentation,market-driven poaching and loss of prey have since led to the disappearance of Indochinese tigers from most their former range.Despite 15 years of dedicated tiger conservation funding,national estimates of Indochinese tiger subpopulations can at best only be roughly approximated.The future for the subspecies appears grim unless very focused efforts can be applied to stabilize and recover subpopulations.On a regional scale,the 2 proposed subspecies Panthera tigris corbetti and P.tigris jacksoni are effectively managed as separate conservation units.Evaluating where to place conservation efforts should consider the vulnerability(likelihood of extinction)and irreplaceability(likelihood that an area contributes uniquely to regional conservation)of tiger subpopulations.Only 1 site in Thailand supporting<200 individuals(Huai Kha Khaeng-Thung Yai)is considered low vulnerability,and is irreplaceable.Five sites in Lao,Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia are medium vulnerability and irreplaceable.Priorities at these 6 sites are to double tiger numbers within 10 years through protection and monitoring.Seven sites in Lao,Thailand and Myanmar are high vulnerability and irreplaceable,and might be recovered if government commitment to tigers,staff capacity and legal frameworks for tiger protection are established.Tigers are extremely vulnerable or even extinct in Cambodia’s Eastern Plains and the site is irreplaceable for tigers because it represents the only large(>10000 km^(2))block of dry forest habitat available in the region.A reintroduction program is the only option to recover tigers there.展开更多
Weaverbirds are a speciose group of colorful passerines inhabiting the Old World Tropics.Nevertheless,the Oriental weaverbirds(Ploceus spp.),widespread across southern Asia,are much less diverse and restricted to a fe...Weaverbirds are a speciose group of colorful passerines inhabiting the Old World Tropics.Nevertheless,the Oriental weaverbirds(Ploceus spp.),widespread across southern Asia,are much less diverse and restricted to a few ecological niches compared to their African counterpart.To investigate their phylogeography,we retrieved 101 samples of Baya Weaver(P.philippinus),Streaked Weaver(P.manyar),Black-Throated Weaver(P.benghalensis)and Asian Golden Weaver(P.hypoxanthus)along with GenBank sequences of Finn's Weaver(P.megarhynchus).We reconstructed the first molecular phylogeny based on a dataset consisting of both mitochondrial and nuclear genes,dating the most recent common ancestor of Oriental Ploceus to~11 mya.Subsequent speciation appears to have been a combination of divergence within the Indian subcontinent and dispersal across a barrier situated between the Indian subcontinent and the Indochinese region,which provided habitats with a varying degree of isolations and ultimately promoted divergences in allopatry.Two descendants of the earliest nodes,P.megarhynchus and P.hypoxanthus,are both rare and local,often found near large river systems,which perhaps reflects niche conservatism and a lack of adaptive potential.The three smaller species are all widespread,common and less habitat specific.The most recent divergence,between western and eastern P.philippinus populations,is supported by both phylogenetic and morphological evidence,pointing toward limited gene flow between them.However,a zone of intergradation may exist in Myanmar and Brahmaputra flood plains,thus preventing a recommendation for species level recognition without further study.展开更多
We describe a new karst-dwelling Cyrtodactylus from Ban Thathom, Xiangkhoang Province, northeastern Laos. The new species can be distinguished from other congeners by having four dark dorsal bands between limb inserti...We describe a new karst-dwelling Cyrtodactylus from Ban Thathom, Xiangkhoang Province, northeastern Laos. The new species can be distinguished from other congeners by having four dark dorsal bands between limb insertions, a discontinuous nucha~ loop, 10 precloacal pores in males or 10-12 precloacal pits （females） separated by a diastema from a series of enlarged femoral scales bearing 18 or 19 pores （male） or 8-10 pits （females） along each femur, 14-18 dorsal tubercle rows at midbody, no precloacal groove, 30-36 midbody scale rows across belly between ventrolateral skin folds, transversely enlarged subcaudal plates, and a maximal known snout-vent length of 75.5 mm. Our description brings to 22 the number of Cyrtodactylus species recorded from Laos.展开更多
文摘A century ago,tigers(Panthera tigris Linnaeus,1758)were so common in parts of Southeast Asia as to be considered pests,and governments sponsored their killing.Habitat loss and fragmentation,market-driven poaching and loss of prey have since led to the disappearance of Indochinese tigers from most their former range.Despite 15 years of dedicated tiger conservation funding,national estimates of Indochinese tiger subpopulations can at best only be roughly approximated.The future for the subspecies appears grim unless very focused efforts can be applied to stabilize and recover subpopulations.On a regional scale,the 2 proposed subspecies Panthera tigris corbetti and P.tigris jacksoni are effectively managed as separate conservation units.Evaluating where to place conservation efforts should consider the vulnerability(likelihood of extinction)and irreplaceability(likelihood that an area contributes uniquely to regional conservation)of tiger subpopulations.Only 1 site in Thailand supporting<200 individuals(Huai Kha Khaeng-Thung Yai)is considered low vulnerability,and is irreplaceable.Five sites in Lao,Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia are medium vulnerability and irreplaceable.Priorities at these 6 sites are to double tiger numbers within 10 years through protection and monitoring.Seven sites in Lao,Thailand and Myanmar are high vulnerability and irreplaceable,and might be recovered if government commitment to tigers,staff capacity and legal frameworks for tiger protection are established.Tigers are extremely vulnerable or even extinct in Cambodia’s Eastern Plains and the site is irreplaceable for tigers because it represents the only large(>10000 km^(2))block of dry forest habitat available in the region.A reintroduction program is the only option to recover tigers there.
基金supported by fellowships of the Ministry of Universities of the Spanish Government(María Zambrano/Next Generation EU)the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology(FCT,PTDC/BAA-AGR/28866/2017)to GF.
文摘Weaverbirds are a speciose group of colorful passerines inhabiting the Old World Tropics.Nevertheless,the Oriental weaverbirds(Ploceus spp.),widespread across southern Asia,are much less diverse and restricted to a few ecological niches compared to their African counterpart.To investigate their phylogeography,we retrieved 101 samples of Baya Weaver(P.philippinus),Streaked Weaver(P.manyar),Black-Throated Weaver(P.benghalensis)and Asian Golden Weaver(P.hypoxanthus)along with GenBank sequences of Finn's Weaver(P.megarhynchus).We reconstructed the first molecular phylogeny based on a dataset consisting of both mitochondrial and nuclear genes,dating the most recent common ancestor of Oriental Ploceus to~11 mya.Subsequent speciation appears to have been a combination of divergence within the Indian subcontinent and dispersal across a barrier situated between the Indian subcontinent and the Indochinese region,which provided habitats with a varying degree of isolations and ultimately promoted divergences in allopatry.Two descendants of the earliest nodes,P.megarhynchus and P.hypoxanthus,are both rare and local,often found near large river systems,which perhaps reflects niche conservatism and a lack of adaptive potential.The three smaller species are all widespread,common and less habitat specific.The most recent divergence,between western and eastern P.philippinus populations,is supported by both phylogenetic and morphological evidence,pointing toward limited gene flow between them.However,a zone of intergradation may exist in Myanmar and Brahmaputra flood plains,thus preventing a recommendation for species level recognition without further study.
基金partially supported by the Russian Foundation of Basic Research(RFBR 15-04-08393RFBR15-29-02771+3 种基金RFBR 17-54-54002_viet_aRFBR 18-04-00040)Preservation and storage of specimens was carried out with financial support from the Russian Science Foundation(RSF 14-50-00029)the frameworks of Russian State projects AAAA-A16116021660077-3 and AAAA-A17-117030310017-8
文摘We describe a new karst-dwelling Cyrtodactylus from Ban Thathom, Xiangkhoang Province, northeastern Laos. The new species can be distinguished from other congeners by having four dark dorsal bands between limb insertions, a discontinuous nucha~ loop, 10 precloacal pores in males or 10-12 precloacal pits （females） separated by a diastema from a series of enlarged femoral scales bearing 18 or 19 pores （male） or 8-10 pits （females） along each femur, 14-18 dorsal tubercle rows at midbody, no precloacal groove, 30-36 midbody scale rows across belly between ventrolateral skin folds, transversely enlarged subcaudal plates, and a maximal known snout-vent length of 75.5 mm. Our description brings to 22 the number of Cyrtodactylus species recorded from Laos.
