PHYLOGENY AND ZOOGEOGRAPHY OF THE CYPRINID GENUS Spinibarbus (Pisces: Cyprinidae)

The cyprinid genus Spinibarbus consists of 5 species. They form into a monophyly by three synapomorphies. Based on 19 external and skeletal characters, the most parsimonious cladogram is constructed for Spinibarbus fishes. Sister groups A (S. hollandi) and B-E (S. sinensis + S. denticulatus + S. yunnanensis + S. polylepis) represent the first phyletic branching within the genus Spinibarbus. The phyletic division of second sister groups B (S. sinensis) and C-E (S. denticulatus + S. yunnanensis + S. polylepis) is supposed to be resulted from the upheaval of Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau and the subsequent drainages' division. The phyletic division of third sister groups C (S. denticulatus) and D^E (S. yunnanensis + S. polylepis) is supposed to be resulted from the environmental differentiation between Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau and the lowlands of middle and lower Pearl and Yuanjiang Rivers.

SUBSPECIFIC DIFFERENTIATION OF Paracobitis variegatus WITH COMMENTS ON ITS ZOOGEOGRAPHY

The distribution of the loach Paracobitis variegatus is confined to upper Yangtze, Huanghe and Nanpanjiang drainages. The number of branched dorsal fin rays, morphology of anterior nostril, colour pattern of head and the length of maxillary barbel indicate that it has differentiated into two subspecies. Both subspecies are isolated geographically: P. variegatus variegatus restricted to the upper Yangtze and the upper Huanghe Rivers, and P. variegatus longidorsalis, new subspecies, to the upper Nanpanjiang River. The subspecific differentiation is supposed to correlated to the sharp uplift of the eastern Yunnan Plateau during late Pleistocene. The taxonomic status of Nemachilus berezowsku Gunther, 1896 and Nemacheilus oxygnathus Regan, 1908 are also discussed and they are considered to be the synonyms of P. variegatus variegatus.

Cenozoic Tethyan changes dominated Eurasian animal evolution and diversity patterns

Cenozoic tectonic evolution in the Tethyan region has greatly changed the landforms and environment of Eurasia,driving the evolution of animals and greatly affecting the diversity patterns of Eurasian animals.By combining the latest Tethyan paleogeographic models and some recently published Eurasian zoological studies,we systematically summarize how tectonic evolution in the Tethyan region has influenced the evolution and diversity patterns of Eurasian animals.The convergence of continental plates,closure of Tethys Sea,and Tethyan sea-level changes have directly affected the composition and spatial distribution of Eurasian animal diversity.The topographic and environmental changes caused by Tethyan tectonics have determined regional animal diversity in Eurasia by influencing animal origin,dispersal,preservation,diversification,and extinction.The ecological transformations resulted in the emergence of new habitats and niches,which promoted animal adaptive evolution,specialization,speciation,and expansion.We highlight that the Cenozoic tectonic evolution of the Tethyan region has been responsible for much of the alteration in Eurasian animal distribution and has been an essential force in shaping organic evolution.Furthermore,we generalize a general pattern that Tethyan geological events are linked with Eurasian animal evolution and diversity dynamics.

Geographic ranges of ascidians from Antarctica and the southeastern Pacific

Historical and novel data on the geographic and bathymetric distribution of ascidians from Antarctic, Magellan and Chilean waters are compiled, and an inventory of taxa comprising 162 species reported over a 150 year period from the Antarctic region South Polar Province （SPP） compiled. The ascidian fauna from the South Shetland Islands （SSI） is compared with that of the Magellan region, Patagonia and the Chilean coast. We collected 46 ascidian species along the Chilean coast, and during four expeditions to King George Island （SSI） by SCUBA between 2003-2012. About 15% of King George Island （SSI） species are observed to occur also in shallow waters of southern Chile （SCL）. Few species known from warm temperate southeastern Pacific （Northern Chile, NCL） waters are absent from the Chilean part of the Magellan Province （SCL）. With most data contributed from the Chilean coast coming from the SCL, and with limited sampling having been undertaken at depths exceeding 100 m in the NCL, apparent differences in species richness along the Chilean coast could be attributabed to differential sampling effort. We detail 12 species from our Antarctic and Chilean collections in detail, including one, Diplosoma listerianum, not previously reported from Chilean waters, and the genus Botryllus, previously known from them on the basis of a single record.

On the historical biogeography of global Galliformes:ancestral range and diversification patterns

Background: In this study, the ancestral distributional ranges and the tempo of diversification patterns of global Galliformes were investigated.Methods: Different diversification models characterizing possible tempo patterns were fitted and compared onto the phylogenetic tree for the 197 Galliforme species, consisting of a constant-speciation and constant-extinction model(CONSTANT), a decreasing-speciation and constant-extinction model(SPVAR), a constant-speciation and increasing-extinction model(EXVAR) and a decreasing-speciation and increasing-extinction model(BOTHVAR).Ancestral range reconstruction was conducted using the dispersal-extinction-cladogenesis model.Results: A constant-diversification-rate(CONSTANT) model best quantified the historical speciation patterns of this avian assemblage through model selection. Clade age and species richness are significantly and positively correlated. The most recent common ancestor for Galliformes species was originally found in the disjunctive regions between Southeast Asia and North America. High-frequency dispersal events were identified across the whole evolutionary time.Conclusions: The constant diversification rate for global Galliforme species implied that there were no diversification rate-shifting trends for Galliformes species. The present study may contribute to the understanding of the ecology and diversity patterns of Galliformes from the perspective of historical biogeography, although some limitations existed.

Comparative Data of Millipedes＇ Distribution in Southern Region of Albania

This is a study about the zoographical and taxonomy aspects of Diplopoda class in Albania. Based on the published studies of foreign and Albanian researchers, we have analyzed the current level of information about the distribution of this class in Albania. In this study we mainly focused in the Southern Region of Albania by assessing the biodiversity of the diplopods. The study area covers the Ionian coast and parts of Vjosa river valley. This study has made use of determination key of Mauries J. color, number of segments, number of paired limbs to distinguish the different species. The collected data are compared with previous findings by Verhoeff （1901）, Attems （1929）, Manfredi （1945）, Mauriès, Go lovatch, Stoev （1997） etc. The distribution range of the collected species is presented according to the national or Balkan level. Based on the recent studies and the geographical distribution of diplopods, we expect to find approximately 150 species of 50 genres in Albania.

Diversity of the rodent communities in the Turan Desert region

We assessed the diversity of rodent communities in the deserts of Russia,Kazakhstan,and Central Asia using geographic information system technology.There are 66 species of rodents,belonging to eight faunistic complexes,inhabiting this area.We discuss the geographical changes occurring in taxonomic and zoogeographic diversity at both species and community levels.Communities of gerbils and jerboas dominate in the Turan Desert region(66%of the area).Steppe communities of susliks penetrate the deserts from the north.Farming in deserts causes the replacement of native rodent communities with mouse communities or completely eradicates rodents in their main habitats.