Wu, Y.K., Wang, Y.Z. & Hanken, J., 2012.
Comparative Osteology of the Genus Pachytriton (Caudata: Salamandridae) from Southeastern China.
Asian Herpetological Research , 3 , pp. 83-102.
AbstractOsteological evidence provides invaluable insights into patterns of amphibian biodiversity. In small montane streams of southeastern China, an endemic genus of salamanders (Pachytriton) displays remarkable aquatic specializations, many of which are reflected in skeletal morphology, but these specializations remain to be studied in an integrated perspective. Attempts to fully resolve the taxonomy within the genus also can benefit from knowledge of internal morphology. We present a detailed description of the adult skeleton of P. brevipes, P. inexpectatus and P. archospotus by analyzing both cleared-and-stained and radiographed specimens in a comparative framework. Compared to terrestrial and amphibious salamanders, the most distinctive osteological features of Pachytriton include a modified hyobranchial apparatus, a reduced frontosquamosal arch, and deep neural and haemal arches of the caudal vertebrae. The hyobranchial apparatus of P. archospotus is distinctly different from that of congeners and likely secondarily derived. Patterns of interspecific variation suggest that northeastern P. inexpectatus is more closely related to P. brevipes than it is to southwestern P. inexpectatus, thereby reinforcing results from earlier molecular phylogenetic analyses. We advocate assigning northeastern P. inexpectatus to P. brevipes.
PDF Dou, L., et al., 2012.
Kurator: A Kepler Package for Data Curation Workflows.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Computational Science, Iccs 2012 , 9 , pp. 1614-1619.
AbstractData curation is critical for scientific data digitization, sharing, integration, and use. This paper presents Kurator, a software package for automating data curation pipelines in the Kepler scientific workflow system. Several curation tools and services are integrated into this package as actors to enable construction of workflows to perform and document various data curation tasks. The integration of Google cloud services (e. g., Google spreadsheets), allows workflow steps to invoke human experts outside the workflow in a manner that greatly simplifies the complex data handling in distributed, multi-user curation workflows. The Kepler platform provides the modeling, execution and management ability, including a collection-oriented model of computation (COMAD), and provenance tracking and browsing for the curation package. These features not only allow workflows to be easily modeled, maintained, and evolved, but also QA/QC of curation results is facilitated through examination of provenance information recorded during workflow execution. Effectiveness of the Kurator package is demonstrated through a workflow for data curation of natural science collections.
PDF Wheeler, Q.D., et al., 2012.
Mapping the biosphere: exploring species to understand the origin, organization and sustainability of biodiversity.
Systematics and Biodiversity , 10 , pp. 1-20.
AbstractThe time is ripe for a comprehensive mission to explore and document Earth's species. This calls for a campaign to educate and inspire the next generation of professional and citizen species explorers, investments in cyber-infrastructure and collections to meet the unique needs of the producers and consumers of taxonomic information, and the formation and coordination of a multi-institutional, international, transdisciplinary community of researchers, scholars and engineers with the shared objective of creating a comprehensive inventory of species and detailed map of the biosphere. We conclude that an ambitious goal to describe 10 million species in less than 50 years is attainable based on the strength of 250 years of progress, worldwide collections, existing experts, technological innovation and collaborative teamwork. Existing digitization projects are overcoming obstacles of the past, facilitating collaboration and mobilizing literature, data, images and specimens through cyber technologies. Charting the biosphere is enormously complex, yet necessary expertise can be found through partnerships with engineers, information scientists, sociologists, ecologists, climate scientists, conservation biologists, industrial project managers and taxon specialists, from agrostologists to zoophytologists. Benefits to society of the proposed mission would be profound, immediate and enduring, from detection of early responses of flora and fauna to climate change to opening access to evolutionary designs for solutions to countless practical problems. The impacts on the biodiversity, environmental and evolutionary sciences would be transformative, from ecosystem models calibrated in detail to comprehensive understanding of the origin and evolution of life over its 3.8 billion year history. The resultant cyber-enabled taxonomy, or cybertaxonomy, would open access to biodiversity data to developing nations, assure access to reliable data about species, and change how scientists and citizens alike access, use and think about biological diversity information.
PDF Wu, Y.K., Wang, Y.Z. & Hanken, J., 2012.
New species of Pachytriton (Caudata: Salamandridae) from the Nanling Mountain Range, southeastern China.
Zootaxa , pp. 1-16.
AbstractNew species of amphibians are being reported at an astonishingly fast rate. These include some that have been known to the commercial pet trade for years but have not been formally described due to uncertain origin. The distinctive phenotype of "Pachytriton B" among the Chinese stout newts (also known as paddle-tailed newts) is one such example. Through examination of museum specimens, we locate a population from Mt. Mang within the Nanling Mountain Range with morphology and coloration similar to Pachytriton B. Molecular phylogenetic analyses strongly suggest that this population and Pachytriton B belong to the same species, which differs from congeners morphologically and chromatically and is described here as a new species. This species is characterized by a large and stout body, uniformly light brown dorsum, and orange spots or blotches that extend ribbon-like along the dorsolateral sides of the body. A mitochondrial genealogy suggests that the new species is the sister taxon to the group (P. brevipes + P. feii). Morphologically, this species is significantly stouter than P. feii and has significantly longer limbs than P. brevipes.
PDF Zimkus, B.M., et al., 2012.
Terrestrialization, Miniaturization and Rates of Diversification in sub-Saharan Frogs (Anura: Phrynobatrachidae).
Plos One , 7 , pp. 1-11 e35118.
AbstractTerrestrialization, the evolution of non-aquatic oviposition, and miniaturization, the evolution of tiny adult body size, are recurring trends in amphibian evolution, but the relationships among the traits that characterize these phenomena are not well understood. Furthermore, these traits have been identified as possible "key innovations'' that are predicted to increase rates of speciation in those lineages in which they evolve. We examine terrestrialization and miniaturization in sub-Saharan puddle frogs (Phrynobatrachidae) in a phylogenetic context to investigate the relationship between adaptation and diversification through time. We use relative dating techniques to ascertain if character trait shifts are associated with increased diversification rates, and we evaluate the likelihood that a single temporal event can explain the evolution of those traits. Results indicate alternate reproductive modes evolved independently in Phrynobatrachus at least seven times, including terrestrial deposition of eggs and terrestrial, non-feeding larvae. These shifts towards alternate reproductive modes are not linked to a common temporal event. Contrary to the "key innovations'' hypothesis, clades that exhibit alternate reproductive modes have lower diversification rates than those that deposit eggs aquatically. Adult habitat, pedal webbing and body size have no effect on diversification rates. Though these traits putatively identified as key innovations for Phrynobatrachus do not seem to be associated with increased speciation rates, they may still provide opportunities to extend into new niches, thus increasing overall diversity.
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