https://dialnet.unirioja.es/descarga/articulo/7943091.pdf

Identification of areas of endemism from species distribution models: threshold selection and Nearctic mammals

The acceptance of the generalized or unified concept of species (i.e. that species are segments of population lineages) implies that an important task for systematists is to focus on identifying lineages and on testing hypotheses about the acquisition of properties such as phenotypic diagnosability, reciprocal monophyly, or mechanisms of reproductive isolation. However, delimiting species objectively remains one of the most challenging problems faced by biologists. In the present study, we begin to tackle the thorny issue of species delimitation in a complicated group of Neotropical passerine birds (the Arremon torquatus complex, Emberizidae) in which sets of characters vary substantially across space, but do not obviously vary in a concerted fashion. To earlier discussions of species limits in the group, we add a historical perspective offered by a recent molecular phylogeny, present quantitative analyses of morphological and vocal variation, and incorporate ecological niche models as a new tool that aids species delimitation by highlighting cases of ecological distinctiveness and cases where populations appear to be in independent evolutionary trajectories, despite being connected by environments unlikely to represent barriers to gene flow. We demonstrate that at least one pair of taxa (and likely another) currently treated as conspecific are, in fact, distinct lineages that merit species status under essentially any species criterion. However, other pairwise comparisons are not as straightforward owing to nonconcordant patterns of variation in different traits and to the impossibility of distinguishing which characters are causes and which are consequences of reproductive (and evolutionary) isolation. After considering several alternatives, we propose a provisional classification of the complex recognizing eight tentative species-level taxa. Although this classification is likely to change as more detailed work is conducted, it provides a better foundation for studying the biology of these birds and helps to better describe their diversity, which is obscured when all taxa are subsumed into a single species name. The present study highlights several outstanding challenges, both practical and conceptual, for future studies. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2010, 99, 152–176.

https://www.museum.lsu.edu/cuervo/pubs_files/Cadena.Cuervo_BJLS2010.pdf

Molecules, ecology, morphology, and songs in concert: how many species is Arremon torquatus (Aves: Emberizidae)?

Adaptation of crops to climate change has motivated an increasing interest in the potential value of novel traits from wild species; maize wild relatives, the teosintes, harbor traits that may be useful to maize breeding To study the ecogeographic distribution of teosinte we constructed a robust database of 2363 teosinte occurrences from published sources for the period 1842-2016 A geographical information system integrating 216 environmental variables was created for Mexico and Central America and was used to characterize the environment of each teosinte occurrence site The natural geographic distribution of teosinte extends from the Western Sierra Madre of the State of Chihuahua, Mexico to the Pacific coast of Nicaragua and Costa Rica, including practically the entire western part of Mesoamerica The Mexican annuals Zea mays ssp parviglumis and Zea mays ssp mexicana show a wide distribution in Mexico, while Zea diploperennis, Zea luxurians, Zea perennis, Zea mays ssp huehuetenangensis, Zea vespertilio and Zea nicaraguensis had more restricted and distinct ranges, representing less than 20% of the total occurrences Only 112% of teosinte populations are found in Protected Natural Areas in Mexico and Central America Ecogeographical analysis showed that teosinte can cope with extreme levels of precipitation and temperatures during growing season Modelling teosinte geographic distribution demonstrated congruence between actual and potential distributions; however, some areas with no occurrences appear to be within the range of adaptation of teosintes Field surveys should be prioritized to such regions to accelerate the discovery of unknown populations Potential areas for teosintes Zea mays ssp mexicana races Chalco, Nobogame, and Durango, Zea mays ssp huehuetenangensis, Zea luxurians, Zea diploperennis and Zea nicaraguensis are geographically separated; however, partial overlapping occurs between Zea mays ssp parviglumis and Zea perennis, between Zea mays ssp parviglumis and Zea diploperennis, and between Zea mays ssp mexicana race Chalco and Zea mays ssp mexicana race Central Plateau Assessing priority of collecting for conservation showed that permanent monitoring programs and in-situ conservation projects with participation of local farmer communities are critically needed; Zea mays ssp mexicana (races Durango and Nobogame), Zea luxurians, Zea diploperennis, Zea perennis and Zea vespertilio should be considered as the highest priority taxa

/pdf/ecogeography-of-teosinte-2eex7y4mpn.pdf

Ecogeography of teosinte.

Understanding the mechanisms accounting for the evolution of phenotypic diversity is central to evolutionary biology. We use molecular and phenotypic data to test hypotheses for ‘leapfrog’ patterns of geographical variation, in which phenotypically similar, disjunct populations are separated by distinct populations of the same species. Phylogenetic reconstructions revealed independent evolution of melanic plumage characters in different populations in the Neotropical avian genus Arremon. Thus, phenotypic similarities between distant populations cannot be explained by close phylogenetic affinity. Nor can they be attributed to recurring mutations in the MC1R gene, a locus involved in melanic pigmentation. A coalescent analysis indicates that plumage traits have become fixed at a faster rate than expected under genetic drift, suggesting that selection underlies their repeated evolution. In contrast to views that genetic drift drives phenotypic differentiation in Neotropical montane birds, our results imply that geographical variation preceding speciation may reflect the action of deterministic selective processes.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1420-9101.2010.02175.x

Testing the molecular and evolutionary causes of a ‘leapfrog’ pattern of geographical variation in coloration

The Socotra archipelago lies in the Arabian Sea, c.350 km south of the Yemen mainland. Ecologically heavily influenced by the dry south-west monsoon that batters the islands in May–September, it boasts high endemism in plants, reptiles, insects and birds, which I will summarise. Whilst its avifauna is species-poor, with just 42 regular breeders, 11 are endemic, making it the richest area of avian endemism in the Middle East (along with the highlands of south-west Arabia). From 1999 to 2011, I have been engaged in mapping the distribution and determining the populations of the breeding species and I will present some of my findings. I will also talk briefly about the migrants that visit the islands and recent taxonomic studies that have added Socotra Buzzard Buteo socotraensis, Abd Al Kuri Sparrow Passer hemileucus and Socotra Goldenwinged Grosbeak Rhynchostruthus socotranus to the species list. My talk will end with my thoughts on future research and conservation. Biography: Richard Porter has had a continuing involvement in bird research and conservation in the Middle East since 1966, when he spent the autumn studying soaring bird migration over the Bosphorus. Whilst his early exploits were largely in Turkey, since 1979 most of his visits have been to Yemen, particularly Socotra, and Iraq, where he is the bird and conservation adviser to Nature Iraq. Richard, who is author of Birds of the Middle East, advises BirdLife International on their Middle East programme. 20 May 2014—5.30 pm—Annual General Meeting, followed at 6.30 pm by Guy Kirwan—Cuban birds at home and abroad, in the field and museum Abstract: This talk will provide an introduction to the birds of the largest Caribbean island, Cuba, which despite boasting the most speciose avifauna in the West Indies supports fewer endemics than either Hispaniola or tiny Jamaica. Nevertheless, depending on taxonomy, at least seven avian genera occur only on Cuba, as well as the world’s smallest bird, Bee Hummingbird Mellisuga helenae, while the country might yet prove to be the last bastion of one of the planet’s most iconic birds, Ivory-billed Woodpecker Campephilus principalis. Despite >150 years of ornithological exploration, our knowledge of Cuban birds is still advancing comparatively rapidly, especially with respect to their ecology and conservation, largely via the efforts of a few dedicated researchers, both Cuban and foreign. My talk will focus on the taxonomy, ecology and conservation of some of the most special of Cuba’s birds, as well as providing an introduction to travel in what was very briefly part of the British Empire! This talk will provide an introduction to the birds of the largest Caribbean island, Cuba, which despite boasting the most speciose avifauna in the West Indies supports fewer endemics than either Hispaniola or tiny Jamaica. Nevertheless, depending on taxonomy, at least seven avian genera occur only on Cuba, as well as the world’s smallest bird, Bee Hummingbird Mellisuga helenae, while the country might yet prove to be the last bastion of one of the planet’s most iconic birds, Ivory-billed Woodpecker Campephilus principalis. Despite >150 years of ornithological exploration, our knowledge of Cuban birds is still advancing comparatively rapidly, especially with respect to their ecology and conservation, largely via the efforts of a few dedicated researchers, both Cuban and foreign. My talk will focus on the taxonomy, ecology and conservation of some of the most special of Cuba’s birds, as well as providing an introduction to travel in what was very briefly part of the British Empire! Biography: Guy Kirwan has been a regular visitor to the Greater Antilles since the mid-1990s and is a co-author of a forthcoming checklist to Cuban birds. He is a freelance ornithologist and editor, notably of Bull. Brit. Orn. Cl., with strong interests in avian taxonomy and the breeding biology of birds in the New World tropics. A Research Associate at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, he recently joined the BOU’s Taxonomic Subcommittee and currently works for Lynx Edicions on the HBW Alive project. 23 September 2014—6.30 pm—Dr Andrew Gosler—Ethno-ornithology 22 November 2014—Joint meeting with the Oriental Bird Club and the Natural History Museum A one-day meeting in the Flett Theatre, Natural History Museum, South Kensington, London SW7 5BD starting at 10.30 am. Details to be announced The Chairman: Chris Storey, 22 Richmond Park Road, London SW14 8JT UK. Tel. +44 (0)208 8764728. E-mail: c.storey1@btinternet.com Chairman’s message Since 2003 and the publication of the The birds of Morocco, the BOC and the BOU have jointly published the Checklist series and other books (e.g. The bird atlas of Uganda). However, following a thorough review of its activities, the BOU has decided to withdraw from the publication of such titles with immediate effect. All BOU and joint BOU/BOC titles may of course still be purchased via the BOU website: www.bou.org.uk or from the BOU office, P.O. Box 417, Peterborough PE7 3FX, UK. The BOC Committee remains of the view that Checklists fit naturally with the Club’s aims and objectives, and make an important contribution to ornithological studies. Consequently, it is committed in principle to their continued publication and is now considering in detail the practicalities of undertaking this task as sole publisher, including discussion with the BOU and Dr David R. Wells, Checklist Commissioning Editor. The aim is to seek to resolve the many outstanding issues and to establish our intensions in time for the AGM in May. In the meantime any views and or comments would be gratefully received by David Wells or myself. Chris Storey Annual General Meeting The Annual General Meeting of the British Ornithologists’ Club will be held in the upstairs room at The Barley Mow, Horseferry Road, Westminster, London SW1P 2EE, at 5.30 pm on Tuesday 20 May 2014. Agenda 1. Apologies for absence 2. Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on 21 May 2013 (see Bull. Brit. Orn. Cl. 133: 165–166, and the BOC website). 3. Receive and consider the Chairman’s Review, the Trustees’ Report and the Accounts for 2013 (these will be available in the room before the start of the meeting). 4. The Bulletin Editor’s report—Mr G. M. Kirwan. 5. Election of Officers. The Committee proposes that: i. Dr R. P. Prŷs-Jones be re-elected as Hon. Secretary ii. Mr D. J. Montier be re-elected as Hon. Treasurer No other changes to the Committee are proposed as all other members are eligible to serve at least one more year in office. 6. Any other business, of which advance notice has been given. Gerlof Fokko Mees (1926–2013) Gerlof Mees, former bird curator at the Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie (RMNH) at Leiden, Netherlands, was born into a well-off family in Bloemendaal, Netherlands. Both his parents had a keen interest in natural history, and Gerlof was stimulated to study birds by them and by his uncle Jan Verwey, founder of Dutch research into bird migration and ethology. After completing secondary school, he started to study biology in Leiden, but this was soon interrupted by a stay on Java (1946–49) as part of the Dutch forces in the Indonesian independence war. His scarce spare time was spent birdwatching, and problems identifying the local white-eyes Zosterops brought him into contact with George Junge, then bird curator at RMNH. Junge permitted Mees to study the white-eyes in his care, and Gerlof also learned the practical work of a museum department. Though he specialised in fish research (thought to be more likely to produce employment than birds), Gerlof visited Trinidad & Tobago when still a student and collected birds during an eight-month stay in 1953/54, reporting on these together with his mentor (Junge & Mees 1958). Between May 1955 and July 1957 he was an assistant at RMNH, working in both the bird and fish departments. He obtained his doctorate in 1956. His study on white-eyes resulted in a thesis on the Indo-Australian Zosteropidae (Mees 1957). However, fishes still held his interest and Mees was appointed a curator at the Western Australian Museum in Perth in 1958 mainly for his fame as an ichthyologist. There he continued Bull. B.O.C. 2014 134(1) 1 Club Announcements Bulletin of the BRITISH ORNITHOLOGISTS’ CLUB Vol. 134 No. 1 Published 8 March 2014

Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club.

Range extensionsc taxonomic and ecological notes from Serranía de los Yariguíesc Colombia's new national park

S ummary .—A new subspecies of Anisognathus lacrymosus is described from Serrania de los Yariguies in the East Andes of Colombia. The new taxon differs in a combination of plumage characters, including a darker back and crown, from the geographically proximate subspecies A.l. tamae, A.l. pallididorsalis and A.l. olivaceiceps of the East and Central Andes, as well as, on average, having a longer tail than other East Andes populations. The darker plumage of the new subspecies resembles that of A.l. intensus of the West Andes (which also occurs in more humid habitats), presenting a ‘leap-frog’ pattern of geographic variation. The new subspecies is restricted to paramo and stunted Andean ridgetop habitats, apparently being endemic to the Yariguies massif. Analyses of biometrics, plumage and voice support species rank for A. (lacrymosus) melanogenys of the Santa Marta Mountains, as previously suggested by some authors. Subspecies A.l. melanops, A.l. pallididorsalis, A.l. yariguierum and A.l. lacrymosus represent phylogenetic species based on plumage, but a greater vocal sample is required to further analyse the rank of these and other populations.

/pdf/a-new-subspecies-of-mountain-tanager-in-the-anisognathus-48o0ddalxh.pdf

A new subspecies of mountain tanager in the Anisognathus lacrymosus complex from the Yariguíes Mountains of Colombia

In this study we compared bird species inventories from ornithological collections of San Pedro de los Milagros (Antioquia) and the results of recent rapid assessment fieldwork in the municipality. San Pedro is the type locality of Atlapetes blancae, a critically endangered bird species. Of the 155 bird species recorded in the municipality was presented, including 148 bird species recorded during fieldwork. In contrast, 43 species were recorded from ornithological collections, highlighting the importance and effectiveness of rapid assessment surveys. Nonetheless, seven species represented in collections were not recorded during fieldwork, for which possible explanations are discussed. It is suggested that the search for Atlapetes blancae should be carried out in other habitats and regions in northern Antioquia, as it we did not find it during fieldwork. Various new distributional records from fieldwork are also discussed.

Jorge Enrique Avendaño-C.

Papers

Range extensionsc taxonomic and ecological notes from Serranía de los Yariguíesc Colombia's new national park

A new subspecies of mountain tanager in the Anisognathus lacrymosus complex from the Yariguíes Mountains of Colombia

Avifauna de san pedro de los milagros, antioquia: una comparación entre colecciones antiguas y evaluaciones rápidas