The rediscovery of a relict unlocks the first global phylogeny of whip spiders (Amblypygi).

Asymmetrical rates of cladogenesis and extinction abound in the Tree of Life, resulting in numerous minute clades that are dwarfed by larger sister groups. Such taxa are commonly regarded as phylogenetic relicts or "living fossils" when they exhibit an ancient first appearance in the fossil record and prolonged external morphological stasis, particularly in comparison to their more diversified sister groups. Due to their special status, various phylogenetic relicts tend to be well-studied and prioritized for conservation. A notable exception to this trend is found within Amblypygi ("whip spiders"), a visually striking order of functionally hexapodous arachnids that are notable for their antenniform first walking leg pair (the eponymous "whips"). Paleoamblypygi, the putative sister group to the remaining Amblypygi, is known from Late Carboniferous and Eocene deposits, but is survived by a single living species, Paracharon caecus Hansen, 1921, that was last collected in 1899. Due to the absence of genomic sequence-grade tissue for this vital taxon, there is no global molecular phylogeny for Amblypygi to date, nor a fossil-calibrated estimation of divergences within the group. Here, we report a previously unknown species of Paleoamblypygi from a cave site in Colombia. Capitalizing upon this discovery, we generated the first molecular phylogeny of Amblypygi, integrating ultraconserved element sequencing with legacy Sanger datasets and including described extant genera. To quantify the impact of sampling Paleoamblypygi on divergence time estimation, we performed in silico experiments with pruning of Paracharon. We demonstrate that the omission of relicts has a significant impact on the accuracy of node dating approaches that outweighs the impact of excluding ingroup fossils, which bears upon the ancestral range reconstruction for the group. Our results underscore the imperative for biodiversity discovery efforts in elucidating the phylogenetic relationships of "dark taxa", and especially phylogenetic relicts in tropical and subtropical habitats. The lack of reciprocal monophyly for Charontidae and Charinidae leads us to subsume them into one family, Charontidae, new synonymy.

The SISBIOTA-Diptera Brazilian Network: A long-term survey of Diptera from unexplored Brazilian Western Arc of Amazon, Cerrado, and Pantanal

ABSTRACT The SISBIOTA-BRASIL was a three-year multimillion-dollar research program of the Brazilian government to document plants and animals in endangered/understudied areas and biomes in Brazil. Distributional patterns and the historical events that generated them are extensively unknown regarding Brazilian fauna and flora. This deficiency hinders the development of conservation policies and the understanding of evolutionary processes. Conservation decisions depend on precise knowledge of the taxonomy and geographic distribution of species. Given such a premise, we proposed to research the diversity of Diptera of the Brazilian western arc of Amazon, Cerrado, and Pantanal in the states of Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, and Rondônia. Three important biomes of the South American continent characterize these Brazilian states: Amazon forest, Cerrado (Brazilian Savannah), and Pantanal. Besides their ecological relevance, these biomes historically lack intensive entomological surveys. Therefore, they are much underrepresented in the Brazilian natural history collections and in the scientific literature, which is further aggravated by the fact that these areas are being exponentially and rapidly converted to commercial lands. Our project involved over 90 collaborators from 24 different Brazilian institutions and one from Colombia among researchers, postdocs, graduate and undergraduate students, and technicians. We processed and analyzed nearly 300,000 specimens from ~60 families of Diptera collected with a large variety of methods in the sampled areas. Here, we provide a detailed overview of the genera and species diversity of 41 families treated. Our results point to a total of 2,130 species and 514 genera compiled and identified for the three states altogether, with an increase of 41% and 29% in the numbers of species and genera known for the three states combined, respectively. Overall, the 10 most species-rich families were Tachinidae, Cecidomyiidae, Tabanidae, Psychodidae, Sarcophagidae, Stratiomyidae, Bombyliidae, Syrphidae, Tephritidae, and Asilidae. The 10 most diverse in the number of genera were Tachinidae, Stratiomyidae, Asilidae, Mycetophilidae, Syrphidae, Tabanidae, Muscidae, Dolichopodidae, Sarcophagidae, and Chloropidae. So far, 111 scientific papers were published regarding taxonomic, phylogenetic, and biogeographical aspects of the studied families, with the description of 101 new species and three new genera. We expect that additional publications will result from this investigation because several specimens are now curated and being researched by specialists.

New species of Claudiotendipes Andersen, Mendes & Pinho and Tapajos Trivinho-Strixino, Silva & Oliveira from Brazil (Diptera, Chironomidae, Chironominae)

ABSTRACT Two recently revealed genera, Claudiotendipes, consisting of three distinct species, and the monotypic Tapajos, have new species described. We describe and figure Claudiotendipes gilbertoi sp. n., based on male adult specimens collected in the southern Atlantic Forest of Rio Grande do Sul State. Additionally, we describe and figure Tapajos froehlichi sp. n., from male adults collected in the Amazon Forest from Amazonas and Rondônia States. In order to place the newly described T. froehlichi sp. n., minor emendations have been made to the diagnosis and description of Tapajos.

A new marine intertidal chironomid from the Brazilian coast (Diptera: Chironomidae: Telmatogetoninae).

The male, female, pupa and larva of a new Neotropical chironomid species, Telmatogeton yamaguchiae sp. n., are described and illustrated. Specimens were collected in southeastern Brazilian coast.

Not endemic after all: Imparipecten Freeman, 1961 (Diptera: Chironomidae) described from the Neotropical Region.

Imparipecten, a previously monotypic genus, was considered endemic to Australia. Here, we report Imparipecten from the Neotropical region for the first time and describe Imparipecten sychnacanthus sp. n. from Brazil. The association between larvae and adults was established by sequencing a fragment of one ribosomal gene (28S), two fragments of a nuclear protein-coding gene (CAD1 and CAD4), and one mitochondrial protein-coding gene (COI). We also show the close molecular proximity with Imparipecten pictipes through analyses of genetic distances and Bayesian phylogenetics.

New species and records of Zavreliella Kieffer, 1920 from Neotropical region (Diptera: Chironomidae).

A new species of Zavreliella Kieffer, Zavreliella kambeba sp. n., is described, based on male adults collected in the Amazon rainforest, Brazil. Further seven Zavreliella species are recorded for new localities in Brazil, with the first Neotropical record of Z. marmorata (van der Wulp). The genus Zavreliella is now composed of 15 species, of which adult males are reviewed in a key to their identification.

New species and records of Oukuriella Epler, 1986 from the Neotropical region (Diptera: Chironomidae).

Two new species of Oukuriella, O. angelomachadoi sp. nov. (Holotype male deposited in MZUSP: BRAZIL, Paraná State) and O. plumaterata sp. nov. (Holotype male deposited in MZUSP: BRAZIL, São Paulo State), and the immatures stages of O. sublettei are described and figured. The larvae of O. sublettei were collected from submerged woods in low-order streams in the Atlantic Forest. In addition new records of several described species, including the first records of Oukuriella from Mexico and Bolivia are given.

An Asiatic Chironomid in Brazil: morphology, DNA barcode and bionomics.

In most freshwater ecosystems, aquatic insects are dominant in terms of diversity; however, there is a disproportionately low number of records of alien species when compared to other freshwater organisms. The Chironomidae is one aquatic insect family that includes some examples of alien species around the world. During a study on aquatic insects in Amazonas state (Brazil), we collected specimens of Chironomidae that are similar, at the morphological level, to Chironomuskiiensis Tokunaga and Chironomusstriatipennis Kieffer, both with distributions restricted to Asia. The objectives of this study were to provide morphological information on this Chironomus population, to investigate its identity using DNA barcoding and, to provide bionomic information about this species. Chironomus DNA barcode data were obtained from GenBank and Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) and, together with our data, were analyzed using the neighbor-joining method with 1000 bootstrap replicates and the genetic distances were estimated using the Kimura-2-parameter. At the morphological level, the Brazilian population cannot be distinguished either from Chironomusstriatipennis or Chironomuskiiensis, configuring a species complex but, at the molecular level our studied population is placed in a clade together with Chironomusstriatipennis, from South Korea. Bionomic characteristics of the Brazilian Chironomus population differ from the ones of Chironomuskiiensis from Japan, the only species in this species complex with bionomic information available. The Brazilian Chironomus population has a smaller size, the double of the number of eggs and inhabits oligotrophic water, in artificial container. In the molecular analysis, populations of Chironomusstriatipennis and Chironomuskiiensis are placed in a clade, formed by two groups: Group A (which includes populations from both named species, from different Asiatic regions and our Brazilian population) and Group B (with populations of Chironomuskiiensis from Japan and South Korea). Genetic distance between the Brazilian population and specimens in Group A suggests that it was recently introduced in Brazil, and that its country of origin is probably South Korea.

Three new species of Polypedilum Kieffer (Diptera: Chironomidae) from Neotropical region.

Three new species of Polypedilum from Brazil, belonging to subgenera Tripodura and Pentapedilum are described and illustrated. P. (Pe.) puri sp. n. and P. (Tr.) guato sp. n. are described based on male adults and P. (Tr.) kadiweu sp. n. on male adult, pupa and larva.

A new species of Forcipomyia (Microhelea) Meigen (Insecta: Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) from the Neotropical region.

We describe and illustrate a new species of biting midge belonging to the subgenus Forcipomyia (Microhelea), from the Estação Biológica de Boracéia, São Paulo State, Brazil. We include illustrations of the mouthparts, head, thorax, legs, abdominal setae, and habitus. The new species is similar to the few other recorded Neotropical species of biting midges, such as Forcipomyia (Microhelea) alleni, Forcipomyia (Microhelea) castneri, Forcipomyia (Microhelea) grandcolasi, and Forcipomyia (Microhelea) tettigonaris. However, it can be distinguished by the combination of external characters, such as the number of plates on the maxilla, the number of denticles on the mandible, the size of the labellum, and the morphology of the palpus. The two female specimens examined were found biting on a female stick bug, Paraphasma paulense (Phasmida: Pseudophasmatidae), which was attracted to a light trap.

A new species of Stempellina Thienemann & Bause from Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil (Diptera, Chironomidae)

A new species of Stempellina Thienemann & Bause from Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil (Diptera, Chironomidae). The male imago of Stempellina sofiae sp. nov. is described and illustrated based on material collected in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, during the expeditions of the project SISBIOTA Brazil. One of the core focuses of this project is identifying and describing new species of Diptera from central Brazil. The new species herein presented can be easily segregated by their congeneric by the rounded shape of the superior volsella.

A new species of sponge-dwelling Oukuriella (Chironomidae) from Brazil.

Oukuriella Epler, 1986 is an exclusively Neotropical genus that comprises two well supported clades: inhabitants of freshwater sponges and inhabitants of immersed wood (saproxylophilic). In this work, males of a new chironomid species, Oukuriella froehlichi sp. n., are described and illustrated. Specimens were collected near stream in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Phylogenetic analyses performed in this study show that the newly discovered species belongs in the clade of freshwater sponge inhabitants.

Review of Xenochironomus Kieffer, 1921 (Diptera: Chironomidae) with description of six new species.

The genus Xenochironomus Kieffer is reviewed. Five new species are described from Brazil, X. alaidae, X. amazonensis and X. martini as male; X. grini and X. mendesi as male, pupa and larva, and X. ethiopensis from Ethiopia is described as adult male. X. canterburyensis (Freeman) is redescribed as male, pupa and larva; X. trochanteratus (Thompson), X. trisetosus (Kieffer), X. ugandae (Goetghebuer) and X. tuberosus Wang as males; notes on X. xenolabis (Kieffer), X. flaviventris (Kieffer), X. longicrus (Kieffer), X. lacertus Dutta et Chaudhuri and X. ceciliae Roque et Trivinho-Strixino are also given. The species X. nigricaudus Hashimoto is recognized as nomen dubium. Keys to males, pupae and larvae are presented.