Katydids (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae) from the Iguau National Park, Brazil.

Katydids were surveyed in the Iguau National Park (ParNa Iguau), the largest preserve of the Interior Atlantic Forest in Brazil. Sampling was carried out in three different areas of the ParNa Iguau, including its two predominant phytophysiognomies (Seasonal Semidecidual Forest and Mixed Ombrophilous Forest), and consisted of diurnal and nocturnal active searching for katydids and also using light traps. After collected, specimens were reared until adulthood in order to record their calling songs. Almost a thousand katydids were collected, belonging to 89 species and five subfamilies. Phaneropterinae appeared as the most speciose subfamily (57 species), followed by Conocephalinae (22), Meconematinae and Pseudophyllinae, each one with four species, and Pterochrozinae (two species). Several species were recorded for the first time for the Paran State, for the South Region of Brazil, and also for the country. Calling songs of 34 species were recorded, 29 of them unknown to science. The description of the sound produced by species of some supraspecific taxa (e.g., Aniarae, Cosmophylla and Scaphurae) is here presented for the first time. Data reinforce the relevance of ParNa Iguau for the maintenance of thousands of species from different taxonomic groups and also highlight the catastrophic effects that continuous pressures and threats on the preserve, despite the successive attempts to downgrade this conservation unit, may have on the outstanding biodiversity that is harboured by ParNa Iguau.

Three new Anaulacomera species (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae) from the Iguau National Park and nearby areas, southern Brazil.

Three new species of Anaulacomera are described, Anaulacomera (Anaulacomera) mariellae sp. n. and Anaulacomera (Anallomes) arlindoi sp. n., belonging respectively to the Inermis and Lanceolata species group, and Anaulacomera angelinae sp. n., placed as incertae sedis. The individuals were collected at the Iguau National Park and adjacent small fragments of Atlantic Forest, in southwestern Paran state, Brazil. The description was based on external morphology of males. We also present distribution maps for the species of the Inermis and the Lanceolata species groups.

Conservation optimism and reckoning with the future.

Article impact statement: The optimism permeating biological conservation should be recalibrated considering the future that present times portend.

Xenicola brauni sp. n., a new katydid species (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae:Phaneropterinae) from the Atlantic Forest, southeastern Brazil.

A new species of Xenicola Uvarov, 1940 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae), X. brauni sp. n., is described from the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil. Morphological comparisons with all other known species of Xenicola are presented and discussed. This is the first record of Xenicola in southeastern Brazil, and is also the northernmost record of the genus within the Brazilian Atlantic Forest.

On brachypterous phaneropterine katydids (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae:br />Phaneropterinae) from the Iguaçu National Park, Brazil: three new species, new record and bioacoustics.

The species of brachypterous Phaneropterinae (Tettigoniidae) inhabiting the Iguaçu National Park, Paraná, Brazil, were studied. Four species have been recognized, Anisophya melanochloris (Rehn, 1911) and three new species described here: Anisophya una sp. n., as well as Xenicola taroba sp. n. and Xenicola xukrixi sp. n. We present relevant characters used in Orthoptera taxonomy, such as male genitalia, male and female stridulatory files, cerci and subgenital plates for all four species. Calling songs of three species are also described. X. xukrixi sp. n. stands out by its high carrier frequency with a peak above 70 kHz.

Bait traps remain attractive to euglossine bees even after two weeks: a report from Brazilian Atlantic forest

ABSTRACT Bait traps are effective and commonly used method in the studies of orchid bees. Important questions in the context of this method, including those related to bait dispersion, how long baits remain attractive, the distance from which males are supposed to be attracted to lures and so on, are still open subjects. Data on the attractiveness of bait traps that have remained in the field during two weeks in a large Atlantic forest preserve are presented. Four main results emerge from the data: (i) the abundance of specimens collected per day decreased in all the attractants as the traps were left on the field; (ii) despite this decrease, the absolute number of individuals collected after eight and fifteen days is remarkably, mostly in eugenol and vanillin baits; (iii) the vast majority of species, 22 of 25, was already collected on the first sample day; (iv) a consistent variation in the relative abundance of individuals collected in each scent as collections were made. We urge that bait traps should not be left in the field beyond what is strictly necessary since there is a real possibility of collecting a significant number of individuals as these traps remain available.

A new Anaulacomera species (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae: Phaneropterinae) from the Iguaçu National Park, southern Brazil.

A new species of Anaulacomera, A. trispinata sp. n., of the poculigera group is described from the Iguaçu National Park, a large remnant of Atlantic Forest in southern Brazil. This is the first record of the poculigera group both for Brazil and for the Atlantic Forest domain. The overall morphology of both males and females is presented, besides the calling songs of males.

News from the west: the orchid bees from Parque Nacional do Iguaçu, Paraná, Brazil (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossina) / Notícias do oeste: as abelhas-das-orquídeas do Parque Nacional do Iguaçu, Paraná, Brasil (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossina)

Abstract: Orchid bees were surveyed at Parque Nacional do Iguaçu, the largest remnant of Seasonal Semideciduous Forest in Brazil. Seven species were collected, and Eufriesea violacea (Blanchard) was the most common species, followed by Euglossa annectans Dressler. The observed species richness and species composition agree with what is known for the local euglossine faunas in fragments of Seasonal Semideciduous Forest of southern and southeastern Brazil. On the other hand, the abundance of individuals was remarkably low. The occurrence of a severe winter in 2013 and the collection of several males in other fragments suggest that this noteworthy low abundance can be fortuitous.

Resumo: Abelhas-das-orquídeas foram amostradas no Parque Nacional do Iguaçu, o maior fragmento de Floresta Estacional Semidecidual do Brasil. Sete espécies foram coletadas e Eufriesea violacea (Blanchard) foi a espécie mais comum, seguida por Euglossa annectans Dressler. A riqueza e composição de espécies observadas concordam com o que se conhece para as faunas locais de abelhas euglossinas em fragmentos de Floresta Estacional Semidecidual. Por outro lado, a abundância de indivíduos foi notavelmente baixa. A ocorrência de um inverno severo em 2013 e a coleta de muitos machos em outros fragmentos sugerem que tal baixa abundância pode ser fortuita.

Diploid male dynamics under different numbers of sexual alleles and male dispersal abilities.

Insects in the order Hymenoptera (bees, wasps and ants) present an haplodiploid system of sexual determination in which fertilized eggs become females and unfertilized eggs males. Under single locus complementary sex-determination (sl-CSD) system, the sex of a specimen depends on the alleles at a single locus: when diploid, an individual will be a female if heterozygous and male if homozygous. Significant diploid male (DM) production may drive a population to an extinction scenario called "diploid male vortex". We aimed at studying the dynamics of populations of a sl-CSD organism under several combinations of two parameters: male flight abilities and number of sexual alleles. In these simulations, we evaluated the frequency of DM and a genetic diversity measure over 10,000 generations. The number of sexual alleles varied from 10 to 100 and, at each generation, a male offspring might fly to another random site within a varying radius R. Two main results emerge from our simulations: (i) the number of DM depends more on male flight radius than on the number of alleles; (ii) in large geographic regions, the effect of males flight radius on the allelic diversity turns out much less pronounced than in small regions. In other words, small regions where inbreeding normally appears recover genetic diversity due to large flight radii. These results may be particularly relevant when considering the population dynamics of species with increasingly limited dispersal ability (e.g., forest-dependent species of euglossine bees in fragmented landscapes).

The structure of an avian syllable syntax network.

A common result in recent linguistic studies on word association networks is that their topology can often be described by Zipf's law, in which most words have few associations, whereas a few words are highly connected. However, little is known about syntactic networks in more rudimentary communication systems, which could represent a window into the early stages of language evolution. In this study, we investigate the syntactic network formed by syllable associations in the song of the oscine bird Troglodytes musculus. We use methods recently developed in the context of the study of complex networks to assess topological characteristics in the syntactic networks of T. musculus. We found statistically significant evidence for nestedness in the syllable association network of T. musculus, indicating network organization around a core of commonly used notes, small-world features, and a non-random degree distribution. Our analyses suggest the possibility of a balance between the maintenance of core notes and the acquisition/loss of rare notes through both cultural drift and improvisation. These results underscore the usefulness of investigating communication networks of other animal species in uncovering the initial steps in the evolution of complex syntax networks.

A new species of Eufriesea Cockerell (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossina) from northeastern Brazil

A new species of Eufriesea Cockerell (Hymenoptera, Apidae) from northeastern Brazil. Eufriesea pyrrhopyga sp. nov. a short-tongued Eufriesea is described as a new species. It can be easily recognized for its predominantly violet lower frons and thorax, violet tergum 1 contrasting with the strong reddish coloration on the lateral portions of terga 2 to 4 and on entire terga 5 and 6, and head pubescence with contrasting colors, white on the lower two-thirds of the face and black on upper frons and vertex. This new species, collected in Recife (Pernambuco, Brazil), apparently is restricted to the Pernambuco endemic center, and seems to be highly endangered.

Uma nova espécie de Eufriesea Cockerell (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossina) do nordeste brasileiro. Eufriesea pyrrhopyga sp. nov., uma Eufriesea de língua curta, é descrita como espécie nova. Esta espécie pode ser facilmente reconhecida pela cor predominantemente violeta na região inferior da fronte e no tórax; primeiro tergo violeta, contrastando com a coloração avermelhada intensa nas porções laterais dos tergos 2 à 4 e nos tergos 5 e 6; e pela pilosidade da cabeça com cores contrastantes, com pêlos claros nos dois terços inferiores da face e escuros na região superior da fronte e no vértice. Esta nova espécie, coletada em Recife, (Pernambuco, Brasil) está aparentemente restrita ao Centro de Endemismo Pernambuco, e parece correr um sério risco de extinção.