Differences in spatial versus temporal reaction norms for spring and autumn phenological events.

For species to stay temporally tuned to their environment, they use cues such as the accumulation of degree-days. The relationships between the timing of a phenological event in a population and its environmental cue can be described by a population-level reaction norm. Variation in reaction norms along environmental gradients may either intensify the environmental effects on timing (cogradient variation) or attenuate the effects (countergradient variation). To resolve spatial and seasonal variation in species' response, we use a unique dataset of 91 taxa and 178 phenological events observed across a network of 472 monitoring sites, spread across the nations of the former Soviet Union. We show that compared to local rates of advancement of phenological events with the advancement of temperature-related cues (i.e., variation within site over years), spatial variation in reaction norms tend to accentuate responses in spring (cogradient variation) and attenuate them in autumn (countergradient variation). As a result, among-population variation in the timing of events is greater in spring and less in autumn than if all populations followed the same reaction norm regardless of location. Despite such signs of local adaptation, overall phenotypic plasticity was not sufficient for phenological events to keep exact pace with their cues-the earlier the year, the more did the timing of the phenological event lag behind the timing of the cue. Overall, these patterns suggest that differences in the spatial versus temporal reaction norms will affect species' response to climate change in opposite ways in spring and autumn.

A new species of Sphenomorphus (Squamata: Scincidae) from Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam with a discussion of biogeography and character state evolution in the S. stellatus group.

An integrative taxonomic analysis of the Sphenomorphus stellatus group recovered a newly discovered museum specimen from Phu Quoc Island, Kien Giang Province, Vietnam as a new species most closely related to S. preylangensis from Phnom Chi in central Cambodia, approximately 175 km to the northeast. Most notably, S. phuquocensis sp. nov. lacks the derived condition of having black dorsal stripes that diagnose S. annamiticus-the sister species to S. preylangensis plus S. phuquocensis sp. nov. A BioGeoBEARS analysis recovered the ancestor of the S. stellatus group to likely have ranged across forested regions on an exposed Sunda Shelf from southwestern Indochina to Peninsular Malaysia prior to diverging into northern and southern lineages separated by the Gulf of Thailand. Episodic fluctuations in sea levels and concomitant changes in the physiography of the Mekong Delta contributed to the fragmented distribution within and between species of the northern lineage. Sphenomorphus phuquocensis sp. nov. represents the second species of reptile endemic to Phu Quoc Island.

New records and geographic distribution of the sympatric zones of unisexual and bisexual rock lizards of the genus Darevskia in Armenia and adjacent territories.

BACKGROUND: Caucasian rock lizards of the genus Darevskia are unique taxa, including both bisexual and parthenogenetic species. The parthenogenetic species have originated as a result of natural hybridisation between females and males of different bisexual species. The species involved in interspecific hybridisation are called parental. However, sympatric zones (SZ) of unisexual and bisexual rock lizards of the Caucasus are still poorly studied, although they are very important for understanding the role of hybrid individuals of different origin in reticulate evolution. This paper presents the location of the SZs of parthenogenetic and their parental bisexual rock lizards of the genus Darevskia in Armenia and adjacent territories of Georgia and Nagorno-Karabakh. We summarised the locations of the SZs identified from 1957 to the present, based on our field survey data gathered in 2018-2019 and records from publications and museum collections. This dataset includes 39 SZs of three types: SZ of parental bisexual species, SZ of parental species with unisexual species and SZ of the parthenogenetic species. For each zone, species composition, geographical and altitudinal distribution are presented. New records expand our knowledge of the geographical and altitudinal distribution of SZs in these species and provide additional data for understanding the mechanisms of reticulate evolution and hybridogeneous speciation in the past, present and future. NEW INFORMATION: The new records, including geographical and altitudinal distributions of three types of SZs, are presented, which expand the previously-known list to 39 locations of contact zones for parthenogenetic and its bisexual parental species of rock lizards of the genus Darevskia in Armenia and the adjacent territories of Georgia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

Author Correction: Chronicles of nature calendar, a long-term and large-scale multitaxon database on phenology.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Chronicles of nature calendar, a long-term and large-scale multitaxon database on phenology.

We present an extensive, large-scale, long-term and multitaxon database on phenological and climatic variation, involving 506,186 observation dates acquired in 471 localities in Russian Federation, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Belarus and Kyrgyzstan. The data cover the period 1890-2018, with 96% of the data being from 1960 onwards. The database is rich in plants, birds and climatic events, but also includes insects, amphibians, reptiles and fungi. The database includes multiple events per species, such as the onset days of leaf unfolding and leaf fall for plants, and the days for first spring and last autumn occurrences for birds. The data were acquired using standardized methods by permanent staff of national parks and nature reserves (87% of the data) and members of a phenological observation network (13% of the data). The database is valuable for exploring how species respond in their phenology to climate change. Large-scale analyses of spatial variation in phenological response can help to better predict the consequences of species and community responses to climate change.

Taxonomic status of two populations of Bent-toed Geckos of the Cyrtodactylus irregularis complex (Squamata: Gekkonidae) with description of a new species from Nui Chua National Park, southern Vietnam.

Based on genetic, morphological and chromatical comparisons we evaluate the taxonomic status of two southern Vietnamese forest-dwelling populations of the Cyrtodactylus irregularis species complex. We confirm the allocation of the population from Binh Chau-Phuoc Buu Nature Reserve (Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province) to C. cattienensis and we describe the population of Nui Chua National Park (Ninh Thuan Province) as Cyrtodactylus sangi sp. nov. This brings to 18 the number of species within the C. irregularis complex and to 41 the number of described Cyrtodactylus species recorded from Vietnam.

Alien species of mammals and their impact on natural ecosystems in the biosphere reserves of Russia.

The paper analyses the results of a survey of 37 Russian biosphere reserves using questionnaires concerning the presence of alien species of mammals, their pathways of penetration, and their impacts on protected ecosystems. The penetration of alien mammals into terrestrial ecosystems of Russia is extensive, both in places with maximum human environmental impact (inhabited areas and agricultural lands) and in biosphere reserves with minimal human impact. There are 62 mammal species registered as alien in Russian ecosystems and they account for 22% of the terrestrial mammal fauna of Russia. The percentage of alien species in biosphere reserves is 32.6% at most. In most regions, Castor fiber, Ondatra zibethicus, Nyctereutes procyonoides, Canis familiaris, Neovison vison and Sus scrofa are very dangerous, and both Castor fiber and Sus scrofa can have environment-forming impacts.