Browsing by Subject "systematics"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    The caddisfly genus Nectopsyche: new gemma group species from Costa Rica and the Neotropics (Trichoptera:Leptoceridae)
    (University of Chicago Press, 1995) Holzenthal, Ralph W.
    Generic-level diagnoses are provided for adult males, females, and larvae of the longhorned caddisfly genus Nectopsyche Miiller (Trichoptera:Leptoceridae). In addition, seven new Costa Rican species in the gemma species group are described and illustrated: N. exophthalma n. sp., N. monticola n. sp., N. onyx n. sp., N. ortizi n. sp., (also known from Argentina, Brazil, Guyana, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Surinam, and Venezuela), N. tapanti n. sp., N. tuanis n. sp., and N. utleyorum n. sp. The new species are compared with two previously described gemma group species also known from Costa Rica, N. argentata Flint and N. gemmoides Flint, and these, too, are diagnosed and illustrated.
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    A new species of Smicridea McLachlan (Trichoptera:Hydropsychidae) from Venezuela and its role in travertine biogenesis
    (The North American Benthological Society, 2003) Paprocki, Henrique; Holzenthal, Ralph W.
    We collected an undescribed hydropsychid caddisfly, Smicridea (Smicridea) travertinera, n. sp., from 2 sites in Venezuela. One of the sites, Quebrada El Charo, flowed over extensive calcareous formations of travertine, which were covered with retreats and capture nets of the new species. Smicridea travertinera was the most abundant aquatic insect colonizing travertine.We describe the adult male, the retreat and net, and gut contents. The retreat consisted of an aperture in the travertine with a capture net. Retreat-making behavior appears to cause both the biogenesis and erosion of the travertine formations.
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    Phylogeny and revision of the Neotropical genus Grumichella Müller (Trichoptera: Leptoceridae), including nine new species and a key
    (Oxford University Press, 2016) Calor, Adolfo R.; Holzenthal, Ralph W.; Froehlich, Claudio G.
    The systematics of the Neotropical caddisfly genus Grumichella Müller (Leptoceridae: Grumichellinae) are reviewed. Diagnoses, descriptions and illustrations are provided for four previously described species, G. aequiunguis Flint, 1983, G. flaveola (Ulmer, 1911), G. pulchella (Banks, 1910) and G. rostrata Thienemann, 1905, and nine new species: G. blahniki sp. nov. (Peru), G. boraceia sp. nov. (Brazil), G. cressae sp. nov. (Venezuela), G. jureia sp. nov. (Brazil), G. leccii sp. nov. (Brazil), G. muelleri sp. nov. (Brazil), G. paprockii sp. nov. (Brazil), G. parati sp. nov. (Brazil) and G. trujilloi sp. nov. (Venezuela). The monophyly of the genus is corroborated (16 synapomorphies) and the phylogenetic relationships of its included species, based on analysis of 66 adult, larval, and pupal characters, are inferred as (G. aequiunguis ((G. boraceiae (G. leccii, G. parati)) (G. rostrata ((G. flaveola, G. pulchella) (G. muelleri, G. paprockii)) (G. jureia (G. trujilloi (G. cressae, G. blahniki)))))). A taxonomic key to the males of the species is presented.
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    Revision of the Neotropical caddisfly genus Itauara Müller, 1888 (Trichoptera, Glossosomatidae)
    (Pensoft Publishers, 2011) Robertson, Desiree R.; Holzenthal, Ralph W.
    Systematics of the genus Itauara Müller, 1888 are reviewed. A generic diagnosis, illustrations, and descriptions are provided for males. The genus can be identified by several features of the male genitalia including an extremely reduced phallobase and a phallic apparatus that consists of a sclerotized dorsal sheath covering a very membranous ventral portion. A total 18 species are described as new: Itauara alexanderi, sp. n. (Brazil), I. bidentata, sp. n. (Guyana), I. blahniki, sp. n. (Brazil), I. charlotta, sp. n. (Brazil), I. emilia, sp. n. (Brazil), I. flinti, sp. n. (Brazil), I. guyanensis, sp. n. (Guyana), I. jamesii, sp. n. (Brazil), I. julia, sp. n. (Brazil), I. lucinda, sp. n. (Brazil), I. ovis, sp. n. (Guyana, Venezuela), I. peruensis, sp. n. (Peru), I. rodmani, sp. n. (Brazil), I. simplex, sp. n. (Brazil), I. spiralis, sp. n. (Guyana), I. stella, sp. n. (Brazil), I. tusci, sp n. (Brazil), and I. unidentata, sp. n. (Guyana). These additions bring the total fauna of Itauara to 22 species.
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    Taxonomy and systematics: contributions to benthology and J-NABS
    (University of Chicago Press, 2010) Holzenthal, Ralph W.; Robertson, Desiree R.; Pauls, Steffen U.; Mendez, Patina K.
    Systematics, or taxonomy, is the study of the diversity of life on Earth. Its goals are to discover and describe new biological diversity and to understand its evolutionary and biogeographic origins and relationships. Here we review the contributions to the field of systematics and taxonomy published over the last 25 y in J-NABS and its predecessor Freshwater Invertebrate Biology (FIB). We examined a total of 64 studies that we considered to be largely taxonomic in nature. We classified these studies into 2 major categories: morphological (e.g., descriptive taxonomy, taxonomic revisions) and molecular (e.g., deoxyribonucleic acid [DNA] barcoding, population genetics). We examined studies in 5-y increments for J-NABS. We also studied the period 1982 to 1985, during which FIB was published. On average, 12 taxonomic studies were published within each 5-y period. Molecular studies first appeared in 1986 and have slowly increased, reaching their greatest number within the last 5 y. Studies also were classified by their individual attributes. Morphological studies were, by far, the most common, but studies also included molecular data, biological information, distributional data, keys, and biogeographical analyses. Most studies included .1 of these attributes. Overall, the role of J-NABS in the development of benthic taxonomy has been minimal in terms of number of publications, but as part of the nexus of taxomonic literature, all contributions have been important to the discipline. We discuss these contributions and their impact on the following subject areas: taxonomy and revisionary systematics, phylogenetic and molecular systematics, taxonomic resources, taxonomic resolution, conservation and taxonomy, professional training, taxonomic certification, and graduate education. We also give an overview of new developments in the taxonomists’ toolbox. These developments include DNA barcoding, online taxonomic resources, digital identification keys, cybertaxonomy, and modern museum collections and resources.