Vitaly M. Spitsyn

Ancient River Inference Explains Exceptional Oriental Freshwater Mussel Radiations

The concept of long-lived (ancient) lakes has had a great influence on the development of evolutionary biogeography. According to this insight, a number of lakes on Earth have existed for several million years (e.g., Baikal and Tanganyika) and represent unique evolutionary hotspots with multiple intra-basin radiations. In contrast, rivers are usually considered to be variable systems, and the possibility of their long-term existence during geological epochs has never been tested. In this study, we reconstruct the history of freshwater basin interactions across continents based on the multi-locus fossil-calibrated phylogeny of freshwater mussels (Unionidae). These mussels most likely originated in Southeast and East Asia in the Jurassic, with the earliest expansions into North America and Africa (since the mid-Cretaceous) following the colonization of Europe and India (since the Paleocene). We discovered two ancient monophyletic mussel radiations (mean age ~51–55 Ma) within the paleo-Mekong catchment (i.e., the Mekong, Siam, and Malacca Straits paleo-river drainage basins). Our findings reveal that the Mekong may be considered a long-lived river that has existed throughout the entire Cenozoic epoch.

Leptocneria vinarskii sp. nov. (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Lymantriinae), an overlooked Wallacean lineage of the Australian genus

The tussock moth genus Leptocneria Butler, 1886 (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Lymantriinae) has been considered an entirely Australian taxon that includes two species: L. reducta (Walker, 1855) and L. binotata Butler, 1886. However, we discovered a divergent lineage of Leptocneria inhabiting Flores Island, Lesser Sundas, Indonesia. Here, we describe this lineage as the third species of the genus, L. vinarskii Bolotov, Kondakov et Spitsyn sp. nov. The new species is sister to L. reducta but differs from it by dark gray marking patterns of the forewing that lack orange or dark yellow marks. The mean COI genetic distance between L. vinarskii sp. nov. and L. reducta sensu lato is 2.9%. Our findings confirm that the Wallacean region was a faunal exchange area between Sundaland and Sahul during the Pleistocene but highlight that the vicariance events may have played a crucial role in origin of the endemic faunas on the islands of East Nusa Tenggara. Additionally, we show that both Australian species most likely represent cryptic species complexes, which are in need of further taxonomic revision.

DNA barcoding unravels contrasting evolutionary history of two widespread Asian tiger moth species during the Late Pleistocene

Populations of widespread pest insects in tropical areas are characterized by a complex evolutionary history, with overlapping natural and human-mediated dispersal events, sudden expansions, and bottlenecks. Here, we provide biogeographic reconstructions for two widespread pest species in the tiger moth genus Creatonotos (Lepidoptera: Erebidae: Arctiinae) based on the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene. The Asian Creatonotos transiens reveals shallow genetic divergence between distant populations that does not support its current intraspecific systematics with several local subspecies. In contrast, the more widespread Creatonotos gangis comprises at least three divergent subclades corresponding to certain geographic areas, i.e. Australia, Arabia + South Asia and Southeast Asia. With respect to our approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) model, the expansion of Creatonotos gangis into Australia is placed in the Late Pleistocene (~65–63 ka). This dating coincide with an approximate time of the earliest human migration into the continent (~65–54 ka) and the period of intervisibility between Timor and Australia (~65–62 ka). Our findings highlight that the drying Sunda and Sahul shelf areas likely support successful migrations of Asian taxa into Australia during the Pleistocene. The phylogeographic patterns discovered in this study can be used to improve the effectiveness of integrated pest control programs that is a task of substantial practical importance to a broad range of agricultural stakeholders.

Two Pisidium species inhabit freshwater lakes of Novaya Zemlya Archipelago: the first molecular evidence

The information regarding freshwater mollusks of water bodies of Novaya Zemlya Archipelago is extremely limited. In 2015, the study of the lakes of the Southern Island of Novaya Zemlya Archipelago was undertaken within the framework of the research expedition of the “Arctic Floating University”. In general, two bivalve species were found in the lakes, Pisidium cf. conventus (Clessin, 1877) and P. waldeni (Kuiper, 1975). It is a northernmost record for Pisidium in the Palearctic Region. The present study provides the first occurrence of P. waldeni on the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago. The results of molecular analyses show that P. cf. conventus from Svyatoe Lake clusters together with the clade Odhneripisidium Kuiper, 1962. Our data are in accordance with the tabula rasa hypothesis, which states that the contemporary freshwater invertebrate fauna of the Novaya Zemlya originates through recent immigration processes after the Last Glacial Maximum.

Species Richness, Molecular Taxonomy and Biogeography of the Radicine Pond Snails (Gastropoda: Lymnaeidae) in the Old World

The radicine pond snails represent a species-rich and widely distributed group, many species of which are key vectors of human and animal trematodoses. Here we clarify the taxonomy, distribution and evolutionary biogeography of the radicine lymnaeids in the Old World based on the most comprehensive multi-locus molecular dataset sampled to date. We show that the subfamily Amphipepleinae is monophyletic and contains at least ten genus-level clades: Radix Montfort, 1810, Ampullaceana Servain, 1881, Peregriana Servain, 1881, Tibetoradix Bolotov, Vinarski & Aksenova gen. nov., Kamtschaticana Kruglov & Starobogatov, 1984, Orientogalba Kruglov & Starobogatov, 1985, Cerasina Kobelt, 1881, Myxas G. B. Sowerby I, 1822, Bullastra Bergh, 1901, and Austropeplea Cotton, 1942. With respect to our phylogeny, species-delimitation model and morphological data, the Old World fauna includes 35 biological species of radicines. Tibet and Eastern Europe harbor the richest faunas, while East Asia and Africa appear to be the most species-poor areas. The radicine clade could have originated near the Cretaceous – Paleocene boundary. The Miocene great lakes in Eurasia seems to be the most important evolutionary hotspots shaping spatial patterns of recent species richness. Finally, we present the first DNA barcode reference library for the reliable molecular identification of species within this group.

New records of geometrid moths (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) from Myanmar based on DNA barcodes and morphological data

An integrative study of the Indo-Burmese Geometridae in the collection of the Russian Museum of Biodiversity Hotspots (RMBH, Russia) revealed six newly recorded species for the fauna of Myanmar, i.e., Plutodes costatus (Butler, 1886), Pogonopygia nigralbata Warren, 1894, Mixochlora vittata (Moore, 1867), Pelagodes bellula Han & Xue, 2011, Agathia carissima Butler, 1878 and A. codina Swinhoe, 1892. The occurrence of P. bellula is the first record of this taxon outside the Tibetan Plateau. Our findings highlight that the distribution of several Oriental geometrids could be broader than was previously suggested.

Redescription of Thalassodes antithetica Herbulot, 1962, an endemic moth from Inner Seychelles (Lepidoptera: Geometridae: Geometrinae).

The Seychelles archipelago is characterized by an exceptionally high level of endemism in certain taxa, including at least 275 endemic species of Lepidoptera (Legrand 1966; Gerlach & Matyot 2006; De Prins & De Prins 2015). Despite the fact that endemics are the main objects of conservation efforts, information regarding endemic Seychelles Lepidoptera is very poor, because the majority of them are known from a single or a few specimens (Legrand 1966; Gerlach and Matyot 2006; Bolotov et al. 2014, 2015). The emerald moth specimens are lacking in extensive samples obtained by earlier collectors (Fletcher 1910; Scott 1910; Fryer 1912). Further, two emerald moth species in the genus Thalassodes Guenée, 1858 have been reported from Seychelles, i.e., the widespread T. quadraria Guenée, 1858 (Legrand 1966; Gerlach & Matyot 2006; De Prins & De Prins 2015) and the endemic T. antithetica Herbulot, 1962. The latter species is known from eight specimens, collected between 1959 and 1963 (Legrand 1966; Gerlach & Matyot 2006). Herbulot (1962) provided a very short description of this species without any illustration. The protologue consists of a description of some external characters, i.e., antennae, palpi and legs, as well as the pattern of markings, but the male and female genitalia are not described. As the main diagnostic features, Herbulot (1962) noted two specific characters in the male morphology, namely the hind tibia with a single pair of spurs and an exceptional development of the lateral processes (octavals) on the posterior margin of the eighth sternite.

First record of Nyctemera adversata (Schaller, 1788) and N. carissima (Swinhoe, 1891) (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae) from Myanmar

We report the first record of Nyctemera adversata (Schaller, 1788) and N. carissima (Swinhoe, 1891) (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae) from Kachin state, northern Myanmar.

Butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea and Hesperioidea) from meadows of Vinogradovsky District, Arkhangelsk Region, northern European Russia, with notes on recent intense expansion of the southern species to the north

The Vinogradovsky District is located at the center of the Arkhangelsk Region, one of the largest federal subjects of Northern European Russia. Boreal spruce forests are the prevalent ecosystem type in this area, but large expanses of agricultural land and herb-grass meadows are also presented there. Based on the studies of 1,699 specimens collected from three meadow sites during period 2011–2013, we provide the first data on the butterfly fauna of the district, which include 56 species, belonging to 35 genera and 5 families. Our data reveal an intense northward expansion of many southern butterfly species to the Arkhangelsk Region, including migrants ( Pontia edusa , Issoria lathonia , Vanessa atalanta and Vanessa cardui ) and species that have established resident populations there ( Pararge aegeria , Nymphalis xanthomelas , Aglais io , Lycaena dispar , Cupido alcetas ). Quantitative data on species diversity and phenology of butterflies are reported, including analysis of structure of butterfly assemblages and their seasonal changes.