Bavarian Natural History Collections

Evolutionary relationships within the Melastomateae, a diverse tribe within the Melastomataceae, are not yet completely resolved, and some putatively paleoendemic taxa that might alter relationships are still unsampled. This study employs a phylogenomic approach, utilizing target capture data, to revisit generic relationships and shed light on the placement of three enigmatic taxa ( Dionychastrum schliebenii , Dissotis leonensis , Diss. splendens ) within the African Melastomateae. Using 90 accessions (64 newly sequenced), spanning known genera, unplaced taxa and phylogenetically unsampled taxa, and leveraging high‐throughput sequencing and Melastomataceae‐specific baits, we captured a set of 384 putative single‐copy protein‐coding nuclear loci. Overall, our phylogenomic analyses reaffirm the monophyly of the Paleotropical Melastomateae, its two primary lineages (Euheterotis clade, Pseudoheterotis clade), and a sister‐group relationship of the Malagasy and Asian Melastomateae which are nested within the African Melastomateae. Except for Melastomastrum and Osbeckia , which are not monophyletic in our analyses, the rest of the Paleotropical genera previously circumscribed are again recovered. For the Guinea endemic Dissotis splendens we create the new genus Allodissotis and the new combination Allodissotis splendens . We also elevate Dissotis subg. Paleodissotis to the rank of genus, with D. leonensis from Guinea and Sierra Leone as the lone species, for which we create the new combination Paleodissotis leonensis . Morphologically, seed and wood anatomy of Allodissotis splendens and Paleodissotis leonensis support their placement in the tribe Melastomateae, with the latter being sister to the rest of the Pseudoheterotis clade. Our study presents a molecular insight into the Uluguru Mountains (Tanzania) endemic species Dionychastrum schliebenii , revealing it as sister to the eastern African endemic Dissotidendron clade.

More than half a billion years ago, a high diversity of organisms appeared in the fossil record. All major clades we know today already existed, and arthropods dominated the marine faunas. Many were already equipped with a pair of elaborated compound eyes on top of movable eye stalks. Some of them also possessed 3-4 small single-aperture eyes, so-called median eyes. Just trilobites possessed sessile dorsal eyes. One pair of compound eyes/lateral eyes is considered plesiomorphic and is a common trait for euarthropods. Here, we describe an arthropod that possessed two independent compound eye systems—a pair of stalked and a pair of tiny sessile dorsal trilobite-like compound eyes, unique in the arthropod kingdom so far. A competition between prey and predators for the capacity of vision triggered the evolution of visual systems, and we discuss this newly described system(s) in its evolutionary context and ecological significance. Regarding its eye system phylogenetically, P. daziensis reinforces the position of a now non-missing link between the non-trilobite artiopodans and trilobites.

Many insects and their relatives are renowned for sophisticated compound eyes, which are also preserved in the fossil record. Yet there are other types of eyes, notably the so‐called stemmata of holometabolans, such as beetles, bees, and butterflies. Stemmata are not as effective as compound eyes, except in some predatory larvae. Here we report three lacewing larvae with large forward‐directed stemmata from Cretaceous Kachin amber, Myanmar. The stemmata are large relative to those of other fossil lacewing larvae, comparable to the simple eyes of modern larvae capable of image formation. The head is very wide in one larva, representing a new type of morphology as demonstrated by a quantitative comparison of the head and stylets of over 400 fossil and extant lacewing larvae. The arrangement of the exceptionally large stemmata of the larvae reported here provides stereoscopic vision. These new specimens demonstrate the convergent evolution of highly developed simple eyes in at least two additional lineages of lacewings, showcasing the enormous diversity of lacewing larvae in the Cretaceous.

The chinkara (Gazella bennettii, Sykes 1831) exhibits a broad distribution from Iran to India and has been categorized into five species: G. bennettii, G. christyi, and G. salinarum representing the Indian chinkara, and G. fuscifrons and G. shikarii pertaining to the Iranian chinkara (jebeer). This classification within the “Gazelle bennettii group” is solely based on morphological data, lacking genetic information. To investigate the potential presence of multiple species within the group and to determine subspecific variations, we sampled jebeer in Iran and conducted phylogenetic analyses using cytochrome b, COI, and sequences from two nuclear introns (CHD2 and ZNF618). Our mitochondrial data revealed a significant divergence within the “Gazelle bennettii group,” identifying two lineages: the Iranian lineage (jebeer) and the Indian lineage (chinkara). Estimates of divergence time suggest that the split between jebeer and chinkara occurred approximately 0.895 million years ago, possibly associated with a vicariant event caused by the Indus River. These findings have important implications for assessing species conservation statuses on the IUCN Red List because an endangered lineage (jebeer) is currently grouped together with a non‐threatened one (chinkara) under the same global assessment, which underestimates the true endangered status of jebeer. In Iran, the haplotype distribution map of the jebeer can serve as a fundamental genetic framework guiding conservation efforts across Iranian protected areas and captive breeding centers. Therefore, we recommend any future management plan should be based on these findings and treat these two lineages separately.

The origins and prehistory of domestic sheep (Ovis aries) are incompletely understood; to address this, we generated data from 118 ancient genomes spanning 12,000 years sampled from across Eurasia. Genomes from Central Türkiye ~8000 BCE are genetically proximal to the domestic origins of sheep but do not fully explain the ancestry of later populations, suggesting a mosaic of wild ancestries. Genomic signatures indicate selection by ancient herders for pigmentation patterns, hornedness, and growth rate. Although the first European sheep flocks derive from Türkiye, in a notable parallel with ancient human genome discoveries, we detected a major influx of Western steppe–related ancestry in the Bronze Age.

The relationship of Xylomoia strix Mikkola, 1980; Xylomoia retinax Mikkola, 1998; and Xylomoia stangelmaieri Mikkola, 1998 is reconsidered based on 59 genitalia slides (37 males and 22 females) and 40 barcodes of adults collected from the type localities and areas in-between. Due to lack of stable morphologic differences, apart from the wing coloration of X. retinax, and low genetic distance between the three, they are considered as three subspecies of X. strix: the nominotypical one X. strix stangelmaieristat. nov. and X. strix retinaxstat. nov. Included are photographs of all specimens covering 37 adults, and 28 male and 18 female genitalia, as well as a phylogenetic tree and a map showing collecting localities.

With approximately 1080 species, Sonerileae is the second‐largest tribe in the Melastomataceae. Approximately 40% of the Sonerileae species belong to fleshy‐fruited genera ( Catanthera , Heteroblemma , Kendrickia , Medinilla , Pachycentria , Plethiandra ). Relatively few species, especially of the fleshy‐fruited taxa, have been sampled for phylogenetic study. Consequently, there is huge uncertainty resulting in many unanswered questions about their evolutionary history, including the monophyly of the largest genus, Medinilla . In this study, the phylogeny of the fleshy‐fruited Sonerileae was reconstructed using 385 nuclear and 81 plastid protein‐coding loci recovered from newly generated target capture and off‐target reads data, and previous studies. Our study revealed that the fleshy fruited Sonerileae belong to three lineages. Kendrickia is sister to an Afrotropical endemic clade. Heteroblemma and Catanthera belong to a second clade and are most closely related to some Phyllagathis and Driessenia species. Medinilla forms a third clade that also includes Pachycentria and Plethiandra . Within Medinilla , 15 clades are identified and characterized. To make Medinilla monophyletic, the genus is redefined to include Pachycentria and Plethiandra . Major lineages identified within Medinilla lay the groundwork for an infrageneric classification system. Areas of the phylogenetic tree with high conflict or weak sampling are identified to aid further studies in the tribe.

This study investigates the biogeography of the Australian Camphorosmeae (Amaranthaceae s.l.) lineage and how it relates to shifts in climatic niche and habitat types. Building on previous research and data resources, we integrate molecular phylogenetics, bioclimatic data and biogeographical models to deepen our understanding of the diversification and adaptation of this group across Australia's diverse landscapes in relation to palaeoclimatic changes. For 159 species representing 12 genera, georeferenced distribution points were used to define the most informative bioclimatic variables using principal component analysis. Evolutionary shifts in climatic niches and habitat types were analysed, revealing clade‐specific shifts and adaptations to different habitats and climatic conditions. Biogeographical analyses allowed us to infer ancestral areas of Camphorosmeae in Australia and relate their expansion over evolutionary time to habitat shifts. Preadaptation of this group to warm and dry habitats coupled with key periods of aridification in Australia, particularly during the Late Miocene to Pliocene, were critical in driving its diversification through migration and local adaptation to varied habitats of arid Australia. Our analyses suggest that the ‘Riverine Desert’ habitat offered suitable conditions for ancestral Australian Camphorosmeae and facilitated their early widespread dispersal in the Western and Eastern Desert. We hypothesise that early diverging lineages such as Roycea adapted to the later emerging ‘Desert Lake’ habitat when it spread in Western Australia during the Early Pliocene. Further, habitat type shifts occurred from ‘Riverine Desert’ to ‘Shield Plain’, ‘Karst Plain’ and to ‘Sand Desert’ also during the Pliocene and Pleistocene once these habitat types emerged. This study illustrates the complex interplay between ecological flexibility and niche conservatism in shaping the biodiversity of Australian Camphorosmeae.

Today, at the international level, powerful data portals are available to biodiversity researchers and policymakers, offering increasingly robust computing and network capacities and capable data services for internationally agreed-on standards. These accelerate individual and complex workflows to map data-driven research processes or even to make them possible for the first time. At the national level, however, and alongside these international developments, national infrastructures are needed to take on tasks that cannot be easily funded or addressed internationally. To avoid gaps, as well as redundancies in the research landscape, national tasks and responsibilities must be clearly defined to align efforts with core priorities. In the present article, we outline 10 essential functions of national biodiversity data infrastructures. They serve as key providers, facilitators, mediators, and platforms for effective biodiversity data management, integration, and analysis that require national efforts to foster biodiversity science, policy, and practice.

The genus Helicops Wagler, 1828 comprises 20 species of semiaquatic snakes. It is mostly distributed in the cis-Andean region of South America, with only two trans-Andean species (H. danieli, H. scalaris). Helicops danieli is endemic to Colombia and occurs through most of the trans-Andean region. Herein two mitochondrial and two nuclear genomic markers were sequenced for 16 samples of H. danieli across most of its distribution range to understand its phylogeography. A dated tree was also generated with additional sequences from previous studies to infer the divergence times between H. danieli and its cis-Andean congeners and of lineages within H. danieli. Using previously published data, ancestral states were estimated for putative phenotypic synapomorphies for the major clades of Helicops. For H. danieli, four clades corresponding to the main river basins within its distribution were recovered. Our dated tree suggests that the ancestor of H. danieli diverged from its closest congeners in the late Miocene (8.7 Mya), which can be associated with the closure of the Andalucia Pass, south of the Eastern Cordillera. Divergence within H. danieli commenced 1.1 Mya. Within the genus Helicops, two distinct hemipenial morphologies were observed, which are suggested as putative synapomorphies for the two most basal clades. Recognition of these two clades as distinct subgenera, Helicops sensu stricto and Tachynectes Fitzinger, 1843 is proposed. For the junior homonym Tachynectes von der Mark, 1863, rarely applied to fossil fishes, the replacement name Ichthyotachynectesnom. nov. is introduced. Furthermore, the evolution of another four phenotypic traits in Helicops and their phylogenetic utility are discussed.

Paleogeography of the Ediacaran Period has remained poorly understood due to paleomagnetic studies commonly yielding perplexing or conflicting data. Here we report new magnetostratigraphic data from the Ediacaran Ouarzazate Group in the Anti-Atlas Mountains of Morocco, which have primary magnetizations supported by a positive conglomerate test and stratigraphically consistent directions within volcanic units across multiple localities. Comprehensive magnetostratigraphic sampling shows highly variable directions, consistent with a rapidly changing geomagnetic field along a longitudinally preferred axis. High-precision geochronology constrains the geomagnetic variability to ~568-562 Ma and suggests rates that are likely too rapid for true polar wander or plate tectonic interpretations. Comparison of igneous- and sedimentary-derived data, using a novel statistical approach combining Bingham and Fisher distributions, indicates a high-inclination paleomagnetic direction that is compatible with independent evidence for regional glaciation. Our analysis produces a late Ediacaran paleogeographic reconstruction that is consistent with paleomagnetic and geologic constraints.

Elachista dimicatella Rebel, 1903, has so far been considered a species in Europe with restricted distribution from Ukraine to western France. The species occurs on mountainous regions. However, the in-depth analysis of a taxonomically uncertain species of Elachista from the Cottian Alps (Italy), especially through DNA barcoding and subsequent morphological studies, led to the realization that individuals previously identified as E. dimicatella from the Cottian Alps and the Pyrenees were misidentified. According to our research, a total of three species can be differentiated: E. dimicatella from Carpathians and its former junior synonym E. niphadophanes Meyrick, 1937, sp. rev., from the Pyrenees, as well as the newly described E. cottiellasp. nov. from southwestern Alps, hitherto incorrectly identified as E. dimicatella. Diagnostic features of the three species are discussed and illustrated. Elachista dimicatella and E. niphadophanes are redescribed.

The Eocene-Oligocene transition (EOT) marked a rapid global cooling event, often considered as the beginning of the modern icehouse world. Influenced by various factors, including tectonic activity and paleogeographic settings, the terrestrial records indicate a diverse response of fauna and vegetation to this global event. We examined nine macrofossil assemblages from seven fossil localities on the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau and from the mid-latitudinal Europe ranging from the latest Bartonian and Priabonian (37.71–33.9 Ma) to the Rupelian (33.9–27.82 Ma). Our aims were to trace and compare the vegetation history of both regions in the late Eocene and early Oligocene. The results show that both regions experienced changes in vegetation composition in response to climate change, characterized by a decrease in the percentages of broad-leaved evergreen elements and distinctive changes in general vegetation types. A general change in the overall vegetation type from subtropical broad-leaved evergreen forests in the late Eocene to temperate broad-leaved mixed deciduous evergreen forests, or mixed mesophytic forests, in the early Oligocene is recognized in both regions. The results indicate a clear change in leaf architecture, leaf margin states, and secondary venation types in the mid-latitudinal Europe, while the results from the south-eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau show a distinct reduction in leaf size. Our data suggest that both global and regional factors played key roles in shaping the vegetation in the two regions.

Lichens have developed numerous adaptations to optimize their survival in various environmental conditions, largely by producing secondary compounds by the fungal partner. They often have antibiotic properties and are involved in protection against intensive UV radiation, pathogens, and herbivores. To contribute to the knowledge of the arsenal of secondary compounds in a crustose lichen species, we sequenced and assembled the genome of Toniniopsis dissimilis, an indicator of old-growth forests, using Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT, Oxford, UK) long reads. Our analyses focused on biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) and specifically on Type I Polyketide (T1PKS) genes involved in the biosynthesis of polyketides. We used the comparative genomic approach to compare the genome of T. dissimilis with six other members of the family Ramalinaceae and twenty additional lichen genomes from the database. With only six T1PKS genes, a comparatively low number of biosynthetic genes are present in the T. dissimilis genome; from those, two-thirds are putatively involved in melanin biosynthesis. The comparative analyses showed at least three potential pathways of melanin biosynthesis in T. dissimilis, namely via the formation of 1,3,6,8-tetrahydroxynaphthalene, naphthopyrone, or YWA1 putative precursors, which highlights its importance in T. dissimilis. In addition, we report the occurrence of genes encoding ribosomally synthesized and posttranslationally modified peptides (RiPPs) in lichens, with their highest number in T. dissimilis compared to other Ramalinaceae genomes. So far, no function has been assigned to RiPP-like proteins in lichens, which leaves potential for future research on this topic.

Tell Kamid el-Loz (Lebanon) was an important Bronze Age urban center that dominated one of the central crossroads of the Ancient Near East, connecting Egypt and the Levant with northern Mesopotamia, Anatolia, and Syria, as well as the interior with the Mediterranean coast. However, by the early Iron Age, the site had shrunk to a small rural settlement. Later, in the Iron Age III / Persian-Hellenistic, only enigmatic pits and a large cemetery remained. In this paper, we analyzed plant micro-remains from the dental calculus of 15 individuals (3 from the Middle Bronze Age II and 12 from the Iron Age III / Persian-Hellenistic) and δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N stable isotope data from tbulk bone collagen of 74 individuals (10 from the Middle Bronze Age II and 64 from the Iron Age III / Persian-Hellenistic) and 13 Late Bronze Age animal bones (7 Ovis/Capra and 6 Bos). Our results indicate general stability of human diet throughout the Middle Bronze Age II and the Iron III / Persian-Hellenistic periods, with a reliance on C3 plant crops and terrestrial animals also consuming C3 plants. In the later period, the plant micro-remains indicate the consumption of C4 plants and sedges, and the stable isotope analysis indicates differences in diet between males and females.

Peatlands store large amounts of carbon (C), a function potentially threatened by climate change. Peatlands composed of vascular cushion plants are widespread in the northern and central high Andes (páramo, wet and dry puna), but their C dynamics are hardly known. To understand the interplay of the main drivers of peatland C dynamics and to infer geographic patterns across the Andean regions, we addressed the following question: How do topography, hydrology, temperature, past climate variability, and vegetation influence the C dynamics of these peatlands? We summarize the available information on observed spatial and inferred temporal patterns of cushion peatland development in the tropical and subtropical Andes. Based on this, we recognize the following emerging patterns, which all need testing in further studies addressing spatial and temporal patterns of C accumulation: (1) Peatlands in dry climates and those in larger catchments receive higher sediment inputs than peatlands from wet puna and páramo and in small catchments. This results in peat stratigraphies intercalated with mineral layers and affects C accumulation by triggering vegetation changes. (2) High and constant water tables favor C accumulation. Seasonal water level fluctuations are higher in wet and dry puna, in comparison with páramo, leading to more frequent episodes of C loss in puna. (3) Higher temperatures favor C gain under high and constant water availability but also increase C loss under low and fluctuating water levels. (4) C accumulation has been variable through the Holocene, but several peatlands show a recent increase in C accumulation rates. (5) Vegetation affects C dynamics through species‐specific differences in productivity and decomposition rate. Because of predicted regional differences in global climate change manifestations (seasonality, permafrost behavior, temperature, precipitation regimes), cushion peatlands from the páramo are expected to mostly continue as C sinks for now, whereas those of the dry puna are more likely to turn to C sources as a consequence of increasing aridification.