Introduction: Basic data on biodiversity, such as the variety of life forms coexisting on a single tree, are still lacking and prevent a full understanding of the complexity of interactions among organisms in a tropical rainforest. Filling this gap has recently become more achievable thanks to advances in canopy access methods and genetic tools. Objective: The main aims of the research program Life On Trees (LOT) are to generate baseline knowledge about the number of species a single tropical tree can support and to understand how these communities of organisms are assembled. Methods: Our first project is performed in one of the most biologically diverse regions: the Peruvian Amazon, in the Rio Abiseo National Park. We focus our sampling on a spectacular Dussia tree (Fabaceae), which is 50 m high and 45 m wide and covered with epiphytes. For safety reasons, the sampling is carried out by professional climbers, guided by experts of the different eukaryotic groups studied (plants, fungi, animals, protists). In order to better understand the contribution of different tree components (bark, leaves, fruits, flowers, dead wood) to overall tree biodiversity, we assign observations into communities based on height zone or microhabitat and examine similarities and nestedness in the composition of these communities. The complex architecture of the tree is studied using terrestrial LiDAR and the location of samples is recorded using a high precision differential GPS receiver (dGNSS). The collected specimens will be determined by classical taxonomy and genetic methods (DNA metabarcoding). An online tracking system for those specimens sent to taxonomists for identification, as well as a central database system, are already under development. Results: The first results of the LOT-Peru project from April-May 2022 and of the preliminary tests conducted in October 2021 will be presented. Implications: The scope of this program is not only scientific. Using the simple example of a large tree, we can reach out to the public and explain difficult concepts, such as what biodiversity is and how it is generated and sustained. In addition, the tree is a strong symbol that has an emotional impact. We hope that this program will build awareness about the impacts of deforestation, and conversely the value of conservation, by showing foresters, city dwellers or villagers that when a tree is cut down, a whole range of biodiversity disappears.
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Abstract Ants, an ecologically successful and numerically dominant group of animals, play key ecological roles as soil engineers, predators, nutrient recyclers, and regulators of plant growth and reproduction in most terrestrial ecosystems. Further, ants are widely used as bioindicators of the ecological impact of land use. We gathered information of ant species in the Atlantic Forest of South America. The ATLANTIC ANTS data set, which is part of the ATLANTIC SERIES data papers, is a compilation of ant records from collections (18,713 records), unpublished data (29,651 records), and published sources (106,910 records; 1,059 references), including papers, theses, dissertations, and book chapters published from 1886 to 2020. In total, the data set contains 153,818 ant records from 7,636 study locations in the Atlantic Forest, representing 10 subfamilies, 99 genera, 1,114 ant species identified with updated taxonomic certainty, and 2,235 morphospecies codes. Our data set reflects the heterogeneity in ant records, which include ants sampled at the beginning of the taxonomic history of myrmecology (the 19th and 20th centuries) and more recent ant surveys designed to address specific questions in ecology and biology. The data set can be used by researchers to develop strategies to deal with different macroecological and region-wide questions, focusing on assemblages, species occurrences, and distribution patterns. Furthermore, the data can be used to assess the consequences of changes in land use in the Atlantic Forest on different ecological processes. No copyright restrictions apply to the use of this data set, but we request that authors cite this data paper when using these data in publications or teaching events.
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Two fragments of millipedes, referred to the genus Archispirostreptus, are reported from an archaeological site in the Tadrart Acacus region of southwestern Libya. Radiocarbon dating of the specimens shows that one of them dates to between ca. 9100 and 8800 years ago, and the other one between 6400 and 6300 years ago (calibrated dates). The site lies far from known present-day occurrences of spirostreptid millipedes, and the Libyan subfossils probably, like other isolated occurrences of Archispirostreptus species in the Sahara and the Middle East, represent geographical relicts of a former, continuous distribution. The millipedes were probably able to survive at the Libyan site during the early and middle Holocene periods thanks to the more humid conditions, and may descend from animals that initially colonised the area during the even more humid, and longer, last interglacial period.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2020
