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The extraordinary diversity of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of leaf litter in the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve, Tshopo, Democratic Republic of the Congo
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The Democratic Republic of the Congo has the highest diversity of ant species in the Afrotropical region, even though it remains largely understudied in the modern era. The aim of this study is to report on an inventory of the litter ants from the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve in the Tshopo Province, north of the Congo River. Three habitats (fallow, secondary forest and primary forest) were sampled at six localities. A total of 190 ant species belonging to 50 genera and 8 subfamilies, have been recorded in the Yangambi biosphere region. Besides, 96 species were added to Tshopo Province, bringing the total to 306, a 44% increase; and we added 55 species to the already diverse Democratic Republic of the Congo, raising the total record to 791 species, a 7% increase. At least 10% of the collected species are new to science.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2025
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Uncertainty assessment applied to marine subsurface datasets
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A recently released voxel model quantifying aggregate resources of the Belgian part of the North Sea includes lithological properties of all Quaternary sediments and modelling-related uncertainty. As the underlying borehole data come from various sources and cover a long time-span, data-related uncertainties should be accounted for as well. Applying a tiered data-uncertainty assessment to a composite lithology dataset with uniform, standardized lithological descriptions and rigorously completed metadata fields, uncertainties were qualified and quantified for positioning, sampling and vintage. The uncertainty on horizontal positioning combines navigational errors, on-board and off-deck offsets and underwater drift. Sampling-gear uncertainty evaluates the suitability of each instrument in terms of its efficiency of sediment yield per lithological class. Vintage uncertainty provides a likelihood of temporal change since the moment of sampling, using the mobility of fine-scale bedforms as an indicator. For each uncertainty component, quality flags from 1 (very uncertain) to 5 (very certain) were defined and converted into corresponding uncertainty percentages meeting the input requirements of the voxel model. Obviously, an uncertainty-based data selection procedure, aimed at improving the confidence of data products, reduces data density. Whether or not this density reduction is detrimental to the spatial coverage of data products, will depend on their intended use. At the very least, demonstrable reductions in spatial coverage will help to highlight the need for future data acquisition and to optimize survey plans. By opening up our subsurface model with associated data uncertainties in a public decision support application, policy makers and other end users are better able to visualize overall confidence and identify areas with insufficient coverage meeting their needs. Having to work with a borehole dataset that is increasingly limited with depth below the seabed, engineering geologists and geospatial analysts in particular will profit from a better visualization of datarelated uncertainty.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2020
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Annotated Iconography of the fossil Chondrichthyan Fishes in the collection of the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Brussels
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This book is an extensive iconography of all types of material of Elasmobranchii (mostly teeth) of which the type specimens were found in the collections of the RBINS, in total there are 119 species. Unfortunately, 11 type series were incomplete and 17 were no longer found in the collection at all. The latter are listed in the book, but of course not depicted. It is often about Holocephali from the Paleozoic, but also about some species from the Cenozoic (e.g. Mustelus vanderhoeft, the type of which was never deposited by the author in the RBINS). All species are listed in systematic order, according to the original name, followed by the collection number. The authors have searched the original literature to the type locality and the type stratum as they were specified at the time. Since many species were defined in the19th and early20th centuries, much of that data was outdated, but they were completely revised and adapted to modern nomenclature, a titanic work. Furthermore, the original publication is given species by species and the modern systematic status is given in the notes. The photographs are of high quality and often with more views per copy so that more details are now visible than was possible in older publications. Usually one page per species is provided. It contains an extensive bibliography and the index (with both the old and modern species names) makes searching easier. Thanks to the excellent iconography, the book can also be used as a determination work, but of course only for the types in the RBINS collection.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2023
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Fluorite
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RBINS Staff Publications 2023
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Geological context and tectonostratigraphic units in Belgium, and their relationship to the main metallotects
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RBINS Staff Publications 2023
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Lithium
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RBINS Staff Publications 2023
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Graphite
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RBINS Staff Publications 2023
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Biomonitoring of lakes using macroinvertebrates: recommended indices and metrics for use in West Africa and developing countries
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AbstraitLes systèmes lacustres subissent de fortes pressions qui ont un impact sur leur biodiversité et les services écosystémiques associés. Cela est particulièrement grave en Afrique de l’Ouest et dans les pays en développement, qui manquent de ressources et de capacités techniques pour l’élimination des déchets, la purification de l’eau, ainsi que de capacités scientifiques suffisantes pour la biosurveillance et la gestion intégrée. La préservation, la surveillance et l'amélioration de la qualité des lacs dans ces pays revêtent cependant une importance primordiale. Dans les pays développés, un ensemble d'indicateurs et d'indices multimétriques ont été intégrés à la biosurveillance et à l'évaluation des lacs. Nous évaluons ici les nombreuses procédures, mesures et indices utilisant les macroinvertébrés comme indicateurs de la qualité des lacs et évaluons leur applicabilité dans les lacs d’Afrique de l’Ouest et, plus généralement, dans les pays en développement. Nous proposons un cadre de suivi basé sur les macroinvertébrés adapté à ces pays, incluant des recommandations pour développer de nouveaux indices et adapter les scores de tolérance des taxons aux conditions locales. Ces travaux soulignent l’importance des macroinvertébrés pour la biosurveillance de la santé des lacs dans les lacs d’Afrique de l’Ouest et, plus généralement, dans les pays en développement.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2019
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Paleoclimate, area size, and degree of isolation explain regional biodiversity differences among terrestrial vertebrates within the Congo basin
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RBINS Staff Publications 2019
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Revision of the lanternfly genus Limois Stål, 1863 (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha: Fulgoridae) with description of a new species from China
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RBINS Staff Publications 2020
