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Article Reference 107 Ants in the clouds: A preliminary checklist of the ant (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) fauna of a Honduran cloud forest ecosystem, featuring a key to country genera
Ant diversity in tropical montane rainforests is globally understudied. This is true for Cusuco National Park (CNP), a cloud forest ecosystem in northwestern Honduras that supports geographically isolated and threatened habitats. The current study presents the first comprehensive ant species checklist for CNP, which is also the first ant check- list for Honduras in over a century. Species records from several projects are also com- bined and presented. Sampling occurred along an elevational range (mainly between 1170 and 2030 m a.s.l.), with methodologies and intensities varying among projects and dates. Overall, 162 ant species belonging to nine subfamilies and 60 genera are reported from the CNP. Five species are recorded for the first time in Honduras (Pheidole natalie Longino, 2019; Strumigenys cf. calamita; Solenopsis invicta Buren, 1972; Solenopsis tex- ana/carolinensis; Pseudomyrmex pallens Mayr, 1870). For the first time, male individuals are reported in Pheidole balatro Longino, 2019. For each species, we provide informa- tion on observed habitat preference, elevational range, and sampling technique. Species accumulation curves are provided for each sample technique, representing sampling intensity and community sample coverage. We also provide a key to the ant genera of Honduras to aid future taxonomic efforts in the country. Our research demonstrates that CNP harbours a surprisingly rich diversity of ant species, despite its small area, similar to many other taxa in the park. The information provided here represents baseline infor- mation for future work on ants in CNP and other Honduran cloud forests and will help guide research in these otherwise poorly explored yet highly threatened ecosystems.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Article Reference Rediscovery of Camponotus herculeanus (Linnaeus, 1758) in Belgium (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
Camponotus herculeanus (Linnaeus, 1758) was rediscovered in Belgium near Ouren. Throughout the spring and summer of 2023, workers were collected on multiple occasions in a Picea abies stand near the Belgian-German boarder.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Article Reference Review of the historical collection of Charipinae (Hymenoptera: Figitidae) preserved in the RBINS
Specimens from the subfamily Charipinae (Figitidae) deposited in the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS) were examined, in total 44 individuals were identified, belonging to eleven species. Five species are reported for the first time in Belgium: Alloxysta citripes (Thomson, 1862), A. fuscipes (Thomson, 1862), A. halterata (Thomson, 1862), A. ramulifera (Thomson, 1862) and Phaenoglyphis fuscicornis (Thomson, 1877); making 14 known species of Charipinae in Belgium. Additionally, for the first time, host information is reported for P. fuscicornis and A. consobrina (Zetterstedt, 1838).
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Article Reference First record of three alien termite species in Belgium
Subterranean termites (Family Rhinotermitidae) and drywood termites (Family Kalotermitidae) can be pest species as they have the potential to inflict damage to wooden constructions and can therefore cause a significant economic impact. Some species of these families are highly destructive and are invasive in many parts of the world. New introductions and/or the spread of termites are often caused by import of infested wood, plants or soils. The present study reports the first records of three exotic termite species in Belgium, viz. Cryptotermes brevis and Reticulitermes banyulensis in Brussels (Brussels Capital Region), and Reticulitermes flavipes in Brugelette (Hainaut province; Walloon region). The morphological identification of the specimens (N = 8) was validated by DNA-barcoding. Cryptotermes brevis and Reticulitermes banyulensis infestations are probably of little concern as local climatological conditions make it unlikely for either species to survive in the temperate climate in Belgium. In contrast, it is likely that Reticulitermes flavipes may become established and will spread to other sites in Belgium.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Article Reference Overview of myrmecological studies and a checklist of the ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) of the Democratic Republic of Congo
The production of species checklists is fundamental to setting baseline knowledge of biodiversity across the world and they are invaluable for global conservation efforts. The main objective of this study is to provide an up-to-date extensive checklist of the ants of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the largest country in sub-Saharan Africa, based on available literature to serve as a foundation for future research and ant faunistic developments. We gathered the literature available to us, most of it compiled from the Global Ant Biodiversity Informatics (GABI) Project and treated the data to province level when possible. We also offer insight into who, when and where contributions have emerged to the current knowledge of the ants of the DRC and each of its 26 provinces. The current list is restricted to valid species and subspecies, discarding morphospecies and some misidentified taxa. The list comprises eight subfamilies, 64 genera and 736 species, the highest species diversity for a country located within the Afrotropical realm.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Inproceedings Reference Eric Simon (1948-2018): his contributions to the knowledge of Campanian-Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) brachiopods.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Inproceedings Reference To colour or not to colour: Colour patterns and pigments in Invertebrates from the Palaeozoic of Belgium.
Almost nothing is known about the evolution of shell colour in invertebrates. This is largely due to the ultra-rarity of fossils in which colour patterns and pigments are preserved and immediately visible, and therefore easy to identify, especially when these are hundreds of millions of years old. This hampers our understanding of the role and function of colour in extinct animals, their ecology, mode of life, interactions, development, and evolution. A good example for this ultra-rarity is the Palaeozoic of Belgium, world-renowned for its exquisitely preserved fossils of the Devonian and Carboniferous, enabling to document major transitions in ecosystem dynamics and the evolution of life on Earth (e.g. nekton revolution, terrestrialisation, major climate changes, anoxic events, biodiversity crises) but from which only a few cephalopod, bivalve and gastropod mollusc and brachiopod shells were historically documented preserving coloured traces (mostly by L.-G. de Koninck and P. de Ryckholt, mid to late 19th century). However, recently, it was discovered that many more specimens preserve these traces, in particular those from Tournaisian–Viséan shallow marine reef environments, allowing to investigate its occurrence in different evolutionary lineages of marine invertebrates exactly during one of the main periods of revolution in geologic history. In Brain project B2/P233/P2 nicknamed COLOURINPALAEO financed by Belspo, after gathering all the specimens available in the main Belgian collections, we will use different techniques (multispectral photogrammetry and spectro-imaging) to better visualise the preserved colour patterns and pigments. Furthermore, advanced spectroscopic techniques, namely Raman micro-probe spectroscopy, synchrotron trace elemental mapping and absorption spectroscopy, will be used to identify the chemical signature of the pigments as well as their mode and pathways of preservation. Some of the first results on this multidisciplinary study on a unique set of Belgian fossils will be presented.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Inproceedings Reference Belgian fossil shells as fortune tellers? Unique climate archives yet hardly tapped into
Shells are powerful climate archives - they add growth increments on timescales as short as sub-daily, and often live for decades, some even more than 100 years. With the aid of isotope and trace-elemental geochemistry, the effects of climate change on temperature, seasonality and extreme weather can be read from them. Belgium is one of the few countries blessed with extensive records of exquisitely preserved fossil shells dating to the Pliocene, a geologic period dating from 5.3 to 2.6 million year ago. Critically, the Pliocene is the youngest geologic time during which CO2 levels were >400 ppm and mean annual temperatures comparable to those to be reached by the end of this century, following Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP) 2-4.5 of the IPCC. It therefore presents an ideal near-future analogue. Rich collections of well-preserved Belgian Pliocene shells are in the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS), and more material is collected from temporary outcrops like building sites in and around Antwerp with the aid of citizen-scientists. In recent years, RBINS collaborated with national (VUB, KULeuven) and international (VU Amsterdam, Naturalis, UDerby) researchers to start tapping into these exquisite climate archives, unraveling previously unknown details on Belgian past climate, predicting amplified seasonality in Europe in a warmer world, and investigating the potential of fossil shells to document heat waves and storms. The poster will highlight some of this recent collaborative work, and, why the RBINS, through its collections, fieldwork and expertise can play a pivotal role in climate research in Belgium.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Article Reference Binkhorstiidae, a new family of crabs (Decapoda, Brachyura, Retroplumoidea) from the upper Cretaceous of the Netherlands and Belgium.
In addition to the type species, Binkhorstia ubaghsii, which is fairly common in the upper part of the Nekum Member (Maastricht Formation) in the wider vicinity of Maastricht (the Netherlands) and Binkhorstia euglypha, which appears to be restricted to the overlying Meerssen Member of the same formation (uppermost Maastrichtian), a third member, B. desaegheri nov. sp., is recorded from the upper middle Santonian of the Campine area in north-east Belgium. The history of Binkhorstia is convoluted, serving as a prime example of how attempts to unravel the higher-level taxonomic position of late Mesozoic crabs may prove difficult. Over time, the genus has been referred to various families or subfamilies, either podotreme or putative eubrachyuran; here the new family Binkhorstiidae is placed in the superfamily Retroplumoidea. Binkhorstiids appear to have been a relatively short-lived endemic group that fell victim to Cretaceous‒Paleogene (K/Pg) boundary perturbations.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Article Reference Amplified seasonality in western Europe in a warmer world
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024