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Article Reference Uncovering ant diversity across forest successional stages in the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve (DRC): Insights from Winkler and pitfall trap sampling
Litter ant communities constitute an important component of biodiversity in tropical regions. They are currently used in several ecosystem management programmes to as- sess forest health. The aim of this study was to uncover the ant diversity across forest successional stages (fallow land, secondary forest and primary forest) in the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. These habitats were sam- pled at six localities using pitfall traps and Winkler extractions. In total, 190 ant species belonging to 50 genera and eight subfamilies were recorded in the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve. Ant diversity increased significantly along the successional gradient, being lowest in fallow land, intermediate in secondary forest, and highest in primary forest. Sixty ant species were shared across all three habitats, while each habitat supported a distinct assemblage of species. Primary forests contained the greatest number of exclu- sive species, followed by secondary forests and fallow land. Winkler extractors captured substantially more ant species than pitfall traps, recording nearly 50% greater species richness. However, a significant portion of the ant fauna in the Yangambi Biosphere Re- serve likely remains unrecorded, and additional sampling methods (like arboreal traps, net sweeping and baiting) could provide a more complete picture of its biodiversity.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2026 OA
Inproceedings Reference Uncovering the diversity and evolutionary histories of viruses from archived specimens from the Afrotropics
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2023 OA
Article Reference Under pressure: the relationship between cranial shape and burrowing force in caecilians (Gymnophiona)
Caecilians are elongate, limbless and annulated amphibians that, with the exception of one aquatic family, all have an at least partly fossorial lifestyle. It has been suggested that caecilian evolution resulted in sturdy and compact skulls with fused bones and tight sutures, as an adaptation to their head-first burrowing habits. However, although their cranial osteology is well described, relationships between form and function remain poorly understood. In the present study, we explored the relationship between cranial shape and in vivo burrowing forces. Using micro-computed tomography (µCT) data, we performed 3D geometric morphometrics to explore whether cranial and mandibular shapes reflected patterns that might be associated with maximal push forces. The results highlight important differences in maximal push forces, with the aquatic Typhlonectes producing a lower force for a given size compared with other species. Despite substantial differences in head morphology across species, no relationship between overall skull shape and push force could be detected. Although a strong phylogenetic signal may partly obscure the results, our conclusions confirm previous studies using biomechanical models and suggest that differences in the degree of fossoriality do not appear to be driving the evolution of head shape.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2021
Article Reference Understanding the tangled taxonomy of the genus Pseudohercostomus Stackelberg, 1931 (Insecta: Diptera: Dolichopodidae) with description of new species from Singapore and DR Congo
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2021
Inproceedings Reference Une imagerie à la portée de tous ? Application aux collections d’anthropologie et de préhistoire de l’Institut royal des sciences naturelles de Belgique (IRSNB)
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference Une nouvelle espèce de Geotrogus Guérin-Méneville pour la faune du Maroc et catalogue actualisé des epèces du genre (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea: Melolonthidae: Rhizotrogini)
Located in Library / RBINS collections by external author(s)
Article Reference Une nouvelle espèce du genre Teraticorhynchus de Bornéo et statut du genre Toxobrentus (Coleoptera Brentidae-
Located in Library / RBINS collections by external author(s)
Proceedings Reference Unexpected species richness in the African pike Hepsetus odoe (Bloch, 1794); (Characiformes: Hepsetidae)
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference Unraveling the PETM in shallow marine Tethyan environments: the Tunisian stratigraphic record.
Despite the increasing understanding of the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM) in open marine environments, shallow marine settings remain relatively unexplored. We investigated an upper Paleocene to lower Eocene shallow-water sequence near Kalaat Senan in Tunisia (Sidi Nasseur and Wadi Mezaz sections)in order to generate a stratigraphic framework of the PETM in shallow marine fine-grained siliciclastic setting on the Southern Tethys. These sections expose the top part of the El Haria Formation (Fm.), the Chouabine Fm. and the lower part of the limestone bearing El Garia Fm., covering the upper Paleocene - lower Eocene (NP9a to NP11). The PETM interval is situated near the top of the El Haria Fm. and the regional stratigraphy is compared to the well-known Egyptian setting. The isotope record of total organic carbon (δ13Corg)reveals the characteristic negative carbon isotope excursion(CIE), comparable to the δ13Corg record of the Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point of the Eocene at Dababiya (Egypt). Although the Tunesian PETM interval is quite expanded, no anomalous beds are observed and only the "CIE" core is partly represented as the top part of the PETM is truncated. In addition to a well-expressed CIE, the position of the Paleocene-Eocene boundary is supported by the appearance of nannoplankton (Discoaster araneus)and foraminiferal (e.g. Acarinina multicamerata)marker taxa. Furthermore, ostracode and benthic foraminiferal turnovers coincide with the onset of the PETM and are characterized by the disappearance of many common Paleocene taxa (e.g. Frondicularia aff. phosphatica) in this area. The lowest occurrences of Alocopocythere attitogonensis and Buntonia ? tunisiensis (ostracodes), Reophax sp. 1 (benthic foraminifera) and Fasciculithus tonii (calcareous nannplankton) may be applicable for regional correlation. These results indicate that characteristic PETM taxa evolved and/or dispersed immediately after the main δ13Corg shift.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Inproceedings Reference Unravelling the eco-evolutionary dynamics of two non-marine ostracods in response to urbanization
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2016