The German Mosquito Atlas

Over the last couple of decades only a handful of enthusiasts and specialized researchers were interested in Germany's mosquitoes. This is largely due to the fact that since the 1950's Germany is considered Malaria-free. People lost interest in them as none of the 50 species living in the country seemed more than just a nuisance. That situation changed in 2006 when the bluetongue disease surprised German livestock owners as the disease is transferred via mosquito species (e.g. genus Culicoides). The disease does not affect humans but it became clear that climate change and globalization will inevitably lead to the introduction of new species that likely also carry viruses.

A good reason to start a national survey and to create a map that documents not only all current species but also their ranges. In April 2012 researchers from the Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research started their work on the Mosquito Atlas for Germany. 120 traps were deployed nation-wide in the past months. However, the majority of sampling is actually done by citizen scientists. The institute issued several calls for help and last year they received more than 2000 envelopes with mosquito samples from amateur collectors. Although it will take several more years to complete the work initial results have already proven how valuable this work is.

Hulecoeteomyia japonica

The researchers were able to locate unknown colonies of Hulecoeteomyia japonica in a 2000 sq.km area in Western Germany. This species is invasive and has established itself notably at cemeteries where it starts to replace native species. The fact that it is one potential carrier of the West-Nile virus raises some concerns.

Stegomyia albopicta

Even more concerning are encounters of individuals of the Tiger mosquito (Stegomyia albopicta). This little beast is a very potent vector as it is known be able to carry more than 50 different viruses among those Dengue or Chikungunya. This species has been found in 20 European countries already and it seems only a matter of time that it establishes itself in Germany. The animals arrive through passive transport largely from Italy that is home to some stable populations and finds at Autobahn service stations in Germany give a hint on the mode of transportation. 

My hope is that this wonderful collection will be DNA barcoded to allow for fast and reliable identification of any mosquito species not only in Germany. The value for any medical prevention strategies seems clear.

School malaise findings 4 - the tiny ones

These little highly interesting animals are often undeserving overlooked. Not this time!

Springtails (Collembola)

Credit: http://www.mattcolephotography.co.uk

Springtails are six-legged arthropods (hexapoda) which are closely related to insects, but are not true insects. They are relatively small, generally less than 6 mm long, variously colored, and are either round (globular springtail) or elongate (slender springtail). Most springtails have a long, forked appendage which can ‘spring’ them forward, propelling the creature into the air when threatened. Springtails are usually found in soil, moss, and leaf litter and they occur worldwide, often in very high numbers. It has been estimated that one square metre of soil may possess up to 10,000 Collembola! They are detritivores meaning that they consume decomposing matter, and considered one of the main organisms responsible for the control and the dissemination of soil microorganisms. Because of their abundance, Malaise traps often capture a very large numbers of springtails, but their species diversity tends to be low. Despite this, the School Malaise Trap Program led to the collection of 37 species of them, including two species that were new to our DNA barcode library.

Springtails are admirable little creatures. Have a look at this 2 minute video taken from the BBC's great Life in the Undergrowth documentary series.

Phytoseiid Mites (Phytoseiidae)

Phytoseiidae is a large family of mites, with more than 2500 described species. Phytoseiid mites are tiny, usually light to dark brown, with slightly hardened shells. These mites have very rapid life cycles, moving from egg to mature adult in less than 10 days. Some phytoseiids feed on plant tissue, but most are predators of small invertebrates (such as other mites) and usually live on plants. Since phytoseiids are very good predators, they are commonly used to control pests that attack crops. New species may be able to help protect more crops and the School Malaise Trap Program caught seven phytoseiid species new to the DNA Barcode library. In fact, some these possibly represent new species to science.

Here a video of one mite eating another mite.

School Malaise findings 3 - arachnids

Today two bits on our little friends with eight legs. We found quite a few in all the Malaise traps. Some expected, some unexpected.

Erigone atra

Dwarf spiders (Erigoninae)

Dwarf spiders are members of the sheet weaver spiders the second largest spider family in the world. There are more than 2000 described species of these spiders found around the world, with 650 in North America. They are very small, usually less than 1 mm, and vary in colour. Their small size allows these spiders to use “ballooning” as a method of transportation (see video below). When ballooning, the spider shoots out strands of silk that form a sort of parachute which is caught by the wind, floating them to a new location. As with most spiders, the Erigoninae are predators and play an important role in food webs. 

We were able to find two species of this subfamily new to the BOLD DNA barcode library. One specimen of Ceratinops crenatus and two specimens of Walckenaeria tibialis were at two schools.

There is only little available information about the biology of these two species as they are very rare.

Pseudoscorpions (Pseudoscorpiones)

Pseudoscorpions arachnids named “Pseudo” scorpions because they have pincers that resemble scorpions, but do not have the tail and stinger. They can be found anywhere from a tree canopy, to somewhere in your home where they feed on the larva of some household pests.

They can also be found in leaf litter, where they feed on other tiny arthropods. Males use  pheromones, and dancing behaviour, to attract females to mate.

These arachnids construct a silken cocoon which they use to protect themselves during the winter. Pseudoscorpions occur globally, but are rarely collected in Malaise traps. In total, four specimens were caught in the School Malaise Trap Program (out of 95000 specimens!).

Here an interesting video of a pseudoscorpion hunting springtails:

The rediscovery of the Hula painted frog

Latonia (formerly Discoglossus) nigriventer (Credit: Sarig Gafny)

The Hula painted frog was considered a member of the Discoglossus genus when it was first discovered in the Hula Valley of Israel in the early 1940s. The frog was thought to have disappeared following a drying up of the Hula Lake at the end of the 1950s, and was declared extinct by the IUCN in 1996. The dry up was part of a plan to transform the area into agricultural land and to combat malaria by eliminating the habitat of the disease-bearing mosquitoes. The sad consequence - the Hula painted frog was the first ever amphibian to have been declared extinct. The opportunity to discover more about this species' history, biology and ecology was thought to have disappeared.

Hula valley

But in November 2011 a routine patrol discovered an animal that was identified as Hula painted frog. Since then 10 more individuals were discovered. This was revealed in a study that was published today. But there is more the researchers were able to find out.

Based on new genetic analyses of rediscovered individuals and the morphologic analyses of extant and fossil bones, the team of Israeli, German and French researchers discovered that the Hula frog differs strongly from its other living relatives, the painted frogs from northern and western Africa. Instead, the Hula frog is related to a genus of fossil frogs, Latonia, known only as fossils from Oligocene to Pleistocene in Europe and therefore considered extinct for about a million years.

These results imply that Latonia nigriventer is not merely another rare species of frog, but rather the sole representative of an ancient clade of frogs

.

There are plans in place to reflood parts of the Hula Valley and thereby restore the original swamp habitat, which may help to build a secure future for the rediscovered species. Actually partial reflooding already begun 1994. Maybe one reason why the remarkably resilient species showed up again. Either way good news for a change.

New Carnival of Evolution (#60)

Check out NeuroDojo for the latest edition of the carnival:

Party like it’s 1953 

School Malaise findings 2 - beetles

Welcome to part two of the most interesting creatures found during the School Malaise Trap program. Today a look at two examples of beetles.

Handsome Fungus Beetle (Phymaphora species)
In North America, there are only two described species of Handsome Fungus Beetles (family Endomychidae). One beetle sampled in the School Malaise Trap Program is mrophologically similar to one of them - Phymaphora pulchella, but its DNA barcode indicates it is likely a distinct species. This means that it is possibly a species that is new to science or at least new to North America. Phymaphora pulchella  is a tiny insect (3-4mm long) with a dark spot above its head, and another dark band across its back. It has yellow legs and antennae, and the particularly ‘handsome’ males have antennae with swollen tips. These beetles feed on fungi that grow under the bark of trees. Phymaphora pulchella is most commonly collected at fresh wounds in trees, although the reason is still a mystery to entomologists.

Mycetina perpulchra

Phymaphora pulchella

The new one - Phymaphora sp.

Flat bark beetles (Cucujidae)

Those beetles are a distinctly flat family of the order Coleoptera. They are relatively small with a flat, long body ranging from 6 to 25 mm in length. They are predominantly brown in colour, with some species that are black, bright red or yellow. Both the larval and adult forms of Cucujiidae can be found under the bark of dead tree, where they are believed to feed on other arthropods. Their range extends across all continents except Africa, and are most diverse in northern regions like Canada and Alaska. One of the species found in the program was the red flat bark beetle (Cucujus clavipes) which is widely distributed in Canada and possesses an interesting trait, its body produces antifreeze proteins. This allows the animal to survive extreme cold temperatures. Now that's a real Canadian life style.

Cucujus clavipes

School Malaise findings 1 - pests

As announced on Friday I will use some posts this week to showcase the results from the School Malaise Trap Program. We have provided the schools with a list of the top 10 most interesting discoveries which I will share with the blog readers. Today we will start with the ones that represent potential threats to agriculture and forest.

Onion fly (Delia antiqua)

The Onion Fly was the most abundant species collected in the School Malaise Trap Program (6%) in fact, it was found in 79 of the 81 traps! Furthermore, it was found earlier in spring than previously recorded. This fly is found in the temperate regions of North America, Europe, and Asia.

Onion flies are grey and look much like house flies, except their legs are longer and their abdomen is narrower. Adults lay their eggs in the soil near onion bulbs of any member of the genus Allium which contains Onions, Garlic, Leek, Chives. The larvae are 8-10 mm long, white, and feed almost exclusively upon those plants. Damage due to the larvae feeding on young seedlings often results in plant death. Onion flies have three generations per year in Ontario so there is great potential for widespread damage to Allium crops. So far it was assumed that the first generation peeks early to mid June. According to the results at all the schools we are looking rather at early May. Given the fact that the flies need just a little over a week to hatch, mate and lay eggs any week earlier than expected might make a big difference for commercial farming.

Pear thrips (Taeniothrips inconsequens)

Pear thrips are an invasive species from Europe. They arrived in California the early 1900’s and are now be found throughout most of the USA and increasingly often in Canada. They are tiny, measuring only 1.2 to 1.7 mm long, with brown - black colouration, two pairs of wings, and rasping mouthparts. They use these mouthparts to cut open leaves and buds of hardwood trees so they can feed on plant fluids. The collection of pear thrips by the School Malaise Trap Program marks the first time they have been DNA barcoded from a Canadian location. They were found in 53 out 81 traps.

This is a very interesting discovery, and could signal a threat to Canadian forests especially because these animals are not restricted to pear trees as the name might suggest. Actually they are known to feed on a variety of maple species as well. In the late 1980’s pear thrips were responsible for damage to 1.3 million acres of Pennsylvanian forest. In North America, only female pear thrips have been found; they reproduce by parthenogenesis, producing eggs that do not require fertilization by a male.