Two new varieties of Eriogonum (Polygonaceae) from the intermountain region

The types and type specimens of Nevada species and varieties of Eriogonum  (Polygonaceae) are alphabetically listed. Appropriate lectotypes are selected as necessary.         

New Nevada entities and combinations in Eriogonum (Polygonaceae)

New species and varieties of the plant genus Eriogonum (Polygonaceae) that occur in Nevada are proposed. Eriogonum tiehmii and E. ochrocephalum var. alexanderae are endemic to Nevada, and E. lewisii is restricted to extreme northeastern Nevada and adjacent Utah. These entities belong to the subgenus Eucycla. Two varieties of E. umbellatum (of the subgenus Oligogonum) are proposed. The first, var. juniporinum , is found in eastern Nevada and in the desert ranges of southeastern California. The second is var. furcosum , which is restricted to the Sierra Nevada. One new combination is also proposed: E. nudum var. gramineum .         

Annotated key to Eriogonum (Polygonaceae) of Nevada

Seventy - three species of Eriogonum (Polygonaceae) are reported for Nevada. A key is provided for the identification of these species along with brief notes on their distribution in the state and elsewhere.         

A revision of Eriogonum (Polygonaceae) subgenus Pterogonum

This revision discusses the 10 species of Eriogonum assigned to the subgenus Pterogonum. Six of the species are essentially restricted to northern Mexico; two additional species, E. hemipterum and E. nealleyi, are found primarily in Texas; and the remaining two, E. hieracifolium and E. alatum, are the most widespread species of the subgenus being found mainly in the United States and just barely entering Mexico. The subgenus is characterized by the broad, often winged or ribbed achenes, and the generally erect habit of the stems of these perennial herbs. Three new species, E. fimbriatum, E. viscanum, and E. clivosum, are described. They are related to E. ciliatum and are found in the desert foothills of north central Mexico. Two new varieties of E. atrorubens are proposed. One, var. nemorosum, is restricted to the high mountains of the Sierra Madre Occidental in northern Durango and southern Chihuahua, while the second, var. auritulum, is a plant of the Sierra Madre Oriental of Coahuila and Nuevo León. The subgenus is divided into four sections, two of which, Peregrina and Astra, are new. Cytological information is given for nearly all taxa and shows the majority of species to have a haploid number of 20. Eriogonum atrorubens var. intonsum is a polyploid with n = 40, and E. greggii is the most unusual with a haploid number of 16. Each species is described in detail, discussed, and illustrated. Distribution maps are given noting the known locations for each taxon.     

A new pulvinate Eriogonum (Polygonaceae) from Utah

A new species of pulvinate wild buckwheat, Eriogonum soredium (Polygonaceae, Eriogonoideae) is described from near-barren limestone slopes in the Grampian Hill area near Frisco, Beaver County, Utah. The new species is outwardly similar to E. shockleyi S. Wats, but may be readily distinguished by its glabrous (not pubescent) flowers and fruits, generally smaller leaves, more numerous involucres per head, turbinate (not campanulate) involucres with 5, rarely 4 (not 5 to 10) teeth, and the smaller flowers.     

Types of Nevada buckwheats ( Eriogonum: Polygonaceae)

The types and type specimens of Nevada species and varieties of Eriogonum  (Polygonaceae) are alphabetically listed. Appropriate lectotypes are selected as necessary.         

The genus Eriogonum Michx. (Polygonaceae) and Michel Gandoger

New species and varieties of the plant genus Eriogonum (Polygonaceae) that occur in Nevada are proposed. Eriogonum tiehmii and E. ochrocephalum var. alexanderae are endemic to Nevada, and E. lewisii is restricted to extreme northeastern Nevada and adjacent Utah. These entities belong to the subgenus Eucycla. Two varieties of E. umbellatum (of the subgenus Oligogonum) are proposed. The first, var. juniporinum , is found in eastern Nevada and in the desert ranges of southeastern California. The second is var. furcosum , which is restricted to the Sierra Nevada. One new combination is also proposed: E. nudum var. gramineum .         

On the taxonomic status of Eriogonum robustum (Polygonaceae), a rare endemic in western Nevada

Evidence from the morphology, genetics, and biogeography of a rare endemic from western Nevada, Erigonum robustum , is presented to determine the most accurate taxonomic classification. Previous authors have classified E. robustrum Greene both as a species and as a variety E. lobbii Torrey & Gray. However, results of a morphometric comparison for 9 characters establish that significant morphological differentiation exists between E. robustum and E. lobbii . In addition, results of a genetic study using protein electrophoresis indicated that genetic differentiation may exist between these 2 taxa. Furthermore, the 2 taxa are geographically, ecologically, and reproductively isolated. Finally, the selective pressures that act on E. robustum in a narrowly restricted cold-desert environment are different from those that act on E. lobbii in subalpine environment. Thus, all available data support a species-level taxonomic classification for E. robustum .     

Eriogonum divaricatum Hook (Polygonaceae), an intermountain species in Argentina

Erogonum divaricatum, an annual herb of clay slopes and flats in the Green and Colorado river drainage basin of the western United States, was found at the turn of the century in three locations in southern Argentina. The South American material was described in 1902 as a new species of Erogonum, E. ameghinoi Speg., and this name was the basionym for a new monotypic genus, Sanmartinia M. Buchinger, proposed in 1950. The species has not been rediscovered in Argentina, and the presence of the species in South America was probably the result of a long-distance dispersal event involving shore birds.     

Biochemical differentiation in the Idaho ground squirrel, Spermophilus brunneus (Rodenta: Scuridae)

Spermophilus brunneus is restricted to a 90 × 125-km area of west central Idaho, with two distinct (northern and southern) groups of populations within this limited range. Morphological differences in pelage length and coloration, external and cranial measurements, and bacula suggest that these groups are either very distinct subspecies or species. We used starch-gel electrophoresis to estimate the amount of genetic differentiation accompanying these morphological differences by assaying genetic variation at 31 loci in the two geographic groups. Fifteen loci were polymorphic (13 in the northern group, 12 in the southern), and mean heterozygosity (H) was high (12.3% northern and 10.8% southern). Nei's genetic distance (0.057) is in the range usually associated with subspecific differences. However, Jaccard's association coefficient (0.893) is about the same as that found between several ground squirrel taxa currently recognized as species. The high levels of heterozygosity suggest that S. brunneus is a neoendemic rather than a paleoendemic species.     

Reestablishment of Stenogonum Nutt. (Polygonaceae)

The genus Stenogonum Nutt. (Polygonaceae) is reestablished and distinguished from Eriogonum Michx. with which it has been synonymized since 1853. The genus, as outlined here, differs from Eriogonum in having two whorls of three foliaceous bracts surrounding the flowers instead of the normal, united tubular involucre. Stenogonum contains two species, S. flexum and S. salsuginosum; they are restricted primarily to the Colorado Plateau of Wyoming southward through eastern Utah and western Colorado to northwestern New Mexico and adjacent northern Arizona. Both species are illustrated and their respective ranges mapped.     

Burrows of the sagebrush vole ( Lemmiscus curtatus ) in southeastern Idaho

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Burrows of the sagebrush vole ( Lemmiscus curtatus ) were analyzed by injecting them with expanding polyurethane foam. Average mean depth ± 1 SE of four burrows was 12.5 ± 2.6 cm. Tunnels were wider than high and flat on the bottom. Three of four burrows were nearly linear, with an average of five entrances. Burrows usually contained one nest made of Artemisia tridentata bark. No middens or communal nests were found. The burrow structure in sagebrush habitat suggests that sagebrush voles occur singly or in pairs rather than in colonies.     

List of Idaho Scolytidae (Coleoptera) and notes on new records

Reported are 105 species of Scolytidae (Coleoptera) from Idaho. About one-third of these are rarely collected, of which 22 species are known from a single locality each. Twelve species reported from Idaho for the first time are: Carphoborus carri Swaine, C. sansoni Swaine, Phloeosinus hoferi Blackman, Conophthorus monophyllae Hopkins, Dryocoetes betulae Hopkins, Ips confuses (LeConte), Pityophthorus absonus Blackman, P. aquilus Blackman , P. blandus Blackman, P. deletus LeConte, P. sculptor Blackman, and Xyleborinus saxeseni (Ratzeburg). Significant extensions of the known distributions in Idaho are reported for seven other scolytids; Alniphagus aspericollis (LeConte), Dendroctonus murrayanae Hopkins, Phloeotribus lecontei Schedl, Procryphalus mucronatus (LeConte), Trypophloeus populi Hopkins, Xyleborus dispar (Fabricius), and X. intrusus Blandford. Xyleborus dispar especially needs study in anticipation that it may become increasingly important in Idaho fruit trees and other woody plants including ornamentals and shade trees.     

Morphometry of sculpins ( Cottus ) in the Clearwater drainage, Idaho

The morphometry of four Idaho species of Cottidae were compared. Pectoral ray counts allowed separation of Cottus beldingi and C. confusus from C. bairdi and C. rhotheus but not from each other. Preopercular armature also allowed identification of the same two groups of two species. Palatine tooth development generally allowed separation of each species as did body prickle development. Body ratios involving caudal peduncle depth allowed separation of C. rhotheus and C. bairdi. Development of lateral lines allowed differentiation of C. rhotheus from the other three species. A key was developed based on the combination of characters studied.     

Genetic analysis of the rare species Salix arizonica (Salicacea) and associated willows in Arizona and Utah

Management decisions affecting the rare plant Arizona willow ( Salix arizonica ) will be aided by understanding genetic similarities among populations of this species. Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis was conducted on 20 populations of S. arizonica , 12 populations of 5 congeners, and 2 samples of outgroup, Populus tremuloides . A phenogram based on DNA markers shows clear separation of populations of S. arizonica from those of co-occurring willow species, but similarity is low (～ 37%) between Utah and Arizona populations of S. arizonica . Evaluation of the relationship of habitat characteristics and geographic distance to genetic similarity reveals that environment and genetic similarity are poorly correlated. Considering Arizona versus Utah populations, we found a significant negative relationship between geographic distance and genetic similarity ( r = 0.936), but no significant relationship between interpopulation distance and genetic similarity within Arizona or Utah. The wide geographic disjunction of S. arizonica populations in Utah and Arizona appears to have existed for a long period during which genetic drift, random mutations, and selection for somewhat different habitats have pushed the 2 regional complexes along separate evolutionary trajectories. Preservation of genetic variation within S. arizonica will require protection of multiple populations in Arizona and Utah.     

Checklist of Tiger Beetles from Idaho (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae)

Sixteen species of Tiger Beetles are listed for Idaho, along with the counties of occurrence for each species. Three species are placed in a checklist of Idaho species for the first time: Cicindela depressula depressula Casey, Cicindela parowana wallisi Calder, and Cicindela decemnotata decemnotata Say.         

Larger ectoparasites of the Idaho ground squirrel ( Spermophilus brunneus )

We sampled both subspecies of the Idaho ground squirrel ( Spermophilus brunneus ) to document the larger ectoparasites of this rare endemic. S. b. brunneus was host (+ = new host record, ? = new Idaho record) to 4 flea species ( Neopsylla inopina + , Oropsylla idahoensis + , O. tuberculata , and Thrassis pandorae +), 1 tick ( Ixodes sculptus +), and an eyeworm (Nematoda: Rhabditis orbitalis ? + , also 1st records from Seiuridae); S. b. endemicus was host to a louse species ( Neohaematopinus laeviusculus +), 5 flea taxa ( Rhadinopsylla sp. + , O. t. tuberculata, Thrassis f. francisi + , T. f. barnest + , and T. f. rockwoodi ), and a mite ( Androlaelaps fahrenholzi +). Spermophilus brunneus had fewer known ectoparasite species than other congeners. Although all of their parasites had many other hosts, S. b. endemicus and S. b. brunneus shared only a single parasite species in common, whereas all but one of their ectoparasites also occurred on the closely related Townsend's ground squirrel ( S. townsendii ). The proportion of parasitized individuals and the parasite loads per individual were significantly lower in S. b. brunneus , which lives in small, isolated populations, than in S. b. endemicus , which has larger, less fragmented populations, suggesting a relationship between host population structure, parasite loads, and parasite species diversity. All but one of the flea species have been linked to plague transmission.     

Genetic differentiation and gene flow of Porcellionides pruinosus (Crustacea: Isopoda: Oniscidea) in Tunisia

Iso-enzymatic polymorphism analysis was carried out on Tunisian populations of Porcellionides pruinosus to clarify their confused taxonomic status, previously revealed by reproductive and morphological approaches. Seventeen allozyme loci were studied, using horizontal starch gel electrophoresis, in 230 adult specimens belonging to nine populations of P. pruinosus located in north, central and south Tunisia, to assess the levels of their intra-genetic and inter-genetic diversity, and to analyse their genetic structure. Our results indicate a low genetic variability with a polymorphism ratio ranging from 29.4% in Tabarka to 47.1% in the Garat Nâam and Raccada populations, and the mean number of alleles per locus was estimated at 1.51 ± 0.15. The direct-count of heterozygosity ranged between 8.1% and 15%. Substantial estimates of demic structuring were found at the total population (F_ST = 0.198), with a generalized and significant heterozygote deficiency detected in every population (with a mean value for all populations of F_IS = 0.372). Genetic distances between the studied populations were low, indicating that they belong to the same species. Nevertheless, the genetic analyses showed the divergence of the population of Tabarka from all the other studied populations, with the lowest mean gene flow, 0.58, and the highest mean genetic distance, (0.182) obtained also by the morphological and reproductive approaches.     

Occurrence of anisakid larvae (Nematoda: Ascardidia) in fishes from Alaska and Idaho

All 25 sablefish ( Anoplopoma fimbria ) examined from two bays near Sitka, Alaska, were infected with anisakid larvae. There were 1 to 11 larvae per infected fish, with worms encysted in the musculature of the body wall of 5 fish and in the liver of 4 fish. For the other hosts the viscera was the site of infection. Chinook salmon ( Onchorhynchus tshawytscha ) from Barrow, Alaska, and Obsidian, Idaho, were also infected with anisakid larvae. These data extend the known northern distribution of the anisakids along the Pacific Coast for sablefish and chinook salmon. The pathogenesis of the migratory pathway of anisakid larvae is described, and comments on human health implications are presented.