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1. Austropallene halanychi sp. nov., a new species of sea spider (Pycnogonida, Callipallenidae) from the Ross Sea, Antarctica

   https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1185.108286  

   Zehnpfennig, Jessica R; Mahon, Andrew R (November 2023, ZooKeys)

   Here we presentAustropallene halanychisp. nov., a new species of pycnogonid within the family Callipallenidae (Pycnogonida), collected from the Ross Sea, Antarctica. While retaining key morphological features known for the genusAustropalleneHodgson, 1915a, the new species is distinguished from congeners by its much larger size, along with the combined absence of a denticle on the inner surface of the fixed finger of the chelifore claw along with the presence of small conical outgrowths where the fixed finger of the chelifore claw meets the movable finger on both the dorsal and ventral sides, and also the ability to fully close the chelifore claw. Additionally, the complete mitochondrial genome ofA. halanychiis consistent with other members of the genusAustropallenein terms of gene order and directionality. A phylogenetic tree consisting of mitochondrial protein-coding gene data placesA. halanychias sister toAustropallene cornigera(Möbius, 1902). Additionally, a phylogenetic tree constructed using partial COI data from other callipallenids placed the new species in a clade containing the genusAustropallene. The combination of molecular data in addition to key morphological differences from similar species in the genus leaves no doubt that the new taxon is a new Antarctic species ofAustropallene. 

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2. A Neotropical complex of Ripersiella species (Hemiptera, Coccomorpha, Rhizoecidae) collected from the nests of Acropyga ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

   https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1123.90141  

   Schneider, Scott A; LaPolla, John S (September 2022, ZooKeys)

   We describe five new Neotropical species ofRipersiellaliving in association withAcropygaants:R. campensissp. nov.,R. illicianssp. nov.,R. montanaesp. nov.,R. pediandensissp. nov., andR. telaliasp. nov.We also redescribeR. andensisandR. colombiensisbased on type specimens and other collections. Together, these seven species form a morphologically similar group that we informally refer to as theandensis-complex ofRipersiella. All members of theandensis-complex are confirmed or are speculated to be mutualists ofAcropygaants. We discuss the implications of these associations and provide an identification key to the Neotropical species ofRipersiellathat are lacking bitubular cerores, including the new species. 

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3. Four new nodulose-spored species of Inocybe ( Agaricales ) from West Africa

   https://doi.org/10.3114/fuse.2022.10.01  

   Aïgnon, HL; Jabeen, S; Verbeken, A; Matheny, PB; Yorou, NS; Ryberg, M (December 2022, Fungal Systematics and Evolution)

   We describe four new nodulose-spored species ofInocybefrom tropical regions of Africa:I. beninensis, I. flavipes, I. fuscobrunneaandI. pallidiangulata.The new species are recognised based on morphological data and phylogenetic analyses of ITS, 28S andRPB2sequences. Phylogenetic analyses indicated thatI. flavipesandI. beninensisare part of a subclade leading to theI. calidagroup.Inocybe fuscobrunneaappears sister to theI. asterosporagroup.Inocybe pallidiangulatais nested within a clade of mainly tropical species from South Asia, Africa, and South America, close to the subclade ofI. lilacinosquamosaandI. ayangannaefrom Guyana. Complete descriptions and illustrations, including photographs and line drawings, and a key to nodulose-spored taxa of tropical African species ofInocybeare provided. 

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4. Plastid phylogenomics uncovers multiple species in Medicago truncatula (Fabaceae) germplasm accessions

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-25381-1  

   Choi, In-Su; Wojciechowski, Martin F.; Steele, Kelly P.; Hopkins, Andrew; Ruhlman, Tracey A.; Jansen, Robert K. (December 2022, Scientific Reports)

   N/A (Ed.)

   Abstract Medicago truncatulais a model legume that has been extensively investigated in diverse subdisciplines of plant science.Medicago littoraliscan interbreed withM. truncatulaandM. italica; these three closely related species form a clade, i.e. TLI clade. Genetic studies have indicated thatM. truncatulaaccessions are heterogeneous but their taxonomic identities have not been verified. To elucidate the phylogenetic position of diverseM. truncatulaaccessions within the genus, we assembled 54 plastid genomes (plastomes) using publicly available next-generation sequencing data and conducted phylogenetic analyses using maximum likelihood. Five accessions showed high levels of plastid DNA polymorphism. Three of these highly polymorphic accessions contained sequences from bothM. truncatulaandM. littoralis.Phylogenetic analyses of sequences placed some accessions closer to distantly related species suggesting misidentification of source material.Most accessions were placed within the TLI clade and maximally supported the interrelationships of three subclades. TwoMedicagoaccessions were placed within aM. italicasubclade of the TLI clade. Plastomes with a 45-kb (rpl20-ycf1) inversion were placed within theM. littoralissubclade. Our results suggest that theM. truncatulaaccession genome pool represents more than one species due to possible mistaken identities and gene flow among closely related species. 

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5. The Search for Species Flocks in Marine Benthic Homoeocladia spp. (Diatomeae: Bacillariales). I. Variations on Three Themes, Seventeen New Species

   https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12234073  

   Lobban, Christopher S.; Sison, Britney; Ashworth, Matt P. (December 2023, Plants)

   Exploration of the diversity in the diatom genus Homoeocladia across Micronesia revealed several clusters of undescribed species based on variations around several characters. Using ultrastructural data from scanning electron microscopy, we describe seventeen new species in three of these morphological groups. (1) A group with external thickenings includes eight new species with costae and/or bordered areolae on valve face and/or conopea and/or peri-raphe zone, and one with similar areolae but no ornamentation; this group includes the previously described H. jordanii. (2) Large, linear species, resembling H. asteropeae and H. tarangensis; we describe three new species close to the latter. (3) A sinuous-areolae group includes five new species with areola openings shaped like “~”, “s”, or “z” on the valve and/or girdle bands, or both, and leads to reconsideration of the diagnosis of Homoeocladia schefterae and the recognition that the globally widespread species in this complex is H. coacervata sp. nov. The three groups are based solely on morphology and no genetic relationships are implied within or between the groups, other than having the characteristics of the recently redefined genus Homoeocladia. However, the high diversity of species in Homoeocladia suggests the genus is a good candidate to test for species flocks in this region and in at least one other comparable location, incorporating DNA sampling through either culturing or metabarcoding. 

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