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1. Phylogeny and divergence time estimation of Io moths and relatives (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae: Automeris )

   https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.17365  

   Skojec, Chelsea; Earl, Chandra; Couch, Christian D; Masonick, Paul; Kawahara, Akito Y (May 2024, PeerJ)

   Silva, Daniel (Ed.)

   The saturniid moth genusAutomerisincludes 145 described species. Their geographic distribution ranges from the eastern half of North America to as far south as Peru.Automeris moths are cryptically colored, with forewings that resemble dead leaves, and conspicuously colored, elaborate eyespots hidden on their hindwings. Despite their charismatic nature, the evolutionary history and relationships withinAutomerisand between closely related genera, remain poorly understood. In this study, we present the most comprehensive phylogeny ofAutomeristo date, including 80 of the 145 described species. We also incorporate two morphologically similar hemileucine genera,PseudautomerisandLeucanella, as well as a morphologically distinct genus,Molippa. We obtained DNA data from both dry-pinned and ethanol-stored museum specimens and conducted Anchored Hybrid Enrichment (AHE) sequencing to assemble a high-quality dataset for phylogenetic analysis. The resulting phylogeny supportsAutomerisas a paraphyletic genus, withLeucanellaandPseudautomerisnested within, with the most recent common ancestor dating back to 21 mya. This study lays the foundation for future research on various aspects ofAutomerisbiology, including geographical distribution patterns, potential drivers of speciation, and ecological adaptations such as antipredator defense mechanisms. 

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2. The Rediscovery of Noblella peruviana after More than 115 Years Helps Resolve the Molecular Phylogeny and Taxonomy of Noblella (Amphibia, Anura, Strabomantidae)

   https://doi.org/10.3390/d16100613  

   von_May, Rudolf; Diaz, M Isabel; Ttito, Alex; Santa-Cruz, Roy; Catenazzi, Alessandro (October 2024, Diversity)

   We revise the taxonomy of the frog genus Noblella on the basis of a molecular phylogeny. Previous studies recognized that Noblella is non-monophyletic, with one clade distributed from southeastern Peru to northeastern Bolivia and adjacent areas in Brazil and another clade distributed from northern Peru to Ecuador and southeastern Colombia. The lack of sequences from the type species Noblella peruviana prevented the investigation of its phylogenetic position and the status of related taxa. Our rediscovery after more than 115 years allowed for the inclusion of DNA sequences of Noblella peruviana obtained from specimens collected at the type locality in southeastern Peru. We inferred a phylogeny based on a concatenated dataset (three mitochondrial and two nuclear loci) using Bayesian and maximum likelihood methods. Our phylogeny corroborated the non-monophyly of Noblella and helped resolve the status of related taxa, including Psychrophrynella bagrecito, the type species of the genus Psychrophrynella (rediscovered after 42 years). We identified a clade containing N. peruviana, P. bagrecito, and other species of Noblella and Psychrophrynella distributed in southern Peru. Given that the name Noblella predates Psychrophrynella, we propose that Psychrophrynella should be considered a junior synonym of Noblella. The second clade contains species of Noblella distributed in Ecuador and northern Peru, including N. myrmecoides, which used to be the type species of the genus Phyllonastes. Consequently, we propose to reinstate the genus Phyllonastes to accommodate all species of Noblella distributed in Ecuador, northern Peru, southeastern Colombia, and adjacent areas in Brazil. We present an updated taxonomy including new combinations for 12 species and reinstatements for three species. 

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3. Morphometrics in the Recurved Corolla Clade of Burmeistera (Campanulaceae) Clarifies Species Limits and Identifies a New Species

   https://doi.org/10.1600/036364424X17110456120730  

   Mashburn, Brock; Trigueros, Andrea; Ulloa, Carmen Ulloa; Muchhala, Nathan (May 2024, Systematic Botany)

   Abstract—The genus Burmeistera consists mostly of cloud forest species occurring from Guatemala to Peru. Molecular work on this group has revealed previously established subgeneric groupings to be non-monophyletic, while also identifying several monophyletic groups with recognizable synapomorphies. One such monophyletic group is a clade of species with recurved corolla lobes which contains three species: B. crispiloba, B. sodiroana, and B. succulenta. As many as nine names have been recognized previously for these species, though the most recent taxonomic treatments recognize only these three. Additional collections of these species made in the last forty years have uncovered phenotypic variation showing that characters traditionally used to differentiate them no longer do so clearly and suggest the possibility of introgression between them. Here, we report morphometric analyses of herbarium specimens of the recurved corolla clade, using both hierarchical and normal mixture model-based clustering methods to test the current species hypotheses. Our results support the recognition of the three known species plus the newly described Burmeistera kitrinaima sp. nov. We provide complete descriptions of all four species, and include photographs, distributions maps, taxonomic discussion, and an identification key. Keywords—Andes, biodiversity, cluster analysis, hybridization, taxonomy. 

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4. Notes on the genus Polycarpon (Caryophyllaceae) in South America, with the description of a new subspecies from Peru

   https://doi.org/10.21829/abm132.2025.2461  

   Iamonico, Duilio; Montesinos_Tubée, Daniel (February 2025, Acta Botanica Mexicana)

   Background and Aims: Polycarpon is a genus traditionally comprising about 16 species distributed in tropical and temperate regions. Molecular studies demonstrated its polyphyly, highlighting three supported clades: the P. coquimbense-suffruticosum aggregate (from South America), P. prostratum (tropical), and the P. tetraphyllum aggregate (mainly in the Mediterranean region). The first two clades have been excluded from Polycarpon: P. coquimbense, P. suffruticosum, and P. anomalum recently transferred to Augustea, and P. prostratum recognized under Polycarpaea. The remaining members represent a polyploid complex treated as a single species, P. tetraphyllum. Taxonomic questions remain open, especially concerning the number of taxa occurring in some geographical areas. Among them is South America, for which we here present a synopsis.Methods: This work is based on field surveys, examination of specimens, and analysis of literature. The International Code of Nomenclature for Algae, Fungi and Plants was consulted.Key results: Three subspecies of Polycarpon tetraphyllum are recognized in South America: subsp. apurense (from Argentina, Colombia, Paraguay, and Venezuela), subsp. tetraphyllum (alien in most of the countries), and subsp. peruvianum (endemic to Peru). The latter subspecies is newly described here and it differs from subsp. diphyllum and subsp. tetraphyllum by stipule shape, leaf arrangement and colour, arrangement of flowers in inflorescences, petal length, and stamen number. It also presents a distinct habitat: dry, rocky soils, in contrast to the sandy soils or disturbed areas where other subspecies grow. The name P. urbanianum, previously considered as a Peruvian endemic, is here demonstrated to be not a species of Polycarpon. A diagnostic key of the South American subspecies of P. tetraphyllum is proposed.Conclusions: The results obtained remark the variability of Polycarpon tetraphyllum s.l. and highlight that the flora of South America, especially concerning the small Caryophyllaceae needs to be further investigated. 

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5. Two new species of Clystopsenella Kieffer from Belize and Peru (Hymenoptera: Scolebythidae)

   https://doi.org/10.31184/M00138908.1593.4193  

   Engel, Michael S (July 2023, Entomologist's Monthly Magazine)

   Two new species of the scolebythid wasp genusClystopsenellaKieffer (Scolebythidae: Scolebythinae) are described and figured.Clystopsenella mayasp. n., is reported from Belize, representing the northernmost extant occurrence for the genus.Clystopsenella kampasp. n., is described from the southwestern Amazonian region of Madre de Dios, Peru, and intermingles traits of bothC.pacificaLepeco & Melo andC.longiventrisKieffer. A revised key is presented to the species of the genus. 

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