The Spok genes are a group of selfish genetic elements in the fungus Podespora anserina which kills spores lacking them. These Spoks function through a toxin and resistance domain. Homologues of these have been found across other species such as in the Fusarium genus. Nechadraft_82228 is a Spok homologue present in the species Fusarium vanettenii, with uncertain killer action. In this study the killer action is examined through site directed mutagenesis (SDM) of the resistance domain in Nechadraft_82228. The site directed mutagenesis was performed successfully and showed negative results regarding whether the Nechadraft_82228 had functioning killer action and resistance. Growth pattern for spot assays hinted at the existence of a different underlying reason for the lack of growth, opposed to a functional toxin/killer action. Namely respiratory dysfunction in the transformed Saccharomyces. Cerevisiae, potentially due to unfit heat shock temperature.

Denna studie utfördes för att identifiera en hittills okänd art för Sverige inom minerarflugsteklarna med hjälp av en genomgående artbeskrivning och gensekvensering av det svenska materialet som samlats in via Station Linnés malaisefälleprojekt.  Studien utfördes på 3 individer som hittats i två malaisefällor, i Pajala respektive Övertorneå, och bestod av två honor och en hane. Resultatet visade att studiens individer var den synonymiserade arten Opius saevus/Apodesmia saeva, som tidigare hittats i Iran, Skottland, Nederländerna, Sydkorea, Österrike och Finland. Att den är synonymiserad betyder, i detta fall, att det finns två namn för arten, då forskare inte riktigt håller med om vilket släkte den tillhör. De svenska individerna är svarta med gula ben, har en occipital carina som möter och går ihop i den hypoclypeal carinan samt obefintlig notauli. Andra karaktärer innefattar en elliptisk eller kilformad pterostigma, ett tydligt äggläggningsrör och 30 antennsegment.  Fortsatt forskning krävs för att med säkerhet kunna placera arten inom Apodesmia eller Opius, men genom att utföra studier som denna utökas kunskapen om den svenska insektsfaunan hos både forskare och allmänheten. En fullständig revidering är nödvändig inom minerarflugsteklarna för att förenkla framtida forskning och artbestämning, samt minska antalet synonymiseringar. / This study was carried out to identify a hitherto unknown species for Sweden within the Opiinae with the help of a thorough species description and gene sequencing of the Swedish material gathered in Station Linnés’ malaise trap project.  The study was carried out on 3 individuals, which were found in two malaise traps in Pajala and Övertorneå respectively and consisted of two females and one male. The results showed that the individuals of the study were the synonymized species Opius saevus/Apodesmia saeva, previously found in Iran, Scotland, South Korea, the Netherlands, Austria and Finland. That it is synonymized means, in this case, that there are two names for the species, as scientists do not quite agree on which genus it belongs to. The Swedish individuals are black with yellow legs, have an occipital carina that meets and merges into the hypoclypeal carina and a non-existent notauli. Other characters include an elliptical or wedge-shaped pterostigma, a distinct ovipositor tube, and 30 antennal segments.  Placing the species within Apodesmia or Opius cannot be done without further research. But by carrying out studies like this, the knowledge of the Swedish insect fauna is expanded among both researchers and the public. A complete revision is necessary within the Opiinae taxa to simplify future research and species determination, and thereafter reduce the number of synonymizations.

Ekosystemens funktion och tjänster är ofta direkt beroende av biologisk mångfald. Arter som är extra skyddsvärda, indikerar att ett område har höga naturvärden eller i sig själva är av särskild betydelse för biologisk mångfald faller alla under samlingsnamnet naturvårdsarter. Lidköping kommuns ambition är att främja den biologiska mångfalden. Ett av deras ställningstaganden är att kvalitén på gröna ytor ska höjas genom att skapa fler multifunktionella ytor. Tätortsnära skogar är en viktig del i arbetet. För att ta välgrundade beslut om skogarnas förvaltning krävs kunskap om vilka ekosystemtjänster, kvaliteter och arter som återfinns där idag. Syftet med denna studie är att kartlägga ekosystemtjänster i Filsbäckskogen samt att testa om det finns ett statistiskt samband mellan förekomsten av naturvårdsarter inom en yta och antalet ekosystemtjänster inom ytan. Metoden innefattar ekosystemtjänst-inventering i fält med hjälp av ESTER-verktyget, insamling av artfynd, statistikanalys och GIS-arbete. Totalt noterades 35 fynd av naturvårdsarter tillhörande tio olika arter. Resultatet påvisar att ett positivt samband föreligger hos elva av 15 ekosystemtjänster och för fem av dem är parametrarna signifikant skilda från noll. Fyra ekosystemtjänster påvisar negativ korrelation och en av dem är signifikant skild från noll. Flera bitopkvaliteter återfinns på studieområdet. Högt ekosystemtjänstvärde kan korrelera med förekomsten av naturvårdsarter på områden för att de liksom ekosystemtjänsterna är beroende av samma struktur i naturen. Arbetet breddar vägen för liknande men större och mer utvecklade studier i framtiden. / The function of ecosystem and their services is dependent on biodiversity. Nature conservation species includes species with high protection value, species that indicate areas with high natural values or species as in themselves is important for biodiversity. The municipality of Lidköping have the ambition to promote biodiversity and make more multifunctional areas. Urban forests play an important role for the purpose. Information about which ecosystemservices, qualities and species that exists today in the forests requires to take legitimate decisions about future management. The aim of the research is to map ecosystemservices in Filsbäckskogen and investigate if there is a statistical connection between presences of ecosystemservices within an area and number of species within the same area. A fieldinventory of ecosystemservices with a tool named ESTER, collection of speciesfinds, statistical analysis and work in GIS is all included in the methodology. In total there were 35 finds of nature conservation species and ten different species. The result shows that there is a positive correlation in eleven ecosystem services and for five of them the parameters are significantly different from zero. Four ecosystem services show negative correlation and one of them is significantly different from zero. Several biotope qualities can be found in the study area. High ecosystem service value can correlate with the presence of nature conservation species in areas because, like ecosystem services, they are dependent on the same structure in nature. The study has great development potential due to several sources of error. The work prepares the way for similar but larger and more developed studies in the future.

No description available.

The mutualism between the fig tree and the fig wasp pollinator is an important keystone interaction for tropical forests. However, many antagonistic and parasitic species take advantage of the fig/fig wasp mutualism. One such parasite is the gall midge that develops inside fig syconia. Gall midges in fig syconia have sporadically been seen around the world, but until now they have never been observed in Panama. In this study a new Panamanian gall midge in fig syconia is described, together with a supposed parasitoid of the gall midge. The study furthermore investigates the gall midge effect on reproductive success for the fig/fig wasp mutualism. The gall midge is thought to be a new species belonging to the Ficiomyia family. The parasitoid share morphological similarities with the Physothorax family. However, both species need further investigation for proper identification. The gall midge had a significant negative effect on the fig/fig wasp mutualism’s reproductive success. Figs with gall midges inside had less flowers and a lower number of fig wasp offspring. Although, the effect on the reproductive success is small with low gall midge infestation rates.

Das Ziel dieser Studie war, die Anzahl der Mastomys-Arten und ihrer geographischen Verbreitung in Namibia und Teilen von Botswana und Angola zu bestimmen. Der methodische Ansatz umfasst Schädel-Morphometrie, Karyotypisierung und Cytochrom-b-Gen-Sequenzierung. Traditionellen Morphometrie-Studie lieferten keine klaren morphologischen, wohingegen die geometrische Morphometrie-Analyse erfolgreicher war. Hier zeigten die Ergebnisse bei drei Spezies deutliche dorsale und ventrale Unterschiede in der Schädelform. Die Resultate der zytogenetischen und molekularen Methoden ergaben drei Formen von Mastomys mit unterschiedlichen Karyotypen und mtDNA. Diese wurden M. coucha (2n = 36, aFN = 60/60), M. natalensis (2n = 32, aFN = 57/58) und M. shortridgei (2n = 36, aFN = 51/52) zugeordnet. Die mtDNA Divergenz zwischen der Art M. coucha und M. shortridgei war relativ gering (1.3%), außerdem legte die „Moleküluhr“ (molecular clock) nahe, dass M. shortridgei ein aktueller Ableger von M. coucha (0.71 Mya) ist. Man nimmt an, dass der Paläo-Makgadikgadi See, im heutigen Botswana einen Großteil des östlichen Kalahari-Beckens bedeckte. Es könnte sein, dass Ausläufer früherer Populationen von M. shortridgei in Kontakt mit dem Paläo-Makgadikgadi See kammen und während des End-Pleistozäns bis zum frühen Holozän durch das Schrumpfen des Sees isoliert wurden. Im Laufe der Zeit haben sich die frühen Populationen von M. shortridgei an die lokalen sumpfigen Umweltbedingungen angepasst. M. coucha und M. natalensis haben eine klar begrenzte geografischen Verteilung in Namibia, dies scheint durch Niederschlag beeinflusst zu sein: M. coucha tritt vor allem in den niederschlagsarmen Gebieten von Zentral-Namibia auf, M. natalensis dagegen in den niederschlagsreichen Gebieten im nördlich-zentralen und nordöstlichen Namibia und erstreckt sich bis nach Angola und in das nördliche Botswana hinein. Die M. shortridgei-Proben wurden nur in den Okavango-Sümpfen gefunden. / Study aims to summarise the patterns of morphological, cytogenetic and genetic variation of genus Mastomys across the south-west arid region of southern Africa. The methodological approach included skull morphometrics, karyotyping and cytochrome-b gene sequencing. Traditional morphometrics study did not yield clear morphological differences between the three species. Geometric morphometrics analysis was more successful with clear differences, in the shape of the skulls based on landmarks from both the dorsal and ventral views. Results obtained with cytogenetical and molecular methods revealed three forms of Mastomys with different karyotypes and mtDNA clades. These were assigned to M. coucha (2n = 36, aFN = 60/60), M. natalensis (2n = 32, aFN = 57/58) and M. shortridgei (2n = 36, aFN = 51/52). The mtDNA divergence between the species M. coucha and M. shortridgei was relatively low (1.3%), additionally the molecular clock estimated M. shortridgei to be a recent off-shoot of M. coucha (0.71 Mya). It is estimated that the lake Palaeo-Makgadikgadi, in present day Botswana, covered much of the eastern Kalahari basin. It could be that the peripheral ancestral population of M. shortridgei came in contact with the lake Palaeo-Makgadikgadi and was isolated with the shrinking lake Palaeo-Makgadikgadi during the End-Pleistocene to Early Holocene. Over time ancestral populations of M. shortridgei became adapted to the local swampy environmental conditions. M. coucha and M. natalensis have distinct geographical distribution influenced by precipitation. M. coucha mainly occurs in the low rainfall areas of central Namibia, whereas M. natalensis occurs in higher rainfall areas of north-central and north-eastern Namibia, extending into Angola and northern Botswana. The M. shortridgei specimens were only trapped along the Okavango River swamps in northern Botswana and south-eastern Angola.

Selaginellaceae, spikemosses, is a heterosporous plant family belonging to the lycophytes. With an estimated age of some 350 million years, the family is historically important as one of the oldest known groups of vascular plants. Selaginellaceae is herbaceous with a worldwide distribution. However, the majority of the ca. 750 species in the single genus Selaginella are found in the tropics and subtropics. This thesis aims at elucidating the systematics and historical biogeography of Selaginellaceae. The evolutionary relationships of the family were inferred from DNA sequence data (plastid and single-copy nuclear) of one-third of the species richness in the group. Attention was paid to cover the previously undersampled taxonomic, morphological, and geographical diversity. Morphological features were studied and mapped onto the phylogeny. The results show an overall well-supported phylogeny and even more complex morphological patterns than previously reported. Despite this, many clades can be distinguished by unique suites of morphological features. With the phylogeny as a basis, together with the thorough morphological studies, a new subgeneric classification with seven subgenera, representing strongly supported monophyletic groups, is presented for Selaginella. By mainly using gross morphological features, easily studied by the naked eye or with a hand lens, the intention is that the classification should be useful to a broader audience. During the work with species determinations, it was revealed that the correct name for an endemic Madagascan Selaginella species is S. pectinata Spring, not S. polymorpha Badré as previously proposed. The robust phylogeny of Selaginellaceae allowed for a historical biogeographical analysis of the group. A time-calibrated phylogeny, together with extant species distribution data, formed the basis. The results show pre-Pangean diversification patterns, Gondwanan vicariance, and more recent Cenozoic long-distance dispersals. The many inferred transoceanic dispersals during the last 50 million years are surprising considering Selaginella’s large megaspores that are thought to have a negative effect on dispersal. In conclusion, this thesis presents a well-founded hypothesis of the evolutionary history of Selaginellaceae including its phylogeny, morphology, and historical biogeography. The thesis forms a firm basis for further studies on Selaginellaceae in particular, and gives us a better understanding of early land plant evolution in general.

Recognizing the mechanisms of speciation and the limits of species is essential to understand the origin of biodiversity and how to conserve it. The general aims of my investigations during my doctoral studies were two-fold: to study evolutionary patterns and processes, and to provide specific and superspecific taxonomic classifications that try to reflect evolutionary history. I have focused my research on anurans in their biodiversity hotspot, the American Tropics. I have used morphological, behavioral (mating calls), and genetic (DNA sequences) characters to study species boundaries between frogs of the genus Pristimantis and the family Centrolenidae (glassfrogs). The results show that the exclusive use of single lines of evidence or the application of arbitrary thresholds impair and bias our ability to recognize new species and limit the possibility to understand evolutionary processes. Only an integrative approach combining every source of evidence provides the necessary feedback to discover all species and test their identity by comparing independent sets of data. This approach further allows identifying those species that probably represent stable comparative units (well supported species hypotheses) and to flag taxa that require further assessment. Phylogenetic reconstructions based on seven nuclear and mitochondrial genes for about 100 species of glassfrogs revealed that previous hypotheses of relationships were mislead by rampant convergent evolution at the phenotypic level. None of the previously suggested classifications fit with the reconstructed evolutionary history. Consequently, we proposed a new classification consistent with this phylogeny. I also studied the tempo and mode of diversification among glassfrogs. Based on sequences from ten genes in 87 species, I estimated species divergence times, age-range correlation between sister species, and reconstructed ancestral areas and dispersal/vicariance events. The results revealed a complex model of diversification where geographical isolation seems to be the dominant scenario for speciation and only clades of altitudinal generalists have been able to spread across the Neotropical rainforests.

Many animal species are still undiscovered, even in Sweden. This thesis deals with the wasps of the subfamily Eucoilinae (of Figitidae, Cynipoidea), a poorly known group of small parasitoids of Dipteran flies. In this group, old classifications are chaotic, knowledge of old taxa is scant, phylogenetic work has recently started, and many new taxa remain to be described. In this thesis, an identification key is given to the European genera of Eucolinae, and a tribal classification of the subfamily is reintroduced, based on recent phylogenetic results. Most of the thesis focuses on the tribe Eucoilini. That tribe is analyzed phylogenetically in two analyses, one based on a large morphological dataset, the other on two molecular markers, ribosomal 28S and mitochondrial Cytochrome B. The monophyletic core group of Eucoilini is the Eucoila/Trybliographa complex. It is treated in a big taxonomic revision, based on studies of several hundred possibly relevant type specimens and several thousands of other specimens, and on the phylogenetic analyses. More than 500 names of possible members of this group are investigated, and many new combinations are proposed, of species found not to belong within the group, as well as those that did, including some which are transferred to other genera in accordance with the new phylogenetic results. The new genus Quasimodoana is erected, and 20 new species described (8 from Northern Europe, 12 from elsewhere). More than 180 new combinations, more than 50 new species-level synonyms and ca 10 genus-level synonyms, are proposed. Within this complex, the basal split is found to have been between a Paleotropic, specis-poor lineage (Bothrochacis), and a species-rich and largely Holarctic lineage, dominated by Trybliographa but also including the small genera Eucoila and Linoeucoila. The three are not satisfactorily resolved in the analysis, but still maintained as separate genera for pragmatic reasons. It is hypothesized that this group originated in Asia during the Eocene or Oligocene, attacking calyptrate flies in herbivore dung. Then it separated in a tropical branch retaining the ancestral life history mode, and a Holarctic branch, where some lineages specialised in Anthomyiidae and colonised the microhabitats of fungi and plants, speciating extensively in the boreal forests.

The phylogenetic relationships within subfamily Ixoroideae of the coffee family are investigated by phylogenetic reconstruction of molecular data, including regions of the chloroplast DNA (matK, ndhF, rbcL, rps16, trnH-psbA, trnS-G, and trnT-F), and the nuclear ribosomal DNA (ITS). The evolution of morphological characters within the group are inferred, with focus on characters used in classification. Ixoroideae have primarily been characterized by secondary pollen presentation, contorted corolla aestivation, and fleshy fruits. Secondary pollen presentation appears synapomorhic of a clade comprising the Ixoroideae crown group together with Retiniphyllum, whereas contorted corolla aestivation has evolved earlier and is synapomorphic for the crown group, Retiniphyllum, and Steenisia. Capsules likely represent a plesiomorphy from which various dry or fleshy indehiscent fruits have evolved independently in different clades. Reductions in seed number have also occured in many clades, none of which shows a secondary increase in the number of seeds. Within Ixoroideae, the phylogeny and tribal delimitations of Alberteae and Condamineeae are studied in more detail. The former appears restricted to Alberta, Nematostylis, and Razafimandimbisonia, a new genus described here. The Condamineeae are a diverse tribe largely unresolved in previous molecular phylogenetic studies. Our results support a synonymization of both Calycophylleae and Hippotideae, because these are nested within the Condamineeae. Ancestral state reconstructions indicate that intrapetiolar stipules, poricidal anthers, and protogyny, otherwise uncommon characters in Rubiaceae, all have evolved more than once in the Condamineeae. The rare genera Jackiopsis, Glionnetia, and Trailliaedoxa previously not included in molecular phylogenetic analyses, are all found nested within the Ixoroideae, and their systematic positions are discussed. The genera Bathysa, Calycophyllum, Elaeagia, and Rustia do not appear monophyletic. Consequently, resurrections of the names Holtonia, Schizocalyx, and Semaphyllanthe, and synonymizations of Phitopis (as Schizocalyx) and Tresanthera (as Rustia) are proposed. Also proposed are five new tribal names for clades that are not associated with any previously described tribes in the phylogenetic hypotheses presented. / At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Manuscript. Paper 4: Manuscript.