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Quaternary processes and environmental changes are often difficult to assess in remote subantarctic islands due to high surface erosion rates and overprinting of sedimentary products in locations that can be a challenge to access. We present a set of high-resolution, multichannel seismic lines and complementary multibeam bathymetry collected off the eastern (leeward) side of the subantarctic Auckland Islands, about 465 km south of New Zealand's South Island. These data constrain the erosive and depositional history of the island group, and they reveal an extensive system of sediment-filled valleys that extend offshore to depths that exceed glacial low-stand sea level. Although shallow, marine, U-shaped valleys and moraines are imaged, the rugged offshore geomorphology of the paleovalley floors and the stratigraphy of infill sediments suggests that the valley floors were shaped by submarine fluvial erosion, and subsequently filled by lacustrine, fjord, and fluvial sedimentary processes.
I accept Schubnel & Nel's (2019) opinion that Protohierodula belongs to the clade Artimantodea, that it cannot be reliably assigned to the family Manteidae and should be regarded as family incertae sedis.
The fossil cockroaches (Blattodea), praying mantises (Mantodea) and earwigs (Demaptera) are described from the Insect Limestone (Priabonian) of the Isle of Wight, southern England. Three new species of cockroach are described in the family Ectobiidae – Phyllodromica protosardea sp. nov., Balta protosimilis sp. nov. and Malaccina? wightensis sp. nov. – and a further nine indeterminate species are presented (based on ten specimens). The only known specimen of praying mantis is described as Protohierodula crabbi gen. et sp. nov. in the family Manteidae, which constitutes the first record of Mantodea from the UK. The only known specimen of earwig is an incomplete juvenile belonging to the superfamily Forficuloidea.
Extensive areas of tropical forests have been, and continue to be, disturbed as a result of selective timber extraction. Although such anthropogenic disturbance typically results in the loss of biodiversity, many species persist, and their conservation in production landscapes could be enhanced by a greater understanding of how biodiversity responds to forest management practices. We conducted intensive camera-trap surveys of eight protected forest areas in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, and developed estimates of Sunda clouded leopard Neofelis diardi population density from spatially explicit capture–recapture analyses of detection data to investigate how the species’ abundance varies across the landscape and in response to anthropogenic disturbance. Estimates of population density from six forest areas were 1.39–3.10 individuals per 100 km2. Our study provides the first evidence that the population density of the Sunda clouded leopard is negatively affected by hunting pressure and forest fragmentation, and that among selectively logged forests, time since logging is positively associated with abundance. We argue that these negative anthropogenic impacts could be mitigated with improved logging practices, such as reducing the access of poachers by effective gating and destruction of road access points, and by the deployment of anti-poaching patrols. By calculating a weighted mean population density estimate from estimates developed here and from the literature, and by extrapolating this value to an estimate of current available habitat, we estimate there are 754 (95% posterior interval 325–1,337) Sunda clouded leopards in Sabah.
A diverse millipede (diplopod) fauna has been recovered from the earliest Carboniferous (Tournaisian) Ballagan Formation of the Scottish Borders, discovered by the late Stan Wood. The material is generally fragmentary; however, six different taxa are present based on seven specimens. Only one displays enough characters for formal description and is named Woodesmus sheari Ross, Edgecombe & Clark gen. & sp. nov. The absence of paranota justifies the erection of Woodesmidae fam. nov. within the Archipolypoda. The diverse fauna supports the theory that an apparent lack of terrestrial animal fossils from ‘Romer's Gap' was due to a lack of collecting and suitable deposits, rather than to low oxygen levels as previously suggested.
This book presents a wide range of new research on many aspects of naval strategy in the early modern and modern periods. Among the themes covered are the problems of naval manpower, the nature of naval leadership and naval officers, intelligence, naval training and education, and strategic thinking and planning. The book is notable for giving extensive consideration to navies other than those ofBritain, its empire and the United States. It explores a number of fascinating subjects including how financial difficulties frustrated the attempts by Louis XIV's ministers to build a strong navy; how the absence of centralised power in the Dutch Republic had important consequences for Dutch naval power; how Hitler's relationship with his admirals severely affected German naval strategy during the Second World War; and many more besides. The book is a Festschrift in honour of John B. Hattendorf, for more than thirty years Ernest J. King Professor of Maritime History at the US Naval War College and an influential figure in naval affairs worldwide.
N.A.M. Rodger is Senior Research Fellow at All Souls College, Oxford.
J. Ross Dancy is Assistant Professor of Military History at Sam Houston State University.
Benjamin Darnell is a D.Phil. candidate at New College, Oxford.
Evan Wilson is Caird Senior Research Fellow at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.
Contributors: Tim Benbow, Peter John Brobst, Jaap R. Bruijn, Olivier Chaline, J. Ross Dancy, Benjamin Darnell, James Goldrick, Agustín Guimerá, Paul Kennedy, Keizo Kitagawa, Roger Knight, Andrew D. Lambert, George C. Peden, Carla Rahn Phillips, Werner Rahn, Paul M. Ramsey, Duncan Redford, N.A.M. Rodger, Jakob Seerup, Matthew S. Seligmann, Geoffrey Till, Evan Wilson
New palaeodictyopterans, Vernooijia sassoonae gen. et sp. nov. (Breyeriidae) and Mazonopterumcooperi sp. nov. (Homoiopteridae) are described from the Middle Pennsylvanian (Westphalian D/Late Asturian) of Writhlington, near Radstock (UK). Based on the re-examination of venation in Breyeriaharlemensis, we propose the transfer of this species to the genus Vernooijia as V.harlemensis (Brauckmann & Gröning, 1996) comb. nov. We report the first record of Homaloneura sp. (Spilapteridae) from the Langsettian to Duckmantian of Coseley, Staffordshire. Additionally, we report a fragmentary wing from the Middle Pennsylvanian (late Westphalian D/early Cantabrian) of the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, tentatively belonging to the Lycocercidae. Our re-examination of a putative blattodean nymph described by Rolfe (1967) allows re-assignment to Palaeodictyoptera, as it has well-developed wing pads with a corrugated pattern of probably original tracheation and lacunal channels, identified as presumably nymphal exuvia of Idoptilus sp. Surprisingly, our study reveals the presence of three triangular caudal appendages bearing prominent lateral lamellae emerging from the terminal abdominal segment, previously unknown in other nymphs of Palaeodictyoptera. We assume that these lamellae were originally covered with dense setae and possibly represent modified caudal appendages in the form of tracheal gills, as known in the nymphs of damselflies (Odonata: Zygoptera). Thus, the scenario of a possible aquatic lifestyle for nymphs of at least some members of Palaeodictyoptera, as considered by Brongniart (1885, 1893) and Handlirsch (1906), cannot be definitely excluded.
Two new species of Schramocaris from the Viséan, Lower Carboniferous of Scotland and eastern Canada extend the range and distribution of this crustacean along the northwestern coast of the Rheic Ocean. New species from Glencartholm, southern Scotland and Upperton, New Brunswick, Canada represents the first recognised occurrence of this genus in Scotland and Canada. The Scottish species is here named S. clarksoni; it lacks the rugosity of the carinae of Schramocaris gilljonesorum, but has the same relative position of the carinae, as well as similar characteristics of the pleon, such as the relative lengths of the somites and the shape of the telson. The Canadian species is named Schramocaris matthewi on the basis of the papillations on the cuticle and robust second carinae of the carapace. The deposits at both these localities are that of a shallow marine argillaceous environment, although the Glencartholm deposit contains more lime. Schramocaris has previously only been known from the Avon Group (Hastarian) of the Forest of Dean, England.
Clavate (club-shaped) structures rimming mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber from Myanmar, previously misdiagnosed as fungal sporocarps, are shown to be domichnia (crypts) of martesiine bivalves (Pholadidae: Martesiinae). They are similar in form to Teredolites clavatus Leymerie, 1842 and Gastrochaenolites lapidicus Kelly & Bromley, 1984; however, the former identification is preferable, given that they are martesiine crypts in amber as opposed to a lithic substrate. Cross-cutting relationships between the clavate features and inclusions in the amber demonstrate that the features post-date hardening of the resin. The fills of the crypts are variable, including sand grade sediment of very fine to coarse sand grainsize, and sparry calcite cements. In some cases, the articulated valves of the pholadid bivalve responsible are visible inside the borings. However, one remarkable specimen contains two pairs of articulated shells ‘floating’ in amber, not associated with crypts; an observation that suggests that the resin was still liquid or soft when the bivalves were trapped in the resin. One individual is associated with an irregular sediment-filled feature and shows shell breakage. Formation of a solid rim around a liquid central volume has been documented in subaqueous bodies of resin in modern swamp forests, and argues for a close proximity between the amber-producing trees and a brackish water habitat for the bivalves. The presence of pyrite as thin films and crystal groups within Burmese amber is further consistent with such a depositional environment. Comparison of the size of pholadid body fossils with growth rates of modern equivalents allows the duration of boring activities to be estimated and suggests that small fossil pholadids in Burmese amber became trapped and died within 1–2 weeks of having settled on the resin. Larger examples present within well-formed domichnia formed in hardened resin. Since ‘hardground’ describes early lithified sediment as a substrate and ‘woodground’ describes wood as a substrate, the term ‘amberground’ is used here to described borings in an amber substrate.
Dermaptera (earwigs) are described from the Triassic of Australia and England, and from the Jurassic and Cretaceous of England. Phanerogramma heeri (Giebel) is transferred from Coleoptera and it and Brevicula gradus Whalley are re-described. Seven new taxa are named based on tegmina: Phanerogramma australis sp. nov. and P. dunstani sp. nov. from the Late Triassic of Australia; P. gouldsbroughi sp. nov. from the Triassic/Jurassic of England; Brevicula maculata sp. nov. and Trivenapteron moorei gen. et sp. nov. from the Early Jurassic of England; and Dimapteron corami gen et sp. nov. and Valdopteron woodi gen. et sp. nov. from the Early Cretaceous of England. Phanerogramma, Dimapteron and Valdopteron are tentatively placed in the family Dermapteridae, and Trivenapteron is incertae sedis. Most of the specimens of Phanerogramma heeri are from the Brodie Collection and labelled ‘Lower Lias'; however, some were collected from the underlying Penarth Group, thus this species spans the Triassic/Jurassic boundary. The palaeobiogeography of the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic of England is discussed.