Ecological Profile of the Flea Beetle Genus Heyden in South Africa (Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini).

In this work, the 25 species of the flea beetle genus Heyden recorded for South Africa are considered. Starting from the updated species distribution and the topographic, temperature, and precipitation variables, as well as the vegetation types in the occurrence sites, through an analysis of ecological niche modelling, a possible ecological profile is provided, both for each species and the entire genus, highlighting some of the factors that drive their occurrence and distribution patterns. Along with the vegetation type, some climatic variables were found to be particularly influential, such as the mean temperature of both the wettest and driest quarters and also the mean precipitation of the wettest period.

Apennine-Pyrenees disjunct distribution: an unusual biogeographic pattern revealed in flea beetles of the species-group (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

European mountain systems have played a crucial role in shaping the distribution of species and of their genetic diversity during the Quaternary climatic changes, with the establishment of allopatric patterns across main mountain ranges. Here we investigated the evolutionary history of flea beetles of the species-group showing an uncommon disjunct biogeographic pattern across the Apennine and the Pyrenees. We applied a multilocus molecular approach and multispecies coalescent models to establish a phylogenetic and systematic framework for this morphologically homogeneous species-group and to estimate the time of main cladogenetic events underlying the origin of the Apennine-Pyrenees pattern.

Past and current climate as a driver in shaping the distribution of the Longitarsus candidulus species group (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae).

Longitarsus candidulus (Foudras) is a thermophilic flea beetle species widely distributed in the Mediterranean Basin and associated with Daphne gnidium L. and Thymelaea hirsuta (L.).

 Motschulsky from Madagascar with descriptions of six new species (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini).

The revision of the flea beetle genus Motschulsky, 1860 in Madagascar is provided. Six new species are described: , , and from the northern area; , , and from the central area. A new synonym of Weise, 1895 is established: Weise, 1895, , since is shown to be a chromatic form of .

Generic placement of the African flea beetle Bryant and the possible occurrence of the genus Clark in sub-Saharan Africa (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini).

Chevrolat and Clark are flea beetle genera (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini). is endemic to the Afrotropical region, while has never been described outside of the Neotropical region. The new combination (Bryant, 1942), is proposed for Bryant, 1942.

Up and down from North to South: Latitudinal Distribution of Flea Beetle Genera in Continental Africa (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini).

The distribution of global biodiversity can be investigated based on comprehensive datasets and many methods to process them. The taxonomic diversity of phytophagous insects is typically linked to plant diversity, which increases from temperate to tropical latitudes. In this paper, we explored the latitudinal distribution of the flea beetle genera (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini) on the African continent.

Taxonomy, Habitat Preference, and Niche Overlap of Two Arrow-Poison Flea Beetle Species of the Genus in Sub-Saharan Africa (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

Coupling the geographic distribution and the ecological requirements of species often supports taxonomy and biogeography. In this contribution, we update the distribution of two flea beetle species of ethno-entomological interest, and , by analyzing original data. In addition, we supply their main morphological diagnostic characters, describing their aedeagal and spermathecal shapes for the first time.

Worldclim 2.1 versus Worldclim 1.4: Climatic niche and grid resolution affect between-version mismatches in Habitat Suitability Models predictions across Europe.

The influence of climate on the distribution of taxa has been extensively investigated in the last two decades through Habitat Suitability Models (HSMs). In this context, the Worldclim database represents an invaluable data source as it provides worldwide climate surfaces for both historical and future time horizons. Thousands of HSMs-based papers have been published taking advantage of Worldclim 1.

 species-group from sub-Saharan Africa with descriptions of two new species from KwaZulu-Natal (Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini).

Heyden is a flea beetle genus with a largely sub-Saharan distribution and currently comprising 34 species. The examination of new material is revealing an increase in species richness and intraspecific variability. and , both from KwaZulu-Natal in the Republic of South Africa, are here described and attributed to the (Jacoby) species group, mainly based on genitalic characters.

DBSCAN and GIE, Two Density-Based "Grid-Free" Methods for Finding Areas of Endemism: A Case Study of Flea Beetles (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) in the Afrotropical Region.

Areas of endemism (AoEs) are a central area of research in biogeography. Different methods have been proposed for their identification in the literature. In this paper, a "grid-free" method based on the "Density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise" (DBSCAN) is here used for the first time to locate areas of endemism for species belonging to the beetle tribe Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini in the Afrotropical Region.

Climate change favours connectivity between virus-bearing pest and rice cultivations in sub-Saharan Africa, depressing local economies.

Aims: Rice is a staple food for many countries, being fundamental for a large part of the worlds' population. In sub-Saharan Africa, its importance is currently high and is likely to become even more relevant, considering that the number of people and the per-capita consumption are both predicted to increase. The flea beetles belonging to the species group ( group), a harmful rice pest, are an important vector of the Rice Yellow Mottle Virus, a disease which leads even to 80-100% yield losses in rice production.

Determinants of habitat suitability models transferability across geographically disjunct populations: Insights from .

Transferability of habitat suitability models (HSMs), essential to accurately predict outside calibration conditions, has been seldom investigated at intraspecific level. We targeted , a meadow viper from southeastern France and central Italy, to assess determinants of transferability among geographically disjunct populations. We fitted HSMs upon occurrences of the Italian and French populations separately, as well as on the combined occurrence dataset.

(Lucas, 1847) (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae), a new genus and species for the European fauna.

(Lucas) is an uncommon species of the Galerucini tribe (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae) distributed in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, and recorded here for the first time for the European fauna. One male and one female were found, not far from each other, wandering on the sand among the vegetation of the shifting dunes of the Tuscan coast (Rosignano Solvay, Spiagge Bianche). Some hypotheses are proposed to explain the presence of on the Italian coast.

Habitat Specificity, Host Plants and Areas of Endemism for the Genera-Group s.l. in the Afrotropical Region (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini).

The genus Heyden (Chrysomelidae) is mainly distributed in the eastern and southern parts of sub-Saharan Africa, with some extensions northward, while Bechyné occurs in the intertropical zone of Africa, with two subgenera, s. str. and Biondi and D'Alessandro.

Adamastoraltica humicola, new genus and new species: the first example of possible moss-inhabiting flea beetle genus from sub-Saharan Africa (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae).

Adamastoraltica humicola gen. nov. and sp.

Sharpening the DNA barcoding tool through a posteriori taxonomic validation: The case of Longitarsus flea beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae).

The accuracy of the DNA barcoding tool depends on the existence of a comprehensive archived library of sequences reliably determined at species level by expert taxonomists. However, misidentifications are not infrequent, especially following large-scale DNA barcoding campaigns on diverse and taxonomically complex groups. In this study we used the species-rich flea beetle genus Longitarsus, that requires a high level of expertise for morphological species identification, as a case study to assess the accuracy of the DNA barcoding tool following several optimization procedures.

Investigating the Current and Future Co-Occurrence of and in Europe through Ecological Modelling and Remote Sensing Data Analysis.

The common ragweed has spread throughout Europe since the 1800s, infesting croplands and causing severe allergic reactions. Recently, the ragweed leaf beetle was found in Italy and Switzerland; considering that it feeds primarily on in its invaded ranges, some projects started biological control of this invasive plant through the adventive beetle. In this context of a 'double' invasion, we assessed the influence of climate change on the spread of these alien species through ecological niche modelling.

Host plant associations in Western Palaearctic flea beetles (Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini): a preliminary phylogenetic assessment.

Latreille (Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini) is a very large genus of phytophagous insects, with more than 700 species distributed in all zoogeographical regions. Patterns of host use have been a central topic in phytophagous insect research. In this study a first assessment is provided to test the hypothesis that host-plant association is phylogenetically conserved in Western Palaearctic species.

Revision of the Afrotropical flea beetle subgenus Blepharidina s. str. Bechyné (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae).

A taxonomic revision of the species attributed to the flea beetle subgenus Blepharidina s. str. Bechyné, 1968 from sub-Saharan Africa is provided.

Evidences for a shared history for spectacled salamanders, haplotypes and climate.

The so-called glacial refugia, formed during the Pleistocene climatic oscillations, played a major role in shaping the distribution of European species, triggering migrations or isolating populations. Many of these events were recently investigated by genetic data, mainly for the European Last Glacial stage, in the Iberic, Italian and Greek-Balkan peninsulas. The amphibian genus Salamandrina, the most ancient living salamandrid lineage, was widespread in Europe until the climatic oscillations of Miocene probably forced it to shelter in the only suitable territory at that time, the Apennines.

Coupling GIS spatial analysis and Ensemble Niche Modelling to investigate climate change-related threats to the Sicilian pond turtle , an endangered species from the Mediterranean.

The pond turtle is an endangered endemic species of Sicily showing a fragmented distribution throughout the main island. In this study, we applied "Ensemble Niche Modelling", combining more classical statistical techniques as Generalized Linear Models and Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines with machine-learning approaches as Boosted Regression Trees and Maxent, to model the potential distribution of the species under current and future climatic conditions. Moreover, a "gap analysis" performed on both the species' presence sites and the predictions from the Ensemble Models is proposed to integrate outputs from these models, in order to assess the conservation status of this threatened species in the context of biodiversity management.

gen. n., a tiny flea beetle from the forest canopy in Central Africa (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini).

In this contribution, and , collected from the canopies in the Budongo Forest, Uganda, is described. Similarities and affinities with other small-sized and convex-shaped flea beetle genera, occurring in the Afrotropical region, are discussed. Micrographs of diagnostic characters, including male and female genitalia, are supplied.

Comparing pseudo-absences generation techniques in Boosted Regression Trees models for conservation purposes: A case study on amphibians in a protected area.

Boosted Regression Trees (BRT) is one of the modelling techniques most recently applied to biodiversity conservation and it can be implemented with presence-only data through the generation of artificial absences (pseudo-absences). In this paper, three pseudo-absences generation techniques are compared, namely the generation of pseudo-absences within target-group background (TGB), testing both the weighted (WTGB) and unweighted (UTGB) scheme, and the generation at random (RDM), evaluating their performance and applicability in distribution modelling and species conservation. The choice of the target group fell on amphibians, because of their rapid decline worldwide and the frequent lack of guidelines for conservation strategies and regional-scale planning, which instead could be provided through an appropriate implementation of SDMs.

Revision of the Afrotropical genus Notomela Jacoby, 1899 with description of N. joliveti sp. n. from Principe Island (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini).

The Afrotropical flea beetle genus Notomela Jacoby, 1899 is reviewed. Notomela joliveti sp.n.