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Digitisation of specimens (e.g. zoological, botanical) can provide access to advanced morphological and anatomical information and promote new research opportunities. The micro-CT technology may support the development of "virtual museums" or "virtual laboratories" where digital 3D imaging data are shared widely and freely. There is currently a lack of universal standards concerning the publication and curation of micro-CT datasets. The aim of the current project was to create a virtual gallery with micro-CT scans of individuals of the marine gastropod Hexaplex trunculus, which were maintained under a combination of increased temperature and low pH conditions, thus simulating future climate change scenarios. The 3D volume-rendering models created were used to visualise the structure properties of the gastropods shells. Finally, the 3D analysis performed on the micro-CT scans was used to investigate potential changes in the shell properties of the gastropods. The derived micro-CT 3D images were annotated with detailed metadata and can be interactively displayed and manipulated using online tools through the micro-CT virtual laboratory, which was developed under the LifeWatchGreece Research Infrastructure for the dissemination of virtual image galleries collection supporting the principles of FAIR data.

Background There have been several recent checklists, books and publications about Indian moths; however, much of this work has focused on biodiversity hotspots such as North-east India, Western Ghats and Western Himalayas. There is a lack of published literature on urban centres in India, despite the increased need to monitor insects at sites with high levels of human disturbance. In this study, we examine the moths of Delhi, the national capital region of India, one of the fastest growing mega-metropolitan cities. We present a comprehensive checklist of 338 moths species using 8 years of light trapping data (2012-2020) and examining about 2000 specimens from historical collections at the National Pusa Collection of ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi (NPC-IARI) spanning over 100 years (1907-2020). The checklist comprises moths from 32 families spanning 14 superfamilies with Noctuoidea (48.5%) and Pyraloidea (20.4%) being the the two most dominant superfamilies. We provide links to images of live individuals and pinned specimens for all moths and provide detailed distribution records and an updated taxonomic treatment. New information This is the first comprehensive annotated checklist of the moths of Delhi. The present study adds 234 species to the biodiversity of moths from Delhi that were not reported previously, along with illustrations for 195 species.

The genus Cheironitis van Lansberge, 1875, currently contains 23 species from the Old World. During a survey for dung beetles in Jordan, specimens of an undescribed species were collected at the historical site of Petra. A new species of Cheironitis (C. petraensis sp. n.) is described from the historical site of Petra, Jordan, illustrated and compared with its most closely related species. This new species is reminiscent of the African species of Cheironitis living in savannahs and could represent a relictual species of the mid-Holocene climatic optimum.

Very little is known about the chewing lice fauna of Saudi Arabia especially from swifts (Apodidae). Swifts are common resident and migratory birds throughout Saudi Arabia. Two chewing lice genera are known for parasitising swifts throughout the world:DennyusNeumann, 1906 andEureumNitzsch, 1818, none of which have been recorded from the Kingdom before.Two species of resident wild swifts were examined for chewing lice for the first time in Saudi Arabia. Two rare lice species were identified: D. (Dennyus) hirundinis (Linnaeus, 1761) andDennyussp. (Phthiraptera: Amblycera: Menoponidae) infesting the common swiftApus apus(Linnaeus, 1758) and African palm swiftCypsiurus parvus(Lichtenstein, 1823), respectively. The described chewing lice species are considered as new country records. They will be added to the Saudi Arabia parasitic fauna. Taxonomical and ecological remarks were provided for the identified chewing lice through this work, along with notes on swift/chewing lice interaction.

Cacopsylla pruniisa psyllid that has been known since 1998 as the vector of the bacterium ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma prunorum’, responsible for the European stone fruit yellows (ESFY), a disease that affects species of Prunus. This disease is one of the major limiting factors for the production of stone fruits, most notably apricot (Prunus armeniaca) and Japanese plum (P. salicina), in all EU stone fruit-growing areas. The psyllid vector is widespread in the Western Palearctic, and evidence for the presence of the phytoplasma that it transmits to species of Prunus has been found in 15 of the 27 EU countries. Recent studies showed that C. pruni is actually composed of two cryptic species, which can be differentiated bymolecular markers. A literature review on the distribution of C. pruni was published in 2012, but it only provided presence or absence information at the country level and without distinction between the two cryptic species. Since 2012, numerous new records of the vector in several European countries have been published. We ourselves have acquired a large amountof data from sampling in France and other European countries. We have also carried out a thorough systematic literature review to find additional records, including all the original sources mentioningC. pruni (or its synonyms) since the first description by Scopoli in 1763. Our aim was to create an exhaustive georeferenced occurrence catalog, in particular in countries that are occasionnaly mentioned in the literature with little detail. Finally, for countries that seem suitable for the proliferation of C. pruni (USA, Canada, Japan, China, etc.), we digged deeper into the literature and reliablesources (e.g. checklist)to better subtanciateits current absence from those regions. Information on the distribution ranges of these vector psyllids is of crucial interest in order to best predict the vulnerability of stone fruit producing countries to the ESFY threat in the foreseeable future. We give free access to a unique file of 1975 records of all occurrence data in our possession concerning C. pruni, which we have gathered through more than twenty years of sampling efforts in Europe or through intensive text mining. We have made every effort to retrieve the source information for the records extracted from litterature (1201 records). Thus, we always give the title of the original reference, together with the page(s) citing C. pruni and, if possible, the year of sampling. To makethe results of this survey publicly available, we give a URL to access the literature sources. In most cases, this link allows to freely download a PDFfile. We also give access to information extracted from GBIF (162 exploitable data points on 245 occurrences found in the database), which we thoroughly checked and often supplemented to make the information more easily exploitable. We give access to our own unpublished georeferenced and genotyped record from 612samples taken over the last 20 years in several European countries (Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands, Spain, etc.). Theseinclude two countries (Portugal and North Macedonia) for which the presence of C. pruni had notbeen reported before.Asour specimens have been genotyped (74 sites with species A solely, 202 with species B solely, and 310 with species A+B), our new data enable a better view of the geographical distribution of the two species at the Palaearctic scale.

Holorusia Loew, 1863 (Diptera: Tipulidae) is a relatively large crane fly genus with a wide distribution in the Afrotropic, Australasian–Oceanian, Eastern Palearctic, Oriental and Nearctic Regions. Although the genus is well known to include the largest crane fly species, the immature stages are, thus far, only described for the larva and pupa of the North American Holorusia hesperea Arnaud & Byers, 1990. In this study, we describe for the first time the egg, larva and pupae of the Japanese Holorusia mikado (Westwood, 1876). Larvae were collected from semi-aquatic habitats, from slow flowing areas of streams and small waterfalls where leaf litter accumulates; the larvae are detritivores and feed on wet, decomposing leaves. The larvae were reared to adults in the laboratory. Morphological characters of immature stages discussed with comparison with the North American H. hespera. Male and female genitalia are illustrated and described in detail for the first time.

The collections of the Natural History Museum of Maputo have a crucial role in the safeguarding of Mozambique's biodiversity, representing an important repository of data and materials regarding the natural heritage of the country. In this paper, a dataset is described, based on the Museum’s Entomological Collection recording 409 species belonging to seven orders and 48 families. Each specimen’s available data, such as geographical coordinates and taxonomic information, have been digitised to build the dataset. The specimens included in the dataset were obtained between 1914–2018 by collectors and researchers from the Natural History Museum of Maputo (once known as “Museu Alváro de Castro”) in all the country’s provinces, with the exception of Cabo Delgado Province. This paper adds data to the Biodiversity Network of Mozambique and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, within the objectives of the SECOSUD II Project and the Biodiversity Information for Development Programme. The aforementioned insect dataset is available on the GBIF Engine data portal (https://doi.org/10.15468/j8ikhb). Data were also shared on the Mozambican national portal of biodiversity data BioNoMo (https://bionomo.openscidata.org), developed by SECOSUD II Project.

In the Azores, as in many other temperate, semi-tropical and tropical islands, historical patterns of habitat loss have typically resulted in lowland clearance, meaning that the last remnants of the pre-human pristine forest that covered the major parts of oceanic islands are in the mountain areas (Gaspar et al. 2011). The communities of these mountain forests are of critical importance for the protection of current island biodiversity since they are home to many Azorean endemic species (Borges et al. 2017, Borges et al. 2018, Malumbres-Olarte et al. 2019) and provide a variety of ecosystem services (e.g. water storage, erosion control, pollination, pest-control, food supply, recreation and tourism), contributing to the local economy and welfare (Fernandez-Palacios et al. 2017). The recent increase in recreational tourist activities in native habitats of the Azores (SREA 2018) raises concerns about the use of trails being a threat to the already imperilled native forest biodiversity. Hiking trails in particular have been found to be promoting the spread of invasive plants (Barros and Pickering 2014), which may cause adverse cascading effects on arthropods. The spider communities of the Azores are exceptionally well known due to ongoing inventorying and monitoring projects carried out since 1999 (Borges et al. 2016, Emerson et al. 2017, Malumbres-Olarte et al. 2019). The protocol used in NETBIOME ISLANDBIODIV and in this project is part of a long term monitoring proposal for oceanic islands (Borges et al. 2018). This research was supported by a Ph.D. scholarship from the Azores Governmentto to Rui Carvalho (DRCT M3.1.a/F/135/2015). Data was obtained mostly during the Rui Carvalho DRCT scholarship, but some samples are from a previous project (ERA-Net NetBiome research framework, financed through Portuguese FCT-NETBIOME ISLANDBIODIV grant 0003/2011). Open access was funded by FEDER in 85% and by Azorean Public funds by 15% through Operational Programme Azores 2020, under the project AZORESBIOPORTAL –PORBIOTA (ACORES-01-0145-FEDER-000072). info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Despite the key role played by soil organisms in the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems and provisioning of ecosystem services (Barrios 2007, Bardgett and Putten 2014), available open data on soil biodiversity are incongruously scarce (Eisenhauer 2017, Cameron 2018). This is especially true for Russia, but contrasts long traditions of soil zoological research and large volumes of data that were collected during the second half of the 20th century for the territory of the former USSR. Last year, 41,928 georeferenced occurrences of soil-dwelling arthropods Collembola were digitised and published through GBIF.org. This work continues these activities. The article combines descriptions of three new sampling-event datasets about the various types of anthropogenic load on the diversity and the abundance of Collembola, small arthropods involved in the destruction of organic residues in the soil: Collembola of winter wheat fields in the Kaluga Region: conservation treatment versus conventional one (Kuznetsova et al. 2020). The following variants were studied: 1) treatment with organic fertilisers and tillage, without mineral fertilisers and pesticides, 2) the same, but without tillage, only discing; 3) with mineral fertilisers, pesticides and tillage. Special multi-scale sampling design was used. The material was collected on 24-26 July 2019 in Kaluga Region, European part of Russia. Data on 2226 records on 7302 specimens of 32 species in six fields in 486 soil cores are presented. Collembola of broadleaved forests along gradient of urbanisation in Moscow (Kuznetsova and Ageeva 2020). Sampling plots were placed in oak and lime forests located at different distances from the centre of Moscow. The material was collected in different seasons of 1990–1991. Data on 1737 records on 6873 specimens of 64 species (17 series of sampling, 720 soil cores) are presented. Collembola in clear cutting areas of Arkhangelsk Region: spatial and temporal series of the data (Kuznetsova and Klyueva 2020). Sampling plots were in birch forests of different ages with spruce underbrush and in old spruce forest. The study was carried out in July of 1970–1971 and 1984 in Arkhangelsk Region, European part of Russia. In 1970, cores were taken at sites where the forest was restored 15, 30 and 80 years after clear cuttings, as well as in a 180-year-old spruce forest. In 1984, sampling was repeated in two plots. Data on 1468 records on 18788 specimens of 47 species (seven series of sampling, 720 soil cores) are presented. Collembola of winter wheat fields in the Kaluga Region: conservation treatment versus conventional one (Kuznetsova et al. 2020). The following variants were studied: 1) treatment with organic fertilisers and tillage, without mineral fertilisers and pesticides, 2) the same, but without tillage, only discing; 3) with mineral fertilisers, pesticides and tillage. Special multi-scale sampling design was used. The material was collected on 24-26 July 2019 in Kaluga Region, European part of Russia. Data on 2226 records on 7302 specimens of 32 species in six fields in 486 soil cores are presented. Collembola of broadleaved forests along gradient of urbanisation in Moscow (Kuznetsova and Ageeva 2020). Sampling plots were placed in oak and lime forests located at different distances from the centre of Moscow. The material was collected in different seasons of 1990–1991. Data on 1737 records on 6873 specimens of 64 species (17 series of sampling, 720 soil cores) are presented. Collembola in clear cutting areas of Arkhangelsk Region: spatial and temporal series of the data (Kuznetsova and Klyueva 2020). Sampling plots were in birch forests of different ages with spruce underbrush and in old spruce forest. The study was carried out in July of 1970–1971 and 1984 in Arkhangelsk Region, European part of Russia. In 1970, cores were taken at sites where the forest was restored 15, 30 and 80 years after clear cuttings, as well as in a 180-year-old spruce forest. In 1984, sampling was repeated in two plots. Data on 1468 records on 18788 specimens of 47 species (seven series of sampling, 720 soil cores) are presented. These datasets contribute to filling gaps in the global biodiversity distribution of the Collembola. All datasets present new information about effects of agricultural treatments, urbanisation and clear cutting on springtail diversity and abundance in ecosystems of the European part of Russia.

Only one species of large carpenter bee,Xylocopa virginica(Linnaeus, 1771), has been recorded from Canada, albeit restricted to southern Ontario and Quebec. However, a single female specimen identified by Hurd in 1954 asX. varipunctaPatton, 1879 from British Columbia is in the C.A. Triplehorn Insect Collection at The Ohio State University (OSUC), suggesting that this species was accidentally introduced into coastal western Canada. As wood-nesters, many large carpenter bees are likely capable of expanding their range great distances by natural and unnatural transport methods while nesting inside suitable substrates, the presumed mode of transport into western Canada, and likely elsewhere. The ease at which the nests are transported has likely contributed to the nomenclatural and distributional ambiguity surrounding this species due to morphological similarities of specimens from North America, Hawaii, and several South Pacific islands.By comparing DNA barcodes of specimens from the western United States to specimens from Hawaii, we confirm the early opinion of P.H. Timberlake (Timberlake 1922) that specimens long established on the Hawaiian Islands are the sameX. varipunctafrom continental North America. Furthermore, these DNA barcode sequences also match those of specimens identified asX. sonorinaSmith, 1874 from the French Polynesian and Samoan Islands, thus fully supporting the opinion of Groom et al. (2017) that all are likely conspecific. AsX. sonorina, a species described from and likely introduced to Hawaii is the oldest name available,X. varipunctais here placed into synonymy. Additional research will be needed to trace the timing and pathway of introduction and establishment ofX. sonorina; it is presumed that the species is native to the southwestern United States but has been established in Hawaii since the mid-1800s. It is also established in French Polynesia, the Samoan Islands, and likely other south Pacific islands, with additional records of occurrence from Java, New Zealand, and now Canada.

The dataset contains records of small mammals (Eulipotyphla and Rodentia) collected in the background (unpolluted) areas in the vicinity of Karabash copper smelter (Southern Urals, Russia) and the territory of the Sultanovskoye deposit of copper-pyrite ores before the start of its development. Data were collected during the snowless periods in 2007 (18 sampling plots), 2008–2010 (13 plots annually), 2011 (30 plots) and 2012–2014 (19 plots annually). The capture of animals was carried out in different types of forests (pine, birch, mixed and floodplain), sparse birch stands, reed swamps, marshy and dry meadows, border areas, a household waste dump, areas of ruderal vegetation and a temporary camp. Our study of small mammals was conducted using trap lines (snap and live traps). During the study period, 709 specimens of small mammals were caught, which belonged to five species of shrews and 13 species of rodents. The dataset may be highly useful for studying regional fauna and the distribution of species in different habitats and could also be used as reference values for environmental monitoring and conservation activities. Our dataset contains new information on occurrences of small mammals. It includes the peculiarities of their habitat distribution in the background areas in the vicinity of the large copper smelter and the deposit of copper-pyrite ores before the start of its development (Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia). All occurrence records of 18 mammal species with georeferencing have been published in GBIF.

Background The genus Cyclocosmia Ausserer, 1871 of the spider family Halonoproctidae Pocock, 1901 includes ten known species from North America and Asia. Since Cyclocosmiaricketti was described by Pocock in 1901, no males of this species have ever been reported. New information The male of Cyclocosmiaricketti is described for the first time, based on a specimen collected near the type locality in Fujian Province, China. A morphological description and illustrations are given.

Invertebrates are important elements of aquatic ecosystems and play a crucial role in the transformation of matter and energy in continental water bodies. Communities of aquatic invertebrates are characterised by high sensitivity to pollution by nutrients and toxic substances and acidification of water bodies; they serve as good bioindicators of the quality of the aquatic environment and impacts on hydroecosystems. All hydrobionts participate in the processes of self-purification of water bodies. The presented dataset provides information on the aquatic invertebrate community of a large northern river. During 2018-2020, we collected data on changes in the quantitative indicators of the development of benthic and planktonic communities, as well as the species diversity of their fauna. The dataset combines information about the occurrence and abundance of benthic and planktonic invertebrates and summarises data of aquatic invertebrate species found in the Vychegda River in the zone of influence from the pulp and paper mill. The presented dataset is part of a monitoring programme of the river ecosystems in the production area of Mondi Syktyvkar JSC (the European North-East of Russia, Komi Republic). The dataset describes the structure of benthic invertebrate and plankton communities in the Northern Dvina River Basin. The data on the finding and abundance of large taxa of aquatic invertebrates and species of some groups: Oligochaeta, Cladocera, Copepoda, Rotifera, Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera are presented. In total, the resource includes 8720 findings of invertebrates, of which 6041 are for zoobenthos organisms and 2679 for zooplankton organisms.

The presented dataset contains information on the distribution and species composition of zooplankton (rotifers and crustaceans) registered in the Basin of the Middle Volga River, Russia. The studies have been performed in the Kuibyshev Reservoir (Samara Oblast and the Republic of Tatarstan), the Saratov Reservoir (Samara Oblast), in several lakes (Raifskoe, Gniloe, Krugloe and Lenevo) in the Volzhsko-Kamsky State Biosphere Reserve (Republic of Tatarstan) and in Lake Aslikul, one of the largest lakes of the Middle Volga River Basin, located in the Asly-Kul Natural Park (Republic of Bashkortostan). The hydrobiological data were obtained and published from 1957 to 2020. In total, the dataset includes 5141 records of 111 zooplankton species (including 17 subspecies), belonging to 45 genera. These are mainly native species - 98.5%, while the naturalised, including invasive species, accounts for less than 1.5%. A total of 5141 records have been published on the taxonomic diversity and occurrence of zooplankton (rotifers and crustaceans) in the Middle Volga River Basin. Each record includes information about the place and date of finding the specimen, its taxonomy, occurrence and abundance and the collector. If the information about the find has been published, a link to the corresponding reference is provided. The presented dataset supplements the data on the distribution of zooplankton species in the European part of Russia. Data on zooplankton in the Middle Volga River Basin are published for the first time.

Background The characterisation of functional traits of non-indigenous and invasive species is crucial to assess their impact within invaded habitats. Successful biological invasions are often facilitated by the generalist diet of the invaders which can modify their trophic position and adapt to new ecosystems determining changes in their structure and functioning. Invasive crustaceans are an illustrative example of such mechanisms since their trophic habits can determine important ecological impacts on aquatic food webs. The Atlantic blue crab Callinectessapidus is currently established and considered invasive in the Mediterranean Sea where it has been recorded for the first time between 1947 and 1949. In the last decade, the blue crab colonised most of the eastern and central Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea and it is currently widening its distribution towards the western region of the basin. New information Stable isotope analysis is increasingly used to investigate the trophic habits of invasive marine species. Here, we collated individual measures of the blue crab δ13C and δ15N values and of its potential invertebrate prey into a geo-referenced dataset. The dataset includes 360 records with 236 isotopic values of the blue crab and 224 isotopic data of potential prey collected from five countries and 12 locations between 2014 and 2019. This dataset allows the estimation of the trophic position of the blue crab within a variety of invaded ecosystems, as well as advanced quantitative comparisons of the main features of its isotopic niche.

The gastromyzontid genus Vanmanenia was established by Hora in 1932, based on the type species Vanmanenia stenosoma. The genus is a loach group adapted to running waters of streams from southern China, northern Vietnam and Laos. Currently, 19 valid species of the genus have been recognised. The northernmost distribution of the genus is the Yangtze River (= Chang-Jiang in Chinese) Basin and five species (V. maculata, V. intermedia, V. stenosoma, V. pseudostriata and V. gymnetrus) have been reported from the Basin. Vanmanenia marmorata, a new hillstream species of loach, is here described from the middle Chang-Jiang Basin in Guizhou Province, south China. It is distinguished from its congeners by having a combination of the following characters: three triangular-shaped rostral lobules; postdorsal saddles wider than interspaces; a more backwards-placed anus (the vent to anal distance 30.5–36.9% of the pelvic to anal distance); a larger gill opening with its upper extremity reaching the level of the middle of the orbit; anal-fin base length 5.6–6.4% of SL; caudal-peduncle length 11.6–12.9% of SL; prepelvic length 51.1–53.4% of SL. Its validity is also affirmed by its distinct cyt b gene sequence divergence with all sampled congeners and its monophyly recovered in a cyt b gene-based phylogenetic analysis.

Two decades have passed since the publishing of the last checklist of the millipedes of Slovakia. During this time, several new faunistic records have been added and taxonomic revisions have occurred. The present updated checklist summarises data on all millipede species recorded in Slovakia, including altogether 93 species. For each species, general habitat characteristics, ecological classification and distributional pattern are provided. Ecological classification is presented for the first time for the millipede species occurring in Slovakia and is proposed as a tool for ecological studies and for the nature protection purposes. Special remarks are given to the species newly found for Slovakia, Geoglomeris subterranea Verhoeff, 1908, Brachyiulus lusitanus Verhoeff, 1898, Cylindroiulus britannicus (Verhoeff, 1891), C. parisiorum (Brölemann & Verhoeff, 1896) and Polydesmus burzenlandicus Verhoeff, 1925, as well as to C. arborum Verhoeff, 1928, the species newly confirmed for Slovakia after more than 70 years.

The leafhopper genus Empoascanara Distant, 1918 encompasses 81 species, most of which are distributed in Afrotropical, Oriental and Australian Realm. The leafhopper genus Kapsa Dworakowska, 1972 encompasses 23 species, mainly known from the Oriental and Australian Realms. Two new species of the leafhopper tribe Erythroneurini from Guizhou Province, China, Empoascanara dichotomus sp. nov. and Kapsa sinuose sp. nov. are described and illustrated. Identification keys to the males of the genera Empoascanara and Kapsa in China are proposed.

The herpetological collections of the Instituto de Investigação Científica Tropical, Lisbon, are amongst the most important collections from the former Portuguese territories in Africa and Asia. The collection comprises more than 5000 preserved specimens, including type specimens of nine taxa,Trachylepis adamastor,Trachypelis thomensis,Panaspis thomensis,Naja peroescobari,Dalophia angolensis,Hemidactylus nzingae,Boaedon fradei,Platysaurus maculatus maculatus, andPlatysaurus maculatus lineicauda. The collection was abandoned in the early years of 2000s and was at risk of being lost. In this paper the entire collection is reviewed, a catalogue provided of the extant specimens, and a brief account of the history of herpetological research at IICT given. Details are also provided on the recovery of the collection and a protocol to rescue abandoned collections.

The InBIO Barcoding Initiative (IBI) Hemiptera 01 dataset contains records of 135 specimens of Hemiptera. Most specimens have been morphologically identified to species or subspecies level, and belong to 90 species in total. The species represented in this dataset correspond to about 7,5% of continental Portugal hemipteran species diversity. All specimens were collected in continental Portugal. Sampling took place from 2015 to 2019, and specimens are deposited in the IBI collection at CIBIO, Research Center in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources.This dataset increases the knowledge on the DNA barcodes and distribution of 90 species of Hemiptera from Portugal. Six species, from five different families, were new additions to the Barcode of Life Data System (BOLD), with another twenty five species barcodes' added from underrepresented taxa in BOLD. All specimens have their DNA barcodes publicly accessible through BOLD online database and the distribution data can be accessed through the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). Eutettix variabilis and Fieberiella florii are recorded for the first time for Portugal, and Siphanta acuta, an invasive species previously reported from the Portuguese Azores archipelago, is recorded for the first time for continental Portugal. Stictopleurus punctatonervosus is recorded for the second time for the country.

In the French West Indies, more than 20 species of cetaceans have been observed over the last decades. The recognition of this hot spot of biodiversity of marine mammals observed in the French Exclusive Economic Zone of the West Indies motivated the French government to create in 2010 a marine protected area (MPA) dedicated to the conservation of marine mammals: the Agoa sanctuary. Threats that cetacean populations face are multiple but well-documented. Cetacean conservation can only be achieved if relevant and reliable data are available, starting by occurrence data. In the Guadeloupe archipelago, and in addition to some data collected by the Agoa sanctuary, occurrence data are mainly available through the contribution of citizen science and of local stakeholders (i.e., non-profit organizations (NPO) and whale-watchers). However, no observation network has been coordinated and no standards exist for cetacean presence data collection and management.In recent years, several whale watchers and NPOs regularly collected cetacean observation data around the Guadeloupe archipelago. These observations are highly valuable, often made by experienced observers able to accurately distinguish between species, and some of them were used for scientific targeted studies Stevick et al. 2016, Heenehan et al. 2019, Stevick et al. 2018, Kennedy et al. 2014. Our objective was to gather datasets from three Guadeloupean whale watchers, two NPOs and the Agoa sanctuary, that agreed to share their data. These heterogeneous data went through a careful process of curation and standardization in order to create a new extended database, using a newly designed metadata set. This aggregated dataset contains a total of 4,704 records of 21 species collected in the Guadeloupe Archipelago from 2000 to 2019. The database was called Kakila ("who is there?" in Guadeloupean Creole). The Kakila database was developed following the FAIR principles with the ultimate objective of ensuring sustainability. All these data were transferred into the PNDB repository (Pole National de Données de Biodiversité, Biodiversity French Data Hub, https://www.pndb.fr).In the Agoa sanctuary and surrounding waters, marine mammals have to interact with increasing anthropogenic pressure from growing human activities. In this context, the Kakila database fulfils the need for an organised system to structure marine mammal occurrences collected by multiple local stakeholders with a common objective: contribute to the knowledge and conservation of cetaceans living in the French Antilles waters. Much needed data analysis will enable to identify high cetacean presence areas, to document the presence of rarer species, and to determine areas of possible negative interactions with anthropogenic activities.

Caenis rivulorum Eaton, 1884 is widely distributed and has been reported from a wide range in the Palearctic Region. We report this species from Japan for the first time, from five localities of Hokkaido, based on morphology and molecular data.

The Freshwater Animal Diversity Assessment (FADA) project estimated that freshwater animal species represent 9.5% of the 1.2 million species described. Knowing that freshwater represents only 0.01% of the earth's surface, these wetlands are suitable habitats for a great part of the world's total biodiversity. However, it has been shown that there is a lack of knowledge on these species, including freshwater invertebrates. Nevertheless, they play a key role in the majority of freshwater ecosystems and in their foodweb networks. Freshwater invertebrates are the food resource of many species, such as fish and birds. The knowledge of their morphological, energetic and nutritive characteristics allows a better understanding of their selection by predators (size, energy intake etc.), but also leads to the improvement of wetland management. Although information about freshwater invertebrates exists in literature, they are generally heterogeneous, dispersed and difficult to collect. To facilitate the accessibility of these data and, thus, optimise and accelerate research projects including freshwater invertebrates, we propose a literature review describing 14 morphological and nutritive characteristics (size, dry weight, gross energy, crude protein etc.) for 656 taxa of freshwater invertebrates. This dataset is a review from 104 publications from 1935 to 2020, compiling 14 characteristics when available (size, dry weight, gross energy, crude protein etc.) for 656 taxa of freshwater invertebrates.

The InBIO Barcoding Initiative (IBI) Diptera 02 dataset contains records of 412 crane fly specimens belonging to the Diptera families: Limoniidae, Pediciidae and Tipulidae. This dataset is the second release by IBI on Diptera and it greatly increases the knowledge on the DNA barcodes and distribution of crane flies from Portugal. All specimens were collected in Portugal, including six specimens from the Azores and Madeira archipelagos. Sampling took place from 2003 to 2019. Specimens have been morphologically identified to species level by taxonomists and belong to 83 species in total. The species, represented in this dataset, correspond to about 55% of all the crane fly species known from Portugal and 22% of crane fly species known from the Iberian Peninsula. All DNA extractions and most specimens are deposited in the IBI collection at CIBIO, Research Center in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources. Fifty-three species were new additions to the Barcode of Life Data System (BOLD), with another 18 species' barcodes added from under-represented species in BOLD. Furthermore, the submitted sequences were found to cluster in 88 BINs, 54 of which were new to BOLD. All specimens have their DNA barcodes publicly accessible through BOLD online database and its collection data can be accessed through the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). One species, Gonomyia tenella (Limoniidae), is recorded for the first time from Portugal, raising the number of crane flies recorded in the country to 145 species.

Yongxing Island (about 1.85 km2) is the largest island of the Xisha Islands. It is located in the Western South China Sea and belongs to the tropical ocean monsoon climate zone. Yongxing Island is quite rich in biological resources, for example, plants and birds which have been well documented. However, there are limited reports on spider resources in Yongxing Island. A preliminary checklist of spiders of the Yongxing Island is provided, based on a short-term study undertaken in January 2008. A total of 23 species, belonging to 21 genera and 11 families, were recorded from the area, which forms baseline information of spiders of the Yongxing Island. Amongst these, Oonopidae, Pholcidae, Araneidae and Salticidae were found to have more species in the area. Brignolia parumpunctata (Simon, 1893), Opopaea apicalis (Simon, 1893), Opopaea deserticola Simon, 1891 and Xyphinus baehrae Kranz-Baltensperger, 2014 were firstly reported from China, for which we provide taxonomic description in this paper.

Background The Stenothemusharmandi species-group has 10 species at present. They are S.harmandi (Bourgeois, 1902) (located in N. India, Nepal); S.holosericus Švihla, 2005, S.orbiculatus Švihla, 2005 and S.subnitidus Švihla, 2005 (N. India); S.distortirudis Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014, S.laticollis Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014, S.parallelus Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014 and S.septimus Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014 (China: Xizang); S.fugongensis Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014 (China: Yunnan) and S.leishanensis Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014 (China: Guizhou). In the present study, two previously-known species are classified into this species-group, S.dentatus Wittmer, 1974 and S.alexandrae Švihla, 2004, of which the latter as a subspecies of the former is upgraded to the specific level and another two new species are discovered and described. New information Two new species of the Stenothemusharmandi species-group are described, S.acuticollis sp. n. (China: Yunnan) and S.nigricolor sp. n. (China: Xizang), which are illustrated with habitus photos and aedeagi of males, abdominal sternites VIII and internal genitalia of females. S.alexandrae Švihla, 2004 stat. n. is upgraded from a subspecies of S.dentatus Wittmer, 1974 and the two species are classified into this species-group. Characters of the female reproductive system are described for the first time for the following species: S.distortirudis Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014; S.laticollis Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014; S.leishanensis Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014; S.orbiculatus Švihla, 2005; S.septimus Y. Yang & X. Yang, 2014 and S.subnitidus Švihla, 2005. Meanwhile, some additional distribution information is added for previously-described species. A key for the identification of all species is updated.

Knowledge about the distribution of organisms on Earth is important backbone of biological sciences and especially for deeper understanding of biogeography. However, much of the existing distributional data are scattered throughout a multitude of sources (including in different languages), such as taxonomic publications, checklists and natural history collections and often, bringing them together is difficult. Development of the digital storage facilities may prevent loss of important data (Ruchin et al. 2020). Project GBIF is a good example of a successful data storage facility, which allows investigators to publish biodiversity data in one safe place in one uniform format. Our dataset describes the degree of the investigation of the fish fauna of the inland water of the Murmansk Region. Murmansk Region is a Euro-Arctic Region with a heterogeneous landscape, which determines diversity of the habitats for the fish occurrence. Our dataset contains valid information about distribution of the fish species. This dataset was built upon information obtained by the members of a Laboratory of the aquatic ecosystems of the Institute of North Industrial Ecology Problems of Kola Science Center of the Russian Academy of Science (INEP KSC RAS). The dataset includes 18,509 records about 16 fish species from 14 genera (eight families) collected from 1972 to 2021. A total of 67 water bodies from 15 different basins (rivers from basins of the White and Barents Seas) was screened in order to characterise ichthyocenoses. The main purpose of publishing a database is to make our data available in the global biodiversity system to a wide range of users. The data can be used by researchers, as well as helping the authorities to manage their territory more efficiently. All occurrences are published in GBIF for the first time. We would like to make this data available to everyone by adding it in the global biodiversity database (GBIF).

Background A large scale semi-quantitative biodiversity assessment was conducted in white oak woodlands in areas included in the Spanish Network of National Parks, as part of a project aimed at revealing biogeographic patterns and identify biodiversity drivers. The semi-quantitative COBRA sampling protocol was conducted in sixteen 1-ha plots across six national parks using a nested design. All adult specimens were identified to species level based on morphology. Uncertain delimitations and identifications due to either limited information of diagnostic characters or conflicting taxonomy were further investigated using DNA barcode information. New information We identified 376 species belonging to 190 genera in 39 families, from the 8,521 adults found amongst the 20,539 collected specimens. Faunistic results include the discovery of 7 new species to the Iberian Peninsula, 3 new species to Spain and 11 putative new species to science. As largely expected by environmental features, the southern parks showed a higher proportion of Iberian and Mediterranean species than the northern parks, where the Palearctic elements were largely dominant. The analysis of approximately 3,200 DNA barcodes generated in the present study, corroborated and provided finer resolution to the morphologically based delimitation and identification of specimens in some taxonomically challenging families. Specifically, molecular data confirmed putative new species with diagnosable morphology, identified overlooked lineages that may constitute new species, confirmed assignment of specimens of unknown sexes to species and identified cases of misidentifications and phenotypic polymorphisms.

Background The leafhopper genus Anufrievia Dworakowska, 1970 includes 33 species and is widely distributed in China, Korea, South Korea, Japan, Nepal, India, Thailand and Vietnam. New information Two new species found at Bijie City and Shibing County, Guizhou Province, China are described and illustrated, A. crispata sp. nov. and A. confluensa sp. nov. A key to distinguish the Chinese species of the genus is given.

Prior to this study, 141 species of Tephritidae were known to occur in Italy. Italian records of nine species of the family Tephritidae (Diptera) are provided. Five species, Eurasimona stigma (Loew, 1840), Noeeta bisetosa Merz, 1992, Campiglossa doronici (Loew, 1856), Xyphosia laticauda (Meigen, 1826) and Rhagoletis berberidis Jermy, 1961 are recorded from Italy for the first time, whereas four species, Inuromaesa maura (Frauenfeld, 1857), Urophora cuspidata (Meigen, 1826), Tephritis conyzifoliae Merz, 1992 and T. mutabilis Merz, 1992, previously recorded in the Fauna Europaea database without reference to collection material, are confirmed and supplemented with host plant data and other collection data.

This sampling-event dataset provides primary data about species diversity, age structure, abundance (in terms of biomass and density) and seasonal activity of earthworms (Lumbricidae). The study was carried out in old-growth broad-leaved and young forests of two protected areas ("Kaluzhskiye Zaseki" Nature Reserve and Ugra National Park) of Kaluga Oblast (Russia). The published dataset provides new data about earthworm communities in European Russia. We propose a new schema according to Darwin Core for the standardisation of the soil invertebrates survey data.

The role of soil invertebrates in the cycle of substances, soil-forming processes and the provision of ecosystem services is undeniable. Therefore, soil invertebrates are valuable in bioindication studies. Comprehensive research of soil invertebrates in the production area of Mondi Syktyvkar JSC as the largest pulp and paper enterprise in the European part of Russia was initiated in 2003. A huge amount of data about composition, abundance and structure of soil macro- and mesofauna along an impact gradient was accumulated during the period from 2003 to 2019 years. These data can be used to study local biodiversity, monitor the state of soil invertebrate communities and assess the impact of the pulp and paper industry on the environment. Datasets here presented include information from a monitoring programme for soil invertebrates that inhabit coniferous forests in the production area of Mondi Syktyvkar JSC (Komi Republic). The assemblages' structure of macrofauna, collembolans and nematodes are described. Information on the number of individuals of springtail species, nematodes genera and macrofauna taxa is given. A total of 11146 sampling events of macrofauna, 6673 sampling events of Collembola, and 2592 sampling events of Nematoda are recorded along a gradient of air pollution from pulp and paper industry emissions.

The European species of the genus Tetrastichus (Insecta, Hymenoptera, Eulophidae, Tetrastichinae) are revised with 93 species, including 50 species described as new. The revision was conducted using an integrative taxonomic approach, based on DNA barcoding in combination with morphological characters. The Tetrastichinae are a biologically diverse and species-rich group of parasitoid wasps with numerous complexes of morphologically often very similar species that attack a wide range of hosts in over 100 insect families in 10 different orders. The genus Tetrastichus is, with almost 500 described species, the third largest genus of Tetrastichinae. Although biological information is lacking for most species, current data indicate that Tetrastichus species are gregarious koinobiont endoparasitoids developing on juvenile stages of mainly holometabolous insects. Due to their host specificity, several species of Tetrastichus are used as biological control agents. The European species of Tetrastichus Haliday (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) are revised using a combination of externo-morphological and DNA barcoding data. This is the first integrative approach for any of the large genera of the Tetrastichinae. A total of 93 species are included, of which 50 are described as new: T. agonus sp. n., T. antonjanssoni sp. n., T. argei sp. n., T. argutus sp. n., T. asilis sp. n., T. ballotus sp. n., T. bledius sp. n., T. broncus sp. n., T. calcarius sp. n., T. calmius sp. n., T. clisius sp. n., T. cosidis sp. n., T. cumulus sp. n., T. cyprus sp. n., T. delvarei sp. n., T. doczkali sp. n., T. elanus sp. n., T. elodius sp. n., T. ennis sp. n., T. enodis sp. n., T. erinus sp. n., T. evexus sp. n., T. fadus sp. n., T. fenrisi sp. n., T. flaccius sp. n., T. gredius sp. n., T. iasi sp. n., T. illydris sp. n., T. incanus sp. n., T. inscitus sp. n., T. intruitus sp. n., T. johnnoyesi sp. n., T. lacustrinus sp. n., T. ladrus sp. n., T. lanius sp. n., T. lazius sp. n., T. lixalius sp. n., T. lycus sp. n., T. marcusgrahami sp. n., T. minius sp. n., T. mixtus sp. n., T. nataliedaleskeyae sp. n., T. nymphae sp. n., T. pixius sp. n., T. scardiae sp. n., T. splendens sp. n., T. sti sp. n., T. suecus sp. n., T. tacitus sp. n. and T. tartus sp. n. Two keys for the identification of species are presented, one for females and one for males. Based on DNA barcode sequences for 70 of the species, a Maximum Likelihood tree to assess phylogenetic relationships within the genus is presented. These 70 species are also characterised by a combination of CO1 and morphological data. The remaining 23 species, without a DNA barcode, are characterised by morphological data. Using a combination of data from the morphology and CO1 or morphological data only, the species are separated into three species groups (clito-, hylotomarum-, murcia-groups) with 41 unplaced species outside these groups. Hosts are known for 27 of the species and they are gregarious, koinobiont endoparasitoids on a wide range of immature stages of holometabolous insects and appear to be very host specific. The first host record for Lepidoptera (Tineidae) in Europe is included.

Knowledge about the distribution of living organisms on Earth is very important for many areas of biological science and understanding of the surrounding world. However, much of the existing distributional data are scattered throughout a multitude of sources, such as taxonomic publications, checklists and natural history collections and often, bringing them together is difficult. A very successful attempt to solve this problem is the GBIF project, which allows a huge number of researchers to publish data in one place in a single standard. Our dataset represents a significant addition to the occurrences of amphibians in the Volga, Don riverine basins and adjacent territories. The dataset contains up-to-date information on amphibian occurrences in the Volga river basin and adjacent territories, located for the most part on the Russian plain of European Russia. The dataset is based on our own studies that were conducted in the years 1996-2020. The dataset consists of 5,030 incident records, all linked to geographical coordinates. A total of 13 amphibian species belonging to nine genera and six families have been registered within the studied territory, although the distribution of amphibian species in this region of Russia has not yet been fully studied. This is especially relevant with the spread of cryptic species that can only be identified using molecular genetic research methods. The main purpose of publishing a database is to make our data available in the global biodiversity system to a wide range of users. The data can be used by researchers, as well as helping the authorities to manage their territory more efficiently. All occurrences are published in GBIF for the first time. Most of the data are stored in field diaries and we would like to make it available to everyone by adding it in the global biodiversity database (GBIF).

Background: Chagas disease is a neglected tropical disease and Trypanosoma cruzi (its etiological agent) is mainly transmitted by triatomines (Hemiptera: Reduviidae). All triatomine species are considered as potential vectors; thus, their geographic distribution and habitat information should be a fundamental guide for the surveillance and control of Chagas disease. Currently, of the 137 species distributed in the Americas (Justi and Galvão 2017), 17 species are cited for Argentina: Panstrongylus geniculatus, P. guentheri, P. megistus, P. rufotuberculatus, Psammolestes coreodes, Triatoma breyeri, T. delpontei, T. eratyrusiformis, T. garciabesi, T. guasayana, T. infestans, T. limai, T. patagonica, T. platensis, T. rubrofasciata, T. rubrovaria and T. sordida. Almost 20 years have passed since the publication of the “Atlas of the Triatominae” by Carcavallo et al. (1998) and no work has been done to provide an updated complete integration and analysis of the existing information for Argentinean triatomine species. Here we provide a detailed temporal, spatial and ecological analysis of updated occurrence data for triatomines present in Argentina. New information: This is the first database of the 17 triatomine species present in Argentina (15917 records), with a critical analysis of the temporal, spatial and ecological characteristics of 9788 records. The information spans the last 100 years (1918–2019) and it was mostly obtained from the DataTri database and from the Argentinean Vector Reference Center. As 70% of the occurrences corresponded to the last 20 years, the information was split into two broad periods (pre-2000 and post-2000). Occurrence data for most species show distribution range contractions, which, from the pre-2000 to post-2000 period, became restricted mainly to the dry and humid Chaco ecoregions. Concurrently, the highest species richness foci occurred within those ecoregions. The species T. infestans, T. sordida, T. garciabesi and T. guasayana mostly colonise human dwelling habitats. This study provides the most comprehensive picture available for Argentinean triatomine species and we hope that any knowledge gaps will encourage others to keep this information updated to assist health policy-makers to make decisions based on the best evidence., Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectores

Lacunopsis Deshayes, 1876 is restricted to South Asia and shows a remarkable regional distribution. Fifteen species have been reported from the lower Mekong River area of Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam. Two species, Lacunopsis auris Y.-Y. Liu, Y.-X. Wang & W.-Z. Zhang, 1980 and L. yunnanensis Y.-Y. Liu, Y.-X. Wang & W.-Z. Zhang, 1980 occur in the Yunnan Province of China. The most recent treatments of Lacunopsis date back to the 1970s and 1980s, therefore detailed information on anatomy and DNA analysis is lacking. A new species of freshwater snail (Gastropoda, Pomatiopsidae), L. yuxiensis sp. nov., is described, based on samples collected from Fuxian Lake (Yunnan, China). The new species is characterised by a solid and dark red shell with yellow spiral ribs on the whorls, reminiscent of marine gastropods of the family Trochidae. In addition to a description of the shell morphology and radula, molecular data are presented for the first time. This compilation of faunal and taxonomic data provides relevant information for use in conservation efforts. Additional molecular data may prove helpful for both refining current knowledge on the morphological variability within this species and verifying the degree of cryptic diversity of this genus.

The Hummingbird (Family Trochilidae) Collection of the Natural History and Science Museum of the University of Porto (MHNC-UP) is one of the oldest collections of this family harboured in European museums. Almost 2,000 specimens, that encompass most of the taxonomic diversity of this family, were collected in the late 19thCentury. The collection is relevant due its antiquity and because all specimens were bought from the same provider, mainly as mounted specimens, for a Portuguese private collection of Neotropical fauna. In the early 20thCentury, it was donated to the Museum that is now the MHNC-UP.The information about the majority of these specimens is now available for consultation on the GBIF platform after curation of all specimens and digital cleaning of the associated metadata. In the process, hundreds of non-catalogued specimens were found and taxonomic and spatial information was updated for many of the specimens.

The singing cicadas (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) of Bulgaria were poorly known. There are published records for 14 species:Cicada orni,Lyristes plebejus,Cicadatra atra,Cicadatra hyalina,Cicadatra persica,Cicadetta montana,Cicadetta mediterranea,Dimissalna dimissa,Oligoglena tibialis,Tympanistalna gastrica,Pagiphora annulata,Saticula coriaria,Tibicina haematodesandTibicina steveni.Two species from this list were doubtful in the beginning of our study, sinceTympanistalna gastricais distributed in central and southern Portugal andSaticula coriariais a north African species.We checked three major institutional collections housed in Sofia, Bulgaria: the National Museum of Natural History (SOFM), the Institute of Zoology (ZISB) and the Biology Faculty of Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" (BFUS). We confirmed 11 of the species mentioned in literature, exceptCicadetta mediterraneaand found two additional species:Cicadatra platypteraandCicadetta macedonica(the specimens in BFUS were bioacoustically confirmed).Based on this knowledge, we further investigated the singing cicadas of Bulgaria with the use of morphological and bioacoustic methods in the years 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2016, 2018 and 2019. We were not able to confirm the presence ofCicadatra persicaandCicadetta mediterranea, but found three additional species:Cicadetta brevipenniss. lat.,Cicadetta cantilatrixandTettigettula pygmea. Using the bioacoustic methods, we also detected unknown singing patterns, which could belong to three or four additional taxa, which need to be described.The Bulgarian fauna of singing cicadas at the moment consists of 16 confirmed and 3-4 potential species.

Background The islands and islets of Bahia de Chamela, in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, were declared as the first marine sanctuary in Mexico and has been protected since 2002. Their marine biodiversity has been documented in a series of papers in the last decade, but only three species of polychaete worms have been reported. New information Sixteen species of sedentary polychaete worms belonging to the families Maldanidae , Oweniidae , Sabellariidae , Sabellidae and Serpulidae are reported to the Bahia de Chamela Islands Sanctuary, 15 of these species constituting the first records in the area. Isocirrus tropicus (Monro, 1928) (Monro 1928) and Notaulax californica (Treadwell, 1906) (Treadwell 1906) constitute new records to Mexico; Idanthyrsus mexicanus Kirtley, 1904 (Kirtley 1994) is first recorded since its description and one species of bamboo worm ( Maldanidae ) is described as new to science. The new species belongs to the genus Clymenura Verril, 1900 (Verrill 1900) and its characterised by the presence of a glandular shield on chaetiger 8; a cephalic plaque oval with smooth margins and a rounded palpode; nuchal organs straight, parallel, almost full length of plaque; manubriavicular uncini present from chaetiger 1 with 3–4 teeth above the main fang without hairs or bristles; two pre-anal achaetous segments with tori; an anal funnel with alternating triangular cirri, being the longest that are located mid-ventrally.

Background Thyreophora cynophila (Panzer, 1798) is an iconic species of the European entomofauna. This winter-flying necrophagous fly was considered long extinct in Europe, before being discovered in Spain in 2010 and re-discovered in France in 2020, with a unique locality in Saint-Paul-de-Jarrat (Ariege, southern France). New information After bringing this species to the attention of people that are active in nature during the winter, including hunters, skilled naturalists, nature lovers and professional naturalists, we gathered seven new occurrence data for this species at six locations on the French flanks of the Pyrenees mountains. Those data considerably extend the known distribution of the species in Europe and allows mapping the first approximate extent of occurrence for this species in France.

The deep-sea biome (> 200 m depth) is the world’s last great wilderness, covering more than 65% of the earth’s surface. Due to rapid technological advances, deep-sea environments are becoming more accessible to scientific research and ocean exploration around the world and, in recent years, this is also true for the Galapagos Islands. Deep-sea habitats cover the largest proportion of Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR), yet to date, no comprehensive baseline exists on the biodiversity of the benthic fauna associated with volcanic seafloor formations within this region. Closing this knowledge gap is essential to provide information for decision-making for the management of marine resources within the GMR and assessing any potential changes in biodiversity resulting from climate-driven alterations that deep-sea environments are expected to experience. In 2015, the Charles Darwin Foundation’s Seamounts of the GMR Research Project, together with the Galapagos National Park Directorate (GNPD) and Ocean Exploration Trust (OET), conducted a joint expedition on board the EV Nautilus. Using Remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), the aim of the expedition was to characterise the geological formations and biological communities present on seamounts, lava flows and other deep-sea habitats (> 200 m) within the GMR. We provide the first comprehensive image inventory for the phylum Arthropoda from 260 to 3400 m of depth within the GMR. Past studies on deep-sea macroinvertebrates in the GMR have been limited to voucher samples collected from dredging (restricted to soft bottom environments) or by submersibles (only allowing limited biological sampling). The image inventory, presented here, is based on high-definition video transects conducted by the Hercules ROV on board the EV Nautilus. Images of macroinvertebrate morphospecies were captured, catalogued and identified, thus providing the first known image inventory of in-situ macroinvertebrate species from the deep-sea region of the GMR. We present 32 distinct morphospecies occurrences within the class Malacostraca and order Decapoda. We also report 17 different families, three species that are new records to the GMR, in-situ images of two new species to science recently described and one possible new squat lobster, as well as interesting behavioural observations.

Background Caucasian rock lizards of the genus Darevskia are unique taxa, including both bisexual and parthenogenetic species. The parthenogenetic species have originated as a result of natural hybridisation between females and males of different bisexual species. The species involved in interspecific hybridisation are called parental. However, sympatric zones (SZ) of unisexual and bisexual rock lizards of the Caucasus are still poorly studied, although they are very important for understanding the role of hybrid individuals of different origin in reticulate evolution. This paper presents the location of the SZs of parthenogenetic and their parental bisexual rock lizards of the genus Darevskia in Armenia and adjacent territories of Georgia and Nagorno-Karabakh. We summarised the locations of the SZs identified from 1957 to the present, based on our field survey data gathered in 2018-2019 and records from publications and museum collections. This dataset includes 39 SZs of three types: SZ of parental bisexual species, SZ of parental species with unisexual species and SZ of the parthenogenetic species. For each zone, species composition, geographical and altitudinal distribution are presented. New records expand our knowledge of the geographical and altitudinal distribution of SZs in these species and provide additional data for understanding the mechanisms of reticulate evolution and hybridogeneous speciation in the past, present and future. New information The new records, including geographical and altitudinal distributions of three types of SZs, are presented, which expand the previously-known list to 39 locations of contact zones for parthenogenetic and its bisexual parental species of rock lizards of the genus Darevskia in Armenia and the adjacent territories of Georgia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

Wing venation is used as a tool in honeybee (Apis mellifera L., 1758) subspecies identification. The presented dataset concerns nineteen landmarks located at honeybee worker's forewing vein junctions. Landmarks of Apis mellifera caucasica Pollmann, 1889, A. mellifera carnica Pollmann, 1879 and A. mellifera mellifera Linnaeus, 1758, their hybrids and backcrosses were measured. In total, data from 9590 wings were collected. The dataset could be used in geometric morphometric analysis, studies of degree of inheritance of morphological features and, after further development and supplementation with other local subspecies and hybrids, can contribute to in-depth evolutionary research on honeybees. Baseline dataset for wing venation of hybrids and backcrosses of A. mellifera carnica, A. mellifera caucasica and A. mellifera mellifera.

The Florida Keys Mosquito Control District has used dry ice-baited light traps to monitor mosquito populations on Vaca Key since 1998. The first site sampled was monitored continuously for almost 20 years until all vegetation was removed. This paper describes a dataset compiled over almost 20 years of continuous trapping along Manor Lane on Vaca Key, Florida.

For residents of East-Southeast Asia’s megacities, interactions with “nature” may be largely limited to interactions taking place in urban parks. Urban parks provide refuges for ecologically-important biodiversity, such as insect pollinators. While residents may be unlikely to notice small insects, butterflies are more likely to be noticed and to provide positive human-“nature” interactions. Engaging residents and city planners in promoting habitat for butterflies is valid conservation practice and has well-understood educational and well-being benefits. Surveying and monitoring is an essential activity to corroborate, improve and communicate the outcomes of conservation practices amongst city governments, scientists and other stakeholders. Here we present the data from a survey of butterflies in urban parks in the megacity of the Bangkok Metropolitan Region as part of the "Urban biodiversity and human well-being in East-Southeast Asia's megacities" project organised by the "Urban Butterflies in Asia Research Network". We recorded 51 species of butterflies from ten urban parks in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region. This was more than double the 25 species reported in Bangkok's City Biodiversity Index application. However, this was lower than that recorded in other megacities in Southeast Asia, such as Kuala Lumpur at 60 species. Most of the butterflies recorded were common and widespread species. DNA barcodes are provided for most of the butterflies sampled.

Son La Province is located in north-western Vietnam and the province contains a large area of 440,000 hectares of natural forest. A wide range of elevations and the complexity of landforms have given this province a great diversity of natural habitats and a high level of biodiversity potential. However, the snake fauna of Son La province is still poorly studied. Previous studies documented 56 species of snakes from this province. As a result of our field surveys in Phu Yen, Song Ma, Thuan Chau and Van Ho districts, we report five species of snakes for the first time from Son La Province, northern Vietnam, namely Boiga cyanea, B. guangxiensis, Lycodon meridionalis (Colubridae), Protobothrops cornutus and P. mucrosquamatus (Viperidae), with novel data about morphological characters. In addition, we provide an updated checklist of 61 snake species from Son La Province. The snake fauna of Son La Province also contains a number of species of conservation concern: 11 species listed in the Red Data Book of Vietnam (2007), four species listed in the IUCN Red List (2020) and four species listed in the Vietnam Governmental Decree No. 06 (2019).

Species traits affect how a species interacts with the environment and other species and thus determine the role of the species in an ecosystem. They affect not only population dynamics of a species across space and over time, but also community structure and function through their key role in the community assembly processes. Information on species traits is also highly relevant for conservation planning as they determine the adaptive ability of a species in the face of environmental changes. However, information on species traits is usually scarce and sparsely distributed amongst diverse types of literature and sources. Difficulty in accessing comprehensive information on species traits has formed an essential knowledge gap, limiting our understanding of biodiversity patterns and ecosystem functioning and preventing effective conservation. Even for birds, a well-studied taxon, comprehensive trait information is still unavailable or distributed across different sources for many species. In this study, we compiled information from a variety of sources on 23 traits for all breeding birds, including 157 resident and 14 summer visiting species, in Taiwan and surrounding islands. The 23 traits include those related to the movement patterns, morphology, geographic distributions, activity patterns, feeding behaviour, habitat use, and breeding behaviour and strategies of the species. The trait information was obtained, not only from published literature and datasets, but also from unpublished banding records and specimen measurements. The dataset also contains derived traits, including the elevation and temperature boundaries of species distribution ranges in Taiwan. In addition, structured information on nest characters, which is seldom compiled in trait datasets, has been made available, for the first time, for the breeding birds in Taiwan. Therefore, the most comprehensive trait dataset to date on breeding birds in Taiwan will allow trait-based research and applications in diverse topics and thus enhance our understanding of the patterns and dynamics of breeding bird diversity and its functions in Taiwan.

The checklist of Tanaidacea of Greece was developed in the framework of the LifeWatchGreece Research Infrastructure (ESFRI) project and coordinated by the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research during the period 2013-2015. By applying the Greek Taxon Information System (GTIS) of this project, a complete checklist of species recorded from Greek Seas has been developed. The objectives of the present study were to update and cross-check all tanaidacean species known to occur in Greek Seas. Inaccuracies and omissions according to recent literature and the current taxonomic status were also investigated. The up-to-date checklist of Tanaidacea of Greece comprises 20 species, classified to 11 genera and five families.

This paper presents the results of long-term monitoring of macromoth communities in Mt. Hallasan National Park, South Korea. This mountain shows an altitudinal gradient of vegetation from evergreen deciduous to boreal trees, harbouring more than 550 species of vascular plants. The goal of this project was to investigate the changes in moth assemblages along the altitudinal gradient in this mountain ecosystem. We monitored macromoth communities at 11 sites in Mt. Hallasan National Park from 2013 to 2018, during which time moths were collected once a month from May to October, using an ultraviolet bucket trap. The generated dataset, which represented 587 species and 13,249 individuals from 14 families, can be adopted to establish a baseline for development of a network-orientated database to assess temporal and spatial changes of moths in temperate and tropical forests. This is the first long-term sampling-event dataset on macromoth assemblages in changing vegetation from evergreen deciduous to boreal tree zones, conducted in Mt. Hallasan National Park, the national park at the highest elevation and located on the largest volcanic island in South Korea. The aim of this study was to provide a description and a link to published data in the format of a peer-reviewed journal and to provide recognition of the effort in a scholarly article (based on data paper definition published at https://www.gbif.org/en/data-papers).

Background The checklist of Stomatopoda of Greece was developed in the framework of the LifeWatchGreece Research Infrastructure (ESFRI) project, coordinated by the Institute of Marine Biology, Biotechnology and Aquaculture (IMBBC) of the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR). The application of the Greek Taxon Information System (GTIS) of this project has been used in order to develop a complete checklist of species recorded from the Greek Seas. The objectives of the present study were to update and cross-check all the stomatopod species that are known to occur in the Greek Seas. Inaccuracies and omissions were also investigated, according to literature and current taxonomic status. New information The up-to-date checklist of Stomatopoda of Greece comprises nine species, classified to eight genera and three families.