Using genetic analysis to determine the distribution, prevalence and diversity of Eimeria species in pest rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in Australia.

To genetically assess the Australian distribution and frequency of Eimeria species in wild rabbits, with a primary focus on Eimeria intestinalis and Eimeria flavescens as possible additional agents of rabbit biocontrol, the distal colon and faecal samples from wild rabbits sourced from 26 Australian locations with mean annual rainfalls of between 252 mm and 925 mm were analysed using amplicon sequencing of the ITS1 region. Contrary to previous microscopy studies which had only detected E. flavescens on mainland Australia at Wellstead in south-west Western Australia, we detected this species at all 23 effectively sampled sites. The more pathogenic E. intestinalis was only found at 52.2% of sites. Three unique Eimeria genotypes were detected that did not align to the 11 published sequences using a pairwise-match threshold of 90%, and may represent unsequenced known species or novel species. One genotype we termed E. Au19SH and was detected at 20 sites, E. Au19CO was detected at eight sites, and E. Au19CN was detected in one rabbit at Crows Nest (Qld). Site diversity ranged from only five Eimeria species at Boboyan (ACT) to 13 unique sequences at Cargo (NSW). Eimeria diversity in individual rabbits ranged from 11 unique sequences in a rabbit at Wellstead (WA) and a rabbit at Cargo (NSW), to one in 17 rabbits and zero in six rabbits. The three rabbit age classes averaged 4.3 Eimeria species per rabbit. No relationship was found between the number of Eimeria species detected and mean annual rainfall. As Eimeria species were found to be fairly ubiquitous at most sites they appear to be an unlikely additional candidate to assist the control of pest rabbits in Australia.

Mountain colonisation, miniaturisation and ecological evolution in a radiation of direct-developing New Guinea Frogs (Choerophryne, Microhylidae).

AIMS: Mountain ranges in the tropics are characterised by high levels of localised endemism, often-aberrant evolutionary trajectories, and some of the world's most diverse regional biotas. Here we investigate the evolution of montane endemism, ecology and body size in a clade of direct-developing frogs (Choerophryne, Microhylidae) from New Guinea. METHODS: Phylogenetic relationships were estimated from a mitochondrial molecular dataset using Bayesian and maximum likelihood approaches. Ancestral state reconstruction was used to infer the evolution of elevational distribution, ecology (indexed by male calling height), and body size, and phylogenetically corrected regression was employed to examine the relationships between these three traits. RESULTS: We obtained strong support for a monophyletic lineage comprising the majority of taxa sampled. Within this clade we identified one subclade that appears to have diversified primarily in montane habitats of the Central Cordillera (>1,000 m a.s.l.), with subsequent dispersal to isolated North Papuan Mountains. A second subclade (characterised by moderately to very elongated snouts) appears to have diversified primarily in hill forests (<1,000 m a.s.l.), with inferred independent upwards colonisations of isolated montane habitats, especially in isolated North Papuan Mountains. We found no clear relationship between extremely small body size (adult SVL less than 15 mm) and elevation, but a stronger relationship with ecology-smaller species tend to be more terrestrial. CONCLUSIONS: Orogeny and climatic oscillations have interacted to generate high montane biodiversity in New Guinea via both localised diversification within montane habitats (centric endemism) and periodic dispersal across lowland regions (eccentric endemism). The correlation between extreme miniaturisation and terrestrial habits reflects a general trend in frogs, suggesting that ecological or physiological constraints limit niche usage by miniaturised frogs, even in extremely wet environments such as tropical mountains.

Two new species of Choerophryne (Anura, Microhylidae) from the northern versant of Papua New Guinea's central cordillera.

We describe two new species of small microhylid frogs in the genus Choerophryne from the northern slopes of Papua New Guinea's central cordillera. Choerophryne epirrhina sp. nov. can be distinguished from congeners by the combination of moderately small size (SUL 14.9-15.0 mm), distinctly elongated snout (OHG/SUL 0.09-0.10), first finger without expanded disk, and advertisement call consisting of 3-4 distinctly pulsed notes repeated in long sequences. Choerophryne grylloides sp. nov. can be distinguished from congeners by the combination of very small size (SUL 12.5 mm), moderately long snout (OHG/SUL 0.08), long legs (TL/SUL 0.42), first finger without expanded disk and advertisement call consisting of 4-5 distinctly pulsed notes, the last of which has many more pulses than preceding notes (9-10 vs. 3-4).

A new species of Choerophryne (Anura, Microhylidae) from the central cordillera of Papua New Guinea.

We describe a new species of very small microhylid frog in the genus Choerophryne from the upper Strickland River area, Western and Southern Highlands Provinces, Papua New Guinea. Choerophryne gracilirostris sp. nov. can be distinguished from congeners by the following combination of characters: small size (SUL 13.5-14.7 mm), moderately long and narrow snout, first finger without expanded disk and advertisement call consisting of 3-5 distinctly pulsed notes repeated in long sequences. Males in the type series were calling from within leaf litter in primary hill rainforest (213-1368 m a.s.l.). The new species is the third Choerophryne known from the southern side of New Guinea's central cordillera. Measurements of a juvenile specimen (rare because most Choerophryne collected are calling males) demonstrate that the distinctive rostral projection of this genus exhibits pronounced positive allometry.