Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino Patagónico

Abstract The Basidiomycota constitutes a major phylum of the kingdom Fungi and is second in species numbers to the Ascomycota. The present work provides an overview of all validly published, currently used basidiomycete genera to date in a single document. An outline of all genera of Basidiomycota is provided, which includes 1928 currently used genera names, with 1263 synonyms, which are distributed in 241 families, 68 orders, 18 classes and four subphyla. We provide brief notes for each accepted genus including information on classification, number of accepted species, type species, life mode, habitat, distribution, and sequence information. Furthermore, three phylogenetic analyses with combined LSU, SSU, 5.8s, rpb1, rpb2, and ef1 datasets for the subphyla Agaricomycotina, Pucciniomycotina and Ustilaginomycotina are conducted, respectively. Divergence time estimates are provided to the family level with 632 species from 62 orders, 168 families and 605 genera. Our study indicates that the divergence times of the subphyla in Basidiomycota are 406–430 Mya, classes are 211–383 Mya, and orders are 99–323 Mya, which are largely consistent with previous studies. In this study, all phylogenetically supported families were dated, with the families of Agaricomycotina diverging from 27–178 Mya, Pucciniomycotina from 85–222 Mya, and Ustilaginomycotina from 79–177 Mya. Divergence times as additional criterion in ranking provide additional evidence to resolve taxonomic problems in the Basidiomycota taxonomic system, and also provide a better understanding of their phylogeny and evolution.

We reviewed the occurrences and distributional patterns of migratory species of birds in Brazil. A species was classified as migratory when at least part of its population performs cyclical, seasonal movements with high fidelity to its breeding grounds. Of the 1,919 species of birds recorded in Brazil, 198 (10.3%) are migratory. Of these, 127 (64%) were classified as Migratory and 71 (36%) as Partially Migratory. A few species (83; 4.3%) were classified as Vagrant and eight (0,4%) species could not be defined due to limited information available, or due to conflicting data.

The fungi kingdom is among the most diverse eukaryotic lineages on Earth with estimates of several million extant species (O'Brien et al., 2005; Blackwell, 2011; Taylor et al., 2014). Fungi play critical roles in carbon and nutrient cycling of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and they are important pathogens and mutualists (Read & Perez-Moreno, 2003; Taylor et al., 2012; Grossart et al., 2016). More than 80% of plant species form symbioses with fungi and these symbioses have been crucial to the colonization of terrestrial ecosystems (Field et al., 2015a; Selosse et al., 2015). Despite their impacts on primary ecosystem functions, assessments of fungal biodiversity estimate that only c. 10% of fungal species have been described (Bass & Richards, 2011; Hibbett et al., 2011). Traditionally, specimen-based taxonomic studies have been the only way to discover new species. Because most fungi have microscopic life-stages and convergent morphological features (Rivas-Plata & Lumbsch, 2011; Wynns, 2015), many fungal groups remain severely undersampled. DNA-barcoding and high-throughput sequencing methods have provided a new framework for studying fungal biodiversity (Fierer et al., 2012; Schoch et al., 2012; Myrold et al., 2014), and diversity estimates based on environmental sequences have increased exponentially. Although these ‘sequence-based classification and identification’ methods are a powerful means to rapidly detect hidden diversity, careful interpretation of these data is needed to make accurate inferences (Kõljalg et al., 2013; Lindahl et al., 2013; Nguyen et al., 2015; Hibbett et al., 2016). In particular, many environmental sequences cannot be associated with a known fungal species or lineage. This remains a major challenge to decipher fungal community composition and understand ecological roles of fungi in leaf litter, soil, or inside plants (Yahr et al., 2016). In some cases, these fungi are truly undescribed and their ecological roles are unknown but in other cases they represent described taxa for which no sequence is available (Nagy et al., 2011; Nilsson et al., 2016). DNA barcoding of herbarium specimens and culture collections is extremely valuable to link unidentified sequences to known taxa (e.g. Brock et al., 2009; Nagy et al., 2011; Osmundson et al., 2013; Garnica et al., 2016). DNA sequences have been generated from fungal type specimens > 200 years old (Larsson & Jacobsson, 2004), but in many cases obtaining sequences from historical material is challenging (Dentinger et al., 2010). Today's threats to biodiversity from habitat loss and climate change are occurring at an unprecedented scale, and it is possible that many species may become extinct before they have been discovered (Costello et al., 2013; Monastersky, 2014). In the need to describe and protect as many species as possible we addressed the following questions: what are the best methods to rapidly document fungal biodiversity? Are traditional, specimen-based approaches still useful? The Southern Hemisphere harbors many unique fungal lineages that are absent from the Northern Hemisphere (Tedersoo & Smith, 2013; Tedersoo et al., 2014). In southern South America, recent studies based on environmental sequences have detected several previously unknown fungal lineages, thereby demonstrating that fungal diversity is probably much higher than presently known (Nouhra et al., 2013; Geml et al., 2014; Roy et al., 2017). As part of a project investigating ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi of southern South America, our team collected 1430 fungal fruiting bodies during four collecting expeditions, equaling c. 50 d with 3–4 collectors per day (Supporting Information Methods S1). We primarily collected ECM fungi in temperate forests dominated by Nothofagaceae but also opportunistically collected nonECM fungi. Vouchered specimens were photographed and dried for future study. Internal transcribed spacer rDNA sequences (ITS, e.g. ITS1-5.8S-ITS2) were obtained from a representative selection of 957 specimens using the Extract-N-Amp Plant kit (Sigma-Aldrich) for rapid DNA extraction and amplification. ITS sequences were clustered into operational taxonomic units (OTUs) at 97–99% similarity against the UNITE ‘species hypothesis’ dynamic database (Abarenkov et al., 2010a; Kõljalg et al., 2013) using Qiime 1.9.1 (Caporaso et al., 2010). Sequences that did not correspond to an existing ‘species hypothesis’ in the reference database were subsequently clustered de novo at 97% similarity (Methods S1). One representative sequence per OTU was subsequently compared to UNITE+INSD (UNITE and the International Nucleotide Sequence Databases) using megaBlast on the PlutoF workbench (Abarenkov et al., 2010b). We generated 439 OTUs (Table S1), of which 308 (c. 70%) did not match the UNITE dynamic database at 97–99% similarity, and thus did not correspond to any of the ‘species hypothesis’ currently in UNITE. The efforts of our research group were modest when compared to the high volume and novelty of the data. Although most of these ITS sequences were generated by our research team over a two-year period, they correspond to c. 1.5% of the total diversity in UNITE (19 698 representative sequences in v.7.1, August 2016). Comparisons between our dataset and the full UNITE database (which also includes singleton sequences) did not alter the number of new OTUs we detected. For comparison, in the one-year period before this study (between August 2015 and August 2016) the global efforts of the scientific community contributed only 360 unique ‘species hypotheses’ to the UNITE database. Working with fresh specimens was extremely efficient. The Extract-N-Amp method rapidly generated ITS sequences with a success rate of c. 80% (including extraction, amplification and sequencing). The success rate improved to c. 90% when partial ITS sequences (e.g. ITS1 + 5.8S only) were included. Success rate of DNA sequencing varies among fungal groups, according to the age of specimens, and based on how they were preserved. Sequencing from type specimens and important historical collections remains the gold standard to link DNA sequences to species names (e.g. Liimatainen et al., 2014; Sánchez-García et al., 2014; Schoch et al., 2014). However, generating sequence data from historical vouchers may be challenging in some groups (25–50% success rate for specimens > 10 years old according to Dentinger et al., 2010). Working with old herbarium specimens is also more time-consuming and sensitive to contamination. It is thus more expensive because it requires more rigorous DNA extraction and purification procedures as well as PCR troubleshooting (Brock et al., 2009; Osmundson et al., 2013). For generating high throughput data, fresh or recently collected specimens are clearly advantageous when compared to preserved herbarium materials. Morphological examination of specimens combined with Blast searches helped identify most vouchers to genus level (Table S1). Thirty-two OTUs could only be identified to family (14), order (14), or class (4), mostly because they belong to groups that require extensive systematic revision (e.g. Helotiales). Due to our focus on Nothofagaceae-dominated forests, we collected mostly ECM species (66%), but also many saprobes (31%), and fungi for which the trophic mode is unknown (3%). Agaricales (Basidiomycota) were diverse, abundant, easily sampled and therefore conspicuous in our dataset (Fig. 1c). We also found a large number of Pezizales and Helotiales (Ascomycota), many of which had low similarity to any known sequences. Within Agaricales, Cortinarius was the most diverse genus in both species richness and abundance, constituting c. 33% of all OTUs (Fig. 1c). The high diversity of Cortinarius lineages corroborates previous studies carried out in other southern temperate forests with Nothofagaceae (Tedersoo et al., 2008; Dickie et al., 2009; Nouhra et al., 2013; Fernandez et al., 2015; Horton et al., 2017). In addition, our dataset revealed surprisingly high species diversity in some fungal lineages where only a handful of species have been described from South America (e.g. /austropaxillus, /descolea – Peintner et al., 2001; Skrede et al., 2011). Similar to previous results based on ECM root tips (Nouhra et al., 2013), we detected relatively low diversity in several ECM lineages that are hyperdiverse in other regions of the world (e.g. /amanita, /boletus, /russula-lactarius). We also found several Northern Hemisphere exotic species in South American Nothofagaceae forests, including Inocybe ochroalba (MES1236), Hebeloma mesophaeum (MES1358) and Amanita muscaria (MES1647). All three of these taxa putatively fall into the category of ‘introduced species that spread to local hosts’ as outlined by Vellinga et al. (2009). Evidence of a native South American Inocybe species (MES1895) fruiting in pure Pseudotsuga plantations suggests that this species may be a potential invasive species in the Northern Hemisphere. We are actively engaged in taxonomic work to compare our collections with described species and formally describe novel taxa (Kneal & Smith, 2015; Trierveiler-Pereira et al., 2015; Kumar et al., 2017). Approximately one quarter of our OTUs (Fig. 1a, 23–32% according to percent Blast similarity) matched environmental sequences in UNITE+INSD with no available voucher specimen (Table S1; note that in some cases the closest Blast match was a GenBank sequence with no corresponding UNITE ‘species hypothesis’). In addition, 43 OTUs were < 90% similar to any ITS sequence in UNITE+INSD. It is likely that our assessments may still underestimate the total number of species in some groups for which ITS is very similar among divergent species, for example many Cortinarius species (Ryberg, 2015; Garnica et al., 2016). Most OTUs (46%) matched sequences originating from South America, but c. 20% had a closest match to a sequence from Australasia (Fig. 1b), highlighting both the shortage of sequences from South America and the historical biogeographic connection of these two regions. This biogeographic pattern was particularly striking within some fungal lineages. For example, we found the first evidence of truffle-like species of Ruhlandiella, Amylascus and Gymnohydnotrya (Pezizales) in South America, despite the fact that described members of these genera are so far known only from Australasia (Table S1). Among the 309 unique OTUs detected, we identified two examples of distinctive plant-associated fungi that illustrate the exciting data generated from our collections. In the first case, we collected two small coralloid fungal specimens whose ITS sequences (KY462416, KY462417) were c. 80% similar to each other. The closest ITS Blast matches for these two OTUs were sequences from ECM root tips of Nothofagaceae that corresponded to an anomalous ECM lineage identified by Tedersoo & Smith (2013) as /agaricomycetes1. We subsequently sequenced 18S and 28S rDNA (Methods S1) and found that these specimens are phylogenetically affiliated with Tremellodendropsis tuberosa (Fig. 2a). Berbee et al. (2016) recently showed that T. tuberosa belongs to a unique Agaricomycete lineage in the order Tremellodendropsidales. Our rDNA phylogenies suggest that Tremellodendropsidales includes diverse ECM fungi that associate with a wide range of angiosperms (including Fagus, Eucalyptus, Lithocarpus, and Nothofagaceae) across the globe (Figs 2a, S1; Table S2). Together with T. tuberosa, our vouchered specimens will provide new insights into the morphology and ecology of this group. They will also allow the description of new species and provide fresh material for the phylogenomic placement of Tremellodendropsidales within the Agaricomycetes. A second case of unique plant-associated fungi was an Endogone-like specimen (KY462475) whose closest ITS Blast matches are fungal symbionts of nonvascular plants (liverworts and hornworts – Bidartondo et al., 2011; Desiro et al., 2013; Yamamoto et al., 2015) with no corresponding fungal specimens. We generated 18S and 28S rDNA sequences and placed this OTU in the Mucoromycotina (Fig. 2b; Table S2). Our specimen is nested in a large clade composed of multiple lineages, including specimens of Densospora solicarpa from Australia and Sphaerocreas pubescens from Japan. The Sphaerocreas-Densospora clade is sister to the Endogonales, which comprises Endogone species and additional sequences of early-diverging plant symbionts. Some members of the Endogonales and the Sphaerocreas-Densospora clade are associated with early-diverging plants (Bidartondo et al., 2011; Desiro et al., 2013), whereas others are ectomycorrhizal (Yamamoto et al., 2015, 2016) or ‘arbuscular-like’ symbionts of vascular plants (Orchard et al., 2016). These fungi have recently been documented from many hosts, habitats, and geographic locations, suggesting that the diversity of species and trophic modes of Mucoromycotina is much higher than previously understood. Because of their inconspicuous habit and the difficulties with culturing and DNA sequencing (Berch & Fortin, 1983; Tedersoo et al., 2016; Yamamoto et al., 2016), these fungi remain poorly represented in sequence databases, culture collections and herbaria, despite the growing evidence that species of Mucoromycotina may have played critical roles in the early colonization of terrestrial habitats (Strullu-Derrien et al., 2014; Field et al., 2015b, 2016; Rimington et al., 2015). The examples mentioned earlier are among the most illustrative in our dataset but are by no means the only discoveries. They demonstrate that systematic collecting, documenting, and sequencing from fresh specimens in undersampled regions are efficient and viable methods to capture unknown fungal diversity and provide substantial improvements to public DNA repositories. This approach is particularly relevant to ‘fill the gap’ of knowledge from geographic regions where comparatively fewer collections exist (e.g. South America – Roy et al., 2017) and this remains an efficient approach to obtain new fungal data at any site. Although environmental sequencing can rapidly detect diversity and elucidate ecological patterns, these approaches depend on informative sequence databases for fungal identification (Costello et al., 2013). Due to our current lack of knowledge, a large portion of environmental sequences cannot be identified at a meaningful taxonomic level (Nilsson et al., 2016). There is currently a movement to identify and classify fungi known only from sequences (Hibbett et al., 2016). Although we agree that it is critical to compile and validate high-quality environmental sequences, we nonetheless argue that ‘traditional’ methods should be considered irreplaceable and complementary to ‘next-generation’ approaches. Unfortunately, in the quest for cutting-edge science it is sometimes the case that ‘traditional’ methods are viewed negatively by funding agencies. We argue that, along with barcoding herbarium collections, high-throughput collect-and-sequence inventories are highly effective to document fungal diversity and are instrumental for future studies of plant–fungal symbioses. Herbarium vouchers provide much more than just DNA barcodes. Fresh well-documented specimens remain critical to reconstruct robust phylogenies, link sequence data to morphology, and supply ecological data on hosts and substrate associations (Peay, 2014). Specimens can also be used for stable isotopic analyses (Hobbie et al., 2001) and genomic studies (Tedersoo et al., 2016) in a way that environmental samples cannot. Given the increasing threats to biodiversity from habitat loss and climate change, responsibly collecting vouchered specimens with associated data and openly sharing these resources are more necessary today than ever before (Costello et al., 2013; Rocha et al., 2014). This work was supported by NSF grants DEB 1354802 (M.E.S. and P.B.M.) and DEB 1441677 (M.E.S.), an Advanced Postdoc Mobility Fellowship from the Swiss NSF (C.T.), and the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies at Harvard University (D.P.). Collecting permits were issued by the Administración de Parques Nacionales of Argentina (Projecto 2016/720, E.N.), Secretaría de Desarollo Sustentable y Ambiente of Tierra del Fuego (no. 0218/2015, C.T.), Chilean Corporación Nacional Forestal (no. 014/2014, M.E.S.) and the Wildlife Conservation Society Chile in Parque Karukinka (C.T.). Vouchered specimens are deposited at the Museo Botánico of Córdoba (CORD), Museo Nacional de Historia Natural of Santiago (SGO), Farlow Herbarium (FH), the University of Tennessee Herbarium (TENN), and Florida Museum of Natural History (FLAS). Marc-André Selosse and three anonymous referees provided valuable comments to improve the manuscript before publication. C.T., A.B.M. and R.H. generated the DNA sequences. C.T. and A.B.M. carried out the analyses. C.T. and M.E.S. wrote the manuscript and constructed the figures and tables. M.E.S. provided expertise at all stages of research. All co-authors (C.T., A.B.M., R.H., F.K., G.F., D.T., T.N., P.A.S-L., N.F., J.M.E., A.M., G.P., D.P., E.N., R.S., M.S-G., P.B.M., and M.E.S.) participated in the field collections. Please note: Wiley Blackwell are not responsible for the content or functionality of any Supporting Information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing material) should be directed to the New Phytologist Central Office. Fig. S1 Maximum likelihood phylogeny of Tremellodendropsidales fungi based on ITS ribosomal DNA. Table S1 List of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) generated from this study Table S2 List of species and samples included in the phylogenetic analyses Methods S1 The full methods for specimen collection, DNA extraction and sequencing, and data analysis. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.

Abstract Over 65% of drylands are used for grazing of managed livestock. Understanding what drives grazing effects on the structure and functioning of rangelands is critical for achieving their sustainability. We studied a network of 239 sites across Patagonian rangelands (Argentina), which constitute one of the world's largest rangeland area. We aimed to (i) evaluate how aridity and grazing affect ecosystem structure and functioning and (ii) test the usefulness of the landscape function analysis (LFA) indices (stability, infiltration and nutrient cycling) as surrogates of soil functioning. Aridity decreased species richness and the cover of palatable grasses but increased the cover of palatable shrubs. Grazing pressure negatively impacted the cover of palatable grasses and species richness but did not affect the cover of shrubs. Aridity had direct and indirect negative relationships with the LFA indices. Grazing pressure had no direct effects on the LFA indices but had an indirect negative effect on them by affecting vegetation structure. The LFA indices were positively and negatively correlated with soil organic carbon and sand contents, respectively, suggesting that these indices are useful proxies of soil functional processes in Patagonian rangelands. Our findings indicate that aridity and overgrazing have convergent effects on the structure and functioning of ecosystems, as both promoted reductions in species richness, the cover of palatable grasses and soil functioning. Rangeland management activities should aim to enhance species richness and the cover of palatable grasses, as these actions could contribute to offset adverse effects of ongoing increases in aridity on drylands. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Hydraulic traits were studied for six Nothofagus species from South America (Argentina and Chile), and for three of these species two populations were studied. The main goal was to determine if properties of the water conductive pathway in stems and leaves are functionally coordinated and to assess if leaves are more vulnerable to cavitation than stems, consistent with the theory of hydraulic segmentation along the vascular system of trees in ecosystems subject to seasonal drought. Vulnerability to cavitation, hydraulic conductivity of stems and leaves, leaf water potential, wood density and leaf water relations were examined. Large variations in vulnerability to cavitation of stems and leaves were observed across populations and species, but leaves were consistently more vulnerable than stems. Water potential at 50% loss of maximum hydraulic efficiency (P(50)) ranged from -0.94 to -2.44 MPa in leaves and from -2.6 to -5.3 MPa in stems across species and populations. Populations in the driest sites had sapwood and leaves more vulnerable to cavitation than those grown in the wettest sites. Stronger diurnal down-regulation in leaf hydraulic conductance compared with stem hydraulic conductivity apparently has the function to slow down potential water loss in stems and protect stem hydraulics from cavitation. Species-specific differences in wood density and leaf hydraulic conductance (K(Leaf)) were observed. Both traits were functionally related: species with higher wood density had lower K(Leaf). Other stem and leaf hydraulic traits were functionally coordinated, resulting in Nothofagus species with an efficient delivery of water to the leaves. The integrity of the more expensive woody portion of the water transport pathway can thus be maintained at the expense of the replaceable portion (leaves) of the stem-leaf continuum under prolonged drought. Compensatory adjustments between hydraulic traits may help to decrease the rate of embolism formation in the trees more vulnerable to cavitation.

Summary Drylands cover about 41% of E arth's land surface, and 65% of their area supports domestic livestock that depends on the above‐ground net primary productivity ( ANPP ) of natural vegetation. Thus, understanding how biotic and abiotic factors control ANPP and related ecosystem functions can largely help to create more sustainable land‐use practices in rangelands, particularly in the context of ongoing global environmental change. We used 311 sites across a broad natural gradient in Patagonian rangelands to evaluate the relative importance of climate (temperature and precipitation) and vegetation structure (grass and shrub cover, species richness) as drivers of ANPP , precipitation‐use efficiency ( PUE ) and precipitation marginal response ( PMR ). Climatic variables explained 60%, 52% and 12% of the variation in grass cover, shrub cover and species richness, respectively. Shrub cover increased in areas with warmer, drier and winter rainfall climates, while the response observed for both grass cover and species richness was the opposite. Climate and vegetation structure explained 70%, 60% and 29% of the variation in ANPP , PUE and PMR , respectively. These three variables increased with increasing vegetation cover, particularly grass cover. Species richness also increased with ANPP , PUE and PMR . ANPP increased, and PUE decreased with increasing mean annual precipitation, whereas PMR increased with the proportion of precipitation falling in spring–summer. Temperature had a strong negative effect on ANPP and PUE , and a positive direct effect on PMR . Standardized total effects from structural equation modelling showed that vegetation structure and climate had similar strengths as drivers of ecosystem functioning. Grass cover had the highest total effect on ANPP (0.58), PUE (0.55) and PMR (0.41). Among the climatic variables, mean annual precipitation had the strongest total effect on ANPP (0.51) and PUE (−0.41), and the proportion of the precipitation falling in spring–summer was the most influential on PMR (0.36). Synthesis . Vegetation structure is as important as climate in shaping ecosystem functioning Patagonian rangelands. Maintaining and enhancing vegetation cover and species richness, particularly in grasses, could reduce the adverse effects of climate change on ecosystem functioning in these ecosystems.

Recognizing the imperative to evaluate species recovery and conservation impact, in 2012 the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) called for development of a "Green List of Species" (now the IUCN Green Status of Species). A draft Green Status framework for assessing species' progress toward recovery, published in 2018, proposed 2 separate but interlinked components: a standardized method (i.e., measurement against benchmarks of species' viability, functionality, and preimpact distribution) to determine current species recovery status (herein species recovery score) and application of that method to estimate past and potential future impacts of conservation based on 4 metrics (conservation legacy, conservation dependence, conservation gain, and recovery potential). We tested the framework with 181 species representing diverse taxa, life histories, biomes, and IUCN Red List categories (extinction risk). Based on the observed distribution of species' recovery scores, we propose the following species recovery categories: fully recovered, slightly depleted, moderately depleted, largely depleted, critically depleted, extinct in the wild, and indeterminate. Fifty-nine percent of tested species were considered largely or critically depleted. Although there was a negative relationship between extinction risk and species recovery score, variation was considerable. Some species in lower risk categories were assessed as farther from recovery than those at higher risk. This emphasizes that species recovery is conceptually different from extinction risk and reinforces the utility of the IUCN Green Status of Species to more fully understand species conservation status. Although extinction risk did not predict conservation legacy, conservation dependence, or conservation gain, it was positively correlated with recovery potential. Only 1.7% of tested species were categorized as zero across all 4 of these conservation impact metrics, indicating that conservation has, or will, play a role in improving or maintaining species status for the vast majority of these species. Based on our results, we devised an updated assessment framework that introduces the option of using a dynamic baseline to assess future impacts of conservation over the short term to avoid misleading results which were generated in a small number of cases, and redefines short term as 10 years to better align with conservation planning. These changes are reflected in the IUCN Green Status of Species Standard.

Significance Highly reduced genomes from bacteria that are long-term beneficial endosymbionts of insects often show remarkable structural stability. Endosymbionts in insects diverged by tens or hundreds of millions of years often have genomes almost completely conserved in gene order and content. Here, we show that an endosymbiont in some cicadas has repeatedly and independently fractured into complexes of distinct genomic and cellular lineages present in the same host. Individual endosymbiont lineages, having lost many of the essential ancestral genes, rely on each other for basic function and together seem to provide the same nutritional benefits as the ancestral single symbiont. These cicada endosymbionts show genomic parallels to mitochondria and provide another example of how normally stable genomes can lose structural stability.

Abstract Although the migration ecology of birds breeding in the Neotropics is still poorly studied relative to that of their counterparts breeding at north-temperate latitudes, studies conducted over the last 2 decades have revealed that migration in the Neotropics is much more common and diverse than previously thought. These studies have identified dozens of species that migrate latitudinally within South America, altitudinally within various mountain ranges, to and between Caribbean islands, and longitudinally across diverse ecosystems such as the Amazon rainforest. Advances in miniaturized tracking technologies, enormous citizen science databases, and powerful analytical approaches provide an unprecedented ability to detect and evaluate temporally and spatially fine-scale patterns, greatly facilitating the study of migratory patterns across tropical regions. We argue that a renewed effort in research on short- and long-distance bird migration within the Neotropics will allow (1) comparative studies that identify the emergent properties of migratory behavior, (2) identification of the convergent or unique mechanistic drivers of migration across diverse ecological settings, (3) formulation of effective conservation and management plans for migratory Neotropical birds, and (4) predictions about how migratory birds will respond to large-scale climatic changes within the Neotropics. Here, we review the current state of knowledge on Neotropical bird migration, with a focus on South America. We specifically examine similarities and differences in the observed migratory patterns of birds that breed in the Nearctic compared to the Neotropics and highlight key future research questions.

Seaweed (fresh, dry) or its products (extracts, composts, soil conditioners) have been long used in agriculture to enhance plant growth and productivity. In this study, we evaluated the effects that seaweed composts at different doses and degree of maturation had on the yield of tomatoes (Licopersicon esculentum Mill. cv. platense) grown on a horticultural soil in northeastern Patagonia. We used 10 tomato plants per treatmentplot set in a randomized block design. Treatments were: 1) soil without amendment, control (S); 2) 5 kg m−2 of compost aged 9 months (C9-5); 3) 10 kg m−2 of compost aged 9 months (C9-10); 4) 5 kg m−2 of compost aged 20 months (C20-5); and 5) 10 kg m−2 of compost aged 20 months (C20-10). Total weight and number of tomatoes, and aerial plant biomass (excluding fruits) were significantly higher for the compost treatments than those of the control. Also, compost treated plants bore mature fruits, in average, 9 days earlier and presented higher resistance to diseases than controls. The weight of tomatoes per plant grown in C20 was significantly higher than that of C9, differences that could be attributed to the lower salinity of compost C20 (C20 and C9 electrical conductivities were 1.5 and 15 dS m−1, respectively). The increased yield and resistance to diseases on tomato plants by addition of seaweed compost appear to be related to a complex number of factors not yet fully understood. It seems, however, that a combination of higher nutrient availability (mainly P) due to slight increases in pH of the soil amended, together with increases in readily available K and an improvement in soil physical conditions (increase in pore size and probably amelioration of hydric conditions), may have been responsible for the higher production of seaweed amended plots as compared to the control.

This work was conducted to ensure that the consumption of a small amount of a chestnut hydrolysable tannin (HT) extract, included in the diet (20.8 gkg -1 DM) of finishing lambs as a feed additive, does not cause toxic effects or does not negatively affect lamb performance. Thirteen Merino lambs were finished from 15 to 25 kg of live weight, which is the most typical slaughter weight for lambs in Spain. They were divided into two groups: one was used as the control (Control) and the other one received the treatment with tannins (TAN). The only difference between the groups was that the soya bean meal incorporated as the protein supplement in the TAN concentrate had been treated with the chestnut HT extract. No significant differences (P > 0.10) in voluntary intake, feed conversion, daily gain or length of fattening period were observed between the two groups. The histopathological examination showed no signs of toxicity due to the tannins. Likewise, the carcasses of the TAN group did not show residues of analysed HT metabolites (gallic acid, ellagic acid, resorcinol, pyrogallol and phloroglucinol). The raised activities of the enzymes GGT (gamma glutamyl-transferase) and AST (aspartate amino-transferase) in the TAN lambs suggest that experiments of longer duration need to be conducted, to further check for toxicity effects under these conditions.

This study addresses issues regarding chemical and bioactive properties of nine wild edible mushrooms from native Nothofagus forest from Patagonia, Argentina. Macronutrients, sugars, fatty acids, tocopherols, organic acids, phenolic compounds and antioxidant properties were determined. Protein was found in high levels and varied between 3.35 g/100 g dw in Cyttaria hariotii and 22.29 g/100 g dw in Lepista nuda. All of them presented mannitol and trehalose as main sugars. Mannitol was significantly higher in Ramaria patagonica, although absent in Fistulina endoxantha, whereas trehalose predominated in Aleurodiscus vitellinus, Hydropus dusenii, Cortinarius magellanicus, C. hariotii, Grifola gargal and L. nuda, ranging from 1.15 to 10.26 g/100 g dw; it was absent in R. patagonica. The major fatty acid found was linoleic acid, followed by oleic acid and palmitic acid. All species presented oxalic and fumaric acids, while some also had malic, quinic and citric acids. Tocopherols composition was variable. Cortinarius magellanicus presented significantly higher contents of both α-tocopherol and β-tocopherol. R. patagonica presented the best results in all the antioxidant activity assays (EC50 values ≤ 1 mg/mL) and the highest content of phenolic compounds presenting gallic, p-hydroxybenzoic, p-coumaric and cinnamic acids. This study constitutes the first report on chemical composition and nutritional value of most of these edible mushroom species. Furthermore, it provides important information necessary to characterize and define the use of these species as gastronomic delicacies, functional foods and sources of bioactive compounds.

Migratory animals often play key ecological roles within the communities they visit throughout their annual journeys. As a consequence of the links between biomes mediated by migrants, changes in one biome could affect remote areas in unpredictable ways. Migratory routes and timing of most Neotropical austral migrants, which breed at south temperate latitudes of South America and overwinter closer to or within tropical latitudes of South America, have yet to be described in detail. As a result, our understanding about how these birds provide links between South American biomes is almost non-existent. White-crested Elaenia (Elaenia albiceps chilensis) is a long-distance austral migrant that breeds in the Patagonian Forest biome and overwinters in tropical South America. Because this small flycatcher plays a key role in the regeneration of this ecosystem, our objective was to describe the annual cycle of White-crested elaenias to evaluate the degree of migratory connectivity between breeding and wintering areas and therefore to determine if there are specific biomes of northern South America linked by elaenias to Patagonian forests. Fifteen individuals were successfully tracked throughout a complete migration cycle using miniature light-level geolocators. All individuals resided and moved through the same general regions. During fall (March-April-May), elaenias were located in the Caatinga and the Atlantic Forest biomes, from Rio de Janeiro to the region near Salvador da Bahia, Brazil. During winter (June-July-Aug.), birds were located further inland, within the Cerrado biome. Birds used three different routes during fall migration. Our results indicate that some individuals use a direct route, flying between 500-600 km/day, crossing desert and grasslands, while others took a detour, flying 100-200 km/day through forested areas with refueling opportunities. All birds used the Yunga forest during spring migration, with ten out of 15 individuals showing a clear counterclockwise loop trajectories throughout their annual cycle. None of the elaenias passed through Amazonia, traveled to western South America or crossed the Equator. Eleanias exhibited a high migratory connectivity between breeding area in Patagonian Forests and winter areas, Atlantic Forest and Cerrado. Our results suggest that Patagonian Forests could be strongly impacted by changes in those biomes or in the Yungas.

Livestock grazing can compromise the biotic integrity and health of wetlands, especially in remotes areas like Patagonia, which provide habitat for several endemic terrestrial and aquatic species. Understanding the effects of these land use practices on invertebrate communities can help prevent the deterioration of wetlands and provide insights for restoration. In this contribution, we assessed the responses of 36 metrics based on the structural and functional attributes of invertebrates (130 taxa) at 30 Patagonian wetlands that were subject to different levels of livestock grazing intensity. These levels were categorized as low, medium and high based on eight features (livestock stock densities plus seven wetland measurements). Significant changes in environmental features were detected across the gradient of wetlands, mainly related to pH, conductivity, and nutrient values. Regardless of rainfall gradient, symptoms of eutrophication were remarkable at some highly disturbed sites. Seven invertebrate metrics consistently and accurately responded to livestock grazing on wetlands. All of them were negatively related to increased levels of grazing disturbance, with the number of insect families appearing as the most robust measure. A multivariate approach (RDA) revealed that invertebrate metrics were significantly affected by environmental variables related to water quality: in particular, pH, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, nutrient concentrations, and the richness and coverage of aquatic plants. Our results suggest that the seven aforementioned metrics could be used to assess ecological quality in the arid and semi-arid wetlands of Patagonia, helping to ensure the creation of protected areas and their associated ecological services.

Almost all large carnivorans (Carnivora; > 20 kg) that inhabited South America became extinct around the Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene transition. Two exceptions were species of coyote-sized Dusicyon, one insular (D. australis) and one continental (D. avus). The extinction of the former is a resolved matter, but that of D. avus, found in the Patagonian and Pampean regions, is still poorly understood. Using the Gaussian-Resampled Inverse-Weighted McInerny method we present new radiocarbon evidence indicating that its disappearance occurred in very recent times (about 324-496 years cal BP). We found no evidence to support a role for hybridization with domestic dogs in causing the extirpation of this fox. Climatic change may have reduced its distributional range, as has happened with other mammals, although not to the extent of explaining its extinction. Climatic change, however, coupled with increased anthropogenic impacts such as hunting, domestic dogs, and/or other aspects relating to the impact of European colonization in South America's southern cone, were the probable main drivers of the recent extinction of D. avus.

Perenniporiella chaquenia sp. nov. is described from Argentina. New records of P. pendula and P. micropora are discussed. A key to Perenniporiella species is presented. Preliminary phylogenetic relationships of Perenniporiella are inferred from parsimony and Bayesian analysis of a combined set of DNA sequence data (nuclear ribosomal partial LSU and ITS). It demonstrated that Perenniporiella forms a well resolved monophyletic clade distantly related to Perenniporia s.s. It also clearly showed that within Perenniporia as usually conceived other morphologically homogeneous group of taxa, such as the P. ochroleuca or P. vicina alliances, form well resolved clades, which could be recognized as distinct genera. The differentiation of the hyphal system and the basidiospores morphology are outlined as critical features for the definition of genera in the Perenniporia complex.

The wildland–urban interface (WUI) is a focal area for human environmental conflicts including wildfires. The WUI grows because new houses are built, and in developed countries, housing growth can be very rapid in areas with natural amenities. However, it is not clear if natural amenity-driven WUI growth is limited to developed countries, or also prevalent in developing countries. Amenity-driven WUI growth may be particularly rapid there, owing to a rapidly growing middle class. Our objectives were to (i) map the current WUI; (ii) quantify recent WUI growth; and (iii) analyse relationships between the WUI and both fire ignition points and wildfire perimeters in the region of El Bolson, in Central Andean Patagonia, Argentina. We mapped the current WUI based on housing information derived from census data, topographic maps, high-resolution imagery and land-cover data. We found that the WUI contained 96.6% of all buildings in 2016 even though the WUI covered only 6.4% of the study area. Between 1981 and 2016, the WUI increased in area by 76%, and the number of houses by 74%. Furthermore, 77% of the recent fires in the region occurred in the WUI, highlighting the need to balance development with wildfire risk and other human–environmental problems.

Wildfires are common from summer to early fall in Patagonian forests of Argentina. Live fuel moisture content (LFMC) and leaf ignition are important factors for understanding fire behaviour. In this study, we determined seasonal LFMC and leaf ignition of some key fire-prone species of these forests, and their relationships with environmental variables. Species investigated were the native trees ñire (Nothofagus antarctica) and cypress (Austrocedrus chilensis), the understorey tree-like radal (Lomatia hirsuta) and laura (Schinus patagonicus), the bamboo caña colihue (Chusquea culeou), and the non-native black poplar (Populus nigra). LFMC differed among species, with caña colihue having lower values (LFMC &amp;lt;100%); ñire, laura, cypress, and radal having medium values (110–220%); and black poplar, upper values (&amp;gt;220%). Ignition characteristics differed among species (caña colihue &amp;gt; ñire &amp;gt; radal &amp;gt; cypress &amp;gt; laura &amp;gt; black poplar) and were inversely related to LFMC. Correlations between LFMC and environmental variables were highly significant for caña colihue, significant for ñire, radal, and laura, and weakly significant or non-significant for cypress and black poplar. These results contribute to our understanding of fire behaviour, and validate the fuel typology for Patagonian forests. At the same time, they add some useful knowledge for comparison with other fire-prone Mediterranean ecosystems around the world.

Summary We surveyed the polypore species associated with living hosts in A rgentina. We reviewed the literature on polypores found in A rgentina and, in addition with the study of unpublished herbarium material, present a list of 87 species decaying living trees in native forests and introduced plantations. The rot type, host(s), distribution and remarks are presented for each species. Among 87 species found, 71 produce a white rot and 16 a brown rot in wood; 61 species were exclusively found on native hosts and 7 on exotic, cultivated hosts, while 18 were found on both types of substrates; one species, A mylosporus campbellii, was exclusively found associated with grasses. For most cases, there are no pathological studies based on rot measurement and culture isolation to determine incidence and severity of the decay.

A survey of Phytophthora spp. in declining and healthy Austrocedrus chilensis forest was conducted to obtain an overview of the species that inhabit these forests. Seventeen declining and three healthy stands plus 11 associated streams were surveyed. Five Phytophthora species were recovered. P. syringae was the most common species isolated from soil and/or streams at nine declining sites and one healthy site. P. gonapodyides was isolated from streams only, at five declining sites. P. cambivora was isolated from soil and the undescribed taxa 'P. taxon Pgchlamydo' and 22 'P taxon Raspberry' were isolated from streams at one declining site each. The species were identified by ITS rDNA sequences and morphological features. Brief descriptions of each species and a discussion of their possible relationship with "mal del ciprés" are presented.