In the present study, we compare modern and Quaternary ostracods from two lacustrine basins: Laguna Cari-Laufquen (41°S) and Lago Cardiel (49°S) in Patagonia. Taxonomic and quantitative analyses along with isotopic and chemical studies of the extant ostracod fauna indicate that distinct ostracod associations can be identified as a function of conductivity. Three ostracod associations can be distinguished: (1) springs, ponds and small creeks, characterized by low conductivity (e.g. 1015 ms cm -1 ); (2) lakes and permanent ponds, characterized by medium conductivity (e.g. 1625 ms cm -1 ) and (3) ephemeral lacustrine environments, generally characterized by higher conductivity (e.g. 16 480 ms cm -1 ) These modern ostracod associations were also identified in older sequences from sediments outcropping in the Laguna Cari-Laufquen current shoreline, as well as in sediment cores from Lago Cardiel. The predominance of Limnocythere rionegroensis Cusminsky & Whatley in the Cari-Laufquen sections suggests the development of a saline and turbid lake during the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene, and thus higher precipitation at these latitudes. Changes in ostracod abundance and associations have been observed in Lago Cardiel during the last approximately 16 000 calibrated years BP. Conductivity is known to change as a function of the ratio of precipitation to evaporation and a decrease in conductivity from the Late Pleistocene to the Middle Holocene suggests substantial hydrological variations (i.e. increase of the precipitation/evaporation ratio suggests minor conductivity). These two examples show that ostracods provide an excellent proxy for interpreting palaeoclimatic and palaeoenvironmental changes in Patagonia.

Triatomines (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) are vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi Chagas, the etiological agent of Chagas's disease. They display pre‐adult development delay – that is, a development time much longer than on average – which usually has been considered as a maladaptive trait. However, this hypothesis has not been tested. We carried out an experiment under controlled laboratory conditions to (1) test whether a development delay exists in the fifth nymphal stage of Rhodnius prolixus Stål (Hemiptera: Reduviidae, Rhodniini), and (2) measure any fitness cost related to such delay by estimating the relationship between individual development time and other life‐history traits. We analyzed the development time with various continuous statistical distributions (normal, log‐normal, Weibull, gamma, Pareto, Burr, and log‐logistic). Using goodness‐of‐fit tests, the best fit was obtained with asymmetrical distributions, with the Burr distribution showing the best fit to the data. We concluded that a development delay exists in stage five of R. prolixus without fitness cost. The combination of our results and previous work suggests that such a delay could be viewed as an adaptive response to environmental stochasticity and/or density‐dependence rather than as a maladaptive trait. We propose further investigations to provide a conclusive test of adaptive delay in triatomines.