Background Trigonopterus weevils are widely distributed throughout Melanesia and hyperdiverse in New Guinea. They are a dominant feature in natural forests, with narrow altitudinal zonation. Their use in community ecology has been precluded by the “taxonomic impediment”.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe sampled >6,500 specimens from seven areas across New Guinea; 1,002 specimens assigned to 270 morphospecies were DNA sequenced. Objective clustering of a refined dataset (excluding nine cryptic species) at 3% threshold revealed 324 genetic clusters (DNA group count relative to number of morphospecies = 20.0% overestimation of species diversity, or 120.0% agreement) and 85.6% taxonomic accuracy (the proportion of DNA groups that “perfectly” agree with morphology-based species hypotheses). Agreement and accuracy were best at an 8% threshold. GMYC analysis revealed 328 entities (21.5% overestimation) with 227 perfect GMYC entities (84.1% taxonomic accuracy). Both methods outperform the parataxonomist (19% underestimation; 31.6% taxonomic accuracy). The number of species found in more than one sampling area was highest in the Eastern Highlands and Huon (Sørensen similarity index 0.07, 4 shared species); ⅓ of all areas had no species overlap. Success rates of DNA barcoding methods were lowest when species showed a pronounced geographical structure. In general, Trigonopterus show high α and β-diversity across New Guinea.Conclusions/SignificanceDNA barcoding is an excellent tool for biodiversity surveys but success rates might drop when closer localities are included. Hyperdiverse Trigonopterus are a useful taxon for evaluating forest remnants in Melanesia, allowing finer-grained analyses than would be possible with vertebrate taxa commonly used to date. Our protocol should help establish other groups of hyperdiverse fauna as target taxa for community ecology. Sequencing delivers objective data on taxa of incredible diversity but mostly without a solid taxonomic foundation and should help pave the road for the eventual formal naming of new species.

A species discovery and description pipeline to accelerate and improve taxonomy is outlined, relying on concise expert descriptions, combined with DNA sequencing, digital imaging, and automated wiki species page creation from the journal. One hundred and one new species of Trigonopterus Fauvel, 1862 are described to demonstrate the feasibility of this approach: Trigonopterus aeneipennis sp. n., Trigonopterus aeneus sp. n., Trigonopterus agathis sp. n., Trigonopterus agilis sp. n., Trigonopterus amplipennis sp. n., Trigonopterus ancoruncus sp. n., Trigonopterus angulatus sp. n., Trigonopterus angustus sp. n., Trigonopterus apicalis sp. n., Trigonopterus armatus sp. n., Trigonopterus ascendens sp. n., Trigonopterus augur sp. n., Trigonopterus balimensis sp. n., Trigonopterus basalis sp. n., Trigonopterus conformis sp. n., Trigonopterus constrictus sp. n., Trigonopterus costatus sp. n., Trigonopterus costicollis sp. n., Trigonopterus crassicornis sp. n., Trigonopterus cuneipennis sp. n., Trigonopterus cyclopensis sp. n., Trigonopterus dentirostris sp. n., Trigonopterus discoidalis sp. n., Trigonopterus dromedarius sp. n., Trigonopterus durus sp. n., Trigonopterus echinus sp. n., Trigonopterus edaphus sp. n., Trigonopterus eremitus sp. n., Trigonopterus euops sp. n., Trigonopterus ferrugineus sp. n., Trigonopterus fusiformis sp. n., Trigonopterus glaber sp. n., Trigonopterus gonatoceros sp. n., Trigonopterus granum sp. n., Trigonopterus helios sp. n., Trigonopterus hitoloorum sp. n., Trigonopterus imitatus sp. n., Trigonopterus inflatus sp. n., Trigonopterus insularis sp. n., Trigonopterus irregularis sp. n., Trigonopterus ixodiformis sp. n., Trigonopterus kanawiorum sp. n., Trigonopterus katayoi sp. n., Trigonopterus koveorum sp. n., Trigonopterus kurulu sp. n., Trigonopterus lekiorum sp. n., Trigonopterus lineatus sp. n., Trigonopterus lineellus sp. n., Trigonopterus maculatus sp. n., Trigonopterus mimicus sp. n., Trigonopterus monticola sp. n., Trigonopterus montivagus sp. n., Trigonopterus moreaorum sp. n., Trigonopterus myops sp. n., Trigonopterus nangiorum sp. n., Trigonopterus nothofagorum sp. n., Trigonopterus ovatus sp. n., Trigonopterus oviformis sp. n., Trigonopterus parumsquamosus sp. n., Trigonopterus parvulus sp. n., Trigonopterus phoenix sp. n., Trigonopterus plicicollis sp. n., Trigonopterus politoides sp. n., Trigonopterus pseudogranum sp. n., Trigonopterus pseudonasutus sp. n., Trigonopterus ptolycoides sp. n., Trigonopterus punctulatus sp. n., Trigonopterus ragaorum sp. n., Trigonopterus rhinoceros sp. n., Trigonopterus rhomboidalis sp. n., Trigonopterus rubiginosus sp. n., Trigonopterus rubripennis sp. n., Trigonopterus rufibasis sp. n., Trigonopterus scabrosus sp. n., Trigonopterus scissops sp. n., Trigonopterus scharfi sp. n., Trigonopterus signicollis sp. n., Trigonopterus simulans sp. n., Trigonopterus soiorum sp. n., T sordidus sp. n., Trigonopterus squamirostris sp. n., Trigonopterus striatus sp. n., Trigonopterus strigatus sp. n., Trigonopterus strombosceroides sp. n., Trigonopterus subgla...

The Exocelina ekari-group is here introduced and defined mainly on the basis of a discontinuous outline of the median lobe of the aedeagus. The group is known only from New Guinea (Indonesia and Papua New Guinea). It contained four species to date: Exocelina astrophallus (Balke, 1998), Exocelina atowaso (Shaverdo, Sagata & Balke, 2005), Exocelina munaso (Shaverdo, Sagata & Balke, 2005), and Exocelina polita (Sharp, 1882). Twenty two new species are described herein: Exocelina alexanderi sp. n., Exocelina anggiensis sp. n., Exocelina arfakensis sp. n., Exocelina bifida sp. n., Exocelina brahminensis sp. n., Exocelina bundiensis sp. n., Exocelina edeltraudae sp. n., Exocelina ekari sp. n., Exocelina eme sp. n., Exocelina evelyncheesmanae sp. n., Exocelina hansferyi sp. n., Exocelina irianensis sp. n., Exocelina kakapupu sp. n., Exocelina knoepfchen sp. n., Exocelina oceai sp. n., Exocelina pseudosoppi sp. n., Exocelina soppi sp. n., Exocelina unipo sp. n., Exocelina utowaensis sp. n., Exocelina waigeoensis sp. n., Exocelina weylandensis sp. n., and Exocelina wondiwoiensis sp. n. The lectotype of Copelatus politus Sharp, 1882 is designated. A checklist and identification key to all species of the group are provided and important diagnostic characters (habitus, color, male antennae and protarsomeres 4–5, median lobes and parameres) are illustrated. Data on the distribution and habitat requirements are given. Representatives of the Exocelina ekari-group are so far mostly known from lowland to lower montane habitats of the northern and central parts of New Guinea, the group is less diverse in higher altitudes.

The Australasian archipelago is biologically extremely diverse as a result of a highly puzzling geological and biological evolution. Unveiling the underlying mechanisms has never been more attainable as molecular phylogenetic and geological methods improve, and has become a research priority considering increasing human-mediated loss of biodiversity. However, studies of finer scaled evolutionary patterns remain rare particularly for megadiverse Melanesian biota. While oceanic islands have received some attention in the region, likewise insular mountain blocks that serve as species pumps remain understudied, even though Australasia, for example, features some of the most spectacular tropical alpine habitats in the World. Here, we sequenced almost 2 kb of mitochondrial DNA from the widespread diving beetle Rhantus suturalis from across Australasia and the Indomalayan Archipelago, including remote New Guinean highlands. Based on expert taxonomy with a multigene phylogenetic backbone study, and combining molecular phylogenetics, phylogeography, divergence time estimation, and historical demography, we recover comparably low geographic signal, but complex phylogenetic relationships and population structure within R. suturalis. Four narrowly endemic New Guinea highland species are subordinated and two populations (New Guinea, New Zealand) seem to constitute cases of ongoing speciation. We reveal repeated colonization of remote mountain chains where haplotypes out of a core clade of very widespread haplotypes syntopically might occur with well-isolated ones. These results are corroborated by a Pleistocene origin approximately 2.4 Ma ago, followed by a sudden demographic expansion 600,000 years ago that may have been initiated through climatic adaptations. This study is a snapshot of the early stages of lineage diversification by peripatric speciation in Australasia, and supports New Guinea sky islands as cradles of evolution, in line with geological evidence suggesting very recent origin of high altitudes in the region.

New Guinea singing dogs (NGSD) are identifiable by their namesake vocalizations, which are unlike any other canid population. Their novel behaviors and potential singular origin during dog domestication make them an attractive, but elusive, subject for evolutionary and conservation study. Although once plentiful on the island of New Guinea (NG), they were presumed to currently exist only in captivity. This conclusion was based on the lack of sightings in the lowlands of the island and the concurrent expansion of European- and Asian-derived dogs. We have analyzed the first nuclear genomes from a canid population discovered during a recent expedition to the highlands of NG. The extreme altitude (>4,000 m) of the highland wild dogs’ (HWD) observed range and confirmed vocalizations indicate their potential to be a wild NGSD population. Comparison of single-nucleotide polymorphism genotypes shows strong similarity between HWD and the homogeneous captive NGSD, with the HWD showing significantly higher genetic diversity. Admixture analyses and estimation of shared haplotypes with phylogenetically diverse populations also indicates the HWD is a novel population within the distinct evolutionary lineage of Oceanic canids. Taken together, these data indicate the HWD possesses a distinct potential to aid in the conservation of NGSD both in the wild and under human care.

Nine new species groups of Exocelina Broun, 1886 from New Guinea are introduced with keys to their representatives. Four groups are monotypic and include three new species: the E. aipomek group, the E. koroba group: E. korobasp. nov., the E. mekilensis group: E. mekilensissp. nov., and the E. morobensis group: E. morobensissp. nov. The remaining five species groups include 18 species with 12 new species and one new subspecies: the E. bacchusi group: E. akamekusp. nov., E. oiwasp. nov., E. oksibilensissp. nov., and E. bacchusi herzogensisssp. nov.; the E. jaseminae group: E. asekisp. nov., E. kailakisp. nov., and E. pseudojaseminaesp. nov.; the E. larsoni group: E. warahulenensissp. nov.; the E. takime group: E. mianminensissp. nov.; and the E. warasera group: E. haiasp. nov., E. kobausp. nov., E. pulchellasp. nov., and E. waraserasp. nov. Diagnoses of five already described species of these groups are provided, as well as comparatives notes on all species. Exocelina santimontis (Balke, 1998) syn. nov. is a junior synonym of E. aipomek (Balke, 1998). Data on the distribution of the species are given, showing that most of the species of these groups occur in the Papua New Guinea.

Ohee HL, Sujarta P, Br Surbakti S, Barclay H. 2018. Rapid expansion and biodiversity impacts of the red devil cichlid (Amphilophus labiatus, Günther 1864) in Lake Sentani, Papua, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 19: 2096-2103. The red devil cichlid (Amphilophus labiatus, Günther 1864) is one of ten exotic fish species inhabiting Lake Sentani. It is believed to be one of the most important threats to the native fish of Lake Sentani. This study aimed to document the distribution of red devil cichlids and the impacts of this species on native fish fauna. Fish were sampled in six locations in Lake Sentani using gill nets during February and March 2018. Fish species and abundance were recorded and used to calculate the relative abundance, dominance, species evenness, Shannon Wiener Index (H’) and the correlation between introduced and native fish species. A total of 836 fish belonging to 12 species were recorded across Lake Sentani. Mean fish diversity (H’=0.57) and evenness (E= 0.25) were low. The red devil cichlid is the most abundant fish recorded during our surveys (87.2% of total fish collected) and is now the most dominant fish in the lake (C=0.76). Moreover, it has colonized all areas sampled within the lake because of its ability to colonize new habitat and to successfully exploit a large diversity of trophic niches. However, Amphilophus labiatus was not found to be significantly correlated to native fish between different sites in Lake Sentani. The existence of endemic and native fish in Lake Sentani is now seriously threatened by the presence of the red devil cichlid throughout this lake.

Background The New Guinean archipelago has been shaped by millions of years of plate tectonic activity combined with long-term fluctuations in climate and sea level. These processes combined with New Guinea’s location at the tectonic junction between the Australian and Pacific plates are inherently linked to the evolution of its rich endemic biota. With the advent of molecular phylogenetics and an increasing amount of geological data, the field of New Guinean biogeography begins to be reinvigorated. Results We inferred a comprehensive dated molecular phylogeny of endemic diving beetles to test historical hypotheses pertaining to the evolution of the New Guinean biota. We used geospatial analysis techniques to compare our phylogenetic results with a newly developed geological terrane map of New Guinea as well as the altitudinal and geographic range of species (https://arcg.is/189zmz). Our divergence time estimations indicate a crown age (early diversification) for New Guinea Exocelina beetles in the mid-Miocene ca. 17 Ma, when the New Guinean orogeny was at an early stage. Geographic and geological ancestral state reconstructions suggest an origin of Exocelina ancestors on the eastern part of the New Guinean central range on basement rocks (with a shared affinity with the Australian Plate). Our results do not support the hypothesis of ancestors migrating to the northern margin of the Australian Plate from Pacific terranes that incrementally accreted to New Guinea over time. However, our analyses support to some extent a scenario in which Exocelina ancestors would have been able to colonize back and forth between the amalgamated Australian and Pacific terranes from the Miocene onwards. Our reconstructions also do not support an origin on ultramafic or ophiolite rocks that have been colonized much later in the evolution of the radiation. Macroevolutionary analyses do not support the hypothesis of heterogeneous diversification rates throughout the evolution of this radiation, suggesting instead a continuous slowdown in speciation. Conclusions Overall, our geospatial analysis approach to investigate the links between the location and evolution of New Guinea’s biota with the underlying geology sheds a new light on the patterns and processes of lineage diversification in this exceedingly diverse region of the planet.