Total Body Rings Increase with Latitude and Decrease with Precipitation in Forest Millipedes Centrobolus Cook, 1897| Chapter 13 | New Visions in Biological Science Vol.9

 Juliformia's size is determined by two factors: body diameter and number of rings. The researchers wanted to see if there were any links between latitude and precipitation and body rings and sexual size dimorphism (SSD) in Centrobolus. The number of body rings in females and latitude (r=-0.53, Z score=-2.35, n=19, p0.01) and the number of body rings in males and latitude (r=-0.41, Z score=-1.74, n=19, p=0.04) had a significant link. The number of body rings in females and precipitation (r=-0.60, Z score=-2.76, n=19, p0.01), as well as the number of body rings in males and precipitation (r=-0.60, Z score=-2.76, n=19, p0.01). The number of body rings differed somewhat between males and females (W=22.5, Z=-1.61, n=19, p=0.05); females had more rings. Lower precipitation, not temperature, is connected to an anamorphic rise in the number of body rings in higher latitudes (South).

Author(s) Details:

Mark Cooper,
School of Animal, Plant & Environmental Sciences University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa.

Please see the link here: https://stm.bookpi.org/NVBS-V9/article/view/5883

The Latitudinal Gradient in Dalodesmidae Cook, 1896a Species Richness | Chapter 12 | New Visions in Biological Science Vol.9

 The Tropical Conservativism Hypothesis proposes that processes of speciation, extinction, and dispersal resulted in higher species richness in the tropics and decreased away from the equator, implying that species richness increased in the tropics and fell away from the equator. The Biogeographical Conservativism Hypothesis proposes that the processes in question are not unique to the tropics, but rather rely on historical biogeography to determine species richness distribution. With the goal of testing the two theories, 117 genuine species belonging to the Dalodesmidae family were found. The number of species and latitudinal degrees distant from the equator had a significant relationship (R=-0.79, R2=0.62, n=116, p0.01). It was suggested that an evolutionary predilection for temperate habitats led to climatic dispersal restrictions based on precipitation/temperature seasonality gradients and predation.

Author(s) Details:

Mark Cooper,
School of Animal, Plant & Environmental Sciences University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa.

Please see the link here: https://stm.bookpi.org/NVBS-V9/article/view/5881

The Inverse Latitudinal Gradient in Species Richness of Forest Millipedes: Centrobolus Cook, 1897| Chapter 11 | New Visions in Biological Science Vol.9

 The goal of this study was to see if forest millipedes could test the Tropical Conservativism Hypothesis and the Biogeographical Conservativism Hypothesis. To discriminate between the two ideas, the latitudinal diversity gradient (LDG) was evaluated in the Centrobolus genus. The number of species and latitudinal degrees distant from the equator had a significant relationship (r=-0.91, r2=0.83, n=35, p0.01). It was suggested that an evolutionary predilection for temperate habitats led to climatic dispersal restrictions based on precipitation seasonality gradients and predation.

Author(s) Details:

Mark Cooper,
School of Animal, Plant & Environmental Sciences University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa.

Please see the link here: https://stm.bookpi.org/NVBS-V9/article/view/5880

The Relationships between Sexual Size Dimorphism and Precipitation and Female Size and Temperature in Sphaerotherium Brandt, 1833 | Chapter 8 | New Visions in Biological Science Vol.9

 Sexual Size Dimorphism (SSD) was reversed in Diplopoda, as it was in the majority of invertebrates. The goal was to examine SSD in the Sphaerotherium genus. Male and female morphological data for S. cinctellum, S. commune, S. compressum, S. punculatum, S. spinatum, S. tenuitarse, and S. tuberosum were gathered from the literature, including male and female width, volume, and SSD. The five morphological variables were regressed against latitude, precipitation, and temperature using linear regressions. SSD was substantially associated to the mating system, seasonality, and oviposition (r=0.76, Z score=1.97, n=7, p=0.02) and was strongly correlated with precipitation (r=0.76, Z score=1.97, n=7, p=0.02). Female breadth was associated to temperature (r=0.75, Z score=1.93, n=7, p=0.03) and fecundity selection (r=0.75, Z score=1.93, n=7, p=0.03). Temperature was only moderately associated to SSD (r=0.61, Z score=1.42, n=7, p=0.08).

Author(s) Details:

Mark Cooper,
School of Animal, Plant & Environmental Sciences University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa.

Please see the link here: https://stm.bookpi.org/NVBS-V9/article/view/5872

Assessment of Latitudinal Gradient in Species Richness of Sphaerotherium| Chapter 3 | New Visions in Biological Science Vol.9

 Forest millipedes were used to test the Tropical Conservativism Hypothesis and the Biogeographical Conservativism Hypothesis. The Biogeographical Conservativism Hypothesis proposes that the processes involved are not unique to the tropics, but rather rely on historical biogeography to determine species richness distribution. To discriminate between the two ideas, the latitudinal diversity gradient (LDG) was assessed in the genus Sphaerotherium. The number of species and latitudinal degrees away from the equator had a significant connection (r=0.8701, r2=0.7571, =46, 0.00001). It was suggested that an evolutionary predilection for temperate habitats resulted in climatic restrictions on dispersal based mostly on precipitation seasonality gradients.

Author(s) Details:

Mark Cooper,
School of Animal, Plant & Environmental Sciences University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa.

Please see the link here: https://stm.bookpi.org/NVBS-V9/article/view/5864

Assessment of Latitudinal Gradient in Gnomeskelus Species Richness | Chapter 13 | New Visions in Biological Science Vol. 8

 The Tropical Conservativism Hypothesis proposes that processes of speciation, extinction, and dispersal resulted in higher species richness in the tropics and decreased away from the equator, implying that species richness increased in the tropics and fell away from the equator. The Biogeographical Conservativism Hypothesis proposes that the processes in question are not unique to the tropics, but rather rely on historical biogeography to determine species richness distribution. To test the two theories, 77 genuine species belonging to the genus Gnomeskelus were discovered. The number of species and latitudinal degrees distant from the equator had a significant connection (r=-0.7145, r2=0.5105, n=77, p0.00001). Alternatively, an evolutionary predisposition for temperate habitats could have resulted in climatic dispersal restrictions based solely on temperature seasonality gradients.

Author(S) Details

Mark Cooper
School of Animal, Plant & Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2050, South Africa

View Book:- https://stm.bookpi.org/NVBS-V8/article/view/5388