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The Invertebrate section of the Museum of Zoology QCAZ at the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador in Quito maintains nearly two million curated specimens, and comprises Ecuador's largest collection of native taxa. We review 1902 type specimens from 6 subspecies and 320 species in 121 genera and 42 families, currently kept in the Museum. The list includes 116 holotypes, 10 allotypes, 1774 paratypes and 2 neoparatypes. The collection of type specimens is particularly strong in the Coleoptera (family Carabidae and Staphylinidae) and Hymenoptera. However, other insect orders such as Diptera and Lepidoptera and non-insect arthropods such as Acari, Aranea and Scorpiones, are moderately represented in the collection. This report provides original data from labels of every type specimen record. An analysis of the geographic distribution of type localities showed that collection sites are clustered geographically with most of them found. towards the northern region of Ecuador, in Pichincha, Cotopaxi and Napo provinces. Sites are mainly located in highly accessible areas near highways and towns. Localities with a high number of type species include the cloud forest reserve Bosque Integral Otonga and Parque Nacional Yasunf in the Amazon rainforest near PUCE's Yasuni Scientific Station. Type localities are not well represented in the Ecuadorian National System of Protected Areas. Future fieldwork Sllould include. localities in the southern region of Ecuador but also target less accessible areas not located near highways or towns. We discuss the value of the collection as a source of information for conservation and biodiversity policies in Ecuador.
Two new species of Leptanilloides are described: L. copalinga Delsinne & Donoso sp. nov. and L. prometea Delsinne & Donoso sp. nov., based on workers collected in the leaf litter and soil of the Andes of southern Ecuador. Both species belong to the L. biconstricta species-group (formally diagnosed here). The metatibial gland, considered a synapomorphy for Dorylinae, is observed in L. prometea sp. nov. but seems absent in L. copalinga sp. nov. We provide a COI DNA barcode for both species and a revised key for the worker caste of all known species in the genus. We also describe a single male identified as a potential new Leptanilloides species on the basis of morphology. Furthermore, its mitochondrial COI gene sequence does not match any previously barcoded species. However, we refrain from giving it a specific name because of our lack of knowledge about the worker caste. So far, half of the 14 Leptanilloides species have been discovered above 1500 m in the mountain forests or páramos of the Ecuadorian Andes, confirming, if needed, the biological significance of these threatened habitats.
From hunting and foraging to clearing land for agriculture, humans modify forest biodiversity, landscapes, and climate. Forests constantly undergo disturbance–recovery dynamics and understanding them is a major objective of ecologists and conservationists. Chronosequences are a useful tool for understanding global restoration efforts. They represent a space-for-time substitution approach suited for the quantification of the resistance of ecosystem properties to withstand disturbance and the resilience of these properties until reaching pre-disturbance levels. Here we introduce a newly established chronosequence with 62 plots (50 ⍰ 50 m) in active cacao plantations and pastures, early and late regeneration, and mature old-growth forests, across a 200 km2 area in the extremely wet Chocó rainforest. Our chronosequence covers by far the largest total area of plots compared to others in the Neotropics. Plots ranged from 159–615 masl in a forested landscape with 74 ± 2.8 % forest cover within a 1-km radius including substantial old-growth forest cover. Land-use legacy and regeneration time were not confounded by elevation. We tested how six forest structure variables (maximum tree height and DBH, basal area, number of stems, vertical vegetation heterogeneity, and light availability), aboveground biomass (AGB), and rarefied tree species richness change along our chronosequence. Forest structure variables, AGB, and tree species richness increased with regeneration time and are predicted to reach similar levels to those in old-growth forests after ca. 30–116, 202, and 108 yrs, respectively. Compared to previous work in the Neotropics, old-growth forests in Canandé accumulate high AGB that takes one of the largest time spans reported until total recovery. Our chronosequence comprises one of the largest tree species pools, covers the largest total area of regenerating and old-growth forests, and has higher forest cover than other Neotropical chronosequences. Hence, our chronosequence can be used to determine the time for recovery and stability (resistance and resilience) of different taxa and ecosystem functions, including species interaction networks. This integrative effort will ultimately help to understand how one of the most diverse forests on the planet recovers from large-scale disturbances.