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The birdwing butterfly Trogonoptera brookiana (Wallace, 1855) is a well-known conservation icon, yet questions remain about the infraspecific status of regional populations. The eastern Peninsular Malaysian population has been described as the subspecies mollumar d’Abrera, Doggett & Parker, 1976, but its status as a subspecies distinguishable from the taxon trogon (Vollenhoven, 1860) in Sumatra has been disputed. Wing characters and measurements of specimens from the two regions were therefore examined quantitatively using discriminant function and correspondence analyses. Eastern Peninsular specimens differ on average from Sumatran specimens in having more extensive green, especially in the female. This is reflected in many of the measurements and characters analysed. Females from the Peninsula also have a characteristically blacker upperside ground colour in which the outer areas of both wings barely contrast with the black veins and forewing cell. The extent of these differences enables a reliable differentiation of the females of both regions. The magnitude and consistency of differences are comparable to that between other subspecies of undisputed status. Behavioural differences also exist. The name mollumar therefore merits subspecific status. In addition, we consider the male forms walshi Haugum & Low, 1982 and walshoides Haugum & Low, 1982 to be chemically discoloured specimens of trogon rather than biological forms.
Two new species of the genus Sectonema from natural habitats of northern Vietnam are studied. This paper includes their descriptions, measurements, line illustrations, and light microscope (LM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) pictures. Sectonema tropicum sp. nov. is characterized by a 2.56– 3.24 mm long body, 19–21 μm broad lip region, odontostyle 20–21 μm long at its ventral side, 730– 834 μm long neck, pharyngeal expansion occupying 52–59% of total neck length, uterus a simple tube-like structure 150–242 μm long or 1.2–2.5 times the body diameter, pars refringens vaginae present, V = 48–52, short (31–40 μm, c = 70–91, c’ = 0.5–0.6) and rounded tail, 91–97 μm long spicules, and only one weakly developed ventromedian supplement. Sectonema vietnamense sp. nov. is characterized by its slender (a = 33–49) and 2.71–4.25 mm long body, 14–16 μm broad lip region, odontostyle 8–9 μm long at its ventral side, 716–918 μm long neck, pharyngeal expansion occupying 63–67% of total neck length, uterus simple and 209–242 μm long or 2.5–2.9 times the corresponding body diameter, pars refringens vaginae absent, V = 54, short (34–39 μm, c = 70–115, c’ = 0.6–0.8) and rounded tail, 59–75 μm long spicules, and three or four irregularly spaced ventromedian supplements bearing hiatus. Both species are also characterized by their nearly continuous lip region, an atypical feature in this genus. Molecular analysis of S. tropicum sp. nov. confirms that Sectonema is a natural (monophyletic) taxon, very close to Metaporcelaimus.
We report the rediscovery of the Pied Butterfl y Bat, Glauconycteris superba Hayman, 1939, 40 years after this species was last recorded. The new specimen from Mbiye Island, Democratic Republic of the Congo, is compared with the type specimens of G. s. superba and G. superba sheila Hayman, 1947 and a specimen from Matonguiné, Ivory Coast. The variation in the striking colouration of the pelage as well as in morphometric data is considered to be individual rather than geographic variation and we tentatively regard G. s. sheila as a synonym of the nominate form. Despite the wide distribution of this species in the tropical forest zone of West and Central Africa, only four specimens from four localities are known to date, which might indicate very specific habitat preferences. Contemporary land cover information around historic collection sites shows degraded landscapes. Given the highly uncertain area of occupancy of this species, we suggest changing the status of G. superba in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species from “Least Concern” to “Data Defi cient”.