The invertebrate fauna known from within the caves at Jenolan is inventoried and summarised. At least 136 individual taxa have been identified although less than one-half (43%) are assigned to described species, the rest are either undescribed (8%) or have only been identified to genus level (31%) or higher taxa (18%). The collected fauna is dominated by arachnids (47%) and collembolans (24%) followed by insects (15%) and crustaceans (6%) with three or fewer taxa identified in each of the remaining groups comprising molluscs, diplopods, chilopods, annelids, platyhelminths and nematodes. In terms of ecological dependence on caves, 53% of collected taxa comprised typically epigean species with the remainder considered to be habitual cave-dwellers. Eight species (revised from 14 previously) are considered to be obligate hypogean species (terrestrial troglobites or aquatic stygobites) comprising three species of springtail, two spiders, a pseudoscorpion and two aquatic crustaceans. The diversity of troglobite species is fairly typical for karst areas in the eastern highlands of NSW but higher unrecorded diversity of stygobite species is predicted. While the invertebrate cave fauna of Jenolan has received more attention from biologists than any other karst area in NSW, substantial knowledge gaps remain. Research and conservation priorities are: (1) identify existing collections and describe new species, focussing on troglomorphic taxa which are likely to be locally endemic and of conservation significance; (2) targeted field surveys for rare troglomorphic taxa which are under-represented in existing collections; (3) sample for aquatic micro-crustacea and other stygofauna in vadose zone, phreatic zone and interstitial habitats; (4) sample for troglobites in meso-cavern and other cryptic terrestrial habitats.
In October 2013, five weathered specimens of botryoidal opal rough showing moderate green daylight luminescence were received from Ruben Avila (Gemimex), well-known El Paso-Juarez based importer of...
Abstract The human and mouse genomes contain instructions that specify RNAs and proteins and govern the timing, magnitude, and cellular context of their production. To better delineate these elements, phase III of the Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) Project has expanded analysis of the cell and tissue repertoires of RNA transcription, chromatin structure and modification, DNA methylation, chromatin looping, and occupancy by transcription factors and RNA-binding proteins. Here we summarize these efforts, which have produced 5,992 new experimental datasets, including systematic determinations across mouse fetal development. All data are available through the ENCODE data portal ( https://www.encodeproject.org ), including phase II ENCODE 1 and Roadmap Epigenomics 2 data. We have developed a registry of 926,535 human and 339,815 mouse candidate cis -regulatory elements, covering 7.9 and 3.4% of their respective genomes, by integrating selected datatypes associated with gene regulation, and constructed a web-based server (SCREEN; http://screen.encodeproject.org ) to provide flexible, user-defined access to this resource. Collectively, the ENCODE data and registry provide an expansive resource for the scientific community to build a better understanding of the organization and function of the human and mouse genomes.
This short article about Dominican and New Jersey amber does not really furnish much essential news for gemologists, but it is impressive because of its many fascinating color photos of different insects in amber frozen forever in different acts (even sex).Also pictured are a gecko, frogs, and a feather (the latter the oldest terrestrial record of a bird in North America).David Grin~aldi (amber expert and professor of entomology at the American Museum of Natural History in New York) describes how the excellent preservation of plant and animal tissues in amber allows examination of minute details by electron microscopy (illustrated here by a series of photomicrographs).Creating dinosaurs from DNA preserved in amber, as was done in the novel/movie Jurassic Park, may still be the stuff of fiction.However, it has been possible to analyze the DNA preserved in some cells and thus establish the evolutionary relationship between termites, cocluoacl~es, and praying mantises.RT
