3,776 research outputs found
Memo from Seijiro Ogawa to Nishikawa, May 10, 1942
No full textA handwritten note by Seijiro Ogawa addressing Nishikawa. It was written immediately before his incarceration. He expresses his concerns about his children. The note also includes his business transactions or accounting records between 1940 and June 30, 1942
<Review>S. Koiima, A Study of T‘ai p‘ing t‘ien kuo Revolution, Tokyo, 1978, (K. Nishikawa)
No full textKalophrynus limbooliati Matsui, Nishikawa, Belabut, Norhayati & Yong, 2012, sp. nov.
No full textKalophrynus limbooliati sp. nov. (Figs. 1–3) Synonymy: Kalophrynus pleurostigma: Lim and Lim, 1992, p. 40, Bukit Timah, Singapore. Holotype. UKMHC 705 (formerly KUHE 53284), adult male from Gunung (= Mt.) Pulai, Kpg. (Kampung = village) Sri, Kulai, State of Johor, Peninsular Malaysia (01o 36 ’ N, 103 o 32 ’ E, 457 m a.s.l.), collected by Kanto Nishikawa on 6 September 2009. Paratypes. KUHE 53314, 53315, two adult males from Gunung Lambak (02o00’ N, 103 o 22 ’ E, 75 m a.s.l.), Kluang, Johor, collected 9 September 2009 by Kanto Nishikawa and Masafumi Matsui; KUHE 52061, a juvenile from Jalan Lombong, Panti (01o 49 ’ N, 103 o 50 ’ E, 57 m a.s.l.), Kota Tinggi, Johor, collected 30 July 2008 by Amir Hamidy, Daicus Belabut, and Masafumi Matsui. Etymology. The specific name is dedicated to Dr. Lim Boo Liat, Fellow of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia, who is a pioneer of field zoology in Malaysia. Diagnosis. The new species is assigned to a member of Kalophrynus through mitochondrial DNA genealogy (Matsui et al. 2011) together with the following morphological characteristics: No spine-like projection of skin at heel and elbow; belly without a network pattern; tips of fingers not expanded; underside of fingers without greatly enlarged tubercles; snout less than twice diameter of eye; inner metatarsal tubercle low, not shovel-like; tympanum visible. A medium-sized species that can be distinguished from all congeneric species by the following combination of characters; adult males 26.2–28.7 mm SVL (mean = 27.3, n = 3); snout pointed, directed downwards; third toe longer than fifth; projection of fourth finger from palm shorter than length of terminal phalanx of third finger; two subarticular tubercles under fourth finger; no subarticular tubercles under fifth toe; indistinct gland dorsal to arm insertion; no nuptial pads or asperities; forelimb not very stout, without a humeral spine in males; outer metatarsal tubercle absent; light lateral stripe; usually with distinct inguinal dark spot without white rim or spotting; calls similar to Hylarana laterimaculata with a long series of high-pitched whistle like notes. Description of holotype (measurements in mm). Medium sized ( SVL 26.2); habitus moderately stocky (Figs. 1, 3); head triangular, slightly shorter (8.6) than wide (9.0); snout pointed, directed downwards in profile (Fig. 3), projecting beyond lower jaw; eye moderate, as long (3.5) as snout (3.5); canthus rostralis not sharply defined, straight; loreal region vertical, very slightly concave; nostril below canthus rostralis, directed laterally, much closer to tip of snout (1.1) than to eye (2.0); interorbital distance (3.7) much wider than internarial distance (2.1), the latter subequal to upper eyelid (2.2); pineal spot absent; tympanum distinct, diameter (2.3) more than three-fifths that of eye, and very close to eye (0.3); upper jaw edentate; tongue entire, without papillae; a crenulated ridge of skin on palate posterior to eye, preceded by a shorter, similarly notched one between posterior halves of eye; a median, subgular vocal sac; vocal openings posterior to rictus. Forelimb long (18.0, 72 % of SVL) and slender; fingers thick, basally slightly webbed; tips rounded, not dilated; relative length of fingers: IV<I<II<III; portion of fourth finger projecting from palm (0.9) shorter than length of terminal phalanx of third finger (1.4); outer palmar tubercle large and fleshy, inner indistinct; subarticular tubercles between finger tip and palmer tubercle rounded, two on fingers I, II and IV, three on III (Fig. 2 A); humeral spine absent. Hindlimb moderately long (35.5, 135 % of SVL) and slender; tibia moderately long (10.9, 42 % of SVL), heels not overlapping when folded limbs held at right angles to body; tibiotarsal articulation of adpressed limb reaching to the center of tympanum when held alongside body; foot (8.7) much shorter than tibia (FL, 80 % of TL); toe tips rounded; relative length of toes: I<V<II<III<IV; webbing poorly developed (Fig. 2 B), formula: I 1–2 II 2–3 III 2– 3 IV 3 – 1 V; subarticular tubercles numbering one on first and second toes, two on third toe, and three on fourth toe; distal tubercle on third toe and distal and middle ones on fourth toe prominent and rounded, others small and less distinct; no subarticular tubercles on fifth toe; inner metatarsal tubercle oval, length (1.0) more than half of first toe length (1.5); an indistinct outer metatarsal tubercle (Fig. 2 B). Skin coarsely granular dorsally, with small tubercles scattered posteriorly from behind upper eyelid to vent; tips of tubercles forming white asperities; an indistinct gland on side of head behind tympanum, not delimited by a sinuous groove; upper lateral surfaces of body with scattered minute tubercles; lower lateral surfaces of body, posterior half of chin, abdomen, and posterior side of thighs with large, flattened glandules; skin of gular region not modified for vocal sac; inner and outer margins of fourth finger without skin fringes; nuptial pads absent. Color. In life, ground color of dorsum highly variable from light orange brown to dark chocolate brown, with several small dark brown spots and obscure hour-glass shaped marking from upper eyelid to shoulder; a light dorsolateral line extending from snout tip through margin of upper eyelid to groin, forming a boundary between lighter dorsum and darker sides of head and shoulder; tips of dorsal granules whitish; limbs dorsally brown with an obscure darker bar (Figs. 1 A, 3); ventrum pinkish gray, with scattered white flecks (Fig. 1 B); inguinal spot entirely black without lighter borders or pattern; iris golden with black pigmentation. In preservative, color and pattern have generally faded but not obviously changed. Variation. Individuals of the type series are generally similar in morphology (Table 1). In both adult male paratypes (KUHE 53314, 53315), internarial distance is larger than upper eyelid width. They have darker throat and more developed asperities on dorsum than the holotype. The inguinal black spot varies in size, and is lacking on the left side in one individual (KUHE 53315). The single juvenile (KUHE 52061) has smooth dorsum, with several black spots scattered from shoulder, some continuing to the inguinal marking. Chin and anterior part of ventrum are dotted with dark spots in this juvenile paratype. SVL RHL RHW RIND RIOD RUEW UKMHC 705 (holotype) 26.2 32.6 34.3 8 13.9 8.2 KUHE 53314 (paratype) 27 32.6 32.2 9.6 12.2 7.8 KUHE 53315 (paratype) 28.7 31.9 32.6 9.1 11.7 7.3 Range. Southern part of Western (Peninsular) Malaysia: Johor (Panti, Kota Tinggi; Gunung Pulai, Kulai [350– 605 m a.s.l.]; Gunung Lambak, Kluang [02°00' E, 103 ° 22 ' E, 75–185 m a.s.l.]; Trail Lagenda, Gunung Ledang, Tangkak [02° 22 ' N, 102 ° 37 ' E, 750–895 m a.s.l.: recorded by calls]) and Negeri Sembilan (Sungai Kenaboi, Kenaboi: recorded by calls). Singapore: Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (Lim & Lim 1992: see below, discussion). Possibly Janda Baik, Pahang, Western (Peninsular) Malaysia (Dring 1979: see below, discussion). Natural history. On Gunung Pulai, Gunung Ledang, and Gunung Lambak, males were found calling in widely scattered choruses at dry nights (from 1930 h) in early September in the dense secondary broad-leaf forest. Calling males hid themselves among dead leaves and were very difficult to locate, but responded to playback of recorded calls and/or whistles imitating their calls. There were no large bodies of water at the calling sites. The associated anuran species observed at the nearest waters were Hylarana laterimaculata and Microhyla heymonsi Vo g t. At Sungai Kenaboi, calls were heard in secondary and bamboo forests on dry night. Microhyla heymonsi, Fejervarya limnocharis (Gravenhorst), Humerana miopus (Boulenger), Hylarana labialis (Boulenger), and Polypedates leucomystax (Gravenhorst) were observed at the same locality around pools along a forest road. The single juvenile paratype from Panti (KUHE 52061) was found walking at a dry night at the edge of secondary forest in late July. In early September, no further specimens of this species or calls were detected at this locality. Associated anuran species observed were Phrynoidis aspera (Gravenhorst), Kaloula pulchra Gray, Micryletta inornata (Boulenger), Limnonectes blythii (Boulenger), H. miopus, and H. labialis. Call characteristics. We recorded the calls of K. limbooliati at Gunung Pulai, Kulai on 6 September 2009 (air temperature 23.9 C), Gunung Lambak, Kluang on 7 September 2009 (air temperature 27.2 C), and at Kenaboi, Negeri Sembilan on 10 and 11 September 2009 (air temperature 26.4 C). The advertisement call (Fig. 4) consists of a very long series of 24–61 (mean±SD = 41.1 ± 11.2, n = 62 /seven males) unpulsed notes and lasts about 6.3–15.2 (mean±SD = 10.9 ± 2.8) s. The note repetition rate is 3.31–4.20 (mean±SD = 3.72 ± 0.30) notes per s. Each note lasts about 61–76 (mean±SD = 70.0±6.0) ms, and time interval between two notes varies from 238–310 (mean±SD = 271.7 ± 25.4) ms. The dominant frequency lies at 1632–2008 (mean±SD = 1909 ± 156) hz, and harmonics are at about 3000–4000 and 7000–8000 hz (Fig. 4 A). The call has marked frequency and intensity modulations, and frequencies abruptly increase to the middle and then decrease towards the end of a note. Comparisons. Males of K. limbooliati sp. nov. with a SVL of 26.2–28.7 mm SVL (mean = 27.3 mm) are of similar size to K. heterochirus Boulenger (24.1–27.2 mm, mean = 26.3 mm), K. eok Das & Haas (26.3 mm), and K. punctatus Peters (28.3 mm); it can be readily differentiated from these species as follows: white spots in a black inguinal marking absent (present in K. heterochirus); second finger with two subarticular tubercles (with single subarticular tubercle in K. eok); fifth toe is not projecting as far as or farther than the third toe unlike K. punctatus (data from Matsui 2009). Kalophrynus limbooliati sp. nov. is smaller in male body size than K. yongi (28.8 –31.0 mm, mean = 30.3 mm), K. calciphilus Dehling (29.7–30.1 mm), K. minusculus Iskandar (32.2 mm), K. palmatissimu s (31.2–38.8 mm, mean = 34.5 mm), K. orangensis Dutta, Ahmed & Das (35–38 mm), K. intermedius Inger (37.9–40.5 mm, mean = 39.2 mm), K. baluensis Kiew (34.8 –39.0 mm), K. stellatus Stejneger (35.0–45.0 mm, mean = 39.3 mm), K. pleurostigma (35.0– 50.4 mm, mean = 42.2 mm), and K. interlineatus Blyth (37.4–47.7 mm), and larger than K. robinsoni (16.8 mm), K. nubicola Dring (14.4–24.4 mm), K. menglienicus Yang & Su (19.8–23.4 mm, mean = 21.2 mm), K. bunguranus (Günther) (20.7–22.8 mm, mean = 21.8 mm), and K. subterrestris Inger (21.0– 23.4 mm, mean = 22.6 mm) (data from Inger 1954; Matsui 2009; Dehling 2011). Other than the body size differences, K. limbooliati sp. nov. can be differentiated from these species as follows: from K. yongi by having a normal humerus (strongly developed terminal ridges on humerus, and related skin modification in K. yongi); from K. calciphilus by the absence of outer metatarsal tubercle, presence of thinner dorsolateral stripe, without black margin dorsally, and dorsally more pointed snout (prominent tubercle present, dorsolateral stripe wide, bordered by black on both margins, and dorsally obtusely pointed in K. calciphilus); and from K. intermedius by the possession of light lateral stripe and inguinal black marking (stripe and marking absent in K. intermedius). In K. limbooliati sp. nov., the fourth finger from palm is shorter than length of the terminal phalanx of third finger, unlike K. minusculus, K. palmatissimus, K. orangensis, K. interlineatus, and K. pleurostigma, in which the fourth finger is longer. In addition, K. limbooliati sp. nov. has poorly developed webbing on fourth toe, which barely reaches median subarticular tubercle, sharply contrasting with the well-developed webbing in K. palmatissimus; lacks distinct dorsal marking unlike K. minusculus and K. baluensis, which usually have clear dark markings on dorsum; has black inguinal marking (yellow in K. baluensis). Kalophrynus limbooliati further differs from K. stellatus and K. pleurostigma by the lack of nuptial pads in males; and from K. robinsoni in the absence of spinous nuptial pads in the males. Kalophrynus limbooliati sp. nov. differs from K. nubicola by the possession of distinct subarticular tubercles of fingers and toes (indistinct or absent in K. nubicola); from K. menglienicus by the possession of distinct tympanum and toe web (tympanum concealed and toe web absent in K. menglienicus); from K. bunguranus by the lack of light marking surrounding black inguinal mark (black inguinal marking in a light area in K. bunguranus); and from K. subterrestris by the presence of two subarticular tubercles on the fourth finger (a single subarticular tubercle in K. subterrestris). The calls of six species of Kalophrynus have been analyzed (K. baluensis; K. calciphilus; K. interlineatus; K. nubicola; K. pleurostigma; and K. yongi: Matsui 2009; Dehling 2011). The call of K. limbooliati sp. nov. is unpulsed unlike the well pulsed call of K. nubicola (Dring 1984), and is composed of successive notes unlike the short, single note in K. calciphilus (Dehling 2011), K. baluensis, K. heterochirus, and K. yongi (Matsui 2009). Kalophrynus limbooliati sp. nov. has a call with successive notes like K. pleurostigma (Matsui et al. 1996), but the note length is shorter (61–76 vs. 170–487 ms), the note repetition rate is larger (3.3–4.2 vs. 0.9–2.7 notes per s), and the dominant frequency is much higher (1632–2008 vs. 438–575 hz) than K. pleurostigma. The call of K. interlineatus is a long trill unlike that of K. limbooliati (Matsui et al. 1996), and that of K. palmatissimus (a soft “ko-koko”: Kiew 1984: 150) is clearly very different from that of K. limbooliati sp. nov. A ranid, Hylarana laterimaculata was found syntopic with K. limbooliati sp. nov. in Pulai and Lambak. They emitted long calls very similar to the human ear, but details clearly differ between the two species. Calls of K. limbooliati sp. nov. were longer than H. laterimaculata recorded at Lambak (mean±SD = 10.9 ± 2.8 vs. 6.0+ 0.2 s in H. laterimaculata) and included larger number of notes (mean±SD = 41.1 ± 11.2 vs. 12.5 ± 0.6). Each note lasted shorter (mean±SD = 70.6 ±6.0 vs. 109.4 ± 4.4 ms), with shorter time interval between two notes (mean±SD = 271.7 ± 25.4 vs. 520.3 ± 18.2 ms) and larger note repetition rate (mean = 3.72 ± 0.30 vs. 1.96 notes per s). In addition, the dominant frequency was evidently lower (mean±SD = 1909 ± 156 vs. 2897 ± 123 hz) than that of H. laterimaculata. Finally, the uncorrected pairwise sequence divergences of mitochondrial 16 S rRNA gene between K. limbooliati and the seven congeners (K. heterochirus, K. interlineatus, K. palmatissimus, K. pleurostigma, K. stellatus, K. subterrestris, and K. yongi) are as large as 5.2–10.5 %.Published as part of Matsui, Masafumi, Nishikawa, Kanto, Belabut, Daicus M., Norhayati, Ahmad & Yong, Hoi Sen, 2012, A new species of Kalophrynus (Amphibia, Anura, Microhylidae) from Southern Peninsular Malaysia, pp. 38-46 in Zootaxa 3155 on pages 39-44, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.21254
Pathophysiological Mechanisms in Neurodevelopmental Disorders Caused by Rac GTPases Dysregulation: What’s behind Neuro-RACopathies
No full textRho family guanosine triphosphatases (GTPases) regulate cellular signaling and cytoskeletal dynamics, playing a pivotal role in cell adhesion, migration, and cell cycle progression. The Rac subfamily of Rho GTPases consists of three highly homologous proteins, Rac 1–3. The proper function of Rac1 and Rac3, and their correct interaction with guanine nucleotide-exchange factors (GEFs) and GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs) are crucial for neural development. Pathogenic variants affecting these delicate biological processes are implicated in different medical conditions in humans, primarily neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). In addition to a direct deleterious effect produced by genetic variants in the RAC genes, a dysregulated GTPase activity resulting from an abnormal function of GEFs and GAPs has been involved in the pathogenesis of distinctive emerging conditions. In this study, we reviewed the current pertinent literature on Rac-related disorders with a primary neurological involvement, providing an overview of the current knowledge on the pathophysiological mechanisms involved in the neuro-RACopathies
New synonymy of the species group of Coelotes unicatus Yaginuma 1977, with first description of the male of Coelotes sanoi Nishikawa 2009 (Araneae: Agelenidae) from Shikoku District, Japan
No full textThree species of the coelotine spiders from the Shikoku and Kyushu Districts of Japan are reviewed. Coelotes towaensis Nishikawa 2009 and Coelotes sanoi Nishikawa 2009 have been described with only female specimens from K?chi Prefecture. The species are considered to be conspecific, and the former is regarded as a junior synonym of the latter. Furthermore, male of this species is described for the first time, and morphological and molecular differences are shown in comparison with Coelotes unicatus Yaginuma 1977 which is the closely related species of C. sanoi.Acta Arachnologica, 65(2), pp.71-76; 2016journal articl
Hynobius oyamai Tominaga & Matsui & Nishikawa 2019, n. sp.
No full textHynobius oyamai n. sp. (Japanese name: Chikushi-buchi-sanshou-uwo) (Figs. 4C, D, 5B, 6B, 7C, D, E) Pseudosalamandra naevia: Tago 1931: 170 –180, pl. XX. (part). Hynobius naevius: Abe 1922: 329 -330 (part); Sato 1943: 198 –217 (part). H. naevius (part, Type A): Tominaga et al. 2003: 1467. Hynobius naevius (part Group A): Tominaga et al. 2005a: 921; Tominaga et al. 2005b: 1229, fig. 7C. Hynobius naevius (part northeastern Kyushu subclade in Clade 2): Tominaga et al. 2006: 677. Holotype: KUHE 27267 (Fig. 4C, D), an adult male from Hatake, Yahatanishi-ku, Kitakyushu-shi, Fukuoka Prefecture (33 o 47’52”N, 130 o 47’42”E, alt. 310 m) collected by A. Tominaga on 15 May 2000. Paratypes: All from Kitakyushu-shi, Fukuoka Prefecture: KUHE 12984–12988, 3 males 2 females from Kawachi, Yahatahigashi-ku by Y. Misawa on 6 April 1992; KUHE 16746–16752, 7 males from Kawachi, Yahatahigashi-ku by Y. Misawa on 27 February 1994; KUHE 22798–22801, 1 male and 3 females from Kawachi, Yahatahigashi-ku by Y. Misawa and K. Nishikawa on 30 March 1997; KUHE 27281, 1 male from Kawachi, Yahatahigashi-ku by A. Tominaga on 15 May 2000; KUHE 28379–28383, 5 males from Kawachi, Yahatahigashiku by A. Tominaga on 25 February 2001; KUHE 28496, 1 male from Kawachi, Yahatahigashi-ku by A. Tominaga on 24 March 2001; KUHE 28579–28581, 3 males from Hatake, Yahatanishi-ku by A. Tominaga on 18 April 2001; KUHE 29959, 1 male from Hatake, Yahatanishi-ku by A. Tominaga on 31 March 2002; Mr. Tanabe private collection T2400, from Hanao-cho, Yahatahigashi-ku collected by S. Tanabe on 5 May 1992. Referred specimens: KUHE 26857–26858, 26860, 27282, 27283, 27807, 27883–27884, 27900, 27904, 28372, 28487, 28488, 28577, 28578, 28673, 28674, 28955–28957, 29364 from Asakura-shi, Fukuoka Prefecture. KUHE 14387–14390, 29986, 32578–32582 from Kunisaki-shi, Oita Prefecture; KUHE 13608–13610, 14391– 14392, 26144–26147, 27561, 29982–29984, 32584 from Kokonoe-cho, Oita Prefecture. Etymology: The specific name " oyamai " is dedicated to the late Dr. Junji Oyama of Kyushu Imperial University (current Kyushu University), who made great contributions to the study of Japanese salamanders especially in Kyushu. Diagnosis: A large species (adult SVL 65–89 mm in males and 71–86 mm in females) within the lotic breeding Hynobius; dorsum usually immaculate in adults; limbs and tail long; tips of fore- and hindlimbs adpressed on body never meeting (overlap of -3.0 to -0.5 costal folds in males and -3 to - 1.5 in females); fifth toe well developed; ova large, pigmentless; egg sacs short and crescent-like, without distinct whiptail structure on free end; most similar to H. naevius, but distinct from it by wider head, longer lower jaw, longer snout, wider internarial, wider upper eyelid, longer hindlimb, longer third finger, and third and fifth toes, and wider but shallower vomerine teeth series, all relative to SVL, and sometimes by presence of pale white dorsal marking on the trunk. Description of holotype (measurements in mm): Head-body medium (SVL 69.1) but robust; head oval and moderately depressed, distinctly longer (HL 16.0, 23.2%SVL) than wide (HW 12.7, 18.4%); snout rounded, slightly projecting beyond lower jaw; nostril close to snout tip; labial fold absent; eye large, prominently protruded, slightly inset from edge of head in dorsal view; upper eyelid well developed (UEW 2.3, 3.3%SVL), shorter (UEL 3.9, 5.6%SVL) than snout (SL 4.7, 6.8%SVL); gular fold distinct, curving slightly anteriorly; parotoid gland evident, extending from angle of jaw to gular fold; postorbital grooves distinct, branching posterior to angle of jaw, one short and running down to lower jaw, the other long and posteriorly to gland; vomerine teeth series slightly wider (VTW 3.5, 5.1%SVL) than long (VTL 2.9, 4.3%SVL), vomerine teeth shallow V-shaped, series nearly touching at midline (Fig. 5B), tongue broad, both sides free from mouth floor; fore- and hindlimbs long and thick (FLL 16.2, 23.4%SVL; HLL 20.2, 29.2%SVL); number of costal grooves between axilla and groin 13; depressed limbs separated by one and half costal folds; relative length of fingers I<IV<III<II, toes I<V<II<IV<III; fifth toe well developed (5TL 1.8, 2.6%SVL); cloaca longitudinal slit; genital tubercle on anterior cloaca absent; tail short (TAL 46.6, 67.4%SVL), cylindrical at base (BTAW 7.3, 10.6%SVL; BTAH 6.8, 9.8%SVL), increasingly compressed posteriorly, caudal fin poorly developed posteriorly; tip of tail rounded in lateral view. ......continued on the next page ......continued on the next page ……continued on the next page Additional Measurements and counts of the holotype: IND (3.8, 5.5%SVL); IOD (4.0, 5.8%SVL); AGD (35.9, 52.0%SVL); TRL (53.1, 76.9%SVL); MTAW (5.4, 7.8%SVL); MXTAH (7.6, 11.00%SVL); MTAH (7.2, 10.4%SVL), 2FL (3.0, 4.3%SVL); 3FL (2.8, 4.1%SVL); 3TL (4.5, 76.5%SVL); UJTN (77); LJTN (81); VTN (45). Color: In life, dorsum bluish-purple in ground color, without marking (Fig.4C) but sometimes with discontinuous, pale white markings. Underside of body lighter than dorsum with light white marking (Fig. 4D). The ground color of ventral side becoming bluish gray with relatively large markings varying from pale white to white. In preservative, dorsal and ventral ground color tending to fade. Variation: Morphometric data are summarized in Table 1. Males tended to have relatively wider head (HW, median=17.9%SVL) than in females (17.3%SVL). Males had relatively longer forelimb (median=24.1%SVL) and hindlimb (median=30.0%SVL) than in females (median=22.2%SVL and 28.7%SVL, respectively). Separation of limbs was greater in females (median=2.5 folds) than in males (median=1.5 folds). Males had relatively longer (median=73.8%SVL) and higher (median=11.4%SVL) tail than in females (median=68.5%SVL and 9.8%SVL, respectively). Third toe was usually longer than fourth. Fifth toe was almost always present. Eggs and egg sacs: The egg sac morphology of Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is shown in Fig. 6B. Egg sacs are crescent in shape with slightly thin envelope, and lack a distinct whiptail structure on the free end. The clutch size is small, ranging from 17–55 (mean ± SD =25.8 ± 7.1, n = 33). The diameter of ova from four females are 5.1–5.6 (mean ± SD = 5.3 ± 0.16, n = 18) mm, 4.9–5.4 (mean ± SD = 5.1 ± 0.14, n = 10) mm, 5.4–6.3 (mean ± SD = 5.7 ± 0.29, n = 10) mm, and 4.7–5.1 (mean ± SD = 4.8 ± 0.12, n = 10) mm. Both the animal and the vegetal poles are cream in color. Larva e: Fully grown larvae (n = 20) at St. 61–64 (median = 63) of Iwasawa and Yamashita (1991) of the first year in early August had SVL ranging from 20.6–32.4 (mean ± SD =25.9 ± 3.2) mm and total length of 42.4–63.5 (mean ± SD = 50.9 ± 5.8) mm, head rounded in dorsal and lateral views (Fig. 7C, D); snout short and broadly rounded; eyes slightly protruded, inset from edge of head in dorsal view; labial fold distinct at half of upper jaw; external gills developed; caudal fin higher than head; dorsal fin higher than ventral fin; origin of dorsal fin at half of trunk; ventral fin originating from vent; tail tip weakly pointed; limbs slender; claws on fingers and toes absent. In life, dorsum light brown with marking; venter whitish and transparent (Fig. 7E); small black marking; golden dots scattered on tail fin. In preservative, dorsal coloration tending to fade and golden dots fading to white. Range: Known from mountain regions of northeastern Kyushu district, Western Japan, in Fukuoka, Kumamoto, and Oita Prefectures. (Fig. 1). Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is sympatrically distributed with H. stejnegeri. Whereas, Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is allopatrically distributed with H. naevius, H. shinichisatoi, H. amakusaensis, H. osumiensis, and H. ikioi in Kyushu (Tominaga et al. 2003; Nishikawa & Matsui 2014; Matsui et al. 2017). Morphological comparisons: Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is distinct from all lentic breeding species of Hynobius by having the tail cylindrical at base, and large, unpigmented eggs, small in number per clutch. Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is most similar to H. naevius morphologically, but is distinguished from the latter by larger number of upper and lower jaw teeth, relatively wider head, longer lower jaw, longer snout, wider internarial and upper eyelid, longer hindlimb, third finger, and third and fifth toes, and wider but shallower vomerine teeth series, and sometimes by the presence of pale white dorsal marking on their trunk. Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is distinguished from H. sematonotos by larger body size, greater degree of limb overlap, and larger number of upper and lower jaw, and vomerine teeth. It also has smaller upper eyelid, longer trunk, shorter hindlimb, longer fifth toe, and moderately deeper vomerine teeth series, all relative to SVL than H. sematonotos. Additionally, H. oyamai n. sp. sometimes differs from the latter by the absence of dorsal marking. Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is also distinguishable from other Japanese lotic breeding congeners, including H. hirosei and H. katoi, by the presence of pale white to white ventral and dorsal markings on the trunk. Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is also distinct from H. hirosei by smaller body size (64.8–88.5 mm vs. 73.3–103.3 mm in H. hirosei), relatively shorter head length (RHL: 21.0–24.8%SVL vs. 23.8–28.6%SVL in H. hirosei), relatively narrower internarial distance (RIND: 5.0–6.4%SVL vs. 5.3–7.5%SVL in H. hirosei), relatively smaller upper eyelid width (RUEW: 2.8–3.7%SVL vs. 3.3–4.7%SVL in H. hirosei), relatively longer axilla-groin distance (RAGD: 50.6–57.1%SVL vs. 46.9–55.2%SVL in H. hirosei), relatively longer trunk length (RTRL: 75.2– 79.0%SVL vs. 71.4–76.3%SVL in H. hirosei), and relatively smaller vomerine teeth series width (RVTW: 4.3– 6.0%SVL vs. 5.0–7.7%SVL in H. hirosei) (Nishikawa et al. 2007). Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is also distinct from H. katoi by larger body size (64.8–88.5 mm vs. 53.8–66.1 mm in H. katoi), relatively shorter head length (RHL: 21.0– 24.8%SVL vs. 24.0–25.2%SVL in H. katoi), relatively larger head width (RHW: 15.8–19.2%SVL vs. 14.8– 16.7%SVL in H. katoi), and relatively longer trunk length (RTRL: 75.2–79.0%SVL vs. 74.8–76.0%SVL in H. katoi) (Matsui et al. 2004). From all Taiwanese species that are lotic breeders, H. oyamai n. sp. differs by larger body size (SVL less than 69 mm [Lai & Lue 2008]) and different coloration. Natural history: Breeding occurs from March to early June and egg sacs are attached to stones under the water in mountain streams with the maximum width of 2 m. Larvae feed in the stream and usually metamorphose in autumn at a medium size (SVL = 23.4–26.4 mm). Some overwintered larvae can be found in spring. Breeding site and larval life of Hynobius oyamai n. sp. is similar to those of other allopatric lotic breeding salamanders of Kyushu (H. naevius, H. shinichisatoi, H. amakusaensis, H. osumiensis, and H. ikioi) but differ from those of sympatric H. stejnegeri which breed in very small headstreams under the ground where larvae hatch from large eggs with large amount of yolks and develop without feeding and metamorphose at a small body size (SVL = 19.3– 19.7mm) (Tominaga et al. 2003).Published as part of Tominaga, Atsushi, Matsui, Masafumi & Nishikawa, Kanto, 2019, Two new species of lotic breeding salamanders (Amphibia, Caudata, Hynobiidae) from western Japan, pp. 525-544 in Zootaxa 4550 (4) on pages 533-542, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4550.4.3, http://zenodo.org/record/262562
Kalophrynus limbooliati Matsui, Nishikawa, Belabut, Ahmad, and Yong 2012
No full textKalophrynus limbooliati Matsui, Nishikawa, Belabut, Ahmad, and Yong, 2012 — Native. Kalophrynus limbooliati Matsui, Nishikawa, Belabut, Ahmad & Yong, 2012: 39–44, figs. 1–3. Holotype: UKMHC 705, by original designation. Type locality: “ Gunung (= Mt.) Pulai, Kpg. (Kampung = village) Sri, Kulai, State of Johor, Peninsular Malaysia (01° 36′ N, 103° 32′ E, 457 m a.s.l.)”. Lim’s Black-spotted Sticky Frog (Figure 5G) Singapore records. Calophrynus pleurostigma (non Tschudi, 1838)— Flower, 1896: 908 (Bukit Timah [BTNR]).— Boulenger, 1912: 258.—van Kampen, 1923: 102–104.—D.H. Murphy, 1973: 59. Kalophrynus pleurostigma pleurostigma (non Tschudi, 1838)—Parker, 1934: 96.— Bourret, 1942: 498.— K.K.P. Lim & C.M. Yang, 1991: 228 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve; Rock Path [BTNR]).—L.M. Chou, 1995: 146. Kalophrynus pleurostigma (non Tschudi, 1838)—K.K.P. Lim & L.M. Chou, 1990: 57.—K.K.P. Lim, 1991a: 4 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve).—K.K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 1992: 40, 144.—K.K.P. Lim, 1993b: 4 (Cave Path [BTNR]).—L.M. Chou et al., 1994: 93.—R. Subaraj, 1994: 15 (MacRitchie North Forest; Sime Road Forest).—K.K.P. Lim, 1994a: 212, 330.—K. Lim, 1995: 20 (North View Hut [BTNR]; Three-Stone Hill [NSSF]).—P.K.L. Ng et al., 1995: 113.—K.K.P. Lim, 1996: 50.—R. Subaraj, 1996: 101.—R.C.H. Teo & Rajathurai, 1997: 401 (Bukit Timah [BTNR]; Lower Peirce [LP]; MacRitchie; Nee Soon [NSSF]).— Manthey & Grossmann, 1997: 54.—Chan-ard et al., 1999: 14.—T.M. Leong & L.M. Chou, 1999: 118–121.— Das & Haas, 2003: 113 (Bukit Timah [BTNR]; Seletar Forest [NSSF]).— Das & Haas, 2005: 379.—T.M. Leong, 2000: 5.—K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 2002: 145.—K.K.P. Lim & T.M. Leong, 2008: 264.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2008: 64, 159.— Matsui, 2009: 583, 584.—Bickford et al., 2010: 121, 123.—D.C.J. Yeo et al., 2010: 188.—K.O. Chan et al., 2011: 68 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve).—L.L. Grismer, 2011a: 52.—T.M. Leong, 2011: 21, 22.—T.M. Leong & Gan, 2011: 25.—P.K.L. Ng et al., 2011: 468.—R. Subaraj, 2015: 53, 54, 56 (Night Safari; Project Western Boundary [= MBP]). Kalophrynus limbooliati —N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2012: 64, 159.—Matsui et al., 2012: 39, 42, 45.—E.K. Chua, 2015: 32.—R. Subaraj, 2015: 9 (Upper Seletar Peninsula [= USNF]).—S. Subaraj, 2015: 3, 5, 7 (Mandai Range Forest; Night Safari; Project Western Boundary [= MBP]; Upper Seletar Peninsula [= USNF]).— Zug, 2015: 166.—R.C.H. Teo & Thomas, 2019: 146, 153, 174, 179 (Bukit Timah Nature Reserve; Dairy Farm Nature Park; Zhenghua Nature Park). Remarks. Previously allocated to K. pleurostigma, K. limbooliati was redescribed as a new species based on acoustic, morphological, and molecular data (Matsui et al. 2011; Matsui et al. 2012), after the authors noticed that populations from southern Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore emit different calls from northern populations. The calls of K. limbooliati highly resemble Pulchrana laterimaculata (Matsui et al. 2012) with which it occurs sympatrically over a large part of its range. Flower (1896) collected the first specimen for Singapore, and Peninsular Malaysia, at BTNR. In describing vertical forest distribution of vertebrates, Murphy (1973) described K. limbooliati as a common leaf-litter inhabitant, but did not provide any data or details. Leaving this remark aside, and unpublished museum records, another specimen of K. limbooliati was not reported until 95 years later when one was seen in a drain near the entrance of BTNR on 11 January 1991 (Lim 1991a). Certainly, this observation was downplayed and not regarded as a rediscovery or novel since the species is perceived as common. Yet, the first occurrence of it outside of BTNR was not until 28 September 1993 when a single individual was found at MNF (Subaraj 1994). Occurrence. Restricted to CNR and surrounding Nature Parks and forests. Common. Singapore conservation status. Vulnerable. Conservation priority. Lowest. IUCN conservation status. Near-Threatened [2022]. LKCNHM & NHMUK Museum specimens. Singapore (no locality): BMNH1896.6.25.99 (no date); Bukit Timah Nature Reserve : ZRC.1.11014 (15-Jun-1933), ZRC.1.1763– ZRC.1.1764 (24-Nov-1966), ZRC.1.2935 (11-Jan-1991), ZRC.1.3035– ZRC.1.3044, ZRC.1.2938– ZRC.1.2983 (10-Jan-1991), ZRC.1.9182 (20-Jan-2002), ZRC.1.8047 (08-Jun-2001), ZRC.1.8021– ZRC.1.8022 (28-Apr-2001), ZRC.1.4608– ZRC.1.4615 (09-Jun-2000), ZRC.1.3047– ZRC.1.3056 (10-Jan-1991), ZRC.1.1705 (11-Aug-1989), ZRC.1.10510 (13- Mar-2003), ZRC.1.3425 (25-Aug-1996), ZRC.1.3426 (25-Aug-1996); Hindhede Drive: ZRC.1.1562 (07- Dec-1988); Nee Soon Swamp Forest: ZRC.1.3288 (03-Jul-1995). Additional Singapore museum specimens. Singapore (no locality): FMNH; Bukit Timah: BPBM, CAS; Nee Soon [= NSSF]: BPBM. Singapore localities. Bukit Timah Nature Reserve—Dairy Farm Nature Park—Hindhede Drive—Lower Peirce— MacRitchie—MacRitchie North Forest—Mandai Bird Park—Mandai Range Forest—Nee Soon Swamp Forest—Night Safari—Sime Road Forest—Upper Seletar North Forest—Zhenghua Nature Park. Genus Kaloula Gray, 1831 (1 species)Published as part of Figueroa, Alex, Low, Martyn E. Y. & Lim, Kelvin K. P., 2023, Singapore's herpetofauna: updated and annotated checklist, history, conservation, and distribution, pp. 1-378 in Zootaxa 5287 (1) on pages 42-43, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5287.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/796031
Leptobrachium kanowitense Hamidy, Matsui, Nishikawa & Belabut, 2012, sp. nov.
No full textLeptobrachium kanowitense sp. nov. Holotype. KUHE 42575, an adult female collected from upper part of Kanowit River (02°07’ 59.7 ’’N, 112 °08’ 48.1 ’’E, 60 m a.s.l.), Sibu Division, Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia, collected by M. Matsui, K. Nishikawa, Daicus M. Belabut, Norhayati Ahmad, and Chan Kin Onn on 21 November 2008. Paratypes. SRC 0 0 0 2 (former KUHE 42587), KUHE 42588–42590, four adult females, KUHE 42574, an adult male, collectors and locality same as for holotype. Etymology. The specific name refers to the place where the type series was collected. Diagnosis. A small-sized Leptobrachium of the L. nigrops group, with SVL 38.6–44.8 mm in females and 32.9 mm in males; finger tips weakly pointed; tympanum visible, uniformly dark brown; dorsum uniformly dark brown, lacking conspicuous markings; laterally light brown with few dots near groin; ventrum whitish dotted with black particularly on belly and on throat; chest and ventral side of limbs whitish with only few black dots; thin black bars on dorsal side of limbs including digits; clear markings only at groin and posterior thigh; ventral thigh whitish with some dots; femoral glands large in white blotch. Description of holotype (measurements in mm). Small sized (SVL 44.8); habitus moderately stocky, body tapering to groin, head wider than body, broad and depressed, longer (HL 19.8: 44.2 % SVL) than wide (HW 17.4: 38.8 % SVL); snout obtusely pointed, rounded triangle from above, truncate in profile, slightly projecting beyond lower jaw; eye large and obviously projecting from sides of head, longer (EL 7.4: 16.5 % SVL) than snout (SL 7.2: 16.1 % SVL); canthus rostralis sharp, loreal region oblique, moderately concave; nostril lateral, below canthus, distinctly closer to snout (S-NL 3.8: 8.5 % SVL) than to eye (N-EL 4.3: 9.6 % SVL); internarial distance (IND 3.1: 6.9 % SVL) much narrower than interorbital distance, (IOD 5.2: 11.6 % SVL), latter slightly narrower than upper eyelid (UEW 5.8: 12.9 % SVL); no pineal spot; tympanum visible, diameter (TD 3.2: 7.1 % SVL) less than half that of eye and separated from eye by more than half of its diameter (T-EL 1.7: 3.8 % SVL); vomerine teeth absent; tongue heart-shaped, without papillae, notched posteriorly. Forelimb slender and long (FLL 31.7: 70.8 % SVL), about three-fifths of hindlimb; fingers moderately slender, unwebbed; first finger (1 FL 4.8: 10.7 % SVL) slightly longer than fourth and second, third much longer (3 FL 6.6: 14.7 % SVL); finger tips weakly pointed; inner palmar tubercle large (IPTL 1.8: 4.0% SVL), not extending onto first metacarpal and larger than outer palmar tubercle (OPTL 1.5: 3.4 % SVL); subarticular tubercles indistinct, replaced by low callous tissue. Hindlimb slender and relatively short (HLL 56.4: 125.9 % SVL); heels not meeting when legs held at right angles to body; tibia distinctly longer (TL 17.6: 39.3 % SVL) than foot (FL 14.3: 31.9 % SVL); tibiotarsal articulation of adpressed limb reaching to beyond anterior edge of tympanum; third toe longer than fifth; toe tips similar to those of fingers and hooked; toe webs very poorly developed; webbing formula I 1 3 / 4 – 2 1 / 4 II 1 1 / 4 – 3 III 2–3 3 / 4 IV 3 3 / 4 – 2 V; inner metatarsal tubercle small (IMTL 1.6: 3.6 % SVL), low and oval; outer metatarsal tubercle absent; subarticular tubercles obscure, but elongated, replaced by low callous tissue. Skin above nearly smooth, with granules scattered posteriorly, particularly around sacrum; ventrum slightly granular, especially on belly; very low supratympanic ridge from posterior corner of eye to axilla; indistinct low dermal ridges on upper surface of limbs; flat pectoral gland at medial border of axilla behind arm insertion; femoral gland on posterior surface of thigh in white spot. Colour. In life, brown dorsally with large dark brown blotches on interorbital and parietal regions; laterally brown fading to whitish on ventral side, where black dots scattered, especially dense on belly; loreal region widely black, with some space before eye; tympanum uniformly brown, bordered above by very thin black line of supratympanic ridge; forelimb dorsally light brown with faint bars; chest and ventral side of forelimb whitish; throat darker mixed with guanophores; hindlimb ventrally whitish, spotted with black, particularly near groin and anterior thigh, with blue ground color; dorsolateral sides of fingers and toes light brown; iris black surrounded by light blue sclera visible in maximally opened eye. In preservative, dorsal ground colour darkened, but aspects of colour pattern remained. Variation. Morphometric variations are shown in Table 3. The male paratype (KUHE 42574) is morphologically similar to holotype, but has smaller body, more rugose dorsal skin, and more distinct dark crossbars on dorsal side of thigh. It has an internal vocal sac and a pair of vocal sac openings. The female paratypes (KUHE 42587–42590) have smaller body, more densely dotted black on ventrum particularly on belly, and on lateral side between armpit and groin, and have more hooked tips of fingers and toes than the holotype. In three females, including holotype, and one male, tibio-tarsal articulation reaches to points beyond anterior border of tympanum, but in the remaining two females it reaches only to middle of tympanum. Calls. At Kanowit, we heard the calls of L. kanowitense, but failed to record them. Calls were very similar to those of L. nigrops and L. ingeri to the human ear. Comparisons. Leptobrachium kanowitense tends to have relatively longer head (43.0– 45.8 % SVL) and larger eye (15.4–16.5 % SVL) than L. nigrops (41.2–45.3 % SVL and 12.0– 17.3 % SVL, respectively). Morphometric and qualitative differences between L. kanowitense and L. ingeri are as noted above. Leptobrachium kanowitense is differentiated from L. ingeri by much less developed toe webs. In addition, the new species is differentiated from L. ingeri by having narrowly pointed finger tips. Leptobrachium kanowitense is similar to L. nigrops in the development of toe webbing, but on the outer side of the second toe, web is less developed in L. kanowitense (1 1 / 4 – 1 3 / 4 phalanges free of web) than in L. nigrops (1 / 2 – 1 2 / 3, mostly 1 phalange free of web). Leptobrachium kanowitense differs from L. nigrops and L. ingeri, by having whitish ventrum dotted with black (vs. usually reticulated in L. nigrops, and blotched in L. ingeri). Dorsally, L. kanowitense lacks conspicuous blotched pattern, unlike L. nigrops and L. ingeri that have distinct blotches. In addition, L. kanowitense has uniformly dark brown tympanum whereas whole or upper half of tympanum is black in L. nigrops and L. ingeri. Range. The inland area of western Borneo, so far only known from Kanowit, Sibu Division, Sarawak (Figure 1). Natural history. Type series was collected from a marshy area in a jackfruit plantation near a long house (traditional Iban house). Larval, and other ecological data are unknown, but the male paratype was found intermittently emitting calls, indicating late November is within the breeding season. Frog species observed associated with the type series were: Limnonectes paramacrodon (Inger), Limnonectes ingeri (Kiew), Fejervarya limnocharis (Gravenhorst), Occidozyga laevis (Günther), Ingerophrynus quadriporcatus (Boulenger), Hylarana baramica (Boettger), Hylarana raniceps (Peters), Hylarana erythraea (Schlegel), Hylarana glandulosa (Bouleger), Hylarana signata (Günther), Polypedates colletti (Boulenger), Polypedates macrotis (Boulenger), Polypedates leucomystax (Gravenhorst), Polypedates otilophus (Boulenger), Rhacophorus appendiculatus (Günther), Rhacophorus pardalis Günther, Nyctixalus pictus (Peters), Chaperina fusca Mocquard, and Microhyla malang Matsui.Published as part of Hamidy, Amir, Matsui, Masafumi, Nishikawa, Kanto & Belabut, Daicus M., 2012, Detection of cryptic taxa in Leptobrachium nigrops (Amphibia, Anura, Megophryidae), with description of two new species, pp. 22-39 in Zootaxa 3398 on pages 35-36, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.28181
Multi-learner based recursive supervised training
No full textIn this paper, we propose the Multi-Learner Based Recursive Supervised Training (MLRT) algorithm which uses the existing framework of recursive task decomposition, by training the entire dataset, picking out the best learnt patterns, and then repeating the process with the remaining patterns. Instead of having a single learner to classify all datasets during each recursion, an appropriate learner is chosen from a set of three learners, based on the subset of data being trained, thereby avoiding the time overhead associated with the genetic algorithm learner utilized in previous approaches. In this way MLRT seeks to identify the inherent characteristics of the dataset, and utilize it to train the data accurately and efficiently. We observed that empirically, MLRT performs considerably well as compared to RPHP and other systems on benchmark data with 11% improvement in accuracy on the SPAM dataset and comparable performances on the VOWEL and the TWO-SPIRAL problems. In addition, for most datasets, the time taken by MLRT is considerably lower than the other systems with comparable accuracy. Two heuristic versions, MLRT-2 and MLRT-3 are also introduced to improve the efficiency in the system, and to make it more scalable for future updates. The performance in these versions is similar to the original MLRT system
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