Ichthyophis yangi: A new species of Caecilian from China.

Caecilians are limbless burrowing Amphibians found in tropical regions of Asia, Africa and South America. They resemble Earthworms, with circular folds on their skin which make them look segmented and skin covering their eyes (though they can see), though they are true Vertebrates with visible jawbones, which all Worms lack.. Unlike snakes they have greatly reduced or even absent tails with their anus close to or at the tips of their bodies. Caecilians are predatory with a well developed sense of smell. 

Members of the Family Ichthyophiidae are found in Asia from India east to the Philippines, and south through Myanmar to southern China, Thailand, and the Malayan Archipelago, ultimately reaching the Wallace Line. the Ichthyophiidae was formerly divided into three genera, Caudacaecilia, Ichthyophis, and Uraeotyphlus, but molecular phylogenies have suggested that Caudacaecilia and Ichthyophis are not genetically distinct, and thus all species from both genera have been placed in the single genus Ichthyophis (this having been named first). Thus, Ichthyophis currently contains 49 species of Caecillians, in two distinct colour types, one having a pair of lateral stripes in a yellow or cream colour, and one lacking any such. All members of a species appear to always belong to a single colour type, but this is no guide to relationships between species.

In a paper published in the journal Asian Herpetological Research on 9 December 2024, Dingqi Rao and Hongxin Zhou of the Kunming Institute of Zoology, Mingzhong Mo of the Forestry and Grassland Administration of Honghe Prefecture, Zhiyong Yu of the Fenshuiling National Nature Reserve, and Xiuyan Li and Shou Liu, also of the Kunming Institute of Zoology, describe a new species of Ichthyophis from Yunnan Province, China.

In 1922 German zoologist Rudolph Mell reported observing a unmarked species of Ichthyophis on Luofu Mountain in Guangdong Province, but aside from this, all other records of the genus in China are of striped species. Then, in June 2023, a group of local residents in Jinping County of Yunnan Province found a dead and partially dried Caecilian beside a road near the village of Maandi, which they took to Mingzhong Mo. He in turn took it to the Kunming Institute of Zoology, where it was recognised as a stripeless Ichthyophis.

A subsequent search of the area by zoologists from the Kunming Institute of Zoology recovered another five specimens, including two sub-adults, all od which were lacking in stripes. A subsequent genetic analysis confirmed that these were a new species of Ichthyophis, forming a sister species to Ichthyophis chaloensisi, a stripeless species from Vietnam. The new species is named in honour of Datong Yang, the first herpetologist to describe a new species of Ichthyophis from China.

Holotype of Ichthyophis yangi in life. Rao et al. (2024).

The largest specimen of Ichthyophis yangi is 324 mm in length and 16 mm wide at its mid-body. All are grey in colour, without any markings. The head is flattened and widest behind the mouth, tapering towards the tip of the snout. The eyes are covered by skin. Teeth are small and hook-shaped. The species is only known from the area around Maandi Village, with most specimens found under stones on farmland close to a stream.

(A) Habitat of Ichthyophis yangi. (B) The place where holotype of Ichthyophis yangi was discovered. Jingchao Wang in Rao et al. (2024).

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Dinocephalosaurus orientalis: New specimens shed new light upon a remarkable marine Archosauromorph from the Middle Triassic of southwestern China.

Archosauromorphs first appeared in the Permian, and became the dominant Vertebrate group in terrestrial ecosystems during the Mesozoic. While Archosauriform groups such as the Pseudosuchians (Crocodile-lineage Archosaurs) and Avemetatarsalians (Pterosaurs and Dinosaurs) became the dominat groups of Archosaurs from the Jurassic onwards, a variety of non-Archosauriform Archosauromorphs, such as the Rhynchosauria, Allokotosauria, and Tanystropheidae played an important role in Triassic ecosystems. The Tanystropheidae are one of a number of groups of highly gracile (slender) Triassic Archosauromorphs, once thought to represent a single clade, but now thought to be a loose group of basal Archosauromorphs, refered to as non-Crocopodans, where the Crocopodans comprise the Rhynchosauria, Allokotosauria, and Archosauriforms.

These gracile non-Crocopodans were a diverse group, inhabiting terrestrial, freshwater, and marine environments, and in one case (Ozimek volans),  possibly taking to the air. However, their delicate skeletons did not favour preservation, and many species are known only from compressed and fragmentary remains. One such species is Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, a non-Crocopodan Archosauromorph from the Middle Triassic Guanling Formation of Guizhou Province, China, which was described in 2003 from a specimen comprising an isolated, well-preserved skull and the first three anterior cervical vertebrae preserved in articulation. Subsequent specimens revealed that Dinocephalosaurus orientalis was of similar size and proportions to the better known Tanystropheus longobardicus, but while both species have extremely elongated necks, exceeding the lengths of their trunks, the  neck of Tanystropheus longobardicus has 13 elongated  cervical vertebrae, whereas Dinocephalosaurus orientalis has at least  32 vertebrae in  its  neck.  Furthermore, a specimen which cannot confidently be assigned to the species, but which must clearly be closely related, was found to be gravid, with an embryo (not an egg) within its abdominal cavity, indicating the birth of live young, almost certainly an adaptation to a fully marine lifestyle.

In a paper published in journal Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh on 23 February 2024, Stephan Spiekman of the Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Stuttgart, Wei Wang of the Institute of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Palaeoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lijun Zhao of the Zhejiang Museum of Natural History, Oliver Rieppel of the Field Museum of Natural History, Nicholas Frazer of National Museums Scotland, and Chun Li, also of the Institute of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Palaeoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, describe five new specimens of Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, and discuss their implications for our understanding of the species. 

The holotype of Dinocephalosaurus orientalis. (a) Photograph. (b) Photograph with interpretative drawing. Abbreviations: fr, frontal; j, jugal; la, lacrimal; mx, maxilla; na, nasal; op, opisthotic; pa, parietal; pl, palatine; pm, premaxilla; pof, postfrontal; po, postorbital; pro, prootic; pt, pterygoid; scl, sclerotic plates; soc, supraoccipital; sq, squamosal. Spiekman et al. (2024).

The first additional specimen described by Spiekman et al., IVPP V13898, has previously been described in 2008, and is the specimen upon which most of our current understanding of the species is based. This specimen comprises the skull, most of the vertebral column, elements of all four limbs and some elements of the pectoral and pelvic girdle. This specimen is more complete than the holotype (first specimen described), however, the skull is relatively poorly preserved, strongly dorsoventrally compressed and exposed in ventral view.

Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, IVPP V13898 (referred specimen). (a) Photograph. (b) Interpretative drawing. Spiekman et al. (2024).

The second next specimen, IVPP V17977, is described for the first time, as are all subsequent specimens. This specimen comprises the skull and mandible preserved in ventral view on one block, followed by the first to the 16th cervical vertebrae, together with associated cervical ribs, preserved in articulation on three additional slabs.

Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, IVPP V17977 (referred specimen). (a) The specimen as preserved on four slabs (photograph, scale bar in cm). (b) Interpretative drawing of the skull, lower jaw and cervical vertebrae 2–9. Abbreviations: ang, angular; ax, axis; bs, basisphenoid; cv, cervical vertebra; d, dentary; ncr, neural crest; oph, opisthotic; pl, palatine; poz, postzygapophysis; prz, prezygapophysis; pt, pterygoid; q, quadrate; v, vomer. Spiekman et al. (2024).

The second new specimen, ZMNH M8727, comprises elements of an exploded skull, a total of 28 cervical vertebrae of which the axis and the following 17 cervical vertebrae are preserved in articulation; two scattered vertebrae located next to the 28th cervical vertebra, one of them exposed in anterior view, a string of six vertebrae lying in front of the remains of the pectoral girdle and forelimbs, plus associated cervical, dorsal and gastral ribs.

Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, ZMNH M8727 (referred specimen). (a) Photograph. (b) Interpretative drawing. Abbreviations: ax, axis; co, coracoid; d, dentary; hu, humerus; mx, maxilla; pm, premaxilla; pt, pterygoid; q, quadrate; ra, radius; sc, scapula; ul, ulna. Spiekman et al. (2024).

The third new specimen, ZMNH M8728, comprises a partially preserved skull exposed in right lateral view, plus the cervical and most of the dorsal vertebral column represented by 56 vertebrae preserved in articulation (i.e. 32 cervical vertebrae and 23 dorsal vertebrae), cervical and dorsal ribs; elements of both pectoral girdles and forelimbs; and the gastral rib basket.  

Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, ZMNHM8728 (referred specimen). (a) Photograph. (b) Interpretative drawing. Abbreviations: cl, clavicle; co, coracoid; co-sc, articulated coracoid and scapula; cr, cervical rib; cv, cervical vertebra; hu, humerus; ns, neural spine; ra, radius; ul, ulna. Spiekman et al. (2024).

The next new specimen, ZMNH M8752, comprises the skull and mandible, neck, trunk and complete tail, ribs, gastral ribs, pectoral girdle and forelimbs as well as pelvic girdle and hindlimbs, making it one of the most complete specimens known.

Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, ZMNH M8752 (referred specimen). (a) Photograph. (b) Interpretative drawing. Abbreviations: as, astragalum;  ca, calcaneum; ca.v, caudal vertebra; cl, clavicle; co, coracoid; cv, cervical vertebra; do.v, dorsal vertebra; dt, distal tarsal; fib,  fibula; hu, humerus; in, intermedium; mand, mandible; ra, radius; sc, scapula; tib, tibia. Spiekman et al. (2024).

The final new specimen, IVPP V20295, however, is the most complete and fully articulated specimen recovered to date, comprising a skull is preserved in dorsal view and is in complete articulation with the neck and the rest of the body, which is essentially exposed on its left side. The total vertebral count is 145, comprising 32 cervical vertebrae, 30 dorsal vertebrae, 2 sacral vertebrae and 81 caudal vertebrae.

Dinocephalosaurus orientalis IVPP V20295.Complete articulated skeleton in dorsal to left lateral view. Abbreviations: ax, axis; ca.v, caudal vertebra; cv, cervical vertebra; do.v, dorsal vertebra; ga, gastralia; l.co, left coracoid; l.fe, left femur; l.hu, left humerus; l.il, left ilium; l.is left  ischium; l.man, left manus; l.pes, left pes; l.pu, left pubis; l.ra, left radius; l.sc, left scapula; r.hu, right humerus; r.co, right coracoid; r.fi, right fibula; r,ma, right manus; r.ra, right radius; r.sc, right scapula; r.ti, right tibia; r.ul, right ulna. Spiekman et al. (2024).

Based upon this new material, Spiekman et al. re-interpret Dinocephalosaurus orientalis as a large non-Crocopodan Archosauromorph, reaching as much as 6 m in length, with a neck twice as long as its trunk. It's post-orbital skull is short, and the suborbital fenestra has been obliterated. There is a single fang on each pre-maxillary, as well as further fangs on the front part of the maxilla and dentary. There are 62 pre-sacral vertebrae, of which 32 are cervical, as well as two sacral vertebrae and 81 caudal vertebrae. The limbs are reduced, apparently due to paedomorphosis (the retention of juvenile traits in adults), with a lack of suturing in several places in clearly adult specimens, and a reduction in the number of phalanges.

Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, ZMNHM8728, interpretative drawings of selected elements. (a) Right mandibular ramus in lateral view. (b) Right pterygoid in lateral view. (c) Posterior cervical vertebrae and anteriormost dorsal vertebra (cv26–do.v1) in right lateral view. (d) Mid-dorsal vertebrae in right lateral view. (e) Right forelimb, as preserved. (f) Left forelimb, as preserved. Abbreviations: ang, angular; ar, articular; c, centrum; cv, cervical vertebra; d, dentary; dc, distal carpal; do.v, dorsal vertebra; hu, humerus; int, intermedium; mc, metacarpal; ncr, neural crest; ns, neural spine; pl.p.pt, palatine process of the pterygoid; poz, postzygapophysis; prz, prezygapophysis; q.p.pt, quadrate process of the pterygoid; sang, surangular; sym, symphysis; tr.p, transverse process; tr.p.pt, transverse process of the pterygoid; ra, radius; rad, radiale; ul, ulna; uln, ulnare. Spiekman et al. (2024).

Spiekman et al. also note that a specimen of an aparently gravid Dinocephalosaurus has been described from a different location, Luoping County in Yunnan Province. This specimen is incomplete making confident assignment to the same species difficult, but has no traits which would justify erecting a second species. Notably, although presumably an adult, this specimen is only about half  the size of the largest specimens from the Guanling Formation specimens, suggesting  that if it does belong to the same species, then that species  must have  shown strong sexual dimorphism.

Specimens of Dinocephalosaurus orientalis are quite abundant in the Guanling Formation, a coastal deposit laid down in the eastern Tethys Ocean, but no similar specimens have to date been found in deposits from the western Tethys, which outcrop in Europe and the Middle East, despite many of these sites having been sampled extensively for over three centuries. However, based upon their new material, Spiekman et al. not that two maxillae from the Lower Muschelkalk of Krapkowice and Gogolin in Upper Silesia, Poland, and a dentary from the Lower Muschelkalk of Winterswijk in the Netherlands, currently assigned to 'Lamprosauroides goepperti', show strong similarities to Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, although the extremely fragmentary nature of this European material prevents a proper re-evaluation at this time.

Extremely elongate necks appear to have been achieved at least twice in non-Crocopodan Archosauromorphs, with Dinocephalosaurus orientalis increasing the number of vertebrae in its neck, while Tanystropheus spp. increased the length of the individual cervical vertebrae. While this might seem likely to have given Dinocephalosaurus orientalis a more flexible neck than Tanystropheus spp., both taxa had elongated cervical ribs which would have served to stiffen the neck, something widespread in non-Crocopodan Archosauromorphs. 

It is possible thar the arrangement of cervical ribs and an elongate neck would have facilitated suction feeding, however, both taxa have 'fish-trap' dentition, suggesting that this is unlikely, as the long teeth would tend to prevent prey being drawn into the buccal cavity. Instead Spiekman et al. theorise that both taxa probably caught prey with a lateral snapping motion of the head, something which has also been proposed for piscivorous Triassic Sauropterygians. 

Restoration of Dinocephalosaurus orientalis. The skull in (a) left lateral; (b) dorsal; and (c) ventral views. (d) The skeleton in left lateral view with a silhouette of a diver for scale. Abbreviations; ect, ectopterygoid; fr, frontal; j, jugal; la, lacrimal; mx, maxilla; na, nasal; pa, parietal; pal, palatine; pm, premaxilla; po, postorbital; pof, postfrontal; prf, prefrontal; pt, pterygoid; q, quadrate; sq, squamosal; vo, vomer. Spiekman et al. (2024).

The largest specimens of Dinocephalosaurus orientalis are considered to be adults with some confidence, showing full fusion of the bones of the skull and trunk region. Notably, a specimen from the Triassic of Yunnan, which appears very similar to Dinocephalosaurus orientalis, but is not complete enough to confidently assign to the species, is gravid, suggesting either that Dinocephalosaurus orientalis was sexually dimorphic, or that a second, much smaller species of Dinocephalosaurus was also present. The limbs of Dinocephalosaurus orientalis are underdeveloped, with little development of articular surfaces and poorly ossified carpus and tarsus, even compared to the functionally similar Tanystropheus spp., suggesting that Dinocephalosaurus orientalis had a greater degree of adaption to a marine environment, and was probably not capable of leaving the water and crawling onto land. 

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Three new species of Artiopodan Euarthropod from the Cambrian Chengjiang Biota of Yunnan Province, China.

The Artiopodans, which comprise Trilobites plus a diverse range of Trilobite-like Arthropods, form an important part of all Palaeozoic marine communities, distinguished by a series of trunk appendages in similar morphology. Many biologists consider that the Artiopodans are still extant today, although they are divided as to whether the Chelicerates (Sea Spiders, Horseshoe Crabs, and Arachnids) or Mandibulates (Crustaceans, Insects, Millipedes and Centipedes) are living Artiopodans. Fossil Artiopodans are divided into two groups, the non-mineralised Trilobitomorphs and the mineralised Vicissicaudates.

The first Artiopodan fossil from the Chengjiang Biota of Yunnan Province was described in 1985, since when this Konservat-Lagerstätte has been recognised as having the highest known diversity of non-Trilobite Artiopodans of any known Cambrian deposit, and in particular the site from which most information about the appendages of these Arthropods has been gained.

In a paper published in the journal Acta Palaeontologica Polonica on 8 September 2023, Zhu Yuyan, Zeng Han, Lui Yao, and Zhao Fangchen of the State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy at the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, describe three new species of Artiopodans from the Chengjiang Biota.

All three new species come from the Kuangshan section in Malong District, which is about 95 km to the northeast of Chengjiang, the type locality for the Chengjiang Biota. Here a yellowish mudstone considered to be part of the Maotianshan Shale Member of the Yu’anshan Formation has an intermixture of siltstone beds, and is interpreted to have been reworked since its original deposition.

The first new species described is named Zhugeia acuticaudata, where 'Zhugeia' refers to Zhuge Mountain where the Kuangshan section is located, which in turn is named after the ancient Chinese statesman Zhuge Liang, who reputedly once camped there, and 'acuticaudata' means 'spiney tail'. It is placed in the Trilobitomorph order Xandarellida, which is defined by having a semicircular cephalic shield (head-plate) with stalk lateral eyes that extend posteriorly to cover multiple thoracic tergites (plates covering back segments) and a pygidium (tail) with a broad median spine.

Artiopodan Euarthropod Zhugeia acuticaudata from the Cambrian Stage 3 Chengjiang fauna at Malong, Yunnan, China; holotype NIGP 200049. (A) Whole specimen, under high-angle light (A₁), inverted red channel image (A₂), interpretative drawing (A₃). (B) Right eye. (C) Left eye. (D) Left genal spine. (E) Thoracic tergites under low-angle light (E₁), under high-angle light (E₂). (F) Sixth to ninth thoracic tergites under low-angle light (F₁), under high-angle light (F₂). (G) Median pygidial spine under low-angle light (G₁), under high-angle light (G₂). (H) Lateral pygidial spine under low-angle light (H₁), fluorescence photograph under 532 nm green laser (H₂). Abbreviations: br, bradoriid; ce, cephalon; ct1–ct2, thoracic tergite number covered by cephalon; e, eye; gs, genal spine; ls, lateral pygidial spine; ms, median pygidial spine; py, pygidium; t1–t9, thoracic tergites. Zhu et al. (2023).

Zhugeia acuticaudata has a semi-elliptical cephalon with a pair of genal spines (spines emerging from the 'cheek'-section of the cephalon, and a pair of ovoid lateral eyes near anterior margin of the cephalon. The posterior of the cephalon covers the two forewardmost thoracic tergites. There are nine partially overlapping tergites with pleural spines (spines emerging from the outer edges of the tergites). The pygidium is small with two small lateral spines and an elongated needle-like median spine.

The second new species is named Tonglaiia bispinosa, where 'Tonglaiia' derives from 'Tonglai', an ancient name for Malong County, and 'bispinosa' means 'double-spined'. The phylogenetic affinities of this species are unclear.

Artiopodan Euarthropod Tonglaiia bispinosa from the Cambrian Stage 3 Chengjiang fauna at Malong, Yunnan, China; holotype NIGP 200050. (A) Whole specimen under high-angle light (A₁), under low-angle light (A₂), interpretative drawing (A₃). B. Left eye. (C) Left cephalic spine. (D) Right cephalic spine. (E) Right appendage. (F) Thoracic tergites (F₁) with spines (F₂). (G) Pygidium. Abbreviations: ap, appendage; ce, cephalon; cs, cephalic spine; e, eye; ml, marginal line around cephalon; pa, pleural angle; py, pygidium; sp, marginal spine; t1–t7, thoracic tergites; ts, terminal spine. Zhu et al. (2023).

Tonglaiia bispinosa has an elliptical cephalon with a pair of marginal cephalic spines and two oval eyes situated near its anterior margin. There are seven partially overlapping tergites with posterolateral marginal spines. The pygidium is small with a pair of triangular spines at its posterior end.

The third new species described is placed in the Vicissicaudate genus Sidneyia, which was first described by Charles Doolittle Walcott in 1911, with a single species Sidneyia  inexpectans, based upon specimens from the Burgess Shale, and given the specific name 'malongensis', meaning 'from Malong'. This is the second species of Sidneyia from Yunnan, with Sidneyia minor having been described from the Early Cambrian Xiaoshiba Biota.  Specimens have also been assigned to Sidneyia cf inexpectans  from the Mantou Formation of North China.

Artiopodan Euarthropod Sidneyia malongensis from the Cambrian Stage 3 Chengjiang fauna at Malong, Yunnan, China; paratype NIGP 200052. (A) Whole specimen under high-angle light (A₁), under low-angle light (A₂), interpretative drawing (A₃). (B) Thoracic tergites under high-angle light (B₁), under low-angle light (B₂). (C) Abdomen. Abbreviations: as1–as2, abdominal segments; ce, cephalon; e, eye; t1–78, thoracic tergites; tf, tail fluke. Zhu et al. (2023).

Sidneyia malongensis is described from two specimens. It has an oval-shaped exoskeleton composed of cephalon, thorax, and abdomen, with a body length of about 31 mm, and a maximum width is about 21 mm in the holotype and 15 mm in the paratype. The cephalon is semi-elliptical, measuring 6 mm long and 17 mm wide in holotype. The anterior margin of the cephalon is rounded, and posterior margin is straight. Lateral eyes are located at the genal angles of the cephalon. Eyes are also associated with notches on cephalon, although eye stalks are unclear. The presence of numerous wrinkles near the anterior margin indicates the convexity of the cephalon. The thorax consists of eight imbricated tergites of approximately equal length, measuring 16 mm long in the holotype and 12 mm long in the paratype. The overlapping area between adjacent thoracic tergites accounts for about one third of the sagittal length of each tergite. The posterior margin of the first three thoracic tergites is almost straight. The thorax is widest at the third or fourth thoracic tergite, measuring 8 mm wide in holotype, after which it gradually narrows and curves posteriorly. The pleural angle of each tergite is nearly equal along the thorax. No marginal spines are found on thoracic tergites. The abdomen consists of two overlapping cylindrical segments of subequal dimensions, measuring 4 mm long and 4 mm wide in holotype, as well as a tail fluke. The abdominal segments are narrower than the last thoracic tergite. The overlapping area between adjacent abdominal segments accounts for about one-fifth to one-fourth of sagittal length of each segment, with an average length of 1 mm. The tail fluke consists of a central triangular telson and a pair of flanked flaps, and is approximately as long as the abdominal segments.

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Drechslerella daliensis & Drechslerella xiaguanensis: Two new species of predatory Fungi from Yunnan Province, China.

Predatory Fungi are important controls on Nematode populations in many soil ecosystems. The majority of these Fungi belong to the Ascomycote Family Orbiliaceae, which currently includes 116 predatory species, divided into three genera. Arthrobotrys, which contains 67 species, and which traps Nematodes in a network of sticky hyphae, Dactylellina, which contains 34 species and which captures Nematodes with sticky knobs, and Drechslelrella, which contains 15 species, and which produces constricting rings, used to trap Nematodes in a lasso-like action.

The genus Drechslelrella was first described by the Indian mycologist Chirayathumadom Venkatachalier Subramanian in 1963, and has been found in a wide variety of ecosystems, including forest soils, Mangrove sediments, freshwater sediments, brackish water sediments, heavy metal polluted areas and even in tree trunks and animal faeces. They are typically found in the upper part of the soil or overlying humus layer, where the density of Nematodes appears to be highest. The constricting rings produced by these Fungi are made up of three cells, which swell rapidly when a Nematode is detected. 

In a paper published in the Biodiversity Data Journal on 16 December 2022, Fa Zhang of the Institute of Eastern-Himalaya Biodiversity Research at Dali University, and the Center of Excellence in Fungal Research and School of Science at Mae Fah Luang University, Saranyaphat Boonmee, also of the Center of Excellence in Fungal Research and School of Science at Mae Fah Luang University, Jutamart Monkai, again of the Center of Excellence in Fungal Research at Mae Fah Luang University, and Xiao-Yan Yang and Wen Xiao, also of the Institute of Eastern-Himalaya Biodiversity Research, and of the Key Laboratory of Yunnan State Education Department on Er’hai Lake Basin Protection and the Sustainable Development Research, at Dali University, describe two new species of Drechslerella from fire-disturbed forest soil from the slopes of Cangshan Mountain, to the west of Dali city in Yunnan Province, China.

The new Fungi were cultivated from soil samples spread on agar, and prompted to produce traps by the introduction of the free-living Nematode Panagrellus redivivus as bait. They were confirmed as new species by the extraction of DNA, and comparison to other species on the GenBank database, using the BLASTn online tool. The phylogenetic relationships of the new species were established using the MrBayes software package.

The first new species is named Drechslerella daliensis, where 'daliensis' means 'from Dali', in reference to the city. This Fungus formed white, cottony colonies on the cultivation medium, reaching a diameter of 50 mm after 18 days. Two types of conidia (spore producing bodies) were produced, both on conidiophores (conidia-bearing hyphae) 125-335 µm in length. The macroconidia were roughly 20-49.5 µm long and 8.5-15 µm wide, smooth, ellipsoid, broadly rounded at the apex and truncated at the base. The microconidia were 6.5-22 µm long and 3.5-7 µm wide, smooth, clavate or bottle-shaped, broadly rounded at the apex and truncated at the base. Drechslerella daliensis was observed to trap Nematodes with constricting rings on stalks 5.5–11 µm long, with an outer diameter of 21–32 µm and an inner diameter of 2–21 µm.

Drechslerella daliensis (holotype, CGMCC3.20131). (a) Culture colony; (b), (c) Macroconidia; (d) Microconidia; (e) Constricting rings; (f), (g) Conidiophores. Scale bars: (a) 1 cm; (b)–(g) 10 µm. Zhang et al, (2022).

The second species is named Drechslerella xiaguanensis, where 'xiaguanensis' means 'from Xiaguan' in reference to the district where the soil samples were collected. This Fungus also formed white, cottony colonies on the growth medium, reaching 50 mm in diameter after 15 days. The conidia of this species were born on conidiophores 145-315 µm in length, with a single type of conidia being produced, these being 33-52 µm in length and 9.5–28 µm in width. Constricting rings were born on stalks 5–11.5 µm long, and had an outer diameter of 19–27.5 µm and an inner diameter of 12.5–20.5 µm.

Drechslerella xiaguanensis (holotype, CGMCC3.20132). (a) Culture colony; (b), (c) Conidia; (d) Germinating conidia; (e) Constricting rings; (f), (g) Conidiophore. Scale bars: (a) 1 cm; (b)–(g) 10 µm. Zhang et al. (2022).

The phylogenetic analysis confirmed that both species could be placed within the genus Drechslerella, with Drechslerella daliensis being recovered as the sister species to Drechslerella hainanensis, known from Hainan, an island province of China in the South China Sea, and Drechslerella xiaguanensis as the sister species to Drechslerella bembicodes, a species from New Zealand.

Maximum Likelihood tree, based on combined ITS, TEF1-α and RPB2 sequence data from 42 Nematode-trapping taxa in Orbiliaceae. Bootstrap support values for Maximum Parsimony (red) and Maximum Likelihood (black) equal or greater than 50% and Bayesian posterior probabilities values (green) greater than 0.90 are indicated above the nodes. New isolates are in blue, ex-type strains are in bold. Zhang et al. (2022).

Zhang et al. note the the network of sticky hyphae used by the genus Arthrobotrys appears to be a more efficient trap than the methods used by Drechslerella or Dactylellina, and that, under normal circumstances, this genus is the most abundant in the upper soil layer, where Nematodes are most abundant. However, in the fire-damaged forest soils, the reverse appeared to be the case, with Arthrobotrys almost absent, while Drechslerella and Dactylellina are abundant. They theorise that in this environment, Arthrobotrys has been killed off by the burning of the upper soil layer, allowing the other two genera to invade rapidly from colonies in deeper soil layers.

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Naja fuxi: A new species of Cobra from China.

Cobras, Naja spp., are a highly distinctive and widespread group of Venomous Snakes, responsible for many cases of Snake-bites in Humans across a wide geographical area every year, with the number of bites being particularly high in South and Southeast Asia and southern China. The toxins found within the venom of Cobras varies from species to species, with the effect that an antivenom developed to treat the bite of one species will not counteract the venom from the bite of another. Unfortunately, the taxonomy of Asian Cobras is still not fully understood, with many populations potentially assigned to the wrong species, or even to cryptic species (species which resemble other species upon physical examination, but which are genetically distinct).

All Asian Cobras were originally placed in the species Naja naja by Linnaeus in 1758, with multiple subspecies and colour variants recognised in the following years. Eventually, this proved to be unreliable, with the species being split into several new species from 1768 onwards. There are now twelve recognised species of Cobra in Asia, including two found in China.

The Monocled Cobra, Naja kaouthia, was first described by René-Primevère Lesson from Bengal (modern Bangladesh) in 1831. Populations of Cobras assigned to this species are currently found in northeastern India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, northern Malaysia, southern Vietnam, Thailand and southern China. However, these species vary greatly in their colouration, spitting behaviour, and even the composition of their venom, making it likely that not all these Cobras do in fact belong to the same species. In China this species is known from the south and southwestern parts of Yunnan, the southwestern part of Sichuan, Xizang (Tibet Autonomous Region), and Guangxi. 

The Chinese Cobra, Naja atra, is known from southern China, south of the Yangtze River, including Zhejiang, Fujian, Taiwan, Guangdong, Hainan, Guangxi, Macao, Hong Kong, Jiangxi, Anhui, Hubei, Hunan and Guizhou. It is also found in northern Vietnam. The Yunnan population of this species is known to be genetically distinct from other populations, including that from Zhoushan Island in Zhejiang Province, which is the population from which the species was first described. 

Thus, both populations of Cobras in Yunnan Province, appear to present taxonomic problems, and may not belong to the species to which they are currently assigned.

In a paper published in the journal Animals on 9 December 2022, Sheng‑Chao Shi of Guangxi Normal University, and the Chengdu Institute of Biology, Gernot Vogel of the Society for Southeast Asian Herpetology, Li Ding, also of the Chengdu Institute of Biology, Ding‑Qi Rao and Shuo Liu of the Kunming Institute of Zoology, Liang Zhang of the Institute of Zoology of the Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Zheng‑Jun Wu, also of Guangxi Normal University, and Ze‑Ning Chen, again of Guangxi Normal University, and the Chengdu Institute of Biology, re-examine the distributions of Naja kaouthia and Naja atra in China and South and Southeast Asia, and describe a new species of Cobra from China.

The new species is named Naja fuxi, in reference to Fuxi (伏羲), an ancestral spirit in Chinese mythology, often depicted as a half-Man, half-Snake figure in a rearing Cobra posture. It is described from 34 specimens from Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, from populations previously assigned to Naja kaouthia.

Naja fuxi in life and habitats. (A), (B) Dorsolateral view and hood pattern of adult female paratype CIB DL2018081005 from Panzhihua, Sichuan, China; (C), (D) Dorsolateral and front view of an unvouchered adult from Jiangcheng, Pu’er, Yunnan, China; (E), (F), two adults from Wenshan, Yunnan, China; (G) Subtropical Forest at type locality Panzhihua, Sichuan, China; (H) Tropical monsoon forest and farmland at Jiangcheng, Pu’er, Yunnan, China. Sheng-Chao Shi, Li Ding & Liang Zhang in Shi et al. (2022).

The examined adult specimens of Naja fuxi ranged from 680 to 1165 mm in length, and can be distinguished from other Cobras by the presence of a series of well-spaced narrow crossbands along the length of the body and tail. These Snakes are mostly buff-coloured, and have 19-29 scale rows on the front part of their bodies, 19-27 on their mid-section, and 12-19 on the posterior part. The fangs are short, and not adapted to spitting.

Naja fuxi was found in tropical and subtropical areas at altitudes of between 1000 and 1400 m above sealevel. It favours gentle slopes, with open bush or forest edge environments. It is known to consume a wide range of prey, including Frogs, Snakes, Birds, and small Mammals. It sometimes enters settlements to take chicks, creating a potential for conflict with Humans, and records suggest it is the Snake responsible for most bites suffered by Humans in Xishuangbanna Prefecture.

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