ZoologyPub Date : 2022-06-01DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2022.126011
Hanna Peters, Frédéric Laberge, Andreas Heyland
{"title":"Latent effect of larval rearing environment on post-metamorphic brain growth in an anuran amphibian","authors":"Hanna Peters, Frédéric Laberge, Andreas Heyland","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126011","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><span>Early development is highly susceptible to environmental influence. We evaluated the role of larval visual environment on brain morphology plasticity in late larval and juvenile stages of </span><span><em>Bombina orientalis</em></span><span><span>, an anuran amphibian changing from an aquatic to a terrestrial habitat after metamorphosis. Manipulation of the visual environment was achieved by rearing larvae in normal and darkened water. The juveniles were exposed to normal lighting conditions after metamorphosis, allowing to assess if plastic effects persisted or emerged after metamorphosis. The darkness treatment accelerated development before slowing it down substantially, allowing controls to metamorphose earlier. Although larvae reared in darkened water had the same relative brain size as controls by the end of the larval period, juveniles that had been reared in darkened water as larvae had brains that were 14.4% smaller than juveniles that had been reared under control conditions. Conversely, relative telencephalon size was 6.7% larger in juveniles previously reared in darkened water compared with controls, again with no effect of darkened water seen by the end of the larval period. Unlike the latent effects seen on whole brain and telencephalon size, relative size of the optic tectum was significantly smaller in both larvae and juveniles exposed to the darkened </span>water treatment. Therefore, the effects of visual restriction on juvenile brain form were a combination of latent (whole brain and telencephalon) and carry-over (optic tectum) developmental effects.</span></p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90249667","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
ZoologyPub Date : 2022-06-01DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2022.126003
Luis M. Badillo-Saldaña , Aaron García-Rosales , Aurelio Ramírez-Bautista
{"title":"Influence of microhabitat use on morphology traits of three species of the Anolis sericeus complex (Squamata: Dactyloidae) in Mexico","authors":"Luis M. Badillo-Saldaña , Aaron García-Rosales , Aurelio Ramírez-Bautista","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><span>The relationship between microhabitat use and morphology in </span><span><em>Anolis</em></span><span> lizards has been well studied in the Caribbean islands. However, studies of ecomorphology are scarce for the vast majority of mainland </span><em>Anolis</em> species. Thus there is a great lack of knowledge on how microhabitat use may influence the morphology of most mainland <em>Anolis</em> species. In this study we evaluated the relationship between morphology and microhabitat use in three sister species of the genus <em>Anolis</em> (<em>A. sericeus</em>, <em>A. unilobatus</em> and <em>A. ustus</em>) inhabiting the mainland and examined whether sympatric coexistence with other <em>Anolis</em> species affects microhabitat use and morphology of <em>Anolis sericeus</em>. The results of this study showed that <em>A. ustus</em> perches on higher, thinner, and warmer branches than its sister species (<em>A. sericeus</em> and <em>A. unilobatus</em>), and that snout–vent length, arm, forearm and femur length and weight of the three species are positively correlated with perch diameter, while the number of subdigital lamellae and weight are slightly correlated with perch height. In addition, the absence of sympatric <em>Anolis</em> species increases the variability in perch height, weight, arm and forearm length, and hip width observed in <em>A</em>. <em>sericeus</em><span><span>. Differences in limbs length, head length, weight and number of lamellae enabled the identification of two groups of species exploiting statistically different microhabitats. The relationship between microhabitat use and morphology indicates that some morphological traits, such as locomotor structures, weight and number of subdigital lamellae of the three species are influenced by microhabitat use and that </span>interspecific competition may reduce variability in the height of perches used.</span></p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79433144","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
ZoologyPub Date : 2022-06-01DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2022.126013
Itay Tesler , Jaim Sivan , Abraham Allan Degen , Michael Kam
{"title":"Replacement of fangs in a free-ranging desert viperid, Cerastes vipera","authors":"Itay Tesler , Jaim Sivan , Abraham Allan Degen , Michael Kam","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126013","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126013","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><span>Venomous viperid<span><span> snakes possess relatively large and fragile hollow fangs that are an integral part of the envenomation apparatus for predation. We hypothesized that fangs serve like disposable needles and predicted a high loss rate and, hence, high replacement rate in free-ranging snakes. Snakes also possess smaller rear teeth that aid in gripping and swallowing the prey. We reasoned that these teeth are less delicate than fangs and predicted that their loss would be at a slower rate than fangs. To test our predictions, we analyzed fecal samples of free-ranging Saharan sand </span>vipers, </span></span><span><em>Cerastes</em><span><em> </em><em>vipera</em></span></span>, in the Northern Negev desert, Israel. Close to 25% of fecal samples contained fangs, averaging more than one fang per sample and, consequently, our first prediction was supported. We estimated that fangs are replaced each fourth predation, and that replacement rate under natural conditions is at a high rate of approximately every twenty days. Fecal samples contained rear teeth at the same proportion as fangs, which indicated that the rapid replacement of teeth was not limited only to fangs and, therefore, our second prediction was not supported. These findings reflect the importance of both front fangs and rear teeth in the hunting of prey in free-ranging <em>C. vipera</em>. This is the first quantitative report of fang and rear teeth loss in a free-ranging viperid which is based on their recovery in feces; and we believe that similar high rates of loss occur in other viperid species.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78484845","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
ZoologyPub Date : 2022-06-01DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2022.126014
Cardini Andrea
{"title":"As fast as a hare: Did intraspecific morphological change bring the Hallands Väderö Island population of Lepus timidus close to interspecific differences in less than 150 years?","authors":"Cardini Andrea","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126014","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126014","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><span>The study of insular variation has fascinated generations of biologists and has been central to evolutionary biology at least since the time of Wallace and Darwin. In this context, using 3D geometric morphometrics, I investigate whether the population of mountain hares (</span><em>Lepus timidus</em><span> Linnaeus, 1758) introduced in 1857 on the Swedish island of Hallands Väderö shows distinctive traits in cranial size and shape. I find that size divergence follows the island rule, but is very small. In contrast, shape differences, compared to the mainland population, are almost as large as interspecific differences among lineages separated by hundreds of thousands of years of a largely independent evolutionary history. Even if, contrary to what is documented in the scientific literature, mountain hares were present in HV before 1857, the evolutionary history of this population could not have start earlier than the end of the last glaciation (i.e., at least one order of magnitude more recently than the separation of </span><em>L. timidus</em> from other hare species in this study)<em>.</em><span> My results, thus, suggest that the insular population is a significant evolutionary unit and a potentially important component of the diversity of Swedish mountain hares. This is interesting for evolutionary biologists, but even more relevant for conservationists trying to protect the disappearing population of southern Swedish </span><em>L. timidus</em><span>, threatened by changes in climate and the environment, as well as by disease and the introduced European hare (</span><em>Lepus europaeus</em> Pallas, 1778). Island populations of mountain hares, thus, represent a potential source for future reintroductions on the mainland and, as my research shows, an important component of variability to maximize the preservation of the evolutionary potential in a species facing huge environmental changes.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79336262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Molecular signature of phylogenetic relationships and demographic history of Tunisian Mactra stultorum: Evidence from mitochondrial and nuclear DNA data","authors":"Imene Chetoui , Ghada Baraket , Mariem Tir , Abdelmalek lekired , Mohamed Boussaid , M’hamed El Cafsi , Francoise Denis","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2021.125989","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2021.125989","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The genetic structure of <em>Mactra stultorum</em> is inferred from partial sequence of a mitochondrial <em>cox1</em>gene and of the internal transcribed spacer region ITS1. The samples with two colors of shell (white and brown) were collected from three sites belonging to the Tunisian coasts: Kalaât El Andalous (KA) and Soliman (SM) and Gabes (GM)). The phylogenetic trees obtained from the 2 markers are similar and subdivided samples into 3 distinct clades; clade (1) regrouped GM, clade (2) regrouped KS (KS contains samples from SM and KAa) and clade (3) is formed by KAb. Using the external sequences from genbank, it can be suggested that <em>M. stultorum</em> from the three clades KS, GM and KAb are three subspecies. The two sympatric <em>M. stultorum</em> from KA (KAa and KAb) appear to be genetically isolated showing a high genetic distance and no common haplotypes where the shell color serves for segregating marker. A total of 29 and 18 haplotypes were detected in the examined <em>cox1</em> and ITS1 regions, respectively. Our study revealed higher levels of genetic diversity for ITS1 compared to <em>cox1</em>. For both markers, significant clinal changes in haplotypes frequencies between the north and the south populations supported by the absence of common haplotypes were observed. The demographic history of <em>M. stultorum</em> populations has been assessed using neutral tests and mismatch distribution for <em>cox1</em> marker. A unimodal curve of the Mismatch’s distribution and negative significant neutral tests suggested a recent sudden demographic expansion for GM.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"39680695","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
ZoologyPub Date : 2022-04-01DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2021.125990
Carolina Tropea, Agustina Marciano, Laura Susana López Greco
{"title":"Brothers are better than nothing: first report of incestuous mating and inbreeding depression in a freshwater decapod crustacean","authors":"Carolina Tropea, Agustina Marciano, Laura Susana López Greco","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2021.125990","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2021.125990","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study aimed at evaluating the effect of one generation of full-sibling mating on traits related to the fitness of the gregarious freshwater shrimp <em>Neocaridina davidi</em>, both under optimal and stressful (i.e. starvation) laboratory conditions. Females were maintained either with their brothers (Inbreeding treatment) or non-brothers (Outbreeding treatment), and the first and second broods were used to evaluate egg production and juvenile quality, respectively. The latter was analyzed in a 60-day period following hatching under optimal rearing conditions, and in a 20-day period following hatching under food deprivation conditions. All surviving females from both treatments mated and spawned, indicating that mating with brothers was as likely as mating with non-brothers. With respect to offspring production, inbreeding had no effect on fecundity and fertilization success, but negatively affected the number of hatched juveniles. These results suggest that egg loss was higher in inbred clutches, possibly due to lower embryonic survival. On the other hand, the effect of inbreeding on growth was absent for embryos and for juveniles under optimal rearing conditions, while it was significant for juveniles starved for 10 consecutive days following hatching. Inbreeding depression for survival was only detected in juveniles from stages S8-S9 under optimal rearing conditions. Overall, the present results show that <em>N. davidi</em> fitness decreases after one generation of full-sibling mating. The use of a potentially weak food deprivation protocol and/or the evaluation of only one inbred generation could explain the absence or subtle inbreeding depression for some of the evaluated traits. No evident relationship between life-history traits and the existence and magnitude of inbreeding was found when comparing our results with those previously reported in high-fecundity marine crustaceans and low-fecundity terrestrial crustaceans.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75474298","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
ZoologyPub Date : 2022-04-01DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2022.126004
Pedro Miguel Araújo , Marcos Rocha Dias , Diana M. Matos , Ana Cláudia Norte
{"title":"Reliability of steatocrit as an indicator of intestinal health in young birds – Relationships with morphology and growth rate of canary Serinus canaria nestlings","authors":"Pedro Miguel Araújo , Marcos Rocha Dias , Diana M. Matos , Ana Cláudia Norte","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><span>Intestinal health and capacity to efficiently absorb nutrients from diet, including fat, has been recently suggested as a promising physiological health indicator in wild birds, due to its association with gut parasitism and feather coloration. However, little information is available about the sources of variation of non-absorbed fat in birds’ faeces, measured by the acid steatocrit technique, and particularly in nestling birds. We assessed steatocrit in captive nestling canaries </span><span><em>Serinus canaria</em></span> and evaluated if it was affected by breed and its relationship with growth (linear growth rate, LGR) and body mass. We also assessed the presence of coccidia infections. Steatocrit differed significantly between day 9 and 14 of the nestling period, being lower when nestlings were 14 days old. Age must be taken into account when assessing steatocrit in young birds; this variation may be due to a development of the digestive system with age or the amount of fat provided later in the nestling period being more adequate to the nestlings’ needs. Steatocrit was higher in nestling canaries from yellow lipochromic than red lipochromic breeds. No coccidia infections were detected. Steatocrit did not affect LGR, but steatocrit measured at day 9 was positively related with body mass at day 14. The positive relationship between steatocrit and body mass in canary nestlings suggests that nestlings in breeding facilities may be fed a larger amount of fat than that they can absorb. This physiological assessment of intestinal health may be a better general health indicator in wild adult birds exposed to a higher level and diversity of parasites.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72554862","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
ZoologyPub Date : 2022-04-01DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2021.125992
Edwin R. Ariza-Marín, Efraín De Luna
{"title":"Morphometric analyses of sexual dimorphism in sound-emitting structures in adults of the bess beetle Vindex agnoscendus (Coleoptera: Passalidae)","authors":"Edwin R. Ariza-Marín, Efraín De Luna","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2021.125992","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2021.125992","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><span>In insects, the sexually dimorphic body size, color, and horns are very conspicuous. Other not so obvious characteristics, such as behavioral traits related to reproduction, are also dimorphic (courtship dances and sounds). Among these, the stridulation<span><span>, stridulatory apparatus, and hearing systems could also be different between sexes. Passalids are subsocial beetles with acoustic communication in the interactions of larvae-adult and adult-adult. Most of the species do not have </span>morphological traits with sexual dimorphism, but sounds are dimorphic under reproductive and aggression contexts. We studied sexual dimorphism in the stridulation organs (</span></span><em>plectrum</em>) in <em>Vindex agnoscendus</em><span> (Percheron) as an important step towards understanding its functioning. We acquired SEM micrographs of the </span><em>plectrum</em> for 14 specimens per sex, for measuring size, density and shape of the spines. We performed traditional and geometric morphometric analyses to test for sexual differences in the spines of three zones (Z1-Z3) of the <em>plectrum</em><span>. Allometric analyses showed spine variation is not related to body size in either sex. Our univariate and multivariate analyses uncovered sexual dimorphism in spine size (length and width of spines), spine density (distance between spines and number of spines), and spine shape (landmark coordinates). Spines were wider in males than in females in the apical zone (Z1). The spines were further apart in females than in males in two zones (Z1, Z2) and the spine numbers were higher in females than in males in the apical zone (Z1). The shape of spines was different between sexes in two zones (Z1, Z2). Moreover, our disparity analyses showed different variability patterns in size and density of spines. Variability of spine shape was similar between sexes, and variability of spine density was higher in females than in males, while for spine size it was higher in males than in females. These findings for the </span><em>plectrum</em> suggest further research for sexual dimorphism in the <em>pars stridens</em> and acoustic signals, and for the possible roles of natural and sexual selection in the patterns of variability of spines.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"87954826","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
ZoologyPub Date : 2022-04-01DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2022.126002
Jia Hu , Hong Wang , Dan He , Rongrong Yang , Deying Yang , Diyan Li , Shuangshuang Wei , Xiaolan Fan , Xueping Mao , Yongqing Lyu , Yan Li
{"title":"Genetic characterization of nuclear export factor NXT1 and its paralog NXT2 in primates and murine rodents","authors":"Jia Hu , Hong Wang , Dan He , Rongrong Yang , Deying Yang , Diyan Li , Shuangshuang Wei , Xiaolan Fan , Xueping Mao , Yongqing Lyu , Yan Li","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2022.126002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Translocation of RNA across the nuclear envelope relies on transport receptors. Receptor nuclear transport factor 2 (NTF2)-like export protein 1 (NXT1 [also called p15 or p15-1]) shuttles between the nucleus and cytoplasm of metazoan cells and contributes to the nuclear export of a diverse spectrum of RNAs. NXT2 (also called p15-2), a paralog of NXT1 in eutherians, also has implications for RNA nuclear export. A comprehensive description is currently lacking as to the genetic signature of these molecules. In this study, we analyzed genetic changes in the <em>NXT1</em> and <em>NXT2</em> genes in primates and murine rodents, including the commonly used model organisms <em>Macaca</em> spp., <em>Mus musculus</em>, and <em>Rattus norvegicus</em>. The results show that <em>NXT1</em> has been subject to functional constraints in both phylogenetic lineages. Conversely, <em>NXT2</em> exhibits discrepant patterns of genetic changes between these taxa. Murine <em>NXT2</em> has evolved conservatively; by contrast, adaptive selection has frequently contributed to genetic changes in primate <em>NXT2</em>. The genetic discrepancy of the <em>NXT2</em> orthologs leads to the suggestion that they had experienced quite different evolutionary fates potentially constituting different functional implementations in these taxa. These findings raise awareness of further study on different organisms to comprehensively understand their functional characteristics.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79565671","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The eggs and nymphs of predatory stink bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae: Asopinae): what do we know?","authors":"Ricardo Brugnera , Guilherme Martins Limberger , Luiz Alexandre Campos , Jocelia Grazia","doi":"10.1016/j.zool.2021.125991","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.zool.2021.125991","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The Asopinae are known for their predatory behavior, differing from the phytophagous habits of most pentatomoids, feeding mostly on soft body insects such as larvae of Lepidoptera and Coleoptera. For this reason, asopines have been studied as biological controllers in integrated pest management programs. Notwithstanding their clear relevance, the general knowledge about Asopinae has important gaps, especially regarding immature. Thus, the importance of studying eggs and nymphs of true bugs (Heteroptera) is evident, contributing to understand their classification, biology, and evolution. In this perspective, we conducted a research about immature of predatory stink bugs, highlighting critical features for identification. We present: (1) a literature overview about eggs and nymphs of predatory stink bugs guided by selected categories; (2) images of females laying eggs of ten species and nymphs of thirty-four species, obtained on websites with a citizen science approach; (3) a comparative morphology of immature of six species reared under laboratory conditions, which we examined using light and scanning electron microscopy. We found a remarkable morphological diversity of both eggs and nymphs of Asopinae, revealing key features to establish diagnoses for identification and potential characters to phylogenetics, such as the aero-micropylar processes and chorion scultpturing of the eggs; and the coloration, labium and abdominal plates morphology of nymphs. The results show that little is known about Asopinae immature considering the diversity of the group; however, information obtained by citizen science initiatives, for instance, can improve this knowledge.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49330,"journal":{"name":"Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83470543","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}