Based on available literature sources, we have listed the genera and species of springtails (Collembola) of Iran located in Southwest Asia. In total, 301 named species of Collembola are listed in catalogue. This includes 286 described species in 109 genera from 20 families recorded from Iran. Of them, 15 species are also considered as dubious species. It also includes 15 genera whose species are still unknown. Information about biology, geographical distribution, ecology, authorship records for different provinces, and bibliographical data of Iranian Collembola are included.
The invertebrate terrestrial fauna of Antarctica is being investigated with increasing interest to discover how life interacts with the extreme polar environment and how millions of years of evolution have shaped their biodiversity. Classical taxonomic approaches, complemented by molecular tools, are improving our understanding of the systematic relationships of some species, changing the nomenclature of taxa and challenging the taxonomic status of others. The springtail Friesea grisea has previously been described as the only species with a “pan-Antarctic” distribution. However, recent genetic comparisons have pointed to another scenario. The latest morphological study has confined F. grisea to the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia, from which it was originally described, and resurrected F. antarctica as a congeneric species occurring on the continental mainland. Molecular data demonstrate that populations of this taxon, ostensibly occurring across Maritime and Continental Antarctica, as well as on some offshore islands, are evolutionarily isolated and divergent and cannot be included within a single species. The present study, combining morphological with molecular data, attempts to validate this hypothesis and challenges the taxonomic status of F. antarctica, suggesting that two additional new species, described here as Friesea gretae sp. nov. and Friesea propria sp. nov., are present in Continental Antarctica.
Originally the genus Entomobrya (Collembola: Entomobryidae) comprised 25 species names in Australia including 7 subspecies of which 13 were exotic (50%) and the rest native. All native species had been either described by H. Schött or H. Womersley and had not been examined since 1942. Specific characters they used were few, mainly colour pattern and gross morphological features such as unguis, unguis teeth and mucronal form. Chaetotaxic characters have now been developed. We now here recognise 47 species of Australian Entomobrya and Hymalanura based on a large collection made over 50 years. Six species (12%) are now recognised as introduced, 37 are new and three unresolved because of lack of specimens in good condition. Detailed descriptions and figures are supplied. Several new species are short-range endemics of conservation significance, others are specialised as to habitat, but most are widespread. Entomobrya is now the most species rich genus of Australian Collembola. A phylogenetic tree based on morphological and biological characters revealed clusters of exotic and montane habitat specialists, indicating that the genus is paraphyletic and so confirms other authors’ work based on molecular characters. A key is supplied to Australian genera of Entomobryomorpha. A new genus record, Himalanura, is recognised extending its range to the Southern Hemisphere and 5,000 km further southeast.