Daniel Duran

Rowan University · Department of Environmental Sciences

A fundamental problem in biodiversity science is determining the number of species in any taxon, and there is a growing awareness that cryptic diversity contributes to this problem-even in well-studied groups. Discovering cryptic species requires several lines of evidence to elucidate congruent patterns across data-types, and distinguish unrecogniz...

The taxonomy of Nearctic tiger beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Cicindelinae) is reviewed in light of modern systematics research. Despite decades of published molecular phylogenies, the taxonomic nomenclature has not been formally updated since the 1950s. We generated a maximum likelihood phylogenetic tree based on three mitochondrial gene fragment...

Species diversity can be inferred using multiple data types, however, results based on genetic data can be at odds with patterns of phenotypic variation. Tiger beetles of the Cicindelidia politula (LeConte, 1875) species complex have been taxonomically problematic due to extreme phenotypic variation within and between populations. To better underst...

The higher‐level taxonomy of tiger beetles is re‐evaluated in light of recent publications based on large taxon sets and a large number of genetic loci. These studies have demonstrated that tiger beetles are a distinct family, Cicindelidae Latreille, sister to the Carabidae Latreille (ground beetles) or Trachypachidae Thomson (false ground beetles)...

In an age of species declines, delineating and discovering biodiversity is critical for both taxonomic accuracy and conservation. In recent years, there has been a movement away from using exclusively morphological characters to delineate and describe taxa and an increase in the use of molecular markers to describe diversity or through integrative...

The tiger beetle species, Cicindelidia aeneicollis (Bates 1881) is redescribed, as Bates’ original description was inadequate and did not accurately capture the character states or variation found within the species. The specific epithet ‘aeneicollis’ is partially misleading as the proepisternum is mostly aeneous (bronze/copper) with the basal quar...

A new tiger beetle species, Cicindela timbisha Duran, Chambers, Nelson & Roman n. sp., of the tribe Cicindelini, is described from the Death Valley ecoregion of eastern California, USA. It is most similar to C. senilis G.Horn, 1866 but is distinguished on the basis of multiple morphological characteristics, including differences in maculations, cha...

Most of the world's biodiversity is described primarily or exclusively using morphological traits that may not always reflect the true evolutionary units. Accurate taxonomy is critical for conservation efforts and re-evaluation of traditional taxonomy may often be warranted since species and subspecies are frequently the focus of conservation and f...

Biodiversity conservation decisions are typically based on limited data and resources. For this reason, there is great interest in surveying taxa that may allow for a rapid assessment of the biodiversity at a site. Numerous taxa have been proposed and utilized for rapid assessments that allow for such a survey in a matter of weeks or less. Herein,...

The taxonomy of the tiger beetle genus Habroscelimorpha Dokhtouroff, 1883 is revised based on morphology, ecology, and molecular phylogenetics. Recently, nine Nearctic species of Habroscelimorpha were transferred to Eunota Rivalier, 1954 based on the same data types, but the Neotropical species have not been formally evaluated until the present pub...

The taxonomically problematic tiger beetle species, Cylindera lemniscata (LeConte, 1854), has been difficult to place within the Nearctic fauna because of its peculiar morphological characteristics which were noted in its description, and by subsequent workers. Molecular phylogenetic studies of the late 1990s and early 2000s were similarly unable t...

A new tiger beetle species, Eunota albicauda Duran, Roman & Huber n. sp., of the tribe Cicindelini, is described from the Gulf Coast of southern Texas. It is superficially most similar to E. togata (LaFerté-Sénectère, 1841) and E. circumpicta (LaFerté-Sénectère, 1841) but is distinguished on the basis of multiple character states not shared with ei...

Tiger beetles are a popular group of insects amongst amateur naturalists, and are well-represented in museum and private collections. New species descriptions plateaued in the 19th century, but there is a recent resurgence of discoveries as integrative taxonomy methods, guided by molecular systematics, uncover "cryptic" tiger beetle diversity. In t...

Background Ellipsoptera lepida, the ghost tiger beetle, is in decline throughout much of its range, especially in the northeastern United States. In New Jersey, the species was known from 18 historic coastal dune and interior upland sites, although modern collection records for the species are rare.Aims/Methods Because of the decline of E. lepida,...

A new tiger beetle species, Cicindelidia cyanipleura Duran and Roman n. sp., of the tribe Cicindelini, is described from the southwestern section of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt. Superficially, it appears to be most closely related to C. rufiventris (Dejean, 1825) but is distinguished on the basis of multiple morphological characters and behavio...

A new rock-dwelling (petrophilous) tiger beetle, Amblycheila katzi Duran & Roman, sp. nov. is described from calcareous canyons and steep hillsides in the Trans-Pecos region of western Texas. It is distinguished from all other Amblycheila based on multiple morphological characters, biogeography, and ecology. A revised key to the genus Amblycheila i...

A new rock-dwelling (petrophilous) tiger beetle, Amblycheila katzi Duran & Roman, sp. nov. is described from calcareous canyons and steep hillsides in the Trans-Pecos region of western Texas. It is distinguished from all other Amblycheila based on multiple morphological characters, biogeography, and ecology. A revised key to the genus Amblycheila i...

Tiger beetles are a remarkable group that captivates amateur entomologists, taxonomists and evolutionary biologists alike. This diverse clade of beetles comprises about 2300 currently described species found across the globe. Despite the charisma and scientific interest of this lineage, remarkably few studies have examined its phylogenetic relation...

Tiger beetles typically have specific habitat requirements and because of this, and their ease of identification, can serve as useful indicators of ecosystem condition. However, in northern Ontario, Canada, especially the Far North, distribution information for tiger beetles is generally historic or lacking.We conducted tiger beetle inventories acr...

A new tiger beetle species, Cicindelidia melissa Duran & Roman, sp. n., of the tribe Cicindelini, is described from high elevation montane forests of southeastern Arizona and Mexico. It appears to be most closely related to Cicindelidia nebuligera (Bates) but is distinguished on the basis of multiple morphological characters and geographic range. T...

Pentacomia (Mesochila) skrabali sp. nov. is described as a new species in the genus Pentacomia Bates, 1872, and it represents the fourth species of the genus to be recorded from Panama. Examination of type specimens of relevant species of Pentacomia has confirmed that P. (M) skrabali sp. nov. differs markedly from all known species in the genus (an...

Pentacomia (Mesochila) skrabali sp. nov. is described as a new species in the genus Pentacomia Bates, 1872, and it represents the fourth species of the genus to be recorded from Panama. Examination of type specimens of relevant species of Pentacomia has confi rmed that P. (M.) skrabali sp. nov. differs markedly from all known species in the genus (...

Two species of Odontocheila Laporte de Castelnau, 1834, both from Panama, are reviewed. Odontocheila fraternum sp. nov. is described as a new species from three disjunct localities, and a detailed redescription of the related species O. gilli Johnson, 2000 is given. Illustrations of the habitus, diagnostic characters and variability of these two sp...

Glaciation-interglaciation cycles have had profound affects on the genetic variation of populations and species. Phylogeographic studies in North America have typically focused on vertebrate taxa, with fewer examining broad patterns in insects. More detailed studies across a broader range of taxa are needed for a comparative approach to understand...

Cataloging the very large number of undescribed species of insects could be greatly accelerated by automated DNA based approaches, but procedures for large-scale species discovery from sequence data are currently lacking. Here, we use mitochondrial DNA variation to delimit species in a poorly known beetle radiation in the genus Rivacindela from ari...

The effect of egg density on establishment and dispersal of larvae of the western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte, was evaluated in a 3-yr field study. Implications of these data for resistance management plans for Bt crops are discussed. Viable egg levels of 100, 200, 400, 800, and 1600 eggs per infested plant were evaluated...

If registered, transgenic corn, Zea mays L., with corn rootworm resistance will offer a viable alternative to insecticides for managing Diabrotica spp. corn rootworms. Resistance management to maintain susceptibility is in the interest of growers, the Environmental Protection Agency, and industry, but little is known about many aspects of corn root...

The western corn rootworm, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte, has adapted to crop rotation in parts of Illinois and Indiana with females now laying eggs in soybean, Glycine max L., fields in addition to corn, Zea mays L., fields. The electroantennogram (EAG) responses of females from the rotation-adapted population (Illinois) were not signific...