Zoological Research

3−19

Authors: Zhi-Yong DI, Zi-Zhong YANG, Shi-Jin YIN, Zhi-Jian CAO, Wen-Xin LI

This review describes the history of taxonomic research on scorpions and provides an updated checklist and key of the scorpions currently known in China. This checklist is based on a thorough review of the extant literatures on scorpion species whose presence has been confirmed in China through field expeditions and examination of scorpion collections, excepting a few members that have no clear distribution or are currently in doubt. Totally, the scorpion fauna of China consists of 53 species and subspecies belonging to 12 genera crossing five families, with 33 species (62.3%) and one genus being recorded as endemic. Additionally, identification key and the distribution of scorpions from China are provided.

33-41

Authors: Yu-Nan WU, Lin Lin, Yu-Chao XIAO, Li-Meng Zhou, Meng-Si WU, Hui-Ying Zhang, Jin-Song LIU

Chinese bulbuls (Pycnonotus sinensis) are small passerine birds that inhabit areas of central, southern and eastern China. Previous observations suggest that free-living individuals of this species may change their food intake in response to seasonal changes in ambient temperature. In the present study, we randomly assigned Chinese bulbuls to either a 30℃ or 10℃ group, and measured their body mass (BM), body temperature, gross energy intake (GEI), digestible energy intake (DEI), and the length and mass of their digestive tracts over 28 days of acclimation at these temperatures. As predicted, birds in the 30℃ group had lower body mass, GEI and DEI relative to those in the 10℃ group. The length and mass of the digestive tract was also lower in the 30℃ group and trends in these parameters were positively correlated with BM, GEI and DEI. These results suggest that Chinese bulbuls reduced their absolute energy demands at relatively high temperatures by decreasing their body mass, GEI and DEI, and digestive tract size.

51-58

Authors: Marco Endruweit

In this study, six fish species of five families are reported for the first time from Yunnan Province, China. The nemacheilid Schistura amplizona Kottelat, 2000 is reported from the Luosuojiang River and Nanlahe River subbasins, Mekong basin; the prochilodontid Prochilodus lineatus (Valenciennes, 1837), the balitorid Vanmanenia serrilineata Kottelat, 2000, and the tetraodontid Monotrete turgidus Kottelat, 2000, from Nanlahe River subbasin, Mekong basin; the balitorid Beaufortia daon (Mai, 1978), and the belonid Xenentodon canciloides (Bleeker, 1854), both, from Black River subbasin, Red River basin. The freshwater puffer M. turgidus and the needlefish X. canciloides have been previously misidentified as Tetraodon leiurus (Bleeker, 1950) and Tylosurus strongylurus (van Hasselt, 1823), respectively.

67-71

Authors: Can-Chao YANG, Dong-Lai LI, Long-Wu WANG, Guo-Xian LIANG, Zheng-Wang ZHANG, Wei LIANG

Rates of brood parasitism vary extensively among host species and populations of a single host species. In this study, we documented and compared parasitism rates of two sympatric hosts, the Oriental Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus orientalis) and the Reed Parrotbill (Paradoxornis heudei), in three populations in China. We found that the Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) is the only parasite using both the Oriental Reed Warbler and Reed Parrotbill as hosts, with a parasitism rate of 22.4%-34.3% and 0%-4.6%, respectively. The multiple parasitism rates were positively correlated with local parasitism rates across three geographic populations of Oriental Reed Warbler, which implies that higher pressure of parasitism lead to higher multiple parasitism rate. Furthermore, only one phenotype of cuckoo eggs was found in the nests of these two host species. Our results lead to two conclusions: (1) The Oriental Reed Warbler should be considered the major host of Common Cuckoo in our study sites; and (2) obligate parasitism on Oriental Reed Warbler by Common Cuckoo is specialized but flexible to some extent, i.e., using Reed Parrotbill as a secondary host. Further studies focusing on egg recognition and rejection behaviour of these two host species should be conducted to test our predictions.