Science in brief: Highlights from the biomechanics and physiotherapy abstracts at the International Conference on Equine Exercise Physiology.

Although human observations of equine locomotion are as old as our relationship with the horse, today's scientists still have much to learn about horse–human interactions. Two approaches are commonly used to study equine biomechanics and both were evident in abstracts presented at the International Conference on Equine Exercise Physiology (ICEEP) 2014. One approach is to use simplified methods of measurement and analysis that provide simple but meaningful objective information that can ultimately be used by the clinician or practitioner. Alternatively, more complex equipment and techniques may be used that directly measure or infer loading on the equine musculoskeletal system to provide detailed structural and functional information. Whichever methods are used, it is important that they are reliable and robust and that the errors and limitations of the measurement system are fully recognised when interpreting data. In his keynote speech, Professor René van Weeren proposed that the biomechanical techniques available to scientists today provide a gateway to a better understanding of the horse–rider interaction that must ultimately improve equine welfare while maintaining peak performance. The abstracts presented in this Editorial therefore cover key topics that are relevant to welfare and performance, lameness and asymmetry, locomotion and sports performance, a focus on the axial system, and the foot

Phylogeny of Blattoidea (Dictyoptera: Blattodea) with a revised classification of Blattidae

Blattoidea are comprised of the major lineages Blattidae, Lamproblattidae, Tryonicidae, Anaplectidae, and Cryptocercidae + Isoptera. Despite a number of studies, no consensus exists regarding the relationships between these lineages. Additionally, the current division of Blattidae into Archiblattinae, Blattinae, Macrocercinae and Polyzosteriinae needs phylogenetic testing. We present a molecular phylogeny of Blattoidea recovering all the major lineages as monophyletic with Lamproblattidae as sister to the remaining Blattoidea and Tryonicidae as sister to Cryptocercidae + Isoptera. Contrary to many previous studies, we found a high degree of consistency between analyses, possibly due to improved taxon sampling. We found that none of the currently accepted subfamilies of Blattidae are monophyletic. Mapping of distribution revealed a clear geographic structuring at odds with the current subfamilial classification. Based on results from this and other studies, we present a revised classification of Blattidae: we erect two new subfamilies, Eurycotiinae stat. rev. and Austrostylopyginae subfam. nov., reinstate Duchailluiinae stat. rev. and subsume Macrocercinae in Polyzosteriinae. We also present a division of Polyzosteriinae into tribes: Polyzosteriini, Methanini stat. rev., Rothisilphini trib. nov., and Celatoblattini trib. nov. Within Blattidae, Duchailluiinae is sister to the remaining taxa, while Austrostylopyginae is most likely sister to all other Blattidae except Duchailluiinae

The African-Iberian connection in Odonata: mtDNA and ncDNA based phylogeography of Aeshna cyanea (Müller, 1764) (Odonata: Aeshnidae) in Western Palaearctic

We explore the phylogeography and inter-population relationships of the Southern Hawker dragonfly, Aeshna cyanea (Müller) in the Western Palaearctic region based on 603 bp Cytochrome Oxidase Subunit 1 (COI) mtDNA and 732 bp Internal Transcribed Spacer region (Internal Transcribed Spacer 1, 5.8S ribosomal RNA gene and Internal Transcribed Spacer 2, ITS region) ncDNA with an increased sampling from Europe compared to a previous study. Both DNA fragments recover a remarkable and compatible pattern: the recently described Aeshna vercanica Schneider et al. is the sister group of A .  cyanea, which in turn comprises three distinct populations. These populations are: a population in the Caucasus region; a North African population; and a European population. When analysed alone, the ITS fragment recovered A .  vercanica and the Caucasus A .  cyanea population as separate units, but the North African and European A .  cyanea populations were recovered as intermixed. F ST population genetic analyses of COI data revealed high degrees of isolation between all populations as all inter-population values were between 0.818 (North Africa – Europe) and 0.944 (Europe – A .  vercanica). Average pairwise distance in COI (uncorrected p) between populations followed this pattern and was lowest between Europe and North Africa and highest between North Africa and A .  vercanica, and between Europe and A .  vercanica . Within population pairwise distance values were approximately an order of magnitude lower. Pairwise distance values between populations for the ITS region were much lower than for COI, but followed the same pattern. Our results therefore support the full species status for A .  vercanica, and clearly indicate that the current Western European A .  cyanea population originated from a North African galcial refugium and dispersed to Europe (the Iberian Peninsula) prior to the Holsteinian interglacial period. While the North African and European populations likely remained in contact initially, the European population was probably isolated in the Iberian Peninsula during the Holsteinian interglacial period, and subsequently spread throughout Europe in late Pleistocene – early Holocene

The Grasshopper Paradigm in damselflies: evidence for phalanx-like postglacial recolonization of Europe from a Balkan refugium in Platycnemis pennipes Pallas (Odonata: Zygoptera: Platycnemidae)

We explore haplotype diversity, phylogeography and phylogenetic relationships of the damselfly Platycnemis pennipes in Europe based on 618 bp DNA from the mitochondrial gene COI. A haplotype network analysis shows that the species is divided into two haplotype groups. One is restricted to the Italian Peninsula, while the other is found from the Black Sea region across eastern and central Europe to Scandinavia, England, and southwestern France. This pattern is recovered in a Bayesian phylogenetic analysis. Genetic distance (K2P) between the two groups is approximately 1.5%, while within-group variation is an order of magnitude lower. An analysis of the molecular variance (AMOVA) shows that variation between the two groups account for more than 96% of the total variation within the dataset, adding to the evidence that they have been isolated for a considerable amount of time. The pattern we find is similar to the so-called Grasshopper Paradigm in European phylogeography, where a species has recolonized Europe after the last glaciation from a glacial refugium in the southeast, while other refugial populations in the Iberian and Italian peninsulas have remained isolated to this day. In P. pennipes there is only an isolated refugial population in Italy as the species does not have current populations in the Iberian Peninsula. By comparing the genetic distance between the two groups to a previously published divergence time analysis of European Odonata we estimate that they have likely been isolated since the onset of the Saale Glaciation ca 400 ky ago

Phylogeny and life history evolution of Blaberoidea (Blattodea)

Blaberoidea, comprised of Ectobiidae and Blaberidae, is the most speciose cockroach clade and exhibits immense variation in life history strategies. We analysed the phylogeny of Blaberoidea using four mitochondrial and three nuclear genes from 99 blaberoid taxa. Blaberoidea (excl. Anaplectidae) and Blaberidae were recovered as monophyletic, but Ectobiidae was not; Attaphilinae is deeply subordinate in Blattellinae and herein abandoned. Our results, together with those from other recent phylogenetic studies, show that the structuring of Blaberoidea in Blaberidae, Pseudophyllodromiidae stat. rev., Ectobiidae stat. rev., Blattellidae stat. rev., and Nyctiboridae stat. rev. (with “ectobiid” subfamilies raised to family rank) represents a sound basis for further development of Blaberoidea systematics. Relationships in Blaberidae are widely incongruent with current classification, but more congruent with geographic distribution, with large Afrotropical, Neotropical, and Indo-Malayan clades. We further investigate evolutionary trends and correlations of various life history traits: wing development, body size, microhabitat, mating pattern, ootheca handling, and clutch size