INFORME CIENTÍFICO-TECNOLÓGICO[1]

 

PERIODO: 2001-2003

 

Legajo Nº: 267

 

1. NOMBRES:.Jorge Rafael

 

2. Estudio de la diversidad en las especies de peces de la República Argentina

 

3. DATOS RELATIVOS A INGRESO Y PROMOCIONES EN LA CARRERA

INGRESO: Categoría: Inv. Asistente. Mes: 8. Año: 1987.

ACTUAL: Categoría: .Inv. idependiente desde el mes:6.Año: 1998.

 

4. INSTITUCION DONDE DESARROLLA LA TAREA

Nombre:Universidad Nacional de La Plata.

Dependencia: Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo

Dirección.Calle: Paseo del bosque  Nº.s/n.

Ciudad:.La Plata Pcia:.Bs. As...Tel:.4257744.

Dirección electrónica:.jrcas@museo.fcnym.unlp.edu.ar

Cargo que ocupa:Docente-Investigador..

 

 

 

 

 

Firma del Investigador

 

                                                                       Fecha.28./.5../.2003

6. EXPOSICION SINTETICA DE LA LABOR DESARROLLADA EN EL PERIODO. Durante este período se prosiguió con el desarrollo de los proyectos que se venían realizando en los períodos anteriores. Estos incluyen estudios en sistemática y biología de los peces de los Esteros del Iberá, ríos y arroyos de la provincia de misiones, y estudios en peces fósiles del Mioceno. Los resultados obtenidos de las tareas realizadas se encuentran listados en los puntos que siguen a continuación.

 

7. TRABAJOS DE INVESTIGACION REALIZADOS O PUBLICADOS EN ESTE PERIODO.

 

7.1. PUBLICACIONES.

 

7.1.a. Libros

1. 2003. Los peces de la Laguna Iberá, Editorial Al Margen, La Plata, 203 pp. (J. Casciotta, A. Almirón y J. Bechara).

 

7.1.b. Revistas periódicas

2. 2001. A new species of Hypobrycon (Characiformes: Characidae) from Uruguay basin in Misiones, Argentina. Neotrópica, Argentina, 47: 33-40. (A. Almirón, M. Azpelicueta y J. Casciotta).

Una nueva especie de Hypobrycon (Characiformes: Characidae) de la cuenca del río Uruguay, en Misiones, Argentina. El género Hypobrycon se registra por primera vez en Argentina. Hypobrycon poi, colectado en la cuenca del río Uruguay, se distingue de H. leptorhynchus por tener mayor número de escamas perforadas en la línea lateral y de dientes en el dentario, maxila mas corta y cuerpo mas bajo. Hypobrycon poi se diferencia de H. maromba por la posición de la boca, maxila mas corta, cabeza y diámetro orbitario mas largos, y mancha humeral elongada dorso-ventralmente, en lugar de subcircular. Además, los machos de H. poi tienen ganchitos en los radios de las aletas anal, dorsal, pectoral y pélvica, ausentes en H. maromba y H. leptorhynchus.

3. 2001. Vertebral column and associated elements in dipnoans and comparison with other fishes. Development and homology. Journal of Morphology, USA, 250:101-172. (Arratia, G., H-P. Schultze y J. Casciotta).

A vertebral column consisting of a persitent notochord and ossified archocentra is the primitive condition for Gnathostomata; it still persist in primitive actinopterygians ans srcopterygians. Advanced actinopterygians and sarcopterygians develop numerous types of centra that include, among others, the presence of holocentrum, chordacentrum, and autocentrum. The Chodcentrum, a minerilazation or calcification of the fibrous sheath of the notochord , is only found in actinopterygians, whereas an autocentrum is a synapomorphy of teleosts above Leptolepis coryphaenoides. The chordacentrum, formes by migration of cartilaginous cells from the arches into the fibrous sheath of the notochord and usually covered by a thin calcification, is a unique feature of chondrichthyans. The actinopterygian chordacentrum and the chondrichtyan chordacentrum are not homologous. The postcaudal cartilaginous centrum is only known in postcaudal vertebrae of living dipnoans. The holocentrum is present in certain fossil dipnoans and actinopterygians, where it has been independenly acquired. It is formed by proliferation of cartilage cells around the elastica externa of the notochord. The cells later ossify, forming a compact centrum. A vertebral column formed by a persistent notochord without vertebral centra is the primitive pattern for all vertebrata . The formation of centra , which is not homologous among vertebrate groups, is acquired independently in some linages of placoderms, most advenced actinopterygians, and some dipnoans and rhipidistians. Several series of structures are associated with the vertebral column such as supraneurls, interhaemals, radials, and ribs. In living dipnoans median neural spine, ‘supraneural’, and dorsal radial result from growth and distal differentiation of one median cartilage into two or three median bones during ontogeny. The median neural spine articulates with the neural arch and fuses with it in the caudal vertebrae early in ontogeny. Two bones differentiate in the anterior abdominal vertebrae, i.e., the proximal neural neural spine and the distal ‘supraneural.’ Three bone sdifferentiate in fron of the dorsal fin, i.e., the proximal neural spine, the middle ‘supraneural,’ and the distal radial; the same pattern is observed in font of the anal fin (the proximal haemal spine, the middle interhaemal, and the distal radial). Considering that the three dorsal (and also the three ventral)bones originate from growth only one cartilage, they cannotbe serial homologs of the neural spines, or ‘supraneural’. They are linear homologs of the median neural cartilage in living dipnoans. The development of these elements differs within osteichthyans from sarcopterygians to actinopterygians, in which the neural spine originates as a continuation of the basidorsal arcualiaand in which the supraneural and radial originate from independent cartilages that appear al different times during early ontogeny. The ribs of living dipnoans are unique in that they are not articulated with parapophyses, like in primitive fossil dipnoans, but a remant of the ventral arcuale surrounded by a small arcocentrum remains at its base. A true caudal fin is absent in living dipnoans. The postcaudal cartilages extend to the caudal tip of the body separating dorsal and ventral rays (or the camptotrichia). Actinotrichia are present in young dipnoans. They are also known in extant actinistians and actinopterygians. They probably represent the primitive state for teleostomes. In contrst, the camptotrichia are unique for extant dipnoans (and probably Carboniferous nd younger dipnoans). Lepidotrichia aparently  developed many times among osteichthyans.

 

4. 2002. Bryconamericus uporas (Characiformes, Characidae) a new species from the río Uruguay basin, in Argentina. Revue suisse de Zoologie, Suiza, 109(1):155-165. (J. Casciotta, A. Almirón y M. Azpelicueta).

Bryconamericus uporas (Characiformes, Characidae) a new species from the río Uruguay basin in Argentina. - A new species of the genus Bryconamericus is described from río Uruguay basin in Misiones, Argentina. Bryconamericus uporas is distinguished by the following combination of characters: low body (28.9-32.2 in % of SL); premaxillary and maxillary teeth broadest distally, with seven cusps. Also, the new species has 18-20 branched anal-fin rays, large subcircular black humeral spot, wide lateral band; light violet upper half of flank, and lower half silvery.

 

5. 2002. Two new species of Astyanax from the Paraná basin. Revue suisse de Zoologie, Suiza,109 (2): 1-17. (M. Azpelicueta, J. Casciotta y A. Almirón).

Astyanax leonidas a new species from the río Paraná basin in the northeastern of Argentina (Characiformes: Characidae). – Astyanax leonidas is described from the headwaters of the arroyo Urugua-í, a tributary of the río Paraná in the North-East of Argentina. The new taxon differs from the other species of Astyanax by the presence in males of small hooks on caudal-fin rays, one maxillary tooth with 3 or 4 cusps; 35 to 37 perforated scales in lateral line, and 17 to 21 branched anal-fin rays. Astyanax leonidas is similar to A. ojiara in having hooks on caudal-fin rays in males, however they are different in the number of cusps of maxillary tooth, interorbital width, anal-fin base and snout lengths, and body depth.

 

6. 2002. The southernmost record of Engraulisoma taeniatum (Characiformes:Characidae) in freshwaters of Argentina. Biogeographica, Francia, 78 (2): 77-80. (Casciotta, J; A. Almirón; J. Bechara y A. Gónzalez).

Engraulisoma taeniatum is known from the type locality, Rio Cuiaba, Mato Grosso, Brasil, Peruvian Amazon and Venezuela. One specimen of this species was collected from the río Corriente, río Paraná basin and represents the first record of the species in Argentina. This locality corresponds to the southermost range of the geographical distribution of E. taeniatum.

 

7. 2002. Astyanax paris, a new species from the río Uruguay basin, of Argentina (Characiformes, Characidae). Copeia, USA, 2002, 4: 1052-1056. (M. Azpelicueta, Adriana E. Almirón, y Jorge R. Casciotta )

A new species of the characid genus Astyanax is described. The species is currently known only from two localities in headwater streams of arroyo Yabotí-Guazú, a tributary of the upper río Uruguay, in Argentina. Astyanax paris n. sp. can be easily distinguished from all congeneres by the combination of relatively shallow body (34.9-39.4 % SL), three or four maxillary teeth, fifth tooth of the inner premaxillary series posterior to main series, first humeral spot followed by a second one vertically elongated, sometimes wider than the first, a caudal spot continued onto the middle caudal-fin rays, large dark chromatophores on the cheek, 34-36 perforated scales in the lateral series and, iv-v, 20-22 anal-fin rays.

 

8. 2002. Astyanax ita, a new species from the río Iguazú basin, in Argentina (Characiformes, Characidae). Zoologische Abhandlungen, 52: 3-10. (A. Almirón, María de las M. Azpelicueta y J. Casciotta).

Astyanax ita, only known from arroyo Tateto, is described in the present paper. This stream is headwater of arroyo Deseado, which flows into río San Antonio, Iguazú basin, in Argentina. Astyanax ita sp. n. may be distinguished from all congeneres by the combination of one heptacuspidate maxillary tooth, teeth of the inner premaxillary series very expanded distally with 7-9 cusps, large eye (38.6-42.0 in % of HL), relatively shallow body (34.3-39.8% of SL), only one well developed vertically elongated humeral spot, 34-36 perforated scales in the lateral series, and iii-iv, 20-24 anal-fin rays.

 

7.2. TRABAJOS EN PRENSA Y/O ACEPTADOS PARA SU PUBLICACIÓN.

 

1. Phenacogaster xx (Eigenmann, 1911) un nuevo intregrante de la ictiofauna continental Argentina. Casciotta, J; A. Almirón; J. Bechara; S. Sanchez. En prensa en la Revista de Ictiología

El género Phenacogaster posee una amplia distribución geográfica en Sudamérica que incluye los ríos Potaro y Tocantins, cuencas de los ríos Amazonas, San Francisco, Orinoco y Paraguay y ríos costeros del norte de Brasil. En este trabajo se cita por primera vez Phenacogaster xx para la cuenca del río Paraná en Argentina.

 

2. Astyanax xx sp. n. (Characiformes, Characidae) from the Esteros del Iberá wetland, Argentina (Jorge R. Casciotta, Adriana E. Almirón, José A. Bechara, Juán P. Roux & Federico Ruiz Diaz) En prensa en la Revue suisse de Zoologie, Suiza

Astyanax xx is described from the Esteros del Iberá, one of the major wetlands in South America. Astyanax xx bears hooks on all fin rays of males, such as in A. troya and A. ojiara. Astyanax xx is distinguished from the remaining species of the genus by the following combination of characters: one maxillary tooth with 5 or 7 cusps; teeth of inner premaxillary row expanded distally; low dentary, bearing 8 teeth decreasing in size anteroposteriorly; 34-37 perforated scales in lateral series; 6-7 upper transverse scales; iii-v, 21-26 anal-fin rays; orbital diameter (36.7-43.5 % of HL); postorbital length (37.0-44.7 % of HL); and peduncle length (32.3-37.7 % of HL). One humeral spot vertically elongated, bounded by a light area, and a second lateral spot faint or well developed.

 

3. A new species of Astyanax from río Uruguay basin, in Argentina (Characiformes: Characidae). (Jorge R. Casciotta, Adriana E. Almirón and María de las Mercedes Azpelicueta). En prensa en Ichthyological Exploratorations of Freshwaters

The description of a new characid of the genus Astyanax, restricted to the río Uruguay basin, is presented. Astyanax xx can be distinguished by the following characters: two or three maxillary teeth, third or fourth tooth of outer premaxillary series inserted posteriorly to the rest, large eye (41.1-45.5 in % of HL), first anal-fin ray inserted anterior to last dorsal-fin ray, high number of anal-fin rays (iv-vi, 25-29), and 37-39 perforated scales in lateral series.The large eye and the presence of 25-29 branched anal-fin rays differentiate the species from other Astyanax living in southern South America.

 

4. Bryconamericus sp. n. (Characiformes, Characidae), a new species from the río Iguazú basin, in Argentina. (María de las Mercedes Azpelicueta, Jorge Rafael Casciotta & Adriana Edith Almirón). En prensa en Revue suisse de Zoologie, Suiza.

A new species of the genus Bryconamericus is described from río Iguazú basin in Misiones, Argentina. Bryconamericus xx is distinguished from all other species by the following combination of characters: low body depth (28.0-34.5 in % of SL); premaxillary teeth of the inner series with 3 to 5 cusps; aligned 3 premaxillary teeth of the outer row tricuspidate, and 3-5 maxillary teeth with 1 to 3 cusps. Also, the new species has 18-20 branched anal-fin rays, very large black subcircular humeral spot, wide black lateral band, and 37-39 perforated scales on the lateral line. The new species was collected in the arroyo Tateto, headwaters of the río San Antonio, Iguazú basin.

 

5. Comunidades de peces y gradientes ambientales en los Esteros del Iberá.

J.A. Bechara, J. Casciotta, A. Almirón, F. Ruiz Díaz, J. Ortiz y A. González. En prensa como capítulo de un libro editado por la Universidad Nacional del Nordeste.

 

6. La Ictiofauna de los Esteros del Iberá y su importancia en la designación de la reserva como sitio ramsar. A.Almirón, J. Casciotta, J. Bechara, P. Roux, S. Sanchez y P. Toccalino. En prensa como capítulo de un libro editado por la Universidad Nacional del Nordeste.

 

11. DIRECCION DE BECARIOS Y/O INVESTIGADORES.

Dra. Adriana E. Almirón, Docente-Investigador, Facultad de ciencias Naturales y Museo, UNLP. Tema: Estudio sistemático y biológico en peces del sistema Iberá, 20001-continúa

 

15. SUBSIDIOS RECIBIDOS EN EL PERIODO.

1. National Geographic Society, Proyecto: Fish diversity in Esteros del Iberá wetlands, Subtropical Argentina. Director: J. R. Casciotta. U$S10.000.

2. Fondo Humedales para el Futuro, Proyecto: La ictiofauna de la Laguna iberá y su importancia en la designación de la reserva como sitio Ramsar. Director: J. R. Casciotta. Monto: U$S 4000

 

18. TAREAS DOCENTES DESARROLLADAS EN EL PERIODO..

 

Jefe de Trabajos Prácticos de la Cátedra Zoología Vertebrados, Facultal de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Representa el 25% de mi tiempo laboral.

 

19. OTROS ELEMENTOS DE JUICIO NO CONTEMPLADOS EN LOS TITULOS ANTERIORES.  Bajo este punto se indicará todo lo que se considere de interés para la evaluación de la tarea cumplida en el período.

 

10     Miembro titular de la comisión asesora del registro de aspirantes para cubrir cargos de ayudante alumno del Curso Introductorio 2001 (diciembre de 2000).

11     Miembro titular de la comisión asesora para proveer un cargo de Jefe de Trabajos Prácticos, dedicación simple en la cátedra de Ictiología (Abril, 2001).

12     Miembro suplente de la comisión asesora para proveer cuatro cargos de Ayudante alumno, dedicación simple en Zoología General (Junio, 2002).

13     Miembro de la Comisión ad-hoc del registro de Aspirantes para cubrir un cargo de Ayudante Diplomado, semidedicación en la División Zoología Vertebrados (agosto, 2002).

14     Arbitraje de un capítulo del libro Catfishes. Editores: Kapoor, Arratia y Diogo (2002).

15     Arbitraje de un capítulo del libro Mesozoic Fishes. Editores: Arratia y Tintori (2002).

16     Arbitro de un Proyecto de Investigación de la National Science Fundation, USA (2003)

 

10     TITULO Y PLAN DE TRABAJO A REALIZAR EN EL PROXIMO PERIODO. 

En el próximo período copntinuaré con los proyectos enunciados en el punto 6.