The new stonefly species, Neoperla mindoroensissp. nov. (Perlidae), from Mindoro island is described. The new species is assigned to the N. recta species complex of the N. montivaga group on account of its obvious T7 and T8 with pointed processes and the presence of basolateral lobes in the everted aedeagal sac. The male adult is distinguishable by its aedeagus with a slightly raised mediodorsal lobe, fully covered with fine spinules, while the female adult has comparably small eggs (240 × 220 μm) with a punctate, chorionic surface with punctae arranged in polygonal FCIs. The life stages and sexes were assigned using COI mtDNA barcodes (2.2% maximum intraspecific genetic distance), which were compared with available barcodes of congeners, which had interspecific genetic distances varying by at least 23.5%. Biogeographic aspects, ecological habitat requirements, and suitability as potential bioindicator of the species are also briefly discussed.

This survey aims to provide an updated species checklist of aquatic and semi-aquatic bugs in the intra-Philippine biogeographic Region of Mindoro. An assessment survey of water bugs (Hemiptera, Heteroptera) was conducted mostly by manual collection in selected areas of Oriental Mindoro from 2017 to 2018, in which some of the collecting activities were undertaken by graduate students of Ateneo de Manila University. Twenty-nine aquatic and semi-aquatic heteropteran species were documented and some are known island-endemic species or subspecies, including Enithares martini mindoroensis Nieser & Zettel, 1999, Hydrotrephes stereoides mindoroensis Zettel, 2003, Aphelocheirus freitagi Zettel & Pangantihon, 2010, Rhagovelia mindoroensis Zettel, 1994, Rhagovelia raddai Zettel, 1994, Rhagovelia potamophila Zettel, 1996 and Strongylovelia mindoroensis Lansbury & Zettel, 1997, which were found in new areas in the Region. In addition, there are also new records for the Island that have already been documented in other parts of the Philippines, such as the Philippine-endemic Ochterus magnus Gapud & San Valentin, 1977 and Hebrus philippinus Zettel, 2006 and the widely-distributed backswimmers Anisops nigrolineatus Lundblad, 1933 and Anisops rhomboides Nieser & Chen, 1999. Several undescribed specimens and potentially new species are also discussed in this paper. Further surveys in the other parts of Mindoro and in the other regions of the Philippines, are encouraged to produce a comprehensive baseline data of heteropteran species richness in the country.

We report a new species and new records of Neoperla species from the Philippines. Neoperla pangantihoni sp. n. from Palawan is described, and for the first time, a stonefly species, N. atropennis Banks, 1924, is recorded from Camiguin. We also provide supplementary descriptions for N. recta Banks, 1913, N. sabang Sivec & Stark, 2011, and N. salakot Sivec & Stark, 2011. Furthermore, these morphological diagnoses are coupled with COI barcodes analyzed using pairwise distances and a statistical haplotype network.

Baguio City is one of the fastest-growing centers of urbanization in the Philippines. As part of the Cordillera Mountain Range, it is a biodiversity hotspot that is largely unexplored. This study is a preliminary investigation using visual encounter surveys of anuran species in various localities of the Baguio-Benguet area (BBA). These include Loakan Airport (LA), Camp John Hay (CJH), and Soroptimist Compound (SC) at the Military Cut Off, all in Baguio; Nangalisan, Tuba (NT), Benguet; and Master’s Garden (MG) at Puguis, La Trinidad, Benguet. We documented three Luzon-endemic species of frogs – namely, Kaloula rigida (Family Microhylidae), Sanguirana luzonensis (Family Ranidae), and Limnonectes macrocephalus (Family Dicroglossidae); one Philippine-endemic species, Kaloula picta (Family Microhylidae); and an invasive species, Rhinella marina (Family Bufonidae). The pathogenic fungi Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis was not detected in this study, but several cosmopolitan fungal species were isolated from the anuran integument – including Penicillium spp., Cladosporium sp., Talaromyces sp., Mucor sp., and Rhodotorula sp. The results of the study highlight the importance of regional surveys of urbanized areas in the country in aiding the conservation and preservation efforts for the remaining wildlife. Anthropogenic factors like logging and conversion of forested areas to commercial spaces, which lead to habitat degradation and catastrophic events, are still the leading threats to this understudied but presumed species-rich area. To date, this is the first update on anuran biodiversity in BBA after Inger’s study in 1954, and the first survey of fungi association with the amphibian integument in the Cordillera Administrative Region. Hence, further taxonomic and conservation research is recommended.