The accurate identification of taxa of Aotus is essential for 1) the development of precise biomedical assays, 2) the determination of potential illegal traffic of this genus, and 3) conservation. Although many studies have contributed to what we know about the phylogenetics of Aotus, none used a sufficiently large number of samples to clarify its complexity. To address this need, we sequenced 696 base pairs of the mitochondrial cytochrome-oxidase II gene (mtCOII) in 69 specimens of 7 taxa of Aotus. We also analyzed 8 microsatellite loci in 136 individuals of 6 taxa. In contrast to previous studies, we sampled only wild individuals and have a precise geographical origin for each one. The mtDNA results showed that: 1) the northern gray-necked group of Aotus is genetically more homogeneous than the polyphyletic red-necked group of Aotus; 2) the ancestors of Aotus vociferans seem to be the original species candidate for the current Aotus; 3) Aotus azarae azarae and A. a. boliviensis are the most differentiated taxa, likely a result of extreme genetic drift during stasipatric speciation; 4) the first genetic splits found among taxa of Aotus occurred during the Pliocene (or even Miocene) while the most recent ones happened during the Pleistocene, when forest refugia may have played an important role in speciation. The mean number of microsatellite alleles was 3–5.33 alleles per locus. We found some private alleles that could be useful in helping to identify illegal trade, although a larger sample size is needed to ensure that these alleles are really private to the relevant taxa. These new findings increase our understanding of the phylogeny of Aotus and the level of genetic diversity within different taxa of Aotus.Fil: Ruiz García, Manuel. Pontificia Universidad Javeriana; ColombiaFil: Vásquez, Catalina. Pontificia Universidad Javeriana; ColombiaFil: Camargo Acosta, Emily Yineth. Pontificia Universidad Javeriana; Colombia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiarida. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiarida; ArgentinaFil: Leguizamón, Norberto. Secretaría Distrital Ambiental; ColombiaFil: Gálvez, Hugo. Instituto Veterinario de Investigaciones Tropicales y de Altura. Estación Experimental; Perú. Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos; PerúFil: Vallejo, Adriana. Pontificia Universidad Javeriana; ColombiaFil: Pinedo, Myreya. Pontificia Universidad Javeriana; ColombiaFil: Castellanos Mora, Luisa. Fundación Omacha; ColombiaFil: Shostell, Joseph. University of Pennsylvania; Estados UnidosFil: Alvarez, Diana. Pontificia Universidad Javeriana; Colombi

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The aims of this study were to identify the dynamics of land use change, the factors associated to these changes, and potential transformations of paramo and Andean forest, through the modeling of land use change scenarios in the department of Boyacá, Colombia. Throughout the classification of satellite images, we assessed land use change in two time periods: 1998 to 2010 and 2010 to 2018. Seven transition sub-models were analyzed and associated to 36 explanatory variables. Three future scenarios of land use change were projected for the years 2030 and 2050: trend, agricultural expansion and conservation scenarios. We found a gradual reduction in paramos and Andean forests, together with an increase in secondary vegetation. The most relevant variables explaining land use change were: elevation, distance to roads and distance to protected areas. The scenario with the greatest impact in paramos and Andean forest was Agricultural Expansion, where forest would have a loss of 29% and 41% for 2030 and 2050, and Paramos 44% and 59% for the same years. Forest and paramos in the central eastern area showed critical losses and highly fragmented distributions in all scenarios; hence, we recommend focusing conservation efforts in these areas.

We studied the sperm whale Physeter macrocephalus in the Colombian Caribbean by combining data from our offshore surveys of behaviour, encounter rate, group structure and density with data from the literature. We describe for the first time the potential distribution of sperm whales in the Colombian Caribbean, using sighting and acoustic data obtained during our surveys, published information, and opportunistic encounters during 1988–2020. We conducted surveys on seismic vessels over 703 days during 2011–2016, covering an area of 68,904 km2. We recorded 98 individuals in a total of 50 groups, a density of 1.42 individuals per 1,000 km2. To determine the potential distribution of the species, we built Maxent models with uncorrelated environmental variables at five depths (from the surface to c. 2,000 m). The model for 1,000 m depth had the best performance, with areas of high probability of occurrence of sperm whales in the south and north-east Colombian Caribbean over the shelf break to waters up to c. 3,000 m deep, at a median distance of 107 km from the coast, and near the Archipelago of San Andrés, Old Providence and Saint Catherine in the north-west. This area may be an important tropical habitat for sperm whales, in which they socialize, rest, breed and feed. Our study underlines the importance of monitoring marine mammals offshore and describes the potential distribution of sperm whales in the Colombian Caribbean, supporting conservation actions for this Vulnerable species, which is currently facing several threats in this region.