Ecological niche modeling is used to estimate species distributions based on occurrence records and environmental variables, but it seldom includes explicit biotic or historical factors that are important in determining the distribution of species. Expert knowledge can provide additional valuable information regarding ecological or historical attributes of species, but the influence of integrating this information in the modeling process has been poorly explored. Here, we integrated expert knowledge in different stages of the niche modeling process to improve the representation of the actual geographic distributions of Mexican primates (Ateles geoffroyi, Alouatta pigra, and A. palliata mexicana). We designed an elicitation process to acquire information from experts and such information was integrated by an iterative process that consisted of reviews of input data by experts, production of ecological niche models (ENMs), and evaluation of model outputs to provide feedback. We built ENMs using the maximum entropy algorithm along with a dataset of occurrence records gathered from a public source and records provided by the experts. Models without expert knowledge were also built for comparison, and both models, with and without expert knowledge, were evaluated using four validation metrics that provide a measure of accuracy for presence-absence predictions (specificity, sensitivity, kappa, true skill statistic). Integrating expert knowledge to build ENMs produced better results for potential distributions than models without expert knowledge, but a much greater improvement in the transition from potential to realized geographic distributions by reducing overprediction, resulting in better representations of the actual geographic distributions of species. Furthermore, with the combination of niche models and expert knowledge we were able to identify an area of sympatry between A. palliata mexicana and A. pigra. We argue that the inclusion of expert knowledge at different stages in the construction of niche models in an explicit and systematic fashion is a recommended practice as it produces overall positive results for representing realized species distributions.

Paralarvae (PL) are crucial to understanding the life cycle and population dynamics of cephalopods. Misidentification of species with similar morphology is a problem that hampers understanding of cephalopod composition and distribution. In this study, we used morphological and molecular approaches to carry out a comprehensive identification of Octopoda PL that inhabit two main areas (Tamaulipas and Yucatán) in the southern Gulf of Mexico (GoM). A total of 189 paralarvae were identified using morphological criteria. Of these, 52 PL were analyzed molecularly by sequencing the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene. We identified four species and five morphotypes. The molecular tools corroborated three of four species, while the molecular sequences of three out of four morphotypes indicated that they belong to three different species. All the genetic sequences had high similarities (99.3%–100%) with previous records. One species and one morphotype could not be sequenced because of unsatisfactory fixation; one morphotype remained as such after the molecular analysis. An identification tree was constructed for the species identified with the molecular approach. The species found off the Yucatán platform were Octopus vulgaris Type I, Octopus americanus, Macrotritopus defilippi, Amphioctopus burryi, A. cf. burryi, Octopus sp., and Callistoctopus furvus. The species identified off the Tamaulipas coast were Octopus insularis and M. defilippi. Paralarvae of O. vulgaris Type I and M. defilippi were the most abundant during 2016–2017. This study provides the first record of Octopoda PL in the southern GoM, including morphological descriptions and molecular sequences of the analyzed taxa.

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