Biology subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Valderrama, E..
Withdrawal StatementThe authors have withdrawn this pre-print manuscript because of some inadvertent errors and inconclusive data discovered upon further review. Therefore, the authors do not wish this work to be cited as reference for research and review articles from other research groups. If you have any questions, please contact the corresponding author.
Here we present a taxonomic revision of all neotropical Costaceae represented by 90 species, distributed in four monophyletic genera, Chamaecostus (9 spp.), Costus (76 spp.), Dimerocostus (5 spp.), and Monocostus (1 sp.). The work resulted in three new combinations, several nomenclatural changes, and four insufficiently known species are mentioned to demonstrate the need for continued and ongoing work on this charismatic yet often cryptic lineage of plants. We highlight the seventeen species of Costus and one species of Chamaecostus that were recently described (Maas et al. 2023) based on knowledge that emerged during this complete revisionary work, 60 years in the making. Included in this revision are details concerning the morphology, distribution, ecology, and phylogenetic relationships among the species studied. All currently recognized species are fully described, including notes on taxonomic synonymy, lectotypification, information on distribution and ecology, conservation status (either as evaluated and published in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species or as estimated for this publication), vernacular names (when given) and short taxonomic notes. For each species, a distribution map is prepared and at least one colour photograph is included to assist in species identification. Dichotomous keys that include all species are provided, as is a list of all (c. 11.000) exsiccatae studied and an index to scientific names.
Body height is a life-history component. It involves important costs for its expression and maintenance, which may originate trade-offs on other costly components such as reproduction or immunity. Although previous evidence has supported the idea that human height could be a sexually selected trait, the explanatory mechanisms that underlie this selection are poorly understood. Despite extensive studies on the association between height and attractiveness, the role of immunity in linking this relation is scarcely studied, particularly in non-Western populations. Here, we tested whether human height is related to health measured by self-perception, and relevant nutritional and health anthropometric indicators in three Latin-American populations that widely differ in socioeconomic and ecological conditions: two urbanised populations from Bogota (Colombia) and Mexico City (Mexico), and one isolated indigenous population (MePhaa, Mexico). Results showed that self-reported health is best predicted by an interaction between height and waist circumference, and the costs associated with large waist circumference are height-dependent, affecting taller people more than shorter individuals. If health and genetic quality cues play an important role in human mate-choice, and height and waist interact to signal health, its evolutionary consequences, including cognitive and behavioural effects, should be addressed in future research.