1,721,014 research outputs found
DNA barcoding in mammals: What's new and where next?
No full textDNA barcoding is a universal molecular identification system of living beings for which efficacy and universality have been largely demonstrated in the last decade in many contexts. It is common to link DNA barcoding to phylogenetic reconstruction, and there is indeed an overlap, but identification and phylogenetic positioning/classification are two different processes. In mammals, a better phylogenetic reconstruction, able to dig in fine details the relationships among biological entities, is really welcomed, but do we need DNA barcoding too? In our opinion, the answer is positive, but not only for the identification power, nor for the supposed ability of DNA barcoding to discover new species. We do need DNA barcoding because it is a modern tool, able to create an integrated system, in which it is possible to link the many aspects of the biology of living beings starting from their identification. With 7000 species estimated and a growing interest in knowledge, exploitation and conservation, mammals are one of the best animal groups to achieve this goal
First molecular characterization of the genus Anatololacerta and validation of morphological subspecies with mitochondrial markers
No full textAnatololacerta is a genus recently erected for a small group of lizards endemic
to Western Anatolia (Turkey) and some neighboring Greek islands. Three species
are generally recognised: A. danfordi (Günther, 1876), A. anatolica (Werner,
1900), and A. oertzeni (Werner, 1904). Other subspecific taxa described
are: pelasgiana (Mertens, 1959), pentanisiensis (Wettstein, 1964), quandttaylori
(Börner, 1974), as well as aegaea, budaki, finikensis, ibrahimi, described
on morphological bases by Eiselt & Schmidtler (1986). In a chemosystematic
study based on albumins, Mayer & Lutz (1989) stated that “The biochemical
differences between L. danfordi, L. oertzeni and L. anatolica are too small to
confirm their taxonomic revalorisation”. Following these authors, Sindaco &
Jeremčenko (2008) considered all the taxa as belonging to a single species,
A. danfordi. Anyway, the taxonomic value of the described taxa has not yet
been addressed with molecular techniques. We performed a molecular phylogenetic
analysis using two mitochondrial markers (12S rRNA, cytochrome b)
on 32 museum specimens, representative of all described taxa except A. o.
oertzeni, A. o. pentanisiensis and A. anatolica aegaea. We inferred Maximum
Likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic trees using the sister-taxon Parvilacerta
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as an outgroup. We also obtained haplotype network reconstruction based on
parsimony algorithm to elucidate phylogeographic relationships within distinct
clades. Results showed that at least A. danfordi and A. anatolica appear well
differentiated at mitochondrial markers, whereas a higher genetic variation
characterized A. oertzeni. Interestingly, genetic variation did not match the
subspecific classification of specimens based on morphology. Further studies
with nuclear markers are highly desirable to better resolve the phylogeny and
the systematics of the genus
Divergent evolution in the polymorphic granular poison-dart frog, Oophaga granulifera: genetics, coloration, advertisement calls and morphology
No full textDiscovery of alien water frogs (gen. Pelophylax) in Umbria, with first report of P. shqipericus in Italy
Full text linkA hotchpotch of water frogs in northern Italy
No full textWater frogs of the genus Pelophylax have been widely traded by humans across all European countries for decades, and so far they have been shown to be invasive in most of them. The spread of alien Pelophylax threatens the persistence of native populations mainly via competition and hybridization. Particularly, the latter is worrying for the persistence of the native hybridogenetic systems, as it may induce hybrid swarms whose fnal outcome is
hard to foresee. Alien water frogs have been already detected across several Italian regions, but the extension of the invasion is still unknown, in terms of both species composition and distribution. Here, we carried out the most extensive molecular survey of alien water frog populations across northern Italy, the main invaded area, and obtained a worrying scenario of multiple introduced alien taxa, often co-occurring at the same site. Frogs carrying the native mitochondrial haplotypes were found mainly at the edge of the invaded range. The most widespread taxa turned out to be P. ridibundus and P. kurtmuelleri, but members of the highly diversifed P. bedriagae species complex also occurred in the western (P. bedriagae) and the eastern sector (P. cf. bedriagae sensu stricto and
P. cf. bedriagae “Cilician West”) of the range. We inferred the geographic origin of alien taxa according to mitochondrial haplotype variation and provide the fact-fnding background to investigate the impact of alien introductions on native populations, in order to evaluate efective and reliable conservation strategies for native hybridogenetic system
A dark shell hiding large variability: a molecular insight into the evolution and conservation of melanic Daphnia populations in the Alps
Full text linkZooplanktonic microcrustaceans of the Daphnia pulex group appear highly differentiated at high altitudes as a result of alternative colonizations and quick local adaptation to harsh environments. In particular, the occurrence of deeply differentiated mountain lineages of European Daphnia pulicaria (EuPC) is highly related to glacial advances and retreats during the Pleistocene. Nowadays, one single ancient EuPC lineage survives in the Pyrenees, with another inhabiting the High Tatra Mountains. Much less is known about populations inhabiting the Alps, where EuPC populations are extremely rare. Recently, four new melanic populations have been discovered in lakes in the Western Italian Alps, offering the opportunity to study their origin and adaptations. We inferred phylogenetic relationships of melanic high-mountain populations in order to disentangle their history and clarify the colonization patterns of alpine populations. Molecular data suggest that dark populations originated from at least two ancestors, one genetically close to boreal haplotypes, the other apparently related to refugial populations that survived in southern Europe. Therefore, dark pigmentation and obligate parthenogenesis evolved independently within both lineages inhabiting the studied lakes as extreme local adaptations to the alpine environment. Finally, since impacts of human-related activities and climate changes on mountain species are known to be dramatic, we pose strong issues for the conservation of these extremely localized endemisms
Sex discrimination of Crab Plovers (Dromas ardeola) by morphometric traits
No full textDetermining the sex of Crab Plovers (Dromas ardeola) based on morphology has, hitherto, proven difficult.
Here, six morphological traits (head-bill length, bill length, bill depth, wing chord, tarsus length and weight) of 39 molecularly or behaviorally sexed breeding Crab Plovers were compared in order to find a reliable morphometric way to determine their sex. Males were significantly larger than females in all traits, except tarsus length, and especially in traits related to head and bill size, where males were 6.8 to 11.4% larger than females. Discriminant Function Analysis correctly classified 97.4% of birds using only bill depth and bill length, providing an efficient tool for sexing Crab Plovers in the hand
BIOLOGICAL CORRELATES OF TWO DORSAL COLOR PATTERN TYPES IN THE COMMON WALL LIZARD, PODARCIS MURALIS (LAURENTI, 1768), (SQUAMATA: SAURIA: LACERTIDAE)
No full textCommon Wall lizards, Podarcis muralis (lAurentI, 1768), show a polymorphic dorsal color pattern including (i) a single, more or less continuous dark vertebral stripe on a dorsal band lacking further markings, (ii) dark dorsal reticulation without any vertebral stripe, and (iii) an intermediate pattern in which the dorsal reticulation forms a more or less continuous dark vertebral stripe. These patterns correlate with different distributions of the melanin in the back, and potentially can affect thermoregulation, mimesis and sexual behavior. The authors analyzed the frequencies of these pattern types in relation to sex and size, in both a Submontane and lowland population. A vertebral stripe occurred more frequently in the submontane than the lowland population, and more frequently in females than in males. In addition, in the submontane population, the vertebral stripe pattern occurred
more frequently in large lizards than in small ones, whereas the opposite was observed in the lowland population. The interpopulation differences in the color pattern morphs’ frequencies in relation to sex, size and altitude may be associated with differences in temperature and microhabitat selection
An ancient lineage of slow worms, genus Anguis (Squamata: Anguidae), survived in the Italian Peninsula
No full textFour species of legless anguid lizard genus Anguis have been currently recognized: A. fragilis from western and central Europe, A. colchica from eastern Europe and western Asia, A. graeca from southern Balkans and A. cephallonica from the Peloponnese. Slow worms from the Italian Peninsula have been considered conspecific with A. fragilis, despite the fact that the region served as an important glacial refugium and a speciation center for European flora and fauna. We used mitochondrial (ND2, tRNAs) and nuclear (PRLR) DNA sequences to investigate the systematic and phylogenetic position of the Italian slow-worm populations and morphological analyses to test for phenotypic differentiation from A. fragilis from other parts of Europe. Our phylogenetic analyses revealed that Italian slow worms form a distinct deeply differentiated mtDNA clade embedded on a basal position within the genus Anguis. In addition, the specimens assigned to this clade bear distinct haplotypes in nuclear gene PRLR and show slight morphological differentiation from A. fragilis. Based on the differentiation in all three independent markers, we propose to assign the Italian clade species level under the name Anguis veronensis, Pollini 1818. Following this taxonomic concept, the newly recognized species is distributed throughout the Italian Peninsula to the Southern Alps and south-eastern France. We hypothesize that the current genetic variability shaped in multiple glacial refugia in the Italian Peninsula, with the firstly separated lineage geographically connected to the region of the Dolomite Mountains
Mithocondrial analysis of polymorphic populations of Podarcis muralis (Laurenti, 1768) from the Tuscan Arcipelago (Italy), ascribed to different morphological subspecies
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