scholarly journals Past, present, and future climate space of the only endemic vertebrate genus of the Italian peninsula

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Loredana Macaluso ◽  
Andrea Villa ◽  
Giorgio Carnevale ◽  
Massimo Delfino
Keyword(s):  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Emission Scenarios ◽  
Climatic Suitability ◽  
Unique Case ◽  
Future Projections ◽  
Climatic Influence ◽  
Climatic Oscillations ◽  
Italian Peninsula ◽  
Climate Space

AbstractThe two extant Salamandrina species represent a unique case of morphology, ecology, and ethology among urodeles. The range of this genus is currently limited to Italy, where it represents the only endemic vertebrate genus, but its past range extended over a much broader area of Europe, including the Iberian and Balkan peninsulas. ENM analyses using modern occurrences of Salamandrina demonstrate that the current climate of the majority of Europe, and especially areas where fossils of this genus were found, is currently not suitable for this genus, neither was it suitable during the last 3.3 million years. This result allows possible assumptions about the climatic influence on the former extirpation of this salamander from several areas of Europe. Furthermore, it shows that, during Pliocene–Pleistocene climatic oscillations, Mediterranean peninsulas, despite being generally considered together because of similar latitude, had different potential to effectively become glacial refugia for this salamander, and possibly for other species as well. Future projections using different CO2 emission scenarios predict that climatic suitability will be even more drastically reduced during the next 50 years, underlining once more the importance of conservation strategies and emission-reducing policies.

scholarly journals Quaternary diversification in European alpine plants: pattern and process

2004 ◽  
Vol 359 (1442) ◽  
pp. 265-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joachim W. Kadereit ◽  
Eva Maria Griebeler ◽  
Hans Peter Comes
Keyword(s):  
Internal Transcribed Spacer ◽  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Alpine Plants ◽  
Regression Analyses ◽  
Filling Process ◽  
Geographical Isolation ◽  
Climatic Oscillations ◽  
Late Tertiary ◽  
Branching Patterns ◽  
Firm Evidence

Molecular clock approaches applied previously to European alpine plants suggest that Primula sect. Auricula , Gentiana sect. Ciminalis and Soldanella diversified at the beginning of the Quaternary or well within this period, whereas Globularia had already started diversifying in the (Late–)Tertiary. In the first part of this paper we present evidence that, in contrast to Globularia and Soldanella , the branching patterns of the molecular internal transcribed spacer phylogenies of both Primula and Gentiana are incompatible with a constant–rates birth–death model. In both of these last two taxa, speciation probably decreased through Quaternary times, perhaps because of some niche–filling process and/or a decrease in specific range size. In the second part, we apply nonlinear regression analyses to the lineage–through–time plots of P. sect. Auricula to test a range of capacity–dependent models of diversification, and the effect of Quaternary climatic oscillations on diversification and extinction. At least for one major clade of sect. Auricula there is firm evidence that both diversification and extinction are a function of temperature. Intriguingly, temperature appears to be correlated positively with extinction, but negatively with diversification. This suggests that diversification did not take place, as previously assumed, in geographical isolation in high–altitude interglacial refugia, but rather at low altitudes in geographically isolated glacial refugia.

scholarly journals Locomotor adaptations in Plio-Pleistocene large carnivores from the Italian Peninsula: Palaeoecological implications

2011 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
pp. 269-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlo Meloro
Keyword(s):  
Forest Cover ◽  
Phylogenetic Signal ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Shape Space ◽  
Long Bone ◽  
Large Carnivores ◽  
Logistic Regression Models ◽  
Climatic Oscillations ◽  
Italian Peninsula ◽  
Oxygen Isotopic

Abstract Mammalian carnivores are rarely considered for environmental reconstructions because they are extremely adaptable and their geographic range is usually large. However, the functional morphology of carnivore long bones can be indicative of locomotor behaviour as well as adaptation to specific kind of habitats. Here, different long bone ratios belonging to a subsample of extant large carnivores are used to infer palaeoecology of a comparative sample of Plio-Pleistocene fossils belonging to Italian paleo-communities. A multivariate long bone shape space reveals similarities between extant and fossil carnivores and multiple logistic regression models suggest that specific indices (the brachial and the Mt/F) can be applied to predict adaptations to grassland and tropical biomes. These functional indices exhibit also a phylogenetic signal to different degree. The brachial index is a significant predictor of adaptations to tropical biomes when phylogeny is taken into account, while Mt/F is not correlated anymore to habitat adaptations. However, the proportion of grassland-adapted carnivores in Italian paleo-communities exhibits a negative relationship with mean oxygen isotopic values, which are indicative of past climatic oscillations. As climate became more unstable during the Ice Ages, large carnivore guilds from the Italian peninsula were invaded by tropical/closed-adapted species. These species take advantage of the temperate forest cover that was more spread after 1.0 Ma than in the initial phase of the Quaternary (2.0 Ma) when the climate was more arid.

scholarly journals Monuments Unveiled: Genetic Characterization of Large Old Chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) Trees Using Comparative Nuclear and Chloroplast DNA Analysis

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 1118
Author(s):  
Claudia Mattioni ◽  
Liliana Ranzino ◽  
Marcello Cherubini ◽  
Luca Leonardi ◽  
Tommaso La Mantia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Analysis ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Genetic Relationships ◽  
Castanea Sativa ◽  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Phylogeographic Structure ◽  
Gene Pools ◽  
Castanea Sativa Mill ◽  
Old Trees

Large old trees are extraordinary organisms. They not only represent a historical, landscape and environmental heritage of inestimable value, but they also witness a long history of environmental changes and human interventions, and constitute an as yet poorly known reserve of genetic variability which can be considered a great resource for management programs of forest species. This is the first genetic study on Italian, large, old chestnut trees (Castanea sativa Mill.). Ninety-nine trees were surveyed and analysed. For each tree, more than one sample from canopy and root suckers was collected to test for the genetic integrity of the individuals. All samples were genotyped using nine nuclear microsatellite markers (nSSRs) and 106 unique genetic profiles were identified. A Bayesian analysis performed with the software STRUCTURE revealed the occurrence of two main gene pools and unveiled the genetic relationships existing among the genotyped individuals, and with the natural chestnut populations living in proximity. A phylogeographic structure of the plastid diversity was also obtained by the use of DNA sequence variation at two marker regions, revealing different origins and probable connections of the old trees with different glacial refugia. Our results contribute to an improved evaluation of the European chestnut genetic resources and provide useful insights into the species’ history and domestication in Italy. The importance of carefully targeted conservation strategies for these invaluable organisms is reaffirmed.

scholarly journals Population genetic structure of the bank vole Myodes glareolus within its glacial refugium in peninsular Italy

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Chiocchio ◽  
Paolo Colangelo ◽  
Gaetano Aloise ◽  
Gianni Amori ◽  
Sandro Bertolino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bank Vole ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Taxonomic Status ◽  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Intraspecific Diversity ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Glacial Refugium ◽  
Evolutionary Processes ◽  
Climatic Oscillations ◽  
Specific Variation

AbstractIt is now well established that Southern European peninsulas have been major glacial refugia for temperate species during Pleistocene climatic oscillations. However, substantial environmental changes occurred also within these peninsulas throughout the Pleistocene, rising questions about the role and interplay of various of micro-evolutionary processes in shaping patterns of intraspecific diversity within these areas. Here, we investigate the patterns of genetic variation in the bank vole Myodes glareolus within the Italian peninsula. By using a panel of 13 microsatellite loci, we found more intra-specific variation than expected based on previous assessments. Indeed, both Bayesian and ordination-based clustering analyses of variation recovered five main geographic/genetic clusters along the peninsula, with three clusters geographically restricted to the southern portion of the study area. This pattern supports the occurrence of multiple sub-refugia for the bank vole in peninsular Italy, likely promoted by the major paleo-environmental changes which affected forested habitats within this area during the Pleistocene. Thus, our results support a scenario whereby the high levels of intraspecific diversity observed within major glacial refugia are better explained by dynamic micro-evolutionary processes occurred within these areas, rather than by long-term demographic stability of refugial population. Finally, the narrow and isolated distribution of some of the identified lineages, suggest the need for future assessments of their conservation and taxonomic status.

scholarly journals Climatic oscillations in Quaternary have shaped the co-evolutionary patterns between the Norway spruce and its host-associated herbivore

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jakub Goczał ◽  
Andrzej Oleksa ◽  
Robert Rossa ◽  
Igor Chybicki ◽  
Katarzyna Meyza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Norway Spruce ◽  
Evolutionary Process ◽  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Secondary Contact ◽  
Wing Venation ◽  
Evolutionary Patterns ◽  
Climatic Oscillations ◽  
Migration History ◽  
Host Tree Species ◽  
Northeastern Europe

Abstract During the Last Glacial Maximum in the Northern Hemisphere, expanding ice sheets forced a large number of plants, including trees, to retreat from their primary distribution areas. Many host-associated herbivores migrated along with their host plants. Long-lasting geographic isolation between glacial refugia could have been led to the allopatric speciation in separated populations. Here, we have studied whether the migration history of the Norway spruce Picea abies in Quaternary has affected its host-associated herbivorous beetle—Monochamus sartor. By using microsatellite markers accompanied by the geometric morphometrics analysis of wing venation, we have revealed the clear geographic structure of M. sartor in Eurasia, encompassing two main clusters: southern (Alpine–Carpathian) and eastern (including northeastern Europe and Asia), which reflects the northern and southern ecotypes of its host. The two beetles’ lineages probably diverged during the Pleniglacial (57,000—15,000 BC) when their host tree species was undergoing significant range fragmentation and experienced secondary contact during post-glacial recolonization of spruce in the Holocene. A secondary contact of divergent lineages of M. sartor has resulted in the formation of the hybrid zone in northeastern Europe. Our findings suggest that the climatic oscillations during the Pleistocene have driven an insect-plant co-evolutionary process, and have contributed to the formation of the unique biodiversity of Europe.

scholarly journals A tale of two Skimmers: complex relationships between DNA barcodes, distributions and taxonomy in European Orthetrum cancellatum and O. coerulescens

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 316-331
Author(s):  
Thomas J. Simsonsen ◽  
Marie Djernæs ◽  
Ole Fogh Nielsen ◽  
Kent Olsen
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Dna ◽  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Glacial Refugium ◽  
Dna Barcodes ◽  
Southeastern Europe ◽  
The Balkans ◽  
Italian Peninsula ◽  
Northern European ◽  
Complex Relationships ◽  
Almost All

We explore the genetic diversity and phylogeography of the dragonflies Orthetrum cancellatum and O. coerulescens in Europe based on mitochondrial and nuclear DNA. Orthetrum cancellatum has a clear division between a group comprising Maltese, Italian, and central and northern European populations, and a group comprising mainly populations from southwestern and southeastern Europe, as well as some northern European specimens. We propose that the two groups represent two different Glacial refugia, one in the Italian Peninsula and one in the Balkans where the species survived during the Weichsel Glaciation. Orthetrum coerulescens shows a more complex pattern, although it too can be divided into two groups. One group comprise all the specimens we have identified as O. coerulescens anceps from their phenotype as well as specimens from Spain, Montenegro, and Pakistan, and some specimens from Italiy, Poland and Bulgaria. The other group comprise all other specimens from central and northern Europe, almost all specimens from Italy and Bulgaria, and all specimens from Malta. We propose that the latter group represents an Italian Glacial refugium from which the species spread to both central Europe, Malta and southern Balkan (Bulgaria) after the end of the Weichsel Glaciation. As specimens from Spain and Bulgaria, which were identified as O. coerulescens coerulescens group with specimens identified as O. coerulescens anceps we conclude that the two subspecies mix more or less freely across the Mediterranean and question the validity of two subspecies.

scholarly journals The biogeography of Elaphe sauromates (Pallas, 1814), with a description of a new rat snake species

PeerJ ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. e6944 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Jablonski ◽  
Oleg V. Kukushkin ◽  
Aziz Avcı ◽  
Sabina Bunyatova ◽  
Yusuf Kumlutaş ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Structure ◽  
Morphological Variation ◽  
Molecular Genetic ◽  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Meristic Characters ◽  
Climatic Oscillations ◽  
The Balkans ◽  
Haplotype Networks ◽  
Rat Snake

Background The rat snake genus Elaphe once comprised several dozens of species distributed in temperate through tropical zones of the New and Old World. Based on molecular-genetic analyses in early 2000s, the genus was split into several separate genera, leaving only 15 Palearctic and Oriental species as its members. One of the three species also occurring in Europe is Elaphe sauromates, a robust snake from the Balkans, Anatolia, Caucasus, Ponto-Caspian steppes, and Levant that has been suspected to be composed of two or more genetically diverse populations. Here, we studied the genetic structure and morphological variation of E. sauromates, aiming to better understand its inter-population relationships and biogeography, and subsequently revise its taxonomy. Methods We reconstructed the phylogeography and analyzed the genetic structure of E. sauromates populations originating from most of its geographic range using both mitochondrial (COI, ND4) and nuclear (C-MOS, MC1R, PRLR, RAG1) DNA gene fragments. We employed Maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference methods for the phylogenetic tree reconstructions, supplemented with species delimitation methods, analysis of haplotype networks, and calculation of uncorrected p-distances. Morphological variation in 15 metric and 18 meristic characters was studied using parametric univariate tests as well as multivariate general linearized models. In total, we analyzed sequences originating from 63 specimens and morphological data from 95 specimens of E. sauromates sensu lato. Results The molecular phylogeny identified two clearly divergent sister lineages within E. sauromates, with both forming a lineage sister to E. quatuorlineata. The genetic distance between them (5.80–8.24% in mtDNA) is similar to the distances among several other species of the genus Elaphe. Both lineages are also moderately morphologically differentiated and, while none of the characters are exclusively diagnostic, their combination can be used for confident lineage identification. Here, following the criteria of genetic and evolutionary species concepts, we describe the lineage from eastern Anatolia and parts of the Lesser and Great Caucasus as a new species E. urartica sp. nov. Discussion Elaphe urartica sp. nov. represents a cryptic species whose ancestors presumably diverged from their common ancestor with E. sauromates around the Miocene-Pliocene boundary. The intraspecific genetic structure indicates that the recent diversity of both species has been predominantly shaped by Pleistocene climatic oscillations, with glacial refugia mainly located in the Balkans, Crimea, and/or Anatolia in E. sauromates and Anatolia and/or the Caucasus in E. urartica sp. nov.

scholarly journals Range-wide mtDNA phylogeography yields insights into the origins of Asian elephants

2008 ◽  
Vol 276 (1658) ◽  
pp. 893-902 ◽  
Author(s):  
T.N.C Vidya ◽  
Raman Sukumar ◽  
Don J Melnick
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Sequence Data ◽  
Large Population ◽  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Asian Elephants ◽  
Climatic Oscillations ◽  
Mtdna Sequence ◽  
Allopatric Divergence ◽  
Population Sizes ◽  
Northward Expansion

Recent phylogeographic studies of the endangered Asian elephant ( Elephas maximus ) reveal two highly divergent mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) lineages, an elucidation of which is central to understanding the species's evolution. Previous explanations for the divergent clades include introgression of mtDNA haplotypes between ancestral species, allopatric divergence of the clades between Sri Lanka or the Sunda region and the mainland, historical trade of elephants, and retention of divergent lineages due to large population sizes. However, these studies lacked data from India and Myanmar, which host approximately 70 per cent of all extant Asian elephants. In this paper, we analyse mtDNA sequence data from 534 Asian elephants across the species's range to explain the current distribution of the two divergent clades. Based on phylogenetic reconstructions, estimates of times of origin of clades, probable ancestral areas of origin inferred from dispersal–vicariance analyses and the available fossil record, we believe both clades originated from Elephas hysudricus . This probably occurred allopatrically in different glacial refugia, the α clade in the Myanmar region and the β clade possibly in southern India–Sri Lanka, 1.6–2.1 Myr ago. Results from nested clade and dispersal–vicariance analyses indicate a subsequent isolation and independent diversification of the β clade in both Sri Lanka and the Sunda region, followed by northward expansion of the clade. We also find more recent population expansions in both clades based on mismatch distributions. We therefore suggest a contraction–expansion scenario during severe climatic oscillations of the Quaternary, with range expansions from different refugia during warmer interglacials leading to the varying geographical overlaps of the two mtDNA clades. We also demonstrate that trade in Asian elephants has not substantially altered the species's mtDNA population genetic structure.

scholarly journals Morphological and genetic differentiation in the anguid lizard Pseudopus apodus supports the existence of an endemic subspecies in the Levant

2021 ◽  
Vol 71 ◽  
pp. 175-200
Author(s):  
Daniel Jablonski ◽  
Marco Antônio Ribeiro-Júnior ◽  
Shai Meiri ◽  
Erez Maza ◽  
Oleg V. Kukushkin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Nuclear Dna ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Glacial Refugia ◽  
Mediterranean Coast ◽  
New Subspecies ◽  
Climatic Oscillations ◽  
The Balkans ◽  
Western Palearctic ◽  
Independent Evolutionary History

The Levant represents one of the most important reptile diversity hotspots and centers of endemism in the Western Palearctic. The region harbored numerous taxa in glacial refugia during the Pleistocene climatic oscillations. Due to the hostile arid conditions in the warmer periods they were not always able to spread or come into contact with populations from more distant regions. One large and conspicuous member of the Levantine herpetofauna is the legless anguid lizard Pseudopus apodus. This species is distributed from the Balkans to Central Asia with a portion of its range running along the eastern Mediterranean coast. Mitochondrial and nuclear DNA sequences, microsatellite genotypes, and morphology show that populations in this region differ from the two named subspecies and presumably had a long independent evolutionary history during the Quaternary. Here we describe the Levantine population as a new subspecies and present biogeographic scenarios for its origin and diversification. The new subspecies is genetically highly diverse, and it forms a sister lineage to Pseudopus from the remaining parts of the range according to mtDNA. It is the largest-bodied of the three subspecies, but occupies the smallest range.

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