Origin, extinction and ancient DNA of a new fossil insular viper: molecular clues of overseas immigration

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enric Torres-Roig ◽  
Kieren J Mitchell ◽  
Josep Antoni Alcover ◽  
Fernando Martínez-Freiría ◽  
Salvador Bailón ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complete Mitochondrial Genome ◽  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
Mediterranean Islands ◽  
North East ◽  
Iberian Population ◽  
Morphological Differences ◽  
A New Species ◽  
Insular Population

Abstract Viperinae is a subfamily of viperid snakes whose fossil record in the Mediterranean islands is, until now, restricted to 12 palaeontological deposits on seven islands. Revision of the material excavated 30 years ago from the Middle/Late Pleistocene–Holocene deposit of Es Pouàs [Eivissa (= Ibiza), Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean] revealed about 6000 bones of a small-sized viper across different stratigraphic levels. Its morphological characteristics are different enough to known species of Vipera to warrant the description of a new species, but the nearly complete mitochondrial genome obtained from this snake based on a sample dated to 16 130 ± 45 bp, suggested it belonged to a new insular population of Lataste’s viper (Vipera latastei), Vipera latastei ebusitana subsp. nov. Phylogenetic analysis indicates that the dispersal of the ancestors of V. l. ebusitana to Eivissa, most probably from a north-east Iberian population, occurred via overwater colonization < 1.5 Mya, well after the Messinian Salinity Crisis (5.97–5.32 Mya) when land bridges allowed terrestrial colonization of the Balearic Islands by mainland faunas. The morphological differences between V. l. ebusitana and the Iberian populations suggest that it is a new dwarf taxon resulting from insular evolutionary processes, becoming extinct shortly after the first human arrival to this island about 4000 years ago.

scholarly journals Alien Plant Diversity in Mediterranean Wetlands: A Comparative Study within Valencian, Balearic and Sardinian Floras

2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-326 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olga MAYORAL ◽  
Francesco MASCIA ◽  
Lina PODDA ◽  
Emilio LAGUNA ◽  
Pere FRAGA ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Correspondence Analysis ◽  
Ricinus Communis ◽  
Mediterranean Area ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Mediterranean Islands ◽  
Alien Plant ◽  
Mediterranean Wetlands ◽  
Alien Flora

Although wetlands provide an important range of environmental, social and economic services, they are increasingly subjected to anthropogenic perturbations, amongst which invasion by alien plants is particularly alarming. This paper focuses on the alien flora of wetlands from three territories belonging to the western Mediterranean area: one continental (Valencian Community) and two insular (Balearic Islands and Sardinia), providing a complete checklist for the three territories and a general comparison. In total, 380 alien taxa from 89 families have been reported, being the Valencian Community the area richer in taxa (312), followed by the Balearic Islands (151) and Sardinia (134). The invasive component includes 77 taxa, of which nine are common to the three territories - and have been recognised as the most invasive ones in Mediterranean islands - and six are considered invasive worldwide (Ailanthus altissima, Arundo donax, Cortaderia selloana, Oxalis pes-caprae, Ricinus communis and Eichhornia crassipes). Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) revealed that the three territories do not show statistically relevant differences in relation to the alien species present in wetlands and their characteristics. The information on the characteristics of plants in similar habitats of the same biogeographic region provides a portrait of the current dimensions of the phenomenon in Western Mediterranean wetlands and is especially useful from the management perspective: its predictive value can be applied in establishing a prioritization of control measures of those most invasive species and will help screening new introductions with invasive potential.

scholarly journals Subterranean Campodeidae fauna from Sicily (Diplura): its biogeographical interest with the description of a new species of Plusiocampa

Zootaxa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4679 (2) ◽  
pp. 297-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
ALBERTO SENDRA ◽  
GIUSEPPE NICOLOSI ◽  
ELENA AMORE
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Monophyletic Group ◽  
Mediterranean Islands ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Subterranean Species ◽  
A New Species ◽  
Different Origin ◽  
New Discovery

A description is given of a biogeographically interesting new species of Campodeidae (Diplura), Plusiocampa (Plusiocampa) tinoamorei sp. nov., a troglobiotic species found in the Sicilian Villasmundo and Scrivilleri caves. A second subterranean species already known from three caves in northwest Sicily near Palermo, Campodea (Campodea) majorica sicula Condé, 1957, also was studied. Both species were characterized with SEM. Each species belongs to a different monophyletic group: Plusiocampa s. str., with thoracic medial posterior macrosetae, and the group related to Campodea (Campodea) grassi Silvestri, 1912. Both groups are widely distributed on almost all of the large western Mediterranean islands. Nevertheless, although these two monophyletic groups have a different origin both could be dispersed via land connections between the mainland and the islands during the Messinian Age. This new discovery shows the great value of Sicilian caves that hold species with unique features and of high biogeographic significance. 

Bryozoa from detritic bottoms in the Menorca Channel (Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean), with notes on the genus Cribellopora

Zootaxa ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 2536 (1) ◽  
pp. 36 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAVIER SOUTO ◽  
OSCAR REVERTER-GIL ◽  
EUGENIO FERNÁNDEZ-PULPEIRO
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
New Genus ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
Junior Synonym ◽  
Epibenthic Sledge ◽  
A New Species

Samples of Bryozoa were collected during an epibenthic sledge survey (Canal0209) of the Menorca Channel between Menorca and Mallorca in the Balearic Islands in 2009. Twenty-nine species were identified, including a new genus of Calloporidae (Barrosia) and a new species of Fenestrulina, described herein. A lectotype is designated for Coronellina fagei (Calescharidae). Cribellopora simplex, a species of Lacernidae generally considered to be a junior synonym of Cribellopora trichotoma, is redescribed on the basis of the holotype and newly collected material.

scholarly journals First record of the genus Paranebalia Claus, 1880 (Crustacea: Leptostraca) from the Mediterranean Sea

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 332
Author(s):  
J. MOREIRA ◽  
J. JUNOY
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Mediterranean Sea ◽  
Type Species ◽  
Taxonomic Status ◽  
First Record ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
A New Species

Benthic monitoring of the marine shallow bottoms off Menorca (Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean) has yielded several specimens of the leptostracan genus Paranebalia Claus, 1880. This finding constitutes the first report of the genus from European latitudes and the Mediterranean Sea and therefore the third leptostracan genus known from the Mediterranean. Specimens are described, illustrated and compared to other known species; they might represent a new species but their state of maturity and the lack of an appropriate diagnosis for the type species of the genus, Paranebalia longipes (Willemöes-Suhm, 1875), did not allow to confirm its taxonomic status.

Dasya patentissima (Ceramiales, Dasyaceae), a new species from the Cabrera Archipelago (Balearic Islands, eastern Spain) 

Phytotaxa ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 184 (5) ◽  
pp. 265 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Pena-Martin ◽  
Manuel B. Crespo ◽  
Amelia Gomez
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
Mediterranean Species ◽  
Morphological Studies ◽  
A New Species

Morphological studies on the genus Dasya (Ceramiales, Rhodophyta) in the western Mediterranean revealed the existence of a collection from the Balearic Islands (eastern Spain) that differed considerably from the known species in the genus. Evidence is provided to regard it as a new species, which here is named Dasya patentissima. Affinities and divergences to other Mediterranean species, namely, D. ocellata and D. hutchinsiae, are discussed and illustrated.

New species of chemosymbiotic clams (Bivalvia: Vesicomyidae and Thyasiridae) from a putative ‘seep’ in the Hatton–Rockall Basin, north-east Atlantic

2013 ◽  
Vol 94 (2) ◽  
pp. 389-403 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Graham Oliver ◽  
Jim Drewery
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Cold Seeps ◽  
Mud Volcanoes ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Hydrocarbon Seeps ◽  
Morphological Differences ◽  
North And South ◽  
A New Species

Two new species of chemosymbiotic bivalves are described from a poorly localized site in the Hatton–Rockall Basin at 1187–1200 m. The new speciesIsorropodon mackayisp. nov. is compared with others of the genus from the North and South Atlantic. A novel anatomical structure, suggested to be a secondary gill, is described. The second bivalveThyasira scotiaesp. nov. is compared with other species known to inhabit cold seeps in the Atlantic and most resemblesThyasira sarsi. Other than the minor morphological differences, the bathyal range and presence of commensal polychaetes,Antonbrunnia, never reported inT. sarsisupport the erection of a new species. In the North AtlanticIsorropodonspecies and the larger thyasirids, with the exception ofT. sarsi, are typically found at hydrocarbon seeps associated with pockmarks and mud volcanoes. If correct, then this is the first indication of active sulphidic seepage in the Hatton–Rockall Basin.

Updated checklist of Balearic leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Zootaxa ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 4272 (2) ◽  
pp. 151 ◽  
Author(s):  
EDUARD PETITPIERRE ◽  
ANTONI SACARÉS ◽  
JOSÉ A. JURADO-RIVERA
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
Mediterranean Islands ◽  
Leaf Beetles ◽  
Main Island ◽  
Flea Beetles ◽  
Adventitious Species ◽  
Mediterranean Countries ◽  
First Time

The first updated checklist of Balearic leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae) since 1960 is presented here, evincing the presence of 118 species. This estimation is clearly lower than the 141 species reported in the only list available to date (Jolivet, 1953), and the dissimilarity is even more pronounced if we take into account that 22 new species have been added during this period. The possible explanations for these differences are discussed. The main island in the archipelago holds most of the species (Mallorca, 113 spp.), followed by Menorca (71 spp.), Eivissa (39 spp.) and Formentera (19 spp.). Thus, the Gymnesian islands (Mallorca and Menorca) are more species-rich than the Pityusic ones (Eivissa and Formentera). The number of species per island is significantly correlated with their respective areas not only for the Balearic but also for the much larger western Mediterranean islands of Corsica and Sardinia, and these abundances are not related with their nearness to the closest mainland. Among the different subfamilies and tribes, the Balearic flea-beetles (Alticinae) are clearly more prevalent whereas on the contrary, the Clytrini are less represented in comparison with the nearest mainland (Iberian Peninsula). The presented checklist includes four endemic species, Cryptocephalus majoricensis (Mallorca, Menorca and Formentera), C. tramuntanae (Mallorca), Cyrtonus majoricensis (Mallorca) and Timarcha balearica (Mallorca and Menorca). Furthermore, two adventitious species, Monoxia obesula and Epitrix hirtipennis of North American origin, have been reported for the first time in the Balearic Islands, in agreement with previous findings in other Mediterranean countries.

scholarly journals A new species of Myotragus Bate, 1909 (Artiodactyla, Caprinae) from the Early Pliocene of Mallorca (Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean)

2010 ◽  
Vol 147 (6) ◽  
pp. 871-885 ◽  
Author(s):  
PERE BOVER ◽  
JOSEP QUINTANA ◽  
JOSEP ANTONI ALCOVER
Keyword(s):  
Late Miocene ◽  
East Coast ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
New Taxon ◽  
Early Pliocene ◽  
Postcranial Remains ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
A New Species

AbstractMyotragus palomboi n.sp. (Artiodactyla, Caprinae) is described from the Early Pliocene of Mallorca (Balearic Islands, western Mediterranean). This species is the earliest representative of the Myotragus lineage known to date in the Balearic Islands. A metatarsal, and several teeth and postcranial remains were found in a karstic deposit located on the east coast of the island, near Caló den Rafelino (Manacor), together with remains of Hypolagus, two rodent species, an insectivore and several reptiles. The metatarsal and phalanges of the new bovid are short and robust and display a combination of characters only observed in Myotragus. The presence of a larger p2, a metatarsal robustness index lower than in M. pepgonellae (the earliest known species to date), together with the morphology of the incisors, all suggest that M. palomboi should be considered as the ancestor of M. pepgonellae. Short metapodials and the reduction of p2 displayed by M. palomboi could be linked to a first stage of evolution in insular conditions. The arrival of this bovid to the island of Mallorca probably took place during the Mediterranean Messinian Salinity Crisis (Late Miocene, 5.6–5.32 Ma ago). Although the relationship of the new taxon to other fossil caprines cannot be definitively established, it could be phylogenetically close to the Late Miocene European species Aragoral mudejar and Norbertia hellenica.

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