Lectotypification of names related to Teucrium montanum L. (Lamiaceae) reported for the Balkan peninsula

Teucrium montanum is a species widely distributed in Europe, occurring also in North Africa and Asia Minor. Because of its wide distribution and high morphological variability, many taxa related to T. montanum have been described. In this paper we discuss and lectotypify the following six names of taxa described or reported for the Balkan Peninsula: T. helianthemoides, T. montanum var. hirsutum, T. montanum var. modestum, T. montanum var. parnassicum, T. pannonicum, and T. skorpilii.

HS-SPME-GC–MS Volatile Profile Characterization of Peach (Prunus persica L. Batsch) Varieties Grown in the Eastern Balkan Peninsula

The volatile compounds of eight peach varieties (Prunus persica L.)—“Filina”, “Gergana”, “Ufo-4”, “July lady”, “Laskava”, “Flat Queen”, “Evmolpiya”, and “Morsiani 90”—growing in Bulgaria were analyzed for the first time. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis and the HS-SPME technique revealed the presence of 65 volatile compounds; the main identified components were aldehydes, esters, and fatty acids. According to the provided principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), the relative quantities of the identified volatile compounds depended on the studied peach variety. The results obtained could be successfully applied for the metabolic chemotaxonomy of peaches.

High Level of Phenotypic Differentiation of Common Yew (Taxus baccata L.) Populations in the North-Western Part of the Balkan Peninsula

Common or English yew (Taxus baccata L., Taxaceae) is a conifer species, native to Europe, northern Africa, Asia Minor and Caucasus. It is a dioecious, wind-pollinated and animal-dispersed tree, known for its high-quality wood and medicinal properties, albeit poisonous. The species is rare and has been legally protected at the European and national levels. In addition, its low population density and disjunct character of distribution have reinforced the need for its protection as regeneration is mostly lacking. The aim of this study was to phenotypically characterise the north-western Balkan yew populations. Phenotypic diversity was examined for seven populations, using morphometric analysis of nine phenotypic traits of needles. Descriptive and multivariate statistical analyses were conducted to evaluate the inter- and intrapopulation variability. In addition, to test correlations between geographic, climatic and phenotypic data, Mantel test was used. We identified a geographic structure across studied populations that exhibited high levels of variability on intra- and interpopulation levels. Two groups of populations have been defined and are consistent with previously described genetic divergent lineages from separate refugia. In addition, a significant correlation between phenotypic and geographic data were revealed, i.e., isolation by distance (IBD). However, the Mantel test revealed no significant correlation between morphometric and environmental data. In conclusion, our data reveal that the historical events and persistent IBD acted in combination to produce the morphological patterns observed in common yew populations in the north-western part of the Balkan Peninsula. Finally, we suggested conservation measures to be implemented on a stand level, with habitat preservation as the main goal. In addition, ex situ conservation should be considered, both in the form of collections and urban planting, as both provide additional gene pool reserves.

Anastas Benderev's 1890 Ethnographic Maps

This article deals with a pair of old ethnographic maps made by a Bulgarian officer (bearing the rank of Captain at the time) named Anastas Benderev (1859–1946). The maps were first published as folding attachments in Benderev’s book Military Geography and Statistics of Macedonia and Its Adjacent Territories on the Balkan Peninsula (Voennaia geografiia i statistika Makedonii i sosednikh s neiu oblastei Balkanskago poluostrova), which itself was published in Russian in Saint Petersburg in 1890. The stated purpose of the maps was to elucidate certain passages from the book, particularly those pertaining to the population’s ethnic composition. One of the maps (Etnograficheskaya karta Balkanskogo poluostrova) depicts the ethnicities across the entire Balkan Peninsula, while the other (Etnograficheskaya karta Makedonii) focuses on those within the confines of the historical and geographical territory of Macedonia. Due to a confluence of events, the maps in question are barely known and hardly ever used nowadays, even though they represent valuable relics from the era. This article aims to reintroduce them into the scientific discourse as historical documents of note.

Border-Crossings and Migration in the Croatian and Slavonian Military Frontiers in the Early Modern Period

Significant geographical discoveries and the emergence of modern cartography, when combined with the concept of a territorial state, brought meaningful changes how borders were conceived during the early modern period. A diffuse image that had prevailed from antiquity to the late Middle Ages was replaced by a clear idea of a fixed border (Baramova, 2010). The role of the Military Frontier as a wider borderland was two-fold: It served as a buffer zone against the Ottoman Empire for the Habsburg hereditary lands and the still unconquered Croatian territories, and it was also an area of intense migration, especially for the Vlach population from the southeastern Dinaric region. After the suppression of the Ottomans and the first international demarcation of the Croatian territories in 1699/1700, migration to the Military Frontier increased, both from the central European area and from the southern and southwestern parts of the Balkan Peninsula. This paper discusses the role and perception of this borderland and especially of Croatia’s Military Frontier. Through interpretation and explanation of several typical examples of border crossings in this area, both before and after the first official demarcation in 1699, the paper will attempt to answer the question of how the migration processes influence the development and strengthening of the early modern state and its institutions.

New records of Cochylini moths (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) from the Balkans

In the course of expeditions conducted on the Balkan Peninsula by Ignác Richter in 2004–2019, altogether 45 species of Cochylini moths were collected. The examination of the collected specimens revealed one new species of the genus Aethes: Aethes larissae sp. nov., from the North Macedonia. Additionally, a new subspecies, Aethes kindermanniana macedonica ssp. nov. is described from the North Macedonia too. Phtheochroa amasiana (Ragonot, 1894) and Cochylimorpha erlebachi Huemer & Trematerra, 1997 are recorded from the Balkans for the first time. A male of Aethes eichleri Razowski, 1983 is collected for the first time, and DNA barcoding data of this species was obtained. We established a new synonymy: Aethes eichleri Razowski, 1983 syn. nov. of Aethes francillana (Fabricius, 1794). Illustrations of specimens and photographs of the genitalia of all described taxa are provided.

A DNA barcode library for the water mites of Montenegro

Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting a wide range of aquatic habitats. This study provides a first comprehensive DNA barcode library for the water mites of Montenegro. DNA barcodes were analysed from 233 specimens of water mites morphologically assigned to 86 species from 28 genera and 15 families. In the course of the study, four species, i.e. Lebertia reticulata (Koenike, 1919), Atractides inflatipalpis K.Viets, 1950, A. latipes (Szalay, 1935) and Parabrachypoda montii (Maglio, 1924) were molecularly confirmed as new for Montenegro and three species, i.e. Protzia octopora Lundblad, 1954, Piona laminata (Thor, 1901) and Unionicola ypsilophora (Bonz, 1783) are new for the Balkan Peninsula. Results are analysed using the Barcode Index Number system (BIN) and the Refined Single Linkage (RESL) of BOLD. The BIN assigned sequences to 98 clusters, while the RESL reveal 103 operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Unique BINs were revealed for 72 species (83.7%), whereas twelve species (14%) were characterised by two BINs and two species (2.3%) with three BINs. Amongst the studied taxa, 14 species were found with a high intraspecific sequence divergences (˃ 2.2%), emphasising the need for additional comprehensive morphological and molecu­lar analysis of these species.

Top 50 medical journals from Balkan countries: A bibliometric analysis, 2000–2020

Background: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE) is one of the most important indexes that medical journals aspire to be covered by. Currently, SCIE indexes 14,840 peer-reviewed journals across 178 disciplines. Among these journals are 3445 medical journals, divided into more than 40 subject categories. Objectives: To reveal the impact and contribution of medical journals from Balkan countries through the Journal Impact Factor of those journals, the number of articles published by them, and the number of times those articles have been cited. Methods: Balkan countries are countries that fall or fully or partly within the Balkan peninsula. All medical journals from those countries listed in the SCIE were ranked based on cumulative citations between 2000 and 2020. Among them, the top 50 journals in terms of cumulative citations were chosen for the study, which analysed the data on 129,259 research articles and reviews that covered 27 different subject categories within the broad field of medicine. The countries were Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, and Turkey Results: The top 50 journals included those published from eight Balkan countries. Turkey had the most journals (21) in the Web of Science (WoS) and Greece had 13 but, when ranked in terms of the number of journals in WoS per million people, Croatia topped the list, with 1.22 journals per million of its population, followed by Greece (1.21 journals). The top-cited journals were Anticancer Research (206,226 citations), International Journal of Oncology (171,654), Oncology Reports (157,467), Molecular Medicine Reports (82,009), and Oncology Letters (69,161). Oncology was the most cited subject category and Croatia, the country with maximum interaction with other Balkan countries, that is, papers in Croatian journals cited journals published from the maximum number of Balkan counties. Conclusion: The study provides insights into the last two decades of progress in academic publishing and in the performances of medical journals published from Balkan countries.

Антропогеографический метод Йована Цвиича в зеркале российской науки

Статья посвящена анализу научного наследия выдающегося сербского ученого конца XIX – первой четверти XX века Йована Цвиича (1865–1927) и обзору развития концептуально близких его профессиональным интересам идей в России. Популярный при становлении научных взглядов исследователя антропогеографический метод был осмыслен Цвиичем в силу его широкой эрудиции и опыта полевых исследований по-своему. Будучи географом по образованию, Цвиич смог в своей деятельности по изучению природы и хозяйственного уклада населения Балканского полуострова мастерски скомбинировать точку зрения географа с историческим подходом. В этом видел заслугу Цвиича российский этнолог С.А. Токарев. По его мнению, разработанный Цвиичем антропогеографический метод во многом отличается от одноименного метода Фридриха Ратцеля (1844–1904), и в выгодную сторону. Научные доктрины Йована Цвиича не только предопределили традиции сербской этнографии XX века, но и получили мировую известность. Не прошли они бесследно и для российской науки. Некоторые из работ Цвиича – «Заметки по этнографии македонских славян» и «Аннексия Боснии-Герцеговины и сербский вопрос» в начале прошлого века были переведены на русский язык и изданы в Санкт-Петербурге. Антропогеографический вектор исследований нашел своих сторонников и в России, а также в дальнейшем в значительной степени способствовал появлению у нас в стране «этнического картографирования» и этноэкологии (антропоэкологии). Разработанная Й. Цвиичем культурно-географическая классификация областей Балканского полуострова, так называемых «зон цивилизации» во многом схожа с концепцией «хозяйственно-культурных типов и историко-культурных областей», предложенной в 1970-х годах отечественными учеными М.Г. Левиным и Н.Н. Чебоксаровым. Научное направление, объектом изучения которого являются связи и взаимодействия человека с окружающей средой, развивается и совершенствуется, как в мировой науке в целом, так и в российской науке, в частности. The purpose of the article is to investigate the scientific heritage of Jovan Cvijić (1865–1927), a prominent Serbian scholar of the late 19th and first quarter of the 20th century, and explore how the ideas related to his agenda developed in Russia. Cvijić’s profound erudition and field research experience helped him to give his own interpretation to the anthropogeographical principle, popular when he was starting his scientific career. A geographer by training, Cvijić masterfully combined geographic perspective with a historical approach in his activities aimed at studying the nature and economic setup of the Balkans. S. A. Tokarev, a Russian ethnologist, believed that Cvijić deserved much credit for doing so. According to Tokarev, the anthropogeographical method developed by Cvijić was considerably different from the homonymous method of Friedrich Ratzel (1844–1904) and compared favorably to it. Jovan Cvijić’s teachings had both ordained the traditions of Serbian ethnography of the 20th century and become well-known globally. Their impact on Russian academia was noticeable, too. Some of Cvijić’s works, namely “Nekolika posmatranja o etnografiji makedonskih Slovena” and “L’anexion de la Bosnie et la question Serbe”, were translated into Russian in the early 1900s and published in St. Petersburg. In Russia, too, there emerged a number of scholars pursuing the anthropogeographical vector of studies. Later it contributed greatly to the nascence of “ethnic mapping” and ethnoecology (anthropoecology) in this country. Cultural-geographical classification of various areas of the Balkan Peninsula, the so-called “civilization zones” developed by J. Cvijić, is in many aspects similar to the concept of “economic-cultural types and historic-cultural areas” proposed in the 1970s by Soviet scholars M.G. Levin and N.N. Cheboksarov. The discipline studying humans’ connection to and interaction with the environment is developing and progressing both globally and in Russian academia.

A new species of Leonhardia Reitter, 1901 (Coleoptera, Leiodidae, Leptodirini) from Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a key to species of the genus

A new leptodirine leiodid beetle species belonging to the genus Leonhardia Reitter, 1901, L. solakisp. nov., from a pit in Bosnia and Herzegovina (western Balkan Peninsula) is described and diagnosed. Important morphological features of the new species are listed and photographed. The new species is endemic to the Dinarides of Bosnia and Herzegovina. A key for identification of species and subspecies of the genus Leonhardia is also provided.