Abstract
1. Adomaitis M., Skujienė G. 2016. Comparative analysis of ligulas of slugs Arion lusitanicus from Lithuania and Denmark. Scientific Bulletin of the Uzhgorod University (Series Biology) 40: 5–10. Google Scholar
Highlights
The group of large slugs of the genus Arion has been a notoriously difficult taxonomic puzzle (e.g. Noble 1992, Noble & Jones 1996, Quinteiro et al 2005, Rowson et al 2014a): even for the comparatively well-studied area of Central and North-West Europe different opinions persist about the number and nomenclature of species or subspecies
We will describe the morphological intermediates between A. ater s.l. and A. vulgaris found in the field
Amongst the 2,055 specimens from the monitoring sites, we found 77 (3.7%) individuals that were morphologically intermediate between A. ater s.l. and A. vulgaris
Summary
The group of large slugs of the genus Arion has been a notoriously difficult taxonomic puzzle (e.g. Noble 1992, Noble & Jones 1996, Quinteiro et al 2005, Rowson et al 2014a): even for the comparatively well-studied area of Central and North-West Europe different opinions persist about the number and nomenclature of species or subspecies. (3) The interand intrapopulation diversity in genital morphology seems rather large, making taxonomic interpretation of morphological differences difficult. This might partly be related to the two issues, (4) ongoing human-mediated introductions across Europe and (5) potential interbreeding between some or all taxa at contact zones of various ages. Jaeckel 1962, Zilch 1962, Wiktor 1973, Chevallier 1974), but there was uncertainty about whether A. ater s.s. really occurs in Central Europe or whether such records were based just on black individuals of A. rufus (Gerhardt 1940, Boettger 1949a, b) Continental authors, on the other hand, have tended consistently to consider the two taxa as separate species (e.g. Jaeckel 1962, Zilch 1962, Wiktor 1973, Chevallier 1974), but there was uncertainty about whether A. ater s.s. really occurs in Central Europe or whether such records were based just on black individuals of A. rufus (Gerhardt 1940, Boettger 1949a, b)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
