Mollusc Biodiversity and Endemism in the Potential Ancient Lake Trichonis, Greece

Abstract

ABSTRACT Ancient lakes are hotspots of biodiversity, often harboring a large number of endemic species that make them prime model systems for evolutionary biologists. Besides such well-recognized ancient or long-lived lakes as Baikal, Biwa, Ohrid, and Tanganyika, there are other potentially old and biodiverse lakes in the world with poorly specified ages and under-studied faunas. We here report on the mollusc fauna of one such lake, Lake Trichonis in continental Greece. This graben lake is situated in a highly tectonized area, characterized by karst features and probably of middle to late Pliocene origin. Lake Trichonis is deep, oligotrophic, and rich in such specific habitat types as macrophyte meadows, rocky shores and sublacustrine spring systems. Moreover, it is a hotspot of freshwater biodiversity in Greece, particularly in molluscs. After reviewing newly collected material and the published mollusc records, we found that at least 33 mollusc species occur in Lake Trichonis, with 24 gastropod and 9 bi...