Distribution Of European Species Research Articles

European Chiropteromyzidae (Diptera): Taxonomic Revision, Nomenclature, Classification and Preimaginal Stages

European chiropteromyzid flies (Diptera: Acalyptrata: Heleomyzidae) are revised to clarify their nomenclature, taxonomic concepts and relationships. Two species are recognized which are considered to belong to the genus Neossos Malloch, 1927 viz., the widespread N. broersei (de Meijere, 1946) comb. nov. (= Chiropteromyza wegelii Frey, 1952) and N. nidicola (Frey, 1930) known only from type series from Finland. Consequently, the monotypic genera Ornitholeria Frey, 1930 (type species: O. nidicola Frey, 1930) and Chiropteromyza Frey, 1952 (type species: C. wegelii Frey, 1952) are treated as junior synonyms of Neossos Malloch, 1927. The above synonymies and generic affiliations are confirmed on the basis of comparative morphology of both European species and N. marylandicus Malloch, 1927, the type species of the genus Neossos. All studied taxa are redescribed and illustrated including detail of the male genitalia and/or female postabdomen, keyed and their full synonymies are presented. Preimaginal stages (3rd-instar larva, puparium) of N. broersei are studied for the first time. Research history, morphology of terminalia, relationships, biology and distribution of European species are reviewed and/or discussed. Lectotypes of Ornitholeria nidicola Frey, 1930 and Chiropteromyza wegelii Frey, 1952 are designated. Based on similarities in the external morphology, including the male and female terminalia, and the cephalopharyngeal skeleton of the larva, chiropteromyzids are considered to be a heleomyzoid lineage most closely related to the subfamily Heleomyzinae (of European authors) and, hence, not deserving family rank within Acalyptrata.

Preliminary Study on Microsatellite and Mitochondrial DNA Variation of the Stone MartenMartes foinain Bulgaria

In Europe, distribution of many animal species has been severely restricted to small refugia during the last glacial period. The Balkan Peninsula including Bulgaria has been identified as one of the three main glacial refugia (Randi 2007). To know biogeographical history in Europe, molecualr phylogeographical studies about various European mammal species have been performed: for example, the least weasel Mustela nivalis by the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region and cytochrome b (Lebarbenchon et al. 2010), the ground squirrel Spermophilus citellus by cytochrome b (Krystufek et al. 2009), the yellow-necked fieldmouse Apodemus flavicollis and the woodmouse A. sylvaticus by cytochrome b (Michaux et al. 2005), the brown bear Ursus arctos by mtDNA control region (Taberlet and Bouvet 1994; Taberlet et al. 1998) and the hedgehogs Erinaceus europaeus and E. concolor by cytochorome b (Santucci et al. 1998). These studies commonly show that distribution of European species was influenced by climate changes in the Quaternary glaciations, and they survived in different ways (Michaux et al. 2005). Studies on the genetic diversity of mammals in Bulgaria as part of the Balkan Peninsula provides further insights to understanding of biogeographical history from the last glacial maximum (LGM) to present in south Europe. The stone marten Martes foina is a medium-sized carnivore of the family Mustelidae, and is distributed from Spain and Portugal in the west, through central and southern Europe, the Middle East, and central Asia, extending as far east as the Altai and Tien Shan Mountains and northwest China (Abramov et al. 2006). This species prefers more open areas than other martens (Sacchi and Meriggi 1995). Its habitat preferences vary in different parts of its range. Martes foina is typically found in deciduous forests, forest edges and open rocky hillsides. In some areas, however, M. foina also inhabits suburban and urban areas, with rare woods (Tikhonov et al. 2008). Because the Balkan Peninsula is one of the southern limit of distribution of M. foina, the analysis of its Balkan population would contribute to further understanding of refugia and phylogeography in Europe. Whereas there have been some phylogenetic studies about the family Mustelidae including M. foina (Marmi et al. 2003; Li et al. 2011) and a microsatellite variation study of M. foina in southern Portugal (Basto et al. 2010), no population genetic studies about this species in Bulgaria have been reported. In the present study, to know the population structure and phylogeography of the Bulgarian population of M. foina, we studied its microsatellite polymorphisms and mtDNA control region variation, and then discuss the genetic diversity in the population.

Contribution to the biogeography of some species of terrestrial enchytraeidae (Oligochaeta : Annelida)

Despite the fact that enchytraeids have been known worldwide since the second half of the 19th century only a few surveys of the biogeography of terrestrial species have been made. Certainly, this deficiency is at least partly due to the difficult taxonomic situation of the family Enchytraeidae. Since the late 1950s there has been an idea of the number and distribution of European species, but with the exception of some restricted areas hardly anything is known about the enchytraeid fauna of other continents. Therefore, all distribution maps up to now show mainly the current state of scientific knowledge. In this contribution a first assessment of the biogeography of ten selected species belonging to six genera of terrestrial, mainly European enchytraeids is given. The criterion for the selection of these species was easy identification at the species level on the basis of very obvious characters which allowed the use of references of non-specialists too. On the base of the literature and own samplings distribution maps are given and the distribution patterns are discussed.

Endemic-Exotic Earthworm Competition in the American Midwest

IT is commonly believed that in areas of European colonization introduced lumbricids tend to supplant the endemic earthworm fauna. Stephenson1 gives several examples. More recently the spread of Allolobophora caliginosa in New Zealand has been documented2,3, and G. E. Gates4 has described the distribution of European species in India.