Search results for " biogeography"

Pylogenetic history and biogeographic aspects of fossil and extant Terricola (Mammalia, Rodentia) of Southern Italy: a case study

2009

Plant species richness, biogeographic and conservation interest of the vascular flora of the satellite islands of Sicily: patterns, driving forces an…

2013

The vascular flora has been investigated on about 60 of the approximately 100 islands and islets of the Sicilian archipelago. This paper provides detailed information on the number of exclusive, rare, or threatened vascular plants living on these islands and islets. Focusing on the 18 most-investigated islets, we evaluate the extent to which species richness, rate of endemism, number of alien plants, and number of terrestrial habitats have been influenced by 1) geographical setting, 2) geological history, 3) geo-pedological variability, 4) bioclimate, 5) number and patchiness of local plant communities, and 6) natural and human disturbance history and regime. Special attention is directed t…

Flora Mediterranea 22

2012

Sicily: the island that didn't know to be an archipelago

2018

Recent geological studies demonstrated that most of Sicily was still under water during lower Pliocene, with the exception of the NE and the SE corners of the island (Peloritani Mts and Hyblaean Plateau, respectively). This geological evidence, so far not considered sufficiently by the scholars of the Sicilian flora, poses many still open questions on how and where many ancient lineages and Palaeogene relicts, currently found on the island, managed to survive. Purpose of this paper is to review the potential significance of isolation and ecological differentiation for the local floristic diversity and the evolution of narrow endemism in the Sicilian flora. In particular, the following drive…

The microcrustacean fauna of Sicily and the Central Mediterranean Sea area - Current knowledge and gaps to be filled

2006

The current knowledge of freshwater entomostracans from Sicily and some neighbouring central-Mediterranean countries is briefly reviewed. Data concerning different countries and different taxonomical groups are markedly inhomogeneous and often far from being representative of the real biota of the corresponding countries. This gap prevents a sound biogeographical analysis of the freshwater microcrustacean fauna of the area. The major gaps that have to be filled are highlighted and the need for more surveys and monitoring is emphasised.

When an island matches a glacial refugium: the case of Sicilian mammals

2011

How do freshwater organisms cross the “dry ocean”? A review on passive dispersal and colonization processes with a special focus on temporary ponds

2014

Lakes and ponds are scattered on Earth’s surface as islands in the ocean. The organisms inhabiting these ecosystems have thus developed strategies to pass the barrier represented by the surrounding land, to disperse and to colonize new environments. The evidences of a high potential for passive long-range dispersal of organisms producing resting stages inspired the idea that there were no real barriers to their actual dispersal, and that their distribution was only limited by the ecological characteristics of the available habitats. The development of genetic techniques allowed to criticize this view and revealed the existence of a more complex and diverse biological scenario governed by an…

First record and morphological features of Hemidiaptomus (Occidodiaptomus) ingens (Gurney, 1909) (Copepoda Calanoida) in Italy

2004

During a survey, carried out to assess the consistency of microcrustacean fauna inhabiting temporary ponds in Sicily, Hemidiaptomus (Occidodiaptomus) ingens (Gurney, 1909), a large calanoid copepod up to now known only for North-African ponds, Camargue and Corse, was found in the north-western part of the island. Due to its central location in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily represents a transition zone where several chorological zones of the West Palearctic merge and converge. A brief summary of the existing literature regarding this taxon is given with some morphological considerations on the recently found population which represents the first record for Italy. In particular, the morpholog…

Cladocera (Branchiopoda, Anomopoda, Ctenopoda, and Onychopoda) from Sicilian inland waters: an updated inventory

2005

An extensive survey aimed at updating and increasing the knowledge on species richness and distribution of Cladocera (Branchiopoda) in Sicily has been carried out in the period 2000-2004. More than 250 water bodies, mainly temporary, have been sampled on the whole Sicilian territory and the circum-Sicilian islands. This sampling effort led to the discovery of several species new to the fauna of the island and, coupled with a careful bibliographic review, allowed the realization of an updated checklist that includes 57 species definitely present on the island (only 33 were formerly known), and two more, whose actual presence in Sicily is dubious and needs confirmation. The chorological spect…

Sicilian Temporary Ponds: An Overview of the Composition and Affinities of their Crustacean Biota

2009

Available data on Sicilian entomostracans allowed an initial characterization of the freshwater crustacean biota of the island and to formulate some hypotheses on its origin.The absence of supra-specific endemic taxa and the current regional distriburion of the investigated species suggest a late Pleistocene colonisation of the island by temperate taxa with a northern affinity, currently confined to the coolest areas of the island, followed by a Holocene arrival of thermophilous species coming from the Maghreb, which is still in progress. The importance of Sicily as a "crossroad" for the faunas of the circum-Mediterranean countries is thus confirmed.Unfortunately, and in spite of the EU dir…