Search results for "Alae"
showing 10 items of 351 documents
Taxonomic status and epidemiology of the mesoparasitic copepod Pennella balaenoptera in cetaceans from the western Mediterranean.
2018
Pennella balaenoptera is a mesoparasitic copepod that has been reported in at least 17 cetacean species. Subtle morphological differences in the first antennae of adult females have been used to discriminate this species from P. filosa, a species infecting fishes. Other morphological traits are unreliable because of their high plasticity, and no molecular data are available to confirm the taxonomic status of P. balaenoptera as an independent species. We found no consistent morphological differences of the first antennae between P. balaenoptera and P. filosa collected from cetaceans and fish in the western Mediterranean. Molecular data on the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I failed…
Ornamentation of dermal bones of Metoposaurus krasiejowensis and its ecological implications
2018
Background Amphibians are animals strongly dependent on environmental conditions, like temperature, water accessibility, and the trophic state of the reservoirs. Thus, they can be used in modern palaeoenvironmental analysis, reflecting ecological condition of the biotope. Methods To analyse the observed diversity in the temnospondyl Metoposaurus krasiejowensis from Late Triassic deposits in Krasiejów (Opole Voivodeship, Poland), the characteristics of the ornamentation (such as grooves, ridges, tubercules) of 25 clavicles and 13 skulls were observed on macro- and microscales, including the use of a scanning electron microscope for high magnification. The different ornamentation patterns fo…
Variability in δ13C values between individual Daphnia ephippia: Implications for palaeo-studies
2018
The stable carbon isotope ratio (δ13 C value) of Daphnia spp. resting egg shells (ephippia) provides information on past changes in Daphnia diet. Measurements are typically performed on samples of _20 ephippia, which obscures the range of values associated with individual ephippia. Using a recently developed laser ablation-based technique, we perform multiple δ13 C analyses on individual ephippia, which show a high degree of reproducibility (standard deviations 0.1e0.5‰). We further measured δ13 C values of 13 ephippia from surface sediments of three Swiss lakes. In the well-oxygenated lake with low methane concentrations, δ13 C values are close to values typical for algae (_31.4‰) and the …
Scale dependence of species–area relationships is widespread but generally weak in Palaearctic grasslands
2021
Questions: Species–area relationships (SARs) are fundamental for understanding biodiversity patterns and are generally well described by a power law with a constant exponent z. However, z-values sometimes vary across spatial scales. We asked whether there is a general scale dependence of z-values at fine spatial grains and which potential drivers influence it. Location: Palaearctic biogeographic realm. Methods: We used 6,696 nested-plot series of vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens from the GrassPlot database with two or more grain sizes, ranging from 0.0001 m² to 1,024 m² and covering diverse open habitats. The plots were recorded with two widespread sampling approaches (rooted presenc…
Palaearctic species of Charipinae (Hymenoptera, Figitidae): two new species, synthesis and identification key
2018
The Charipinae Dalla Torre & Kieffer, 1910 present in the Palaearctic region are revised; 2410 specimens have been identified, belonging to 75 species: 52 to Alloxysta, one to Apocharips, six to Dilyta and 16 to Phaenoglyphis. For 33 species, new country-level distribution records are provided. Two new species are here described: Alloxysta palearctica Ferrer-Suay & Pujade-Villar sp. nov. and Alloxysta pascuali Ferrer-Suay sp. nov. A diagnosis for these species is included and their diagnostic features are shown in different figures. A key to identify all the species of Charipinae in the Palaearctic region is also given.
Fine‐grain beta diversity of Palaearctic grassland vegetation
2021
QUESTIONS: Which environmental factors influence fine-grain beta diversity of vegetation and do they vary among taxonomic groups? LOCATION: Palaearctic biogeographic realm. METHODS: We extracted 4,654 nested-plot series with at least four different grain sizes between 0.0001 m² and 1,024 m² from the GrassPlot database, covering a wide range of different grassland and other open habitat types. We derived extensive environmental and structural information for these series. For each series and four taxonomic groups (vascular plants, bryophytes, lichens, all), we calculated the slope parameter (z-value) of the power law species–area relationship (SAR), as a beta diversity measure. We tested whe…
Genetic variability in Peregrine falcon populations of the Western Palaearctic region
2018
We analyzed variation in ten polymorphic microsatellites and a portion of cytochrome b mitochondrial DNA in 4 populations of the Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus). living in northern and southern Italy. Spain and Czech Republic to assess species diversity in the poorly investigated Western Palearctic region. The Spanish population lives in the contact zone between F. peregrinus peregrinus and F. p. brookei. both the northern Italian and the Czech populations live within the range of F. p. peregrinus and the southern Italian is within the F. p. brookei. We added to our cytochrome b sequence dataset comprising 81 samples. previously published mitochondrial DNA sequences (n = 31) of English …
Trends in summer presence of fin whales in the Western Mediterranean Sea Region: new insights from a long-term monitoring program
2020
Background The Mediterranean subpopulation of fin whale Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758) has recently been listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List of threatened species. The species is also listed as species in need of strict protection under the Habitat Directive and is one of the indicators for the assessment of Good Environmental Status under the MSFD. Reference values on population abundance and trends are needed in order to set the threshold values and to assess the conservation status of the population. Methods Yearly summer monitoring using ferries as platform of opportunity was performed since 2008 within the framework of the FLT Med Network. Data were collected along sever…
Description of the sexual generation of Dryocosmus destefanii (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Cynipini) and disclosure of its life cycle
2020
The sexual generation of Dryocosmus destefanii Cerasa & Melika, 2018 that emerges from galls on Q. suber L. in Italy is described for the first time, establishing its heterogonic life cycle. We provide observations on its distribution, illustration of adults and galls and information on its biology as supported by morphological and molecular data. An illustrated identification key to Western Palaearctic Dryocosmus species is also given.
The Eurasian Modern Pollen Database (EMPD), version 2
2020
The Eurasian (née European) Modern Pollen Database (EMPD) was established in 2013 to provide a public database of high-quality modern pollen surface samples to help support studies of past climate, land cover, and land use using fossil pollen. The EMPD is part of, and complementary to, the European Pollen Database (EPD) which contains data on fossil pollen found in Late Quaternary sedimentary archives throughout the Eurasian region. The EPD is in turn part of the rapidly growing Neotoma database, which is now the primary home for global palaeoecological data. This paper describes version 2 of the EMPD in which the number of samples held in the database has been increased by 60% from 4826 to…