Search results for "endangered specie"
showing 10 items of 176 documents
The European wildcats (Felis silvestris silvestris) as reservoir hosts of Troglostrongylus brevior (Strongylida: Crenosomatidae) lungworms.
2014
The increasing reports of Troglostrongylus brevior lungworm in domestic cats from Italy and Spain raised questions on its factual distribution and on the role wildcats play as reservoirs of these parasites. Carcasses of 21 wildcats were collected in natural parks of southern Italy (i.e., Catania, Sicily n = 5 and Matera, Basilicata n = 16) and biometrically and genetically identified as Felis silvestris silvestris, but two as hybrids. Troglostrongylus brevior and Eucoleus aerophilus lungworms were found in 15 (71.4%) and 7 (33.3%) individuals, respectively, being five (23.8%) co-infected by the two species. Both lungworms showed an aggregated distribution in the host population, assessed by…
Successive Invasion-Mediated Interspecific Hybridizations and Population Structure in the Endangered Cichlid Oreochromis mossambicus.
2013
Hybridization between invasive and native species accounts among the major and pernicious threats to biodiversity. The Mozambique tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus, a widely used freshwater aquaculture species, is especially imperiled by this phenomenon since it is recognized by the IUCN as an endangered taxon due to genetic admixture with O. niloticus an invasive congeneric species. The Lower Limpopo and the intermittent Changane River (Mozambique) drain large wetlands of potentially great importance for conservation of O. mossambicus, but their populations have remained unstudied until today. Therefore we aimed (1) to estimate the autochthonous diversity and population structure among genet…
Reproductive conflict delays the recovery of an endangered social species
2008
1. Evolutionary theory predicts that individuals, in order to increase their relative fitness, can evolve behaviours that are detrimental for the group or population. This mismatch is particularly visible in social organisms. Despite its potential to affect the population dynamics of social animals, this principle has not yet been applied to real-life conservation. 2. Social group structure has been argued to stabilize population dynamics due to the buffering effects of nonreproducing subordinates. However, competition for breeding positions in such species can also interfere with the reproduction of breeding pairs. 3. Seychelles magpie robins, Copsychus sechellarum, live in social groups w…
Genome-wide analysis in endangered populations: a case study in Barbaresca sheep
2017
Analysis of genomic data is becoming increasingly common in the livestock industry and the findings have been an invaluable resource for effective management of breeding programs in small and endangered populations. In this paper, with the goal of highlighting the potential of genomic analysis for small and endangered populations, genome-wide levels of linkage disequilibrium, measured as the squared correlation coefficient of allele frequencies at a pair of loci, effective population size, runs of homozygosity (ROH) and genetic diversity parameters, were estimated in Barbaresca sheep using Illumina OvineSNP50K array data. Moreover, the breed's genetic structure and its relationship with oth…
Living on the edge: assessing the extinction risk of critically endangered Bonelli’s eagle in Italy
2012
Background: The population of Bonelli’s eagle (Aquila fasciata) has declined drastically throughout its European range due to habitat degradation and unnatural elevated mortality. There are less than 1500 breeding pairs accounted for in Europe, and the species is currently catalogued as Critically Endangered in Italy, where the 22 territories of Sicily, represent nearly 95% of the entire Italian population. However, despite national and European conservation concerns, the species currently lacks a specific conservation plan, and no previous attempts to estimate the risk of extinction have been made. Methodology/Principal Findings: We incorporated the most updated demographic information ava…
Helminth parasites in faecal samples from the endangered Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus).
2011
The Iberian lynx is the most endangered felid in the world. Enteropathogens may threaten its survival, and therefore we analysed faecal samples from 66 different individuals (37 males and 29 females), the largest population representation studied to date. The samples were obtained from November 2005 to October 2008 in the two areas where the Iberian lynx survives: Sierra Morena and Donana (Andalusia, southern Spain). A total of 56.1% samples were parasitized with at least 6 species of helminths, including two cestodes (Hymenolepis spp. and Taenia spp.) and four Nematodes (Ancylostoma spp., Toxocara spp., Toxascaris leonina, and Capillaria sp.). In this work, the presence of Hymenolepis is r…
Biodiversity impacts by multiple anthropogenic stressors in Mediterranean coastal wetlands
2022
Abstract Mediterranean coastal wetlands are considered biodiversity hot-spots and contain a high number of endemic species. The biodiversity of these ecosystems is endangered by several pressures resulting from agricultural and urban expansion, climate change, and the alteration of their hydrological cycle. In this study we assess the state-of-the-art regarding the impact of several stressor groups on the biodiversity of Mediterranean coastal wetlands (i.e., lagoons, marshes, estuaries). Particularly, we describe the impacts of eutrophication, chemical pollution, invasive species, salinization, and temperature rise, and analyze the existing literature regarding the impact of multiple stress…
An updated checklist of chondrichthyans of Calabria (Central Mediterranean, southern Italy), with emphasis on rare species
2020
In this contribution the checklist of chondrichthyans of Calabria (Central Mediterranean, southern Italy) is reported. Data presented is derived from twenty years of opportunistic and active surveys from 2000 to 2020. A total of 55 species of chondrichthyans is present in Calabrian seas: 33 sharks, 20 rays, and 2 chimaeras. These species represent approximately 62% of the total reported for the Mediterranean. Approximately 71% of Calabrian species have been reported in the Tyrrhenian Sea, 49% in the Ionian Sea, and 33% in the Strait of Messina. According to IUCN criteria, new records of Endangered and Critically Endangered species (i.e., Carcahrodon carcharias [Linnaeus, 1758], Lamna nasus …
In vitro multiplication ofVella lucentina M. B. crespo (Brassicaceae), a threatened Spanish endemic species
1995
Vella lucentina M. B. Crespo is a threatened Spanish species that is endemic to a small area in eastern Alicante Province (SE Spain). Micropropagation techniques were applied forex situ conservation of this plant. Aseptic epicotyls bearing the apical bud were grown in Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with 6-furfurylaminopurine (Kin), N6-benzyladenine (BA) or 6-(γ,γ,-dimethilalylamino) purine (2iP). High multiplication rates were obtained with 0.5, 1, or 2 mg·liter−1 BA, or 1 or 2 mg·liter−1 2iP. Indole-3-acetic acid and indole-3-butyric acid were utilized for rooting in half-strength Murashige and Skoog medium. Regenerated plants were transferred to a potting mix and gradually acclim…
Eresus kollari (Araneae: Eresidae) calls for heathland management
2011
Northwest Europe’s largest heather-dominated sandy habitats are located in the nature reserve Lu¨neburgerHeide, Germany. Yet, even these appear to be losing their ability to support some of their stenotopic species such as theladybird spider, Eresus kollari Rossi 1846, and are thus becoming increasingly important for the preservation of thesespecies. The habitat requirements of this endangered spider species were investigated in order to obtain data that will helpstabilize the last remnants of the species’ population in northwest Germany. Several heathland habitats were surveyed bypitfall trapping during the mate-search period of the males. Two statistical methods were applied: logistic reg…