Search results for "temporary ponds"

Identification and characterization of five polymorphic microsatellite loci in the freshwater copepod Hemidiaptomus gurneyi (Copepoda: Calanoida: Dia…

2016

Hemidiaptomus diaptomid copepods are known to be excellent biological indicators for the highly biodiverse crustacean communities inhabiting Mediterranean temporary ponds (MTPs), an endangered inland water habitat whose conservation is considered a priority according to the “Habitat Directive” of the European Union. This study reports on the characterization of five polymorphic microsatellite loci in Hemidiaptomus gurneyi, to be used as markers for fine-scale studies on the population genetic structure and metapopulation dynamics of a typical and obligate MTP dweller. The five selected loci proved to be polymorphic in the species, with three to five polymorphic loci per studied population. …

Ostracods of Mediterranean temporary inland waters (Greece, Southern Italy, and Malta)

2015

The Inland Water Copepod Fauna of a Traditional Rural Landscape in a Mediterranean Island (Crustacea, Copepoda)

2022

Although the Mediterranean area is a well-known hotspot of biological diversity, the crustacean assemblages inhabiting inland waters of the Mediterranean islands are to date unevenly known, and detailed information is missing for most taxa and areas. In the frame of this paper, we provide a checklist and a characterization of the copepod fauna of the lentic water bodies occurring in a traditional rural landscape of Sicily, where the co-existence of agriculture, woodlands, and pastoral activities lead to the presence of a wide range of different aquatic habitats. Overall, 22 copepod species belonging to the orders Calanoida, Cyclopoida, and Harpacticoida have been found in the 92 surveyed si…

Zooplankton dynamics and conservation problems of a Mediterranean temporary pond

2009

Mitochondrial DNA Regionalism and Historical Demography in the Extant Populations of Chirocephalus kerkyrensis (Branchiopoda: Anostraca)

2012

BackgroundMediterranean temporary water bodies are important reservoirs of biodiversity and host a unique assemblage of diapausing aquatic invertebrates. These environments are currently vanishing because of increasing human pressure. Chirocephalus kerkyrensis is a fairy shrimp typical of temporary water bodies in Mediterranean plain forests and has undergone a substantial decline in number of populations in recent years due to habitat loss. We assessed patterns of genetic connectivity and phylogeographic history in the seven extant populations of the species from Albania, Corfu Is. (Greece), Southern and Central Italy.Methodology/principal findingsWe analyzed sequence variation at two mito…

An account on the non-malacostracan crustacean fauna from the inland waters of Crete, Greece, with the synonymization of Arctodiaptomus piliger Brehm…

2019

The Mediterranean bioregion is widely recognised as a biodiversity hotspot and its inland waters are among the species richest ecosystems of the northern hemisphere. However, the extent of such biodiversity has not been totally unravelled, especially in the Mediterranean islands. Here we present a first account of the crustaceans inhabiting 21 permanent and temporary ponds in Crete, the largest of the Greek islands and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The ponds, sampled between 2009 and 2018, cover all the island surface even though their number cannot be considered exhaustive to represent the entire non-malacostracan fauna of the island. Nevertheless, 46 taxa were identif…

On the non-malacostracan crustaceans (Crustacea: Branchiopoda, Copepoda, Ostracoda) from the inland waters of Fthiotida (Greece)

2019

In the frame of the activities of the LIFE11 NAT/GR/1014 ForOpenForests, some water bodies occurring in the "Ethnikos Drymos Oitis" (GR2440004) and "Oros Kallidromo" (GR2440006) (Sterea Ellada) were investigated with the aim of providing a first census of the composition and diversity of their crustacean fauna. Overall, the sampling of 15 water bodies (7 of them listed as "Mediterranean temporary ponds" sensu EU "Habitats Directive") led to the finding of 13 branchiopod, 11 copepod, and 7 ostracod taxa, including 4 species new for mainland Greece, i.e. the copepods Arctodiaptomus alpinus (Imhoff, 1885) and Diaptomus cf. serbicus, and the branchiopods Leptestheria dahalacensis (Rüppel, 1837)…

On the Occurrence of Metadiaptomus chevreuxi (Calanoida, Diaptomidae, Paradiaptominae) in the Iberian Peninsula, With Notes on the Ecology and Distri…

2020

Temporary ponds are one of the most peculiar ecosystems in the world, being characterized by an extraordinarily rich crustacean fauna, with a high degree of endemism. Among them, diaptomid copepods are among the most biogeographically interesting taxa. However, the present knowledge on diaptomid distribution is still far from being exhaustive, even in the relatively well-studied western European countries. In this study, we report the first record of the diaptomid calanoid copepod Metadiaptomus chevreuxi for the Iberian Peninsula, where it was collected in five temporary ponds in Andalusia (Spain). The characteristics of the new sites are described, the literature dealing with the European …

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…

First record of Hemidiaptomus (Gigantodiaptomus) superbus (Schmeil, 1895) in Italy, with notes on distribution and conservation status (Copepoda, Cal…

2011

Hemidiaptomus (Gigantodiaptomus) superbus (Schmeil, 1895) was found in a temporary pool in the Pineta di Classe coastal pine-wood (Ravenna, northern Italy). This is the first official record of a species belonging to the subgenus Gigantodiaptomus of Italian fauna, and it widens the known distribution of this rare diaptomid to the Mediterranean basin. In order to supply data on this rare and poorly known species, original drawings for the Italian population have been provided, and some overlooked morphological features have been highlighted. In light of the growing evidence of the existence of a number of cryptic species in the Diaptomidae family, and considering the variability observed in …