1
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Junker M, Rákosy L, Schmitt T. Moderate mobility and high density in a small area: the population ecology of the marsh fritillary Euphydryas aurinia in Transylvania (Romania). Biol Futur 2023; 74:457-465. [PMID: 37479862 DOI: 10.1007/s42977-023-00172-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2023] [Indexed: 07/23/2023]
Abstract
The Natura 2000 network is one of the most important tools for nature conservation in the EU. Therefore, knowledge of the ecology of the species listed on the Habitats Directive annexes is of particular relevance. One of these species is the butterfly Euphydryas aurinia. Much is already known about the ecology of this species at the European level, but information on Romania is scarce. Therefore, in a study area northwest of Cluj, the species was intensively studied in a mark-release-recapture study over its entire flight period. The investigated population harboured many individuals and had a high density. The dispersal behaviour of the individuals was somewhat more pronounced than in Mediterranean and partly also high alpine populations, but roughly comparable to other populations of the nominotypic subspecies. Overall, the ecological differences to Central and Western European populations were not very pronounced, and many of the conservation-relevant statements on this species in Central Europe should also be largely valid in Romania.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marius Junker
- Biogeography, Faculty Spatial and Environmental Sciences, University of Trier, 54286, Trier, Germany
| | - László Rákosy
- Department of Taxonomy and Ecology, Babes-Bolyai University, Str. Clinicilor 5-7, RO-3400, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Thomas Schmitt
- Department Systematics and Biogeography, Senckenberg German Entomological Institute, Eberswalder Str. 90, 15374, Müncheberg, Germany.
- Entomology and Biogeography, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Potsdam, 14476, Potsdam, Germany.
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2
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Štefánik M, Habel JC, Schmitt T, Eberle J. Geographical disjunction and environmental conditions drive intraspecific differentiation in the chalk-hill blue butterfly. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blab022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Drivers of evolution are often related to geographical isolation and/or diverging environmental conditions. Spatial variation in neutral genetic markers mostly reflects past geographical isolation, i.e. long-lasting allopatry, whereas morphology is often driven by local environmental conditions, resulting in more rapid evolution. In Europe, most thermophilic species persisted during the past glacial periods in geographically disjunct refugia, representing long-lasting isolates, frequently with diverging environmental conditions. This situation has driven the evolution of intraspecific signatures in species. Here, we analysed wing shape and wing pigmentation of the chalk-hill blue butterfly, Polyommatus coridon, across its entire distribution range restricted to the western Palaearctic. In addition, we compiled abiotic environmental parameters for each sampling site. Wing colour patterns differentiated a western and an eastern lineage. These lineages might represent two main Pleistocene refugia and differentiation centres, one located on the Italian Peninsula and the other in the Balkan region. The two lineages showed evidence of hybridization across Central Europe, from the Alps and across Germany. The intraspecific differentiation was strongest in the width of the brown band on the outer margin of the wings. The morphological structures obtained are in line with genetic signatures found in previous studies, but the latter are more fine-grained. Current environmental conditions, such as mean temperatures, were only marginally correlated with colour patterns. Our study underlines that Pleistocene range shifts, often resulting in allopatric isolation, shape intraspecific phenotypic structures within species; that pigmentation responds in a more sensitive manner to spatial disjunction than wing shape; and that morphometric and genetic structures in P. coridon provide concordant patterns and thus support identical biogeographical conclusions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Štefánik
- Evolutionary Zoology, Department of Biosciences, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
- Department of Environmental Ecology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Jan Christian Habel
- Evolutionary Zoology, Department of Biosciences, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
| | - Thomas Schmitt
- Senckenberg German Entomological Institute, Müncheberg, Germany
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences I, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale), Germany
| | - Jonas Eberle
- Evolutionary Zoology, Department of Biosciences, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
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3
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Wendt M, Husemann M, Kramp K, Schmitt T. Reconstruction of forest dynamics in the Western Palaearctic based on phylogeographic analysis of the ringlet butterfly Erebia aethiops. Sci Rep 2021; 11:201. [PMID: 33420130 PMCID: PMC7794548 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-79376-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2020] [Accepted: 11/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Glacial refugia are centers of high biodiversity. Therefore, knowledge on their locations and reactions of associated populations and landscapes to climatic changes is crucial for conservation management. We here investigated the biogeography of a butterfly species linked to open forest habitats. Using mitochondrial and nuclear markers in combination with Bayesian simulations, we analyzed the location and age of potential glacial refugia of the species. We identified five putative refugia in Europe. Considering the ecological needs of our study species, tree density within these refugial areas, in contrast to earlier assumptions, must have exceeded the level of individually scattered trees. Our results also provide evidence that especially the refuge areas in the Carpathians were previously underestimated regarding their age: the refugia in the Southern Carpathians presented suitable conditions throughout several glacial cycles, probably since the Mindel or Riss cycles. Additionally, our analyses provided support for a forest refugium near the Tatra Mountains persisting the last glacial maximum. Our results underline the usefulness of this and probably other butterfly species as indicators of forest refugia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Wendt
- Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut, Systematik Und Biogeographie, Eberswalder Str. 90, 15374, Müncheberg, Germany.
| | - Martin Husemann
- Centrum Für Naturkunde, Universität Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King-Platz 3, 20146, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Katja Kramp
- Leibniz-Zentrum Für Agrarlandschaftsforschung (ZALF) E.V., PB 2: "Landnutzung Und Governance", AG: Biotische Interaktionen Zwischen Wald- Und Agrarflächen, Eberswalder Str. 84, 15374, Müncheberg, Germany
| | - Thomas Schmitt
- Senckenberg Deutsches Entomologisches Institut, Systematik Und Biogeographie, Eberswalder Str. 90, 15374, Müncheberg, Germany
- Zoology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences I, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, 06099, Halle (Saale), Germany
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4
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Hasegawa Y, Takeuchi T, Ueda S, Hirai N. Comparison of Genetic Structure between Endangered and Common Butterflies, Ypthima multistriata and Y. argus (Lepidoptera; Nymphalidae), Inhabiting Japan. Zoolog Sci 2020; 37:109-116. [PMID: 32282141 DOI: 10.2108/zs190002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2019] [Accepted: 11/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Genetic structures of two closely related butterflies, Ypthima multistriata and Y. argus, inhabiting Japan were compared based on the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences. The former species is classified as a vulnerable species and exhibits a characteristic pattern of voltinism: univoltine and bivoltine populations are distributed in a scattered manner. The latter species is common and has a normal geographical pattern of voltinism: the number of annual generations is correlated with latitude. Our genetic analyses of these two species yielded contrasting results: a spatial analysis of molecular variance (SAMOVA) and FST between each pair of populations revealed a locally fragmented genetic structure for Y. multistriata, compared to three distinct geographic groups of Y. argus within which range-wide gene flow occurs. Although Y. argus is a common species, only the southernmost populations in Japan had higher genetic diversity, while the other populations had the same or lower levels of genetic diversity, compared to Y. multistriata. These results indicate that: 1) the degree of fragmentation of Y. multistriata populations was higher; however, markedly lower genetic diversity was not found, and 2) although Y. argus is a common species, its populations may not be genetically robust. In addition, AMOVA revealed a relationship between voltinism and genetic variation in Y. multistriata. This result suggests a phylogenetic constraint of voltinism in this butterfly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuto Hasegawa
- Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuencho, Nakaku, Sakai, Osaka 5998531, Japan
| | - Tsuyoshi Takeuchi
- Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuencho, Nakaku, Sakai, Osaka 5998531, Japan,
| | - Shouhei Ueda
- Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuencho, Nakaku, Sakai, Osaka 5998531, Japan
| | - Norio Hirai
- Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuencho, Nakaku, Sakai, Osaka 5998531, Japan
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5
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García JT, Domínguez‐Villaseñor J, Alda F, Calero‐Riestra M, Pérez Olea P, Fargallo JA, Martínez‐Padilla J, Herranz J, Oñate JJ, Santamaría A, Motro Y, Attie C, Bretagnolle V, Delibes J, Viñuela J. A complex scenario of glacial survival in Mediterranean and continental refugia of a temperate continental vole species (
Microtus arvalis
) in Europe. J ZOOL SYST EVOL RES 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/jzs.12323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jesús T. García
- IREC, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (CSIC‐UCLM‐JCCM) Ciudad Real Spain
| | | | - Fernando Alda
- Museum of Natural Science, Department of Biological Sciences Louisiana State University Baton Rouge Louisiana USA
| | - María Calero‐Riestra
- IREC, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (CSIC‐UCLM‐JCCM) Ciudad Real Spain
| | - Pedro Pérez Olea
- Terrestrial Ecology Group (TEG), Departamento de Ecología Universidad Autónoma de Madrid Madrid Spain
| | - Juan Antonio Fargallo
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales MNCN‐CSIC Madrid Spain
| | | | - Jesús Herranz
- Terrestrial Ecology Group (TEG), Departamento de Ecología Universidad Autónoma de Madrid Madrid Spain
| | - Juan José Oñate
- Terrestrial Ecology Group (TEG), Departamento de Ecología Universidad Autónoma de Madrid Madrid Spain
| | - Ana Santamaría
- IREC, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (CSIC‐UCLM‐JCCM) Ciudad Real Spain
| | - Yoav Motro
- Plant Protection and Inspection Services Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Bet Dagan Israel
| | | | - Vincent Bretagnolle
- Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372 CNRS and Université de la Rochelle La Rochelle France
- LTSER Zone Atelier Plaine and Val de Sèvre CNRS Villiers‐en‐Bois France
| | | | - Javier Viñuela
- IREC, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (CSIC‐UCLM‐JCCM) Ciudad Real Spain
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Cassel‐Lundhagen A, Schmitt T, Wahlberg N, Sarvašová L, Konvička M, Ryrholm N, Kaňuch P. Wing morphology of the butterfly
Coenonympha arcania
in Europe: Traces of both historical isolation in glacial refugia and current adaptation. J ZOOL SYST EVOL RES 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/jzs.12360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Thomas Schmitt
- Senckenberg German Entomological Institute Müncheberg Germany
- Zoology Institute of Biology Faculty of Natural Sciences I Martin Luther University Halle‐Wittenberg Halle (Saale) Germany
| | | | - Lenka Sarvašová
- Institute of Forest Ecology Slovak Academy of Sciences Zvolen Slovakia
| | - Martin Konvička
- Faculty of Sciences University South Bohemia České Budějovice Czech Republic
| | - Nils Ryrholm
- Department of Electronics, Mathematics and Natural Sciences Faculty of Engineering and Sustainable Development University of Gävle Gävle Sweden
| | - Peter Kaňuch
- Institute of Forest Ecology Slovak Academy of Sciences Zvolen Slovakia
- Institute of Biology and Ecology Faculty of Science P. J. Šafárik University in Košice Košice Slovakia
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7
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Will refaunation by feral horse affect five checkerspot butterfly species (Melitaea Fabricius, 1807) coexisting at xeric grasslands of Podyji National Park, Czech Republic? J Nat Conserv 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jnc.2019.125755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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8
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Ehl S, Holzhauer SIJ, Ryrholm N, Schmitt T. Phenology, mobility and behaviour of the arcto-alpine species Boloria napaea in its arctic habitat. Sci Rep 2019; 9:3912. [PMID: 30846780 PMCID: PMC6405876 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-40508-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2018] [Accepted: 02/14/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Arctic and alpine environments present extreme, but different, challenges to survival. We therefore studied the ecological adaptation of the arctic-alpine fritillary Boloria napaea in northern Sweden and compared these results with the eastern Alps. Using mark-release-recapture, we analysed phenology, mobility, activity patterns, change in wing condition and nectar sources. The phenology showed no protandry, but a longer flight period of the females. Wing conditions revealed a linear decay being quicker in males than females. The mean flight distances were higher for males than females (143 vs 92 m). In general, males were more flight active, while females invested more time in feeding and resting. The shortness of the flight period in the Arctic is apparently a particular adaptation to these harsh conditions, not even allowing protandry, and constraining all individuals to hatch during a short period. These conditions also forced the individuals to concentrate on flight and alimentation. In general, Arctic and Alpine populations of B. napaea show few differences, but the species seems to be even better adapted to the northern environments. Thus, the short temporal separation of these populations seems not to have been sufficient for a divergent adaptation in the southern mountains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Ehl
- Biogeography, Trier University, D-54286, Trier, Germany. .,Senckenberg German Entomological Institute, D-15374, Müncheberg, Germany.
| | - Stephanie I J Holzhauer
- Senckenberg German Entomological Institute, D-15374, Müncheberg, Germany.,Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), D-15374, Müncheberg, Germany
| | - Nils Ryrholm
- Department of Electronics, Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Gävle, SE-80176, Gävle, Sweden
| | - Thomas Schmitt
- Senckenberg German Entomological Institute, D-15374, Müncheberg, Germany.,Entomology, Department of Zoology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences I, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, D-06099, Halle (Saale), Germany
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9
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Ehl S, Böhm N, Wörner M, Rákosy L, Schmitt T. Dispersal and adaptation strategies of the high mountain butterfly Boloria pales in the Romanian Carpathians. Front Zool 2019; 16:1. [PMID: 30675174 PMCID: PMC6335762 DOI: 10.1186/s12983-018-0298-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2018] [Accepted: 12/25/2018] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Habitat quality is one main trigger for the persistence of butterflies. The effects of the influencing biotic and abiotic factors may be enhanced by the challenging conditions in high-alpine environments. To better our knowledge in this field, we performed a mark-release-recapture study with Boloria pales in the Southern Carpathians. Methods We analysed population structure, movement and foraging behaviour to investigate special adaptations to the alpine environment and to reveal differences between sexes. We compared these aspects in one sector with and one sector without grazing to address the effects of grazing intensity on habitat quality. Results We observed "soft" protandry, in which only a small number of males appeared before females, and an extended emergence of individuals over the observed flight period, dividing the population's age structure into three phases; both observations are considered adaptations to high mountain environments. Although both sexes were mostly sedentary, movement differences between them were obvious. Males flew larger distances than females and were more flight-active. This might explain the dimorphism in foraging behaviour: males preferred nectar sources of Asteraceae, females Caprifoliaceae. Transition from the grazed to the ungrazed sector was only observed for males and not for females, but the population density was higher and the flight distances of the individuals were significantly longer on the grazed sector compared with the ungrazed one. Conclusion Soft protandry, an extended emergence of the individuals and an adapted behavioural dimorphism between sexes render to represent a good adaptation of B. pales to the harsh environmental conditions of high mountain ecosystems. However, land-use intensity apparently has severe influence on population densities and movement behaviour. To protect B. pales and other high-alpine species from the negative consequences of overgrazing, areas without or just light grazing are needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Ehl
- 1Biogeography, Trier University, Universitätsring 15, D-54286 Trier, Germany.,2Senckenberg German Entomological Institute, D-15374 Müncheberg, Germany
| | - Niklas Böhm
- 1Biogeography, Trier University, Universitätsring 15, D-54286 Trier, Germany.,FÖA Landschaftsplanung GmbH, D-54296 Trier, Germany
| | - Manuel Wörner
- 1Biogeography, Trier University, Universitätsring 15, D-54286 Trier, Germany
| | - László Rákosy
- 4Department of Taxonomy and Ecology, Babeş-Bolyai University, RO-400084 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Thomas Schmitt
- 2Senckenberg German Entomological Institute, D-15374 Müncheberg, Germany.,5Entomology, Department of Zoology, Institute of Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences I, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, D-06099 Halle (Saale), Germany
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10
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Pecsenye K, Tóth A, Tóth JP, Bereczki J, Katona G, Varga Z. Surprising diversity in the Pannonian populations of Marsh Fritillary (Euphydryas aurinia, Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae): Morphometric and molecular aspects. J ZOOL SYST EVOL RES 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/jzs.12227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Katalin Pecsenye
- Department of Evolutionary Zoology and Human Biology; University of Debrecen; Debrecen Hungary
| | - Andrea Tóth
- Department of Evolutionary Zoology and Human Biology; University of Debrecen; Debrecen Hungary
| | - János P. Tóth
- MTA-DE ‘Lendület’ Evolutionary Phylogenomics Research Group; Debrecen Hungary
| | - Judit Bereczki
- Department of Evolutionary Zoology and Human Biology; University of Debrecen; Debrecen Hungary
| | - Gergely Katona
- Department of Evolutionary Zoology and Human Biology; University of Debrecen; Debrecen Hungary
| | - Zoltán Varga
- Department of Evolutionary Zoology and Human Biology; University of Debrecen; Debrecen Hungary
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11
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Kühne G, Kosuch J, Hochkirch A, Schmitt T. Extra-Mediterranean glacial refugia in a Mediterranean faunal element: the phylogeography of the chalk-hill blue Polyommatus coridon (Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae). Sci Rep 2017. [PMCID: PMC5353669 DOI: 10.1038/srep43533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Most warm-adapted Central European species are thought to have survived ice ages exclusively in Mediterranean refugia. During recent years, this point of view has been questioned. Therefore, we tested the hypothesis that extra-Mediterranean refugia also played a role in warm-adapted insect species and selected the chalk-hill blue, Polyommatus coridon. We sequenced two mitochondrial loci (COI, CR) in 150 individuals from 30 populations covering nearly the complete range. Minimum spanning networks and other statistical analyses concordantly revealed four genetic lineages with strong phylogeographic signal: a western group in Italy, France and western/central Germany, an eastern lineage in the Balkan Peninsula, the Carpathian Basin and eastern Central Europe, an Alpine group with populations in the Alps and southern Germany and a Pyrenean group. Our results are generally consistent with previous analyses for P. coridon based on allozymes and DNA sequences, but provide additional insights. We propose that these four lineages have evolved during allopatry in different glacial refugia, two in typical Mediterranean refugia (Apennines and Balkan Peninsulas), but two in extra-Mediterranean areas south of the Alps and Pyrenees. This supports survival of warm-adapted organisms in these regions in close geographic proximity to the refugia of high mountain species.
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12
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Vitali F, Schmitt T. Ecological patterns strongly impact the biogeography of western Palaearctic longhorn beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycoidea). ORG DIVERS EVOL 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s13127-016-0290-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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