Chthonius hungaricus and Larca lata new to the fauna of Slovakia (Pseudoscorpiones: Chthoniidae, Larcidae)

Chthonius (Chthonius) hungaricus Mahnert, 1980 and Larca lata (Hansen, 1884) were recorded for the first time from Slovakia. The finding of C. hungaricus in Slovakia is the second known record since its description and the finding of L. lata is the first record of the family of Larcidae in Slovakia. The descriptions of the species offer an update on the variability of morphologic and morphometric characters. Indications about the habitats of C. hungaricus are also given for the first time

A molecular survey of Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato in central-eastern Europe

Central-eastern Europe is an endemic region for cystic echinococcosis where multiple species of intermediate hosts are commonly infected with Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato tapeworms of major medical and veterinary importance. Investigations of the genetic variation of 25 Echinococcus isolates from five countries (Slovakia, Romania, Ukraine, Hungary, Poland) were undertaken using three mitochondrial DNA markers. The 18 isolates from pigs derived from Slovakia and Ukraine and the four human isolates from Slovakia, Poland and Ukraine were identified as E. canadensis G7, whereas the three human isolates from Romania and Hungary were classified as E. granulosus sensu stricto G1. This study reports the first confirmed human case of E. granulosus s.s. in Hungary. The haplotype G7A with two polymorphic sites relative to the most common regional variant of E. canadensis G7 was recorded in both pigs from Ukarine and in a single pig isolate from Slovakia. The results of this study support the circumstantial evidence that E. canadensis G7 with low infectivity for humans is highly prevalent in the northern parts of the region (Poland, Slovakia, forest-steppe zone of Ukraine),while infections with E. granulosus s.s. which are highly infectious for humans are more commonly encountered in Romania and Hungary

Europe’s Little Tiger?: Reassessing Economic Transition in Slovakia under the Mečiar Government 1993-1998

Vladimir Mečiar, the first Prime Minister of independent Slovakia, is often criticized for his suppression of free media, political repression, and the widespread corruption of his government from 1993-1998. Mečiar has also been attacked for his economic policies, which critics suggest slowed down privatization and left Slovakia in a huge debt crisis. A closer look at macroeconomic data, however, demonstrates an impressive economic record for Mečiar, who oversaw several years of strong GDP growth, and relatively low levels of unemployment and inflation. By slowing down the privatization process, retaining control of key industries, and maintaining the social safety net, Mečiar was able to soften the blow of economic transition in Slovakia and prepare the groundwork politically for later market reform. Quick “shock therapy” in 1993 would have been politically disastrous in the nascent state, and it was only as a result of Mečiar’s slow-go policies that Slovakia is seen today as one of the great successes of post-Communist economic transition

Macroeconomic Dynamics in Macedonia and Slovakia: Structural Estimation and Comparison

This paper estimates the structural model of Linde et al. (2008) using data for Macedonia and Slovakia. A comparison of the estimated model parameters suggest that, in Slovakia, the output gap is less sensitive to real interest rate movements and prices experience greater inertia. The estimated monetary policy reaction functions present Macedonia and Slovakia as inflation targeters, with Macedonia as the more conservative one, despite its officially applied exchange rate targeting regime. The differences in estimated parameters imply differing transmission mechanisms for Macedonia and Slovakia. Consequently, the variance of domestic variables in Slovakia is most influenced by monetary policy shocks, while there is no single dominating shock explaining the volatility of Macedonia’s macroeconomic variables. The exchange rate shock, the monetary policy shock and the demand shock are jointly important in determining the volatility of Macedonia’s variables. The model simulations indicate that Macedonia experiences lower output gap and inflation volatility than Slovakia. This comes, nevertheless, at the cost of higher interest rate and real exchange rate volatility in Macedonia, which could be an indication of more volatile financial markets.Structural Open-Economy Model, Bayesian Estimation, Eastern European Transition Economies.

Is new spread of the European beaver in Pannonian basin an evidence of the species recovery?

Abstract: During fieldwork from 6 June to 20 July 2016, the first records of the European beaver (Castor fiber) in south-eastern Slovakia were made. Beavers are mainly nocturnal animals, and as such, they are rarely observed; therefore, our observations were based on searching for beaver presence signs: damaged trees, dams, signs of food consumption (chewed/felled trees) and footprints in the mud. The southern part of the Košická kotlina basin, from the city of Košice down to the state border and the surrounding villages in Hungary, was checked. We found two beaver locations via feeding signs in the vicinity of the Slovakia–Hungary state border, at the villages of Milhosť (Miglécnémeti) and Buzica (Buzita), in Slovakia. According to our calculations, the present total beaver population in Hungary is between 4,000 and 5,000 and 14,600–18,300 beavers with potential support. For Slovakia, we estimated the potential population size to be 7,700–9,600. Our findings in northern Pannonian lowland (Slovakia–Hungary border) are an important evidence of beaver expansion. Although we don’t know the exact origin of investigated population, these new records indicate the possibility of merging the populations of different origin, which could enable gene flow and increase the genetic diversity. This could lead to improved recovery of species and its stabilisation in nature. However, it is necessary to carry out a detailed investigation of the presence of beaver in these regions in future