Morfološka varijabilnost, rasprostranjenost i ugroženost ogulinske špiljske spužve Eunapius subterraneus Sket & Velikonja, 1984 (Demospongiae, Spongillidae)

The distribution and morphological variability of the troglobiotic freshwater sponge Eunapius subterraneus Sket & Velikonja, 1984 registered in Croatia as a threatened species in the IUCN category Endangered (EN) was investigated. The research area encompassed Velika and Mala Kapela Mountains as well as the upper catchment area of the Dobra and Mrežnica rivers on the NE side of Velika and Mala Kapela Mountains, mostly in the Ogulin–Plaški karst plateau. The species was registered in six localities, three previously known from the literature and three constituting new records: Mandelaja pit and the caves Crnačka špilja and Izvor špilja Gojak. For subspecies identification the morphology and dimensions of megascleres and gemmuloscleres of the collected samples were analyzed. Significant differences among sponge populations were indicated by one-way ANOVA (p < 0.001) in width and length of megascleres. The subspecies E. s. mollisparspanis Sket & Velikonja, 1984 was found only at its type locality, in the cave Rudnica špilja VI. The preliminary variability of other populations after discriminant function analysis of measured morphometric parameters such as the width and length of mega- and gemmulo-scleres indicates four groups, but it was not possible to separate them clearly in all cases. Subterranean sponges were not found in two localities known from the past, the Đula – Medvedica cave system and the cave Špilja u kamenolomu Tounj, both under great pressure of groundwater habitat changes because of water pollution, river direction changes and habitat destruction.Istraživana je rasprostranjenost i morfološka varijabilnost ogulinske špiljske spužve Eunapius subterraneus Sket & Velikonja, 1984, koja je prema kriterijima IUCN registrirana kao ugrožena vrsta. Područje istraživanja obuhvaća Veliku i Malu Kapelu te ogulinsko-plaščansku zavalu, odnosno gornje slivno područje rijeka Dobre i Zagorske Mrežnice na sjeveroistočnoj strani Male i Velike Kapele. Vrsta je zabilježena na šest lokaliteta, od kojih su tri nova: Mandelaja, Crnačka špilja i Izvor špilja Gojak. Za determinaciju podvrsta korištena su sljedeća morfološka obilježja: veličina i oblik gemosklera i megasklera. Značajne razlike između populacija pokazala je jednosmjerna analiza varijance širine i dužine megasklera. Podvrsta E. s. mollisparspanis je utvrđena samo na tipskom lokalitetu, u špilji Rudnica VI. Diskriminantna analiza mjerenih morfoloških parametara koji su uključivali dužinu i širinu mega- i gemosklera prikazala je odnose među populacijama svrstavajući ih u četiri grupe, ali ih nije potpuno razdvojila. Podzemne populacije spužvi nisu ponovno pronađene u špiljskom sustavu Đula-Medvedica i Špilji u kamenolomu Tounj. Ti su lokaliteti ugroženi zbog zagađenja vode, hidrotehničkih zahvata i devastacije uzrokovane radom kamenoloma

Genome evolution in morphological adaptation to cave environment in Astyanax mexicanus

Trabajo presentado en el EMBO Workshop The evolution of animal genomes, celebrado en modalidad virtual del 13 al 17 de septiembre de 2021

The role of Cis-Regulatory elements in morphological adaptation to cave environment in Astyanax mexicanus

Trabajo presentado en EMBO Workshop Enhanceropathies: Understanding enhancer function to understand human disease, celebrado en Santander (España) del 06 al 09 de octubre de 2021

Ecological divergence of Chaetopteryx rugulosa species complex (Insecta, Trichoptera) linked to climatic niche diversification

Climate is often considered to be an important, but indirect driver of speciation. Indeed, environmental factors may contribute to the formation of biodiversity, but to date this crucial relationship remains largely unexplored. Here we investigate the possible role of climate, geological factors, and biogeographical processes in the formation of a freshwater insect species group, the Chaetopteryx rugulosa species complex (Trichoptera) in the Western Balkans. We used multi-locus DNA sequence data to establish a dated phylogenetic hypothesis for the group. The comparison of the dated phylogeny with the geological history of the Western Balkans shows that lineage formation coincided with major past Earth surface and climatic events in the region. By reconstructing present-day habitat conditions (climate, bedrock geology), we show that the lineages of C. rugulosa species complex have distinct climatic but not bedrock geological niches. Without exception, all splits associated with Pliocene/Pleistocene transition led to independent, parallel split into ‘warm’ and ‘cold’ sister lineages. This indicates a non-random diversification on the C. rugulosa species complex associated with late Pliocene climate in the region. We interpreted the results as the diversification of the species complex were mainly driven by ecological diversification linked to past climate change, along with geographical isolation