Uneven frequency of Vibrio alginolyticus-group isolates among different populations of Galápagos marine iguana (Amblyrhynchus cristatus)

The presence of Vibrio isolates was investigated in cloacal swabs from the Galápagos marine iguana (Amblyrhyncus cristatus). Such unique iguana is endemic to the Galápagos Archipelago, it is listed as vulnerable in the IUCN Red List (2009), and is strictly protected by CITES and Ecuador laws. Our results revealed an uneven isolation frequency of vibrios from animals living in different settings: maximal among the Santa Fe population, scarce at Bahía Tortuga but practically absent in the samples from Puerto Ayora and Plaza Sur. A 16S sequencing confirmed that the isolates belonged to the genus Vibrio, placing them within the V. alginolyticus group; the biochemical identification was, indeed, consistent with V. alginolyticus features. The reason of the observed discrepancy is not clear, but could be either linked to a higher pollution in the inhabited or more touristic places or to differential influence of chemical and physical parameters at a local scale. As V. alginolyticus is an opportunistic pathogen for man and it is known to cause disease in sea-living animals, the ability of these vibrios to enter and persist to a certain extent in the marine iguana gut should be regarded as a risk for health of both the animals and the human personnel involved in monitoring activities

Illegal wildlife trade in Galápagos: molecular tools help the taxonomic identification of confiscated iguanas and guide their rapid repatriation

Four species of iguanas occur in Galápagos. All of them are included in the red list of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. In Ecuador, attempting to remove wildlife from the Galápagos Islands is a serious environmental crime, punishable under Articles of the Ecuadorian Criminal Code. On July 2012, a tourist was arrested in Galápagos while trying to illegally transport four iguanas out of the province. The four iguanas, confiscated by the authorities of Galápagos National Park, needed rapid taxonomic identification and determination of geographic origin for the purposes of repatriation. The phylogenetic analysis of the Cytochrome b sequence data contributed to the unequivocal molecular taxonomic identification of the four confiscated iguanas, each of which belonged to the species Conolophus subcristatus. The genetic data unambiguously indicated that the four confiscated iguanas had been subtracted from the same population, currently distributed in Baltra and Seymour Norte. The use of molecular tools proved crucial for the rapid assessment of the population of origin. Such a rapid assessment was possible because a large genetic database was already available for Galápagos iguanas. It is recommended that genetic programs be developed for the complete genetic characterization of wildlife in Galápagos as well as in other areas of endemism worldwide

“Ask the expert”, an initiative of project CSMON-LIFE

CSMON-LIFE (Citizen Science MONitoring) aims at involving citizens in monitoring Italian biodiversity by a citizen science approach. Novel IT tools for mobile devices have been developed in the framework of the project, providing citizens with a platform for collecting and sharing geo-referenced data of target species. CSMON-LIFE also offered another option to participants, the “Ask the expert” campaign, which aims at encouraging citizens to satisfy their curiosity, by trying to identify and reporting other organisms other than the project’s target species, and having experts verifying their identification. This report analyses the data of taxa collected in the “Ask the expert” campaign, in order to evaluate the degree of citizen’s participation and engagement, the quality of observations, the distribution of observations, as well as the most intriguing taxa to citizens. The data analysed were: 1) amount of sightings, entrants and mean number of sightings per entrant; 2) temporal and spatial distribution of observations; 3) estimates of the correct identifications; 4) which taxa have been reported by citizens. During two years, more than 500 citizen scientists reported ca. 3000 observations, with a linear growth over time, and a certain degree of heterogeneity in temporal distribution, with evident seasonal peaks. Since the project started in Lazio, observations came mainly from this region. However, a high number of sightings were collected in other regions (Lombardia and Emilia-Romagna, especially). The whole dataset of observations included several taxonomic groups from plants to animals. As far as animal taxa are concerned, the greatest number of observations was about invertebrates, which triggered curiosity in most people, like spiders and insects (especially species of the orders Lepidoptera and Coleoptera). As far as vertebrates are concerned, most observations were collected on birds, mammals and reptiles. Citizens also provided new data on the occurrence of some alien animal species in Italy. Finally, these results enable us to make assumptions about which taxonomic groups could be best taken into account in future biodiversity projects aiming at involving citizens

DNA Barcodes of the animal species occurring in Italy under the European “Habitats Directive” (92/43/EEC): a reference library for the Italian National Biodiversity Network

The present paper reports the development of a public project addressed to build up and publish a DNA barcode reference library for the animal species occurring in Italy listed in the II, IV and V Annexes of the “Habitats Directive” 92/43/EEC. DNA barcoding is a global standard, namely a procedure based on a gene sequence located in a standardized genome region as a diagnostic biomarker for species. DNA barcodes data have been either produced in our laboratories or collected from the literature and international gene databases. They were subsequently used to assemble a database containing both genetic data and information related to the origin of the data. This project represents the first pilot store of DNA sequence data built-in interoperability within the portal of the National Network of Biodiversity of the Italian Ministry of the Environment. The archive, called "DNA Barcode Database of Italian Nature 2000 animal species" (owned by the Zoology and Evolutionary Biology group at Tor Vergata University), was implemented in a relational DBMS with a free license program (PostgreSQL v9.3.4), mapped using the schema ABCD and the extension DNA, and then made interoperable using the software BioCASE (v3.6.0)

DNA Barcodes of the animal species occurring in Italy under the European “Habitats Directive” (92/43/EEC): a reference library for the Italian National Biodiversity Network

The present paper reports the development of a public project addressed to build up and publish a DNA barcode reference library for the animal species occurring in Italy listed in the II, IV and V Annexes of the “Habitats Directive” 92/43/EEC. DNA barcoding is a global standard, namely a procedure based on a gene sequence located in a standardized genome region as a diagnostic biomarker for species. DNA barcodes data have been either produced in our laboratories or collected from the literature and international gene databases. They were subsequently used to assemble a database containing both genetic data and information related to the origin of the data. This project represents the first pilot store of DNA sequence data built-in interoperability within the portal of the National Network of Biodiversity of the Italian Ministry of the Environment. The archive, called "DNA Barcode Database of Italian Nature 2000 animal species" (owned by the Zoology and Evolutionary Biology group at Tor Vergata University), was implemented in a relational DBMS with a free license program (PostgreSQL v9.3.4), mapped using the schema ABCD and the extension DNA, and then made interoperable using the software BioCASE (v3.6.0)

DNA Barcodes of the animal species occurring in Italy under the European “Habitats Directive” (92/43/EEC): a reference library for the Italian National Biodiversity Network

The present paper reports the development of a public project addressed to build up and publish a DNA barcode reference library for the animal species occurring in Italy listed in the II, IV and V Annexes of the “Habitats Directive” 92/43/EEC. DNA barcoding is a global standard, namely a procedure based on a gene sequence located in a standardized genome region as a diagnostic biomarker for species. DNA barcodes data have been either produced in our laboratories or collected from the literature and international gene databases. They were subsequently used to assemble a database containing both genetic data and information related to the origin of the data. This project represents the first pilot store of DNA sequence data built-in interoperability within the portal of the National Network of Biodiversity of the Italian Ministry of the Environment. The archive, called "DNA Barcode Database of Italian Nature 2000 animal species" (owned by the Zoology and Evolutionary Biology group at Tor Vergata University), was implemented in a relational DBMS with a free license program (PostgreSQL v9.3.4), mapped using the schema ABCD and the extension DNA, and then made interoperable using the software BioCASE (v3.6.0)