An integrated approach to delimiting species borders in the genus Chrysotoxum Meigen, 1803 (Diptera: Syrphidae), with description of two new species

Integrative taxonomy tests the validity of taxa using methods additional to traditional morphology. The existence of two different morphotypes in specimens identified as Chrysotoxum vernale Loew (Diptera: Syrphidae) prompted their taxonomic study using an integrative approach that included morphology, wing and male-surstylus geometric morphometrics, genetic and ecological analyses. As a result, a new species is recognised, Chrysotoxum montanum Nedeljković & Vujić sp. nov., and C. vernale is re-defined. A lectotype and paralectotypes are designated for C. vernale to stabilize this concept. An additional species, Chrysotoxum orthostylum Vujić sp. nov., with distinctive male genitalia is also described. The three species share an antenna with the basoflagellomere shorter than the scape plus pedicel and terga with yellow fasciae not reaching the lateral margins. This study confirms the value of integrative approach for resolving species boundaries.Financial support was provided by the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development (projects OI173002 and III43002), the Provincial Secretariat for Science and Technological Development (project ‘Genetic resources of agro-ecosystems in Vojvodina and sustainable agriculture’), the Transnational Access to Research Infrastructures activity in the FP7 of the EC (ExpeER project, TA visit ‘STEPS’) and the FP7 EU project, Innosense

Evaluation of rapd markers as a marker-assisted selection tool for variety type and erucic acid content in rapeseed

Random amplification of polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis was performed on twelve rapeseed genotypes from Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops, Novi Sad, Serbia, genepool in order to identify markers that could be used in marker assisted selection (MAS) for different growing type and selection of the varieties with low or zero level of erucic acid. Out of fifteen RAPD markers, three were monomorphic, whereas twelve had polymorphic profiles. Three primers amplified specific fragments in spring varieties. UBC 25 and UBC 191 amplified the fragments of 450 and 750 bp, respectively, in all tested spring varieties, except in JR-NS-36. Primer UBC 72 generated a fragment of 700 bp that was present in all spring varieties. These fragments were not present in any of winter varieties. None of the tested RAPD primers amplified fragment(s) uniquely present either in varieties with or without (0%) erucic acid or with different erucic acid content. Cluster analysis showed a concordance between the position of varieties in the cluster and their pedigree information, but also enabled separation of spring and winter varieties. Contingency analysis confirmed that fragment UBC 72_700 is specific for spring varieties, while for erucic acid content, only moderate association was found with UBC 137_750

The genus Xanthogramma Schiner, 1861 (Diptera: Syrphidae) in southeastern Europe, with descriptions of two new species

Examination of 122 specimens of Xanthogramma Schiner, 1861 (Diptera: Syrphidae) from varied localities in Europe (+Turkey) resulted in the description of two new species (X. aeginae Ricarte, Nedeljković, and Vujić new species and X. pilosum Nedeljković, Ricarte, and Vujić new species), as well as new data on six other species. Most of the examined material originated from the Balkan Peninsula and Greek islands. New species concepts were supported by morphological and molecular evidence. Relationships among the eight studied species were analysed and discussed based on the data of nuclear (ITS2) and mitochondrial (COI) genes sequences. An identification key to the European species of Xanthogramma is provided. Lectotypes are designated for Doros decoratum Zetterstedt, 1843, Lasiophthicus novus Rondani, 1857, Syrphus laetus Fabricius, 1794, Syrphus ornatus Meigen, 1822, and Xanthogramma nobilitatum Frey, 1946.Financial support was provided by the Serbian Ministry of Education and Science (projects OI173002 and III43002), the Provincial Secretariat for Science and Technological Development (project “Genetic resources of agro-ecosystems in Vojvodina and sustainable agriculture”), the FP7 EU project, Innosense, and the H2020 project “ANTARES” (664387), Antonio Ricarte’s position at the University of Alicante is funded by the Vicerrectorado de Investigación y Transferencia de Conocimiento)

Diversity and genetic structure of Ornithogalum L. (Hyacinthaceae) populations as revealed by RAPD-PCR markers

Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) PCR method was used to assess the level of diversity and genetic structure in Ornithogalum L. populations from Serbia and Hungary with the main goal of improving the knowledge of this genus in the given region. The material was collected from 19 populations and identified as two morphologically similar and phylogenetically close taxa: O. umbellatum L. 1753 and O. divergens Boreau 1887. All ten RAPD primers used for the analysis gave PCR products, with length between 3000bp and 300bp. There were 101 amplified fragments in total; number of polymorphic bands per primer varied between seven and 13. Percentage of polymorphic loci was 96% in total and 12% in average in each population. Genetic variation statistics for all loci also showed that genetic diversity for all populations was 0.29 and Shannon index 0.45, while mean values for these parameters calculated for each population were 0.04 and 0.06, respectively. Analysis of molecular variance demonstrated high population genetic differentiation; however Mantel test showed no significant correlation between geographic distances of populations and genetic distances expressed through population pairwise FST. UPGMA dendrogram based on Jaccard genetic similarity coefficients showed subclustering and principal coordinate analysis based on Nei and Li coefficients of genetic distances indicated grouping. Analysis of populations genetic structure was in accordance with these results and clearly separated populations of O. umbellatum from O. divergens. RAPDs proved to be a reliable and rapid method suitable for distinguishing genetic differentiation in Ornithogalum, thus could be applied as a useful additional tool in resolving taxonomic problems. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 173002

Prevalence and genetic variability of Plesiomonas shigelloides in temperate climate surface waters of the Pannonian Plain

Plesiomonas shigelloides, a Gram-negative bacterium and the causative agent of intestinal diseases and extraintestinal infections in humans and animals, is most frequently found in aquatic environments in tropical or subtropical areas. The present study was designed to establish the prevalence and genetic variability of P. shigelloides in surface waters (lakes, rivers, ponds, inlets and canals) located in a temperate climate zone, namely the Pannonian Plain of the northern part of Serbia and southern part of Hungary. The strains were isolated directly by plating samples on inositol-brilliant green-bile agar with neutral red or phenol red as indicators. Our results indicate that phenol red effectively facilitates differentiation of P. shigelloides from other bacteria. A number of samples were enriched using alkaline peptone water broth, peptone inositolbile broth and tetrathionate broth. The recovery of the isolates was more successful with the first medium. Out of a total of 51 water samples collected from 28 different locations, 22 samples (43.1%) were found positive for P. shigelloides. Among the 37 isolated strains, 34 were from lakes (Šatrinci, Ludaš, Panonija, Krivaja, Pecs, Kapetanski rit, Pavlovci, Kovacsszenaja, Dobrodol, Vranjaš, Borkovac, Hermann Otto, Sot, Šelevrenac, Zobnatica, Palić, Orfui, Jarkovci, Čonoplja) and 3 were from rivers (Danube, Sava). The strains were identified by phenotypic characteristic or by the VITEK2 system and confirmed by PCR using 23S rRNA species-specific oligos. The strains showed a high genetic variability, displaying a variety of RAPD profiles. Our results reveal for the first time a high prevalence of genetically diverse P. shigelloides populations in surface waters located in the temperate climate of central and southeastern Europe. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. OI 172058

Assessment of genetic diversity within the Merodon ruficornis species group (Diptera: Syrphidae) by RAPD analysis

As one of the most distinct groups in the hoverfly genus Merodon, the monophyletic ruficornis species group has been the focus of several studies using different approaches. Molecular methods have shown incongruences between morphological and molecular data. In the present study, we investigated four species of the Merodon ruficornis group (i.e. M. loewi, M. armipes, M. papillus and M. hoplitis) with the aim of detecting intra- and interspecific genetic diversity, and we examined the usefulness of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) in an integrative taxonomic approach to species delimitation. Analysis of Nei’s genetic variation over all loci showed that genetic diversity for the analyzed Merodon species was h=0.24. Based on UPGMA, PCoA and Bayesian clustering analyses, our results clearly differentiated four groups that correspond to the four morphologically-defined Merodon species. Among the analyzed species, M. armipes and M. hoplitis showed the lowest level of genetic divergence; M. loewi was clearly separated from both M. armipes and M. papillus. Based on our data, we propose the use of RAPD-PCR as an additional tool for resolving taxonomic problems within Merodon. [Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no.173002

Fig. 5 in Defining species boundaries in the Merodon avidus complex (Diptera, Syrphidae) using integrative taxonomy, with the description of a new species

Fig. 5. Merodon megavidus Vujić & Radenković sp. nov., abdomen, dorsal view. A. Ƌ. B. ♀. Scale bar = 1 mm.Published as part of <i>Ačanski, Jelena, Vujić, Ante, Djan, Mihajla, Vidaković, Dragana Obreht, Ståhls, Gunilla & Radenković, Snežana, 2016, Defining species boundaries in the Merodon avidus complex (Diptera, Syrphidae) using integrative taxonomy, with the description of a new species, pp. 1-25 in European Journal of Taxonomy 237</i> on page 9, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2016.237, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/10076742">http://zenodo.org/record/10076742</a&gt

Fig. 14 in Defining species boundaries in the Merodon avidus complex (Diptera, Syrphidae) using integrative taxonomy, with the description of a new species

Fig. 14. Differences in the posterior part of the surstylus among species of the M. avidus complex. A. Scatter plot of individual scores of CV1 vs CV2. B. Scatter plot of individual scores of CV2 vs CV3.Published as part of <i>Ačanski, Jelena, Vujić, Ante, Djan, Mihajla, Vidaković, Dragana Obreht, Ståhls, Gunilla & Radenković, Snežana, 2016, Defining species boundaries in the Merodon avidus complex (Diptera, Syrphidae) using integrative taxonomy, with the description of a new species, pp. 1-25 in European Journal of Taxonomy 237</i> on page 16, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2016.237, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/10076742">http://zenodo.org/record/10076742</a&gt

Fig. 3. Hind leg, lateral view. A–B in Defining species boundaries in the Merodon avidus complex (Diptera, Syrphidae) using integrative taxonomy, with the description of a new species

Fig. 3. Hind leg, lateral view. A–B. Merodon avidus (Rossi, 1790). A. Ƌ. B. ♀. — C–D. M. megavidus Vujić & Radenković sp. nov. C. Ƌ. D. ♀. Scale bar = 1 mm.Published as part of <i>Ačanski, Jelena, Vujić, Ante, Djan, Mihajla, Vidaković, Dragana Obreht, Ståhls, Gunilla & Radenković, Snežana, 2016, Defining species boundaries in the Merodon avidus complex (Diptera, Syrphidae) using integrative taxonomy, with the description of a new species, pp. 1-25 in European Journal of Taxonomy 237</i> on page 7, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2016.237, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/10076742">http://zenodo.org/record/10076742</a&gt

Data from: Demographic history, current expansion and future management challenges of wild boar populations in the Balkans and Europe

Wild boar (Sus scrofa), one of the most widespread wildlife species, has entered a stage of continuous growth in Europe, and could even be considered a pest species. We analysed microsatellite variability in 723 wild boars from across Europe, including the northern Dinaric Balkans. Our aims were: (1) to define the population structure of wild boars in the Balkans and its relation with other European populations; (2) to estimate effective populations sizes, levels of intra- and inter-population diversity, inbreeding migration and gene flow patterns; (3) to test subpopulations for bottlenecks; (4) to interpret these results in light of current knowledge about the demographic history of wild boars in Europe; and (5) to discuss the relevance of these findings for management and conservation. Strong population structuring was observed and 14 subpopulations were revealed. High genetic diversity was found, and besides the well-known identity of the Italian populations of Sardinia and Castelporziano, we bring new insights to other potential relevant, refugial populations such as Littoral Slovenia, South Portugal, North-western Iberia, and a whole entire cluster in the Balkans. There was evidence of gene flow going from these refugial subpopulations towards less peripheral and more admixed subpopulations. Recent population bottlenecks and expansions were detected, mostly in the peninsular refuge subpopulations. The results are consistent with the fluctuations of wild boar numbers in Europe since the beginning of the twentieth century. These results should be taken into account in future conservation and management plans for wild boar populations in Europe