Funktional–morphologische Untersuchung des Fressapparates bei vier cryptodiren Schildkröten

In Gegensatz zur aquatischen Nahrungsaufnahme, deren Kinematik relativ gut untersucht ist, ist der Mechanismus des terrestrischen Fressens der Schildkröten nahezu unbekannt. Im Rahmen dieser Dissertation wird eine detaillierte, vergleichend- und funktionsmorphologische Analyse des Fressvorgangs unter Wasser und an Land bei drei Arten von Geoemydidae und einer Spezies der Kinosternidae durchgeführt. Die Anatomie des Craniums und des Hyolingualkomplexes von Cuora galbinifrons, Cuors amboinensis, Cuora flavomarginata und Sternotherus odoratus werden beschrieben. Bezüglich der Kopfmorphologie der drei Geoemydidae Arten der Gattung Cuora sp., konnten einige Ungenauigkeiten der bisherigen Beschreibungen korrigiert werden. Die gewonnene Information über die Konstruktion des Neurocraniums, Kiefer- und Hyolingualapparates wird funktionell - morphologisch ausgewertet um Korrelationen zwischen „Bauplan“ und Habitatpräferenzen besser verstehen zu können. Eine vergleichend-morphologische Untersuchung beantwortet die Frage, wie die Strukturen des Fressapparates bei eng verwandten Arten mit alternierenden Habitatpräferenzen ausgebildet sind und welche Funktion sie besitzen. Die vorliegenden Studien beinhalten die erste kinematische Analyse des Fressvorganges bei Vertretern der größten rezenten Schildkrötengruppe Geoemydidae. Die vorliegende Arbeit beinhaltet auch die erste, auf high-speed Videos (500 fr/s) basierende, Untersuchung der Nahrungsaufnahme von einem Vertreter der Kinosternidae (S. odoratus). Die funktionell-morphologische Analyse bei hier untersuchten Cuora Arten demonstriert, dass relativ kleine Unterschiede in der Form des Fressapparates, fundamentale Auswirkungen auf dessen Funktion haben können. Unsere Ergebnisse demonstrieren, dass terrestrische Nahrungsaufnahme mindestens dreimal „de novo“ unabhängig innerhalb der rezenten Chelonier entstanden ist. Die morphologischen und kinematischen Untersuchungen an S. odoratus demonstrieren, dass diese aquatischen Schildkröten problemlos an Land ihre Nahrung schnappen können, die kritische Fressphase ist die des erste Transportzyklus. Es ist zu erwarten, dass manche aquatische Schildkröten es im Rahmen ihrer evolutionären Entwicklung geschafft haben an Land den Fressvorgang zu vollenden. Rein terrestrische Testudiniden hingegen haben offensichtlich den "point of no return" zu einer aquatischen Lebensweise bereits überschritten. Die Evolution terrestrischer Nahrungsaufnahme ist demzufolge eine „Einbahnstrasse“

Benefits for visitors provided by protected areas in Bulgaria and willingness to become a conservation volunteer

Protected areas in Bulgaria (PAB) provide valuable ecosystem services. Maintaining of ecosystem health is of great importance for human wellbeing. The environmental volunteering is a valuable tool in solving local ecological problems. The main objective of the present research was to identify ecosystem services offered by PAB and attitude to participation in conservation volunteering using online survey and face-to-face interviews. Most respondents regularly use ecosystem services offered by PAB. Being well-informed about significance of maintaining ecosystem health, a lot of them declared willingness to become conservation volunteers. Online surveys could be used not only for data collection, but as also as a tool to involve people in environmental protection

First record of the Balkan-Anatolian crested newt (Triturus ivanbureschi Arntzen & Wielstra, 2013) on the territory of the Nature Park “Shumensko plato”

In a four-year monitoring period, numerous permanent and temporary water basins on the territory of the Habitat Protected Site BG0000382 and the Nature Park “Shumensko Plato” (NE Bulgaria) were identified as possible habitats for amphibians. We inspected the water bodies for presence of Urodelas, included in the inventory documentation of the protected territories. Despite intense field surveys and use of traps, we were able only recently to identify one specimen of the Balkan-Anatolian crested newt. This is the first official record of the species for the protected site

First survey on the invasive Pond slider (Trachemys scripta) in Bulgaria: historic development and current situation

Crvenouha kornjača (Trachemys scripta) postala je popularni ljubimac u Bugarskoj od 1990. Kroz godine sve veći broj jedinki zabilježen je i u divljini. Iako su negativni učinci na izvornim kornjače su opsežno studirao negdje drugdje, nema posebne studije (osim kratkih izvješća) obratili invaziju T. scripta u Bugarskoj. Ova studija se temelji na više od 25 godina praćenja na terenu i predstavlja prvi izvor detaljne informacije o raspodjeli Pond klizača u Bugarskoj. Ukupno 293 UTM (10 × 10 km) kvadrata sa staništa pogodna za slatkovodne kornjače ispitano. Prikupili smo 64 zapisa za 173 osoba, od 19 UTM kvadrata. Od svih promatranih osoba, samo dvije su od nominirati podvrste - ostatak pripada T. Š. elegans. U našem istraživanju je uočeno samo jednoga djeteta. Do danas nije uspješno leženja zabilježena, iako su registrirani uspješni overwinterings. Mi smo razgovarali o raznim mjere ublažavanja koje se moraju brzo pokrenut ograničiti buduće izdanje Ribnjak klizača i za uklanjanje ne-izvornih uzoraka s bugarskim ekosustava. Akcije su zahtijevali posebno da se izbjegne potencijalne epidemiološko događaja uzrokovanih parazitima s vrlo smrtonosnim učinkom na autohtonim vrstama. Takve pojave potencijalno mogu imati veći utjecaj na autohtone vrste kornjača jezerce od raznih oblika natjecanja s T. scripta.Pond sliders (Trachemys scripta) have become a popular pet in Bulgaria since 1990. Through the years a number of released specimens were observed in the wild. Although the negative effects on native turtles have been studied extensively elsewhere, no specific studies (besides brief reports) have addressed the invasion of T. scripta in Bulgaria. The present study is based on over 25 years of field monitoring and represents the first source of detailed information on the distribution of the Pond slider in Bulgaria. A total of 293 UTM (10×10 km) squares with habitats suitable for freshwater turtles were surveyed. We collected 64 records for 173 individuals, from 19 UTM squares. From all observed individuals, only two were from the nominate subspecies – the rest belong to T. s. elegans. In our study only one subadult was observed. To date no successful hatching has been recorded, although successful overwinterings have been registered. We discuss various mitigation measures that must be rapidly initiated to limit future release of Pond sliders and to remove the non-native specimens from the Bulgarian ecosystems. Actions are demanded especially to avoid the potential epizootic events caused by parasites with highly lethal effect on native species. Such outbreaks might potentially have greater impact on the native pond turtle species than various forms of competition with T. scripta

Determination of the antimicrobial activity of lactic acid bacteria isolated from the Black sea mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis Lamarck, 1819

The present study reports on the determination of the antimicrobial activity of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from the Black sea mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis Lamarck, 1819. The samples were collected in the period of August 2018 until March 2021. The BIOLOG system was used for microbiological determination. From the mussel M. galloprovincialis Lam. four species of LAB were isolated - Sporolactobacillus kofuensis, Lactobacillus sakei, Streptococcus gallolyticus ss gallolyticus and Lactibacillus brevis. The activity of the strains was determined against test cultures (Escherichia coli 3398, Staphylococus aureus 745, Bacillus subtilis 6633, Salmonella typhimurium 3591, Listeria monocytogens 863 Enterobacter aerogenes 3691, Aspergillus niger, Penicillium claviforme, Saccharomyces cerevisae, Candida albicans 8673 and Candida glabrata 72). Before the analysis for antimicrobial activity, the LAB were cultured in media with different concentrations of sugars - 2, 5 and 10%. The results showed that 4 strains S. kofuensis, L. sakei, S. gallolyticus ss gallolyticus and L. brevis cultured on glucose and oligosaccharides completely lost their activity in all studied variants. Therefore, some carbohydrates (glucose) and oligosaccharides induce the synthesis outside the cell of biologically active molecules, which can probably be attributed to peptides/proteins

Biomechanics and hydrodynamics of prey capture in the Chinese giant salamander reveal a high-performance jaw-powered suction feeding mechanism

During the evolutionary transition from fish to tetrapods, a shift from uni- to bidirectional suction feeding systems followed a reduction in the gill apparatus. Such a shift can still be observed during metamorphosis of salamanders, although many adult salamanders retain their aquatic lifestyle and feed by high-performance suction.Unfortunately, little is known about the interplay between jaws and hyobranchial motions to generate bidirectional suction flows. Here,we study the cranial morphology, aswell as kinematic and hydrodynamic aspects related to prey capture in the Chinese giant salamander (Andrias davidianus). Compared with fish and previously studied amphibians, A. davidianus uses an alternative suction mechanismthat mainly relies on accelerating water by separating the ‘plates’ formed by the long and broad upper and lower jaw surfaces. Computational fluid dynamics simulations, based on three-dimensional morphology and kinematical data from high-speed videos, indicate that the viscerocranial elements mainly serve to accommodate the water that was given a sufficient anterior-to-posterior impulse beforehand by powerful jawseparation.We hypothesize that this modifiedway of generating suction is primitive for salamanders, and that this behaviour could have played an important role in the evolution of terrestrial life in vertebrates by releasing mechanical constraints on the hyobranchial system

A fox on the hunt: red fox (Vulpes vulpes) was able to subdue and kill an adult coypu (Myocastor coypus) in a protected site in south-eastern Bulgaria

In the present study, we report on a rare predatory behaviour in the red fox (Vulpes vulpes Linnaeus, 1758). In the early evening of 03.03.2023 we detected a red fox attacking and killing a coypu (Myocastor coypus Molina, 1782). We were able to document the event by the use of camera with tele-lens. The red fox was known to feed on smaller prey like insects, smaller rodents, lagomorphs, birds and others. Data on attacks on large and potentially dangerous prey are rather scarce and we discuss on the potential trigger for that predatory behaviour

Newly registered tracks of Raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes procyonoides) indicate the presence of resident population in the region of Bolata dere (NE Bulgaria)

The Raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides Gray, 1834) is an invasive species which was first recorded for the Bulgarian fauna in 1968. To date, data concerning the distribution of the species in Bulgaria are rather scarce and often provided by non specialists (mostly local fishermen and hunters). The present note includes information concerning the presence of Raccoon dogs in the region of Bolata dere (NE Bulgaria). Faeces and footprints were found in the springs of 2014 and 2015. Apparently, the predators are resident inhabitants of the site, so that particular population could be used for field surveys on the biology of the Raccoon dogs in Bulgaria

A new record of the Blotched snake Elaphe sauromates Pallas, 1811 (Serpentes: Colubridae) from an urbanized habitat in Bulgaria

Naumov, Borislav, Natchev, Nikolay (2016): A new record of the Blotched snake Elaphe sauromates Pallas, 1811 (Serpentes: Colubridae) from an urbanized habitat in Bulgaria. ZooNotes 92: 1-3, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.830134