Population-genetic characterization of common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifoliaL.) from the southern part of the Pannonian Plain and the Peripannonian region of the Central Balkan

Vrsta  Ambrosia  artemisiifolia  L.  (fam.  Asteraceae)  je  jedna  od  najagresivnijih  invazivnih biljaka  kako  u  Evropi,  tako  i  na  globalnom  nivou.  Kao  korovska  vrsta  uzrokuje  velike ekonomske  gubitke  redukujući  prinos  poljoprivrednih  kultura,  a  njena  masovna  produkcija polena stvara ozbiljne alergijske probleme kod ljudi. Kao invazivna vrsta, predstavlja dobar model za proučavanje procesa uključenih u biološke invazije, koje se danas prepoznaju kao deo globalnih promena, predstavljajući jednu od glavnih pretnji biodiverzitetu, funkcionisanju ekosistema,  poljoprivredi,  ali  i  ljudskom  zdravlju.  U  Evropi,  ambrozija  je  široko rasprostranjena,  ali  jedno  od  područja  sa  najvećom  incidencom  ovog  invazivnog  korova  je Panonska  nizija.  Po  svom  položaju,  kao  i  karakteristikama  samog  područja,  ovaj  region predstavlja  povoljno  stanište  kako  za  introdukciju  ambrozije  iz  različitih  pravaca,  tako  i  za njenu brzu ekspanziju u pomenutom području i šire.  U proteklih 30-40 godina ambrozija se širi  na  peripanonsko  područje,  tačnije  ka  centralnim  i  južnim  delovima  Srbije.  Uzimajući  u obzir sve činjenice,  cilj ovog istraživanja je bio genetička karakterizacija populacija ambrozije  sa područja Panonske nizije i peripanonskog prostora centralnog  dela Balkanskog poluostrva. U  svrhu  ovoga,  upotrebljeni  su  jedni  od  najpopularnijih  i  ajinformativnijih  molekularnih markera u polju populacione genetike, mikrosateliti. Na području Panonske nizije utvrđen je visok nivo genetičke varijabilnosti i nizak nivo genetičke diferencijacije i struktuiranosti među ispitivanim  populacijama, a najverovatnije kao posledica multiplih introdukcija i intenzivnog protoka gena među populacijama ispitivanog regiona. Suprotno, populacije sa peripanonskog prostora  centralnog  Balkana  su  pokazale  niži  nivo  genetičkog  diverziteta  u  odnosu  na panonske populacije, sa izraženom inter-populacionom diferencijacijom. Potvrđeno je širenje ambrozije  u  pravcu  sever-jug  na  području  peripanonskog  prostora,  kao  i  poreklo  ovih populacija  od  populacija  iz  regiona  Panonske  nizije,  ali  bez  isključivanja  mogućeg  upliva ambrozije  iz  drugih  pravaca.  Ova  saznanja  doprinose  rasvetljavanju  procesa  introdukcije  i ekspanzije  ispitivane  invazivne  vrste  na  ovom  području  Evrope.  Utvrđen  visok  potencijal  u ekspanziji ambrozije i potencijalni pravci širenja u ispitivanom području, mogu da doprinesu predviđanju dalje potencijalne ekspanzije ove vrste, što bi moglo unaprediti mere kontrole i strategiju za suzbijanje širenja ambrozije.Ambrosia  artemisiifolia  L.  (fam.  Asteraceae)  is  one  of  the  most  aggressive  invasive  plant species  in  Europe  and  globally.  As  weed  species,  common  ragweed  causes  great  economic losses by reducing the yield of agricultural crops, and its mass production  of pollen produces severe allergic problems in humans. As an invasive species,  Ambrosia artemisiifolia  is  a good model for studying the processes of biological invasions, which are today recognized as part of  global  changes,  presenting  a  major  threat  to  biodiversity,  the  functioning  of   ecosystems, agriculture and human health. In Europe, Ambrosia artemisiifolia is widespread, but one of the most  infested  area  is  the  Pannonian  Plain.  According  to  location  and  characteristics  of  the area,  this  region  represents  a  favorable  habitat  for  introduction  of  common  ragweed  from different  directions  and  rapid  expansion  in  these  areas  as  well  as  further.  In  the  past  30-40 years,  common  ragweed  was  spreading  across  Peripannonian  region,  more  precisely,  to  the Central and Southern parts of Serbia. According the facts, the aim of this study was the genetic characterization  of  populations  of  Ambrosia  artemisiifolia  from  the  Southern  part  of  the Pannonian Plain and the  Peripannonian region of the Central Balkan.  One of the most popular and most informative molecular markers in  population genetics, microsatellites  were  used. In the area of the Pannonian Plain, a high level of  genetic variability and low  level of  genetic differentiation and structure  among the study population have detected, probably as a  result of multiple  introduction  and  intensive  gene  flow  between  populations.  In  the  other  hand,  the populations from the Peripannonian region have shown lower level of genetic diversity related to  populations  from  Pannonin  Plain,  with  moderate  level  of  inter-population  differentiation. Obtained  results  have  confirmed  that  the  spread  of  common  ragweed  across  Peripannonian region was  in the north-south direction, as  well as that the populations from the considered area originated from the populations of Pannonian Plain.  However, in this claim we can not exclude  the  possible  influence  of  Ambrosia  artemisiifolia  from  other  directions.  This  study contributes  to  better understuding of  the process of introduction and expansion of  Ambrosia artemisiifolia  in  considered part  of Europe.  Detected  high potential for  expansion of  common ragweed and possible directions of spreading in the study area, can contribute to the prediction of  potential  further  expansion  of  Ambrosia  artemisiifolia,  which  could  improve  control measures and strategies for preventing the spreading of this invasive species.

Population-genetic characterization of common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifoliaL.) from the southern part of the Pannonian Plain and the Peripannonian region of the Central Balkan

Vrsta  Ambrosia  artemisiifolia  L.  (fam.  Asteraceae)  je  jedna  od  najagresivnijih  invazivnih biljaka  kako  u  Evropi,  tako  i  na  globalnom  nivou.  Kao  korovska  vrsta  uzrokuje  velike ekonomske  gubitke  redukujući  prinos  poljoprivrednih  kultura,  a  njena  masovna  produkcija polena stvara ozbiljne alergijske probleme kod ljudi. Kao invazivna vrsta, predstavlja dobar model za proučavanje procesa uključenih u biološke invazije, koje se danas prepoznaju kao deo globalnih promena, predstavljajući jednu od glavnih pretnji biodiverzitetu, funkcionisanju ekosistema,  poljoprivredi,  ali  i  ljudskom  zdravlju.  U  Evropi,  ambrozija  je  široko rasprostranjena,  ali  jedno  od  područja  sa  najvećom  incidencom  ovog  invazivnog  korova  je Panonska  nizija.  Po  svom  položaju,  kao  i  karakteristikama  samog  područja,  ovaj  region predstavlja  povoljno  stanište  kako  za  introdukciju  ambrozije  iz  različitih  pravaca,  tako  i  za njenu brzu ekspanziju u pomenutom području i šire.  U proteklih 30-40 godina ambrozija se širi  na  peripanonsko  područje,  tačnije  ka  centralnim  i  južnim  delovima  Srbije.  Uzimajući  u obzir sve činjenice,  cilj ovog istraživanja je bio genetička karakterizacija populacija ambrozije  sa područja Panonske nizije i peripanonskog prostora centralnog  dela Balkanskog poluostrva. U  svrhu  ovoga,  upotrebljeni  su  jedni  od  najpopularnijih  i  ajinformativnijih  molekularnih markera u polju populacione genetike, mikrosateliti. Na području Panonske nizije utvrđen je visok nivo genetičke varijabilnosti i nizak nivo genetičke diferencijacije i struktuiranosti među ispitivanim  populacijama, a najverovatnije kao posledica multiplih introdukcija i intenzivnog protoka gena među populacijama ispitivanog regiona. Suprotno, populacije sa peripanonskog prostora  centralnog  Balkana  su  pokazale  niži  nivo  genetičkog  diverziteta  u  odnosu  na panonske populacije, sa izraženom inter-populacionom diferencijacijom. Potvrđeno je širenje ambrozije  u  pravcu  sever-jug  na  području  peripanonskog  prostora,  kao  i  poreklo  ovih populacija  od  populacija  iz  regiona  Panonske  nizije,  ali  bez  isključivanja  mogućeg  upliva ambrozije  iz  drugih  pravaca.  Ova  saznanja  doprinose  rasvetljavanju  procesa  introdukcije  i ekspanzije  ispitivane  invazivne  vrste  na  ovom  području  Evrope.  Utvrđen  visok  potencijal  u ekspanziji ambrozije i potencijalni pravci širenja u ispitivanom području, mogu da doprinesu predviđanju dalje potencijalne ekspanzije ove vrste, što bi moglo unaprediti mere kontrole i strategiju za suzbijanje širenja ambrozije.Ambrosia  artemisiifolia  L.  (fam.  Asteraceae)  is  one  of  the  most  aggressive  invasive  plant species  in  Europe  and  globally.  As  weed  species,  common  ragweed  causes  great  economic losses by reducing the yield of agricultural crops, and its mass production  of pollen produces severe allergic problems in humans. As an invasive species,  Ambrosia artemisiifolia  is  a good model for studying the processes of biological invasions, which are today recognized as part of  global  changes,  presenting  a  major  threat  to  biodiversity,  the  functioning  of   ecosystems, agriculture and human health. In Europe, Ambrosia artemisiifolia is widespread, but one of the most  infested  area  is  the  Pannonian  Plain.  According  to  location  and  characteristics  of  the area,  this  region  represents  a  favorable  habitat  for  introduction  of  common  ragweed  from different  directions  and  rapid  expansion  in  these  areas  as  well  as  further.  In  the  past  30-40 years,  common  ragweed  was  spreading  across  Peripannonian  region,  more  precisely,  to  the Central and Southern parts of Serbia. According the facts, the aim of this study was the genetic characterization  of  populations  of  Ambrosia  artemisiifolia  from  the  Southern  part  of  the Pannonian Plain and the  Peripannonian region of the Central Balkan.  One of the most popular and most informative molecular markers in  population genetics, microsatellites  were  used. In the area of the Pannonian Plain, a high level of  genetic variability and low  level of  genetic differentiation and structure  among the study population have detected, probably as a  result of multiple  introduction  and  intensive  gene  flow  between  populations.  In  the  other  hand,  the populations from the Peripannonian region have shown lower level of genetic diversity related to  populations  from  Pannonin  Plain,  with  moderate  level  of  inter-population  differentiation. Obtained  results  have  confirmed  that  the  spread  of  common  ragweed  across  Peripannonian region was  in the north-south direction, as  well as that the populations from the considered area originated from the populations of Pannonian Plain.  However, in this claim we can not exclude  the  possible  influence  of  Ambrosia  artemisiifolia  from  other  directions.  This  study contributes  to  better understuding of  the process of introduction and expansion of  Ambrosia artemisiifolia  in  considered part  of Europe.  Detected  high potential for  expansion of  common ragweed and possible directions of spreading in the study area, can contribute to the prediction of  potential  further  expansion  of  Ambrosia  artemisiifolia,  which  could  improve  control measures and strategies for preventing the spreading of this invasive species.

Taxonomic revision of the highly threatened Eumerus tricolor species group (Diptera : Syrphidae) in Southeast Europe, with insights into the conservation of the genus Eumerus

The diversity in the Eumerus tricolor group, the largest group within the genus in Southeast Europe, is investigated. Two new, locally distributed species are described, E. crispus Vujiv & Grkoviv, sp. n. from Serbia and E. nigrorufus Grkoviv & Vujiv, sp. n. from Montenegro. In addition to Southeast European members, one related species E. arctus van Steenis, sp. n. is described from Switzerland. We designate lectotypes for E. ovatus Loew, 1848, E. tarsalis Loew, 1848, E. tricolor (Fabricius, 1798) and E. varius Meigen, 1822. A map of the distribution of members of the E. tricolor group in Southeast Europe is provided. In addition, records from other parts of Europe are listed and an illustrated identification key to the SE European species of the E. tricolor group provided. We also study and discuss the signifi cance of small habitat patches for the preservation of species of Eumerus, because the three species described in this paper are currently known from such patches.Peer reviewe

Varijabilnost kontrolnog regiona mitohondrijalne DNK divljih svinja zapadnog Balkana

The wild boar (Sus scrofa) is one of most abundant game species in hunting areas of Balkan region. The large fraction of pre-glacial genetic diversity in wild boar populations from the Balkans was addressed due to high proportion of unique mtDNA haplotypes found in Greece, indicating Balkan as main refugial area for wild boars. The aim of the present study is to characterize mitochondrial DNA control region variability in wild boars from different areas in the West Balkan region, in order to evaluate level of genetic variability, to detect unique haplotypes and to infer possible structuring. The total number of 163 individuals from different sampling localities were included in the study. A fragment of the mtDNA control region was amplified and sequenced by standard procedures. Population genetic analyses were performed using several computer packages: BioEdit, ARLEQUIN 3.5.1.2., Network 4.6.0.0 and MEGA5. Eleven different haplotypes were identified and haplotype diversity was 0.676, nucleotide diversity 0.0026, and the average number of nucleotide differences (k) 1.169. The mismatch distribution and neutrality tests indicated the expansion of the all populations. It is shown that high level of genetic diversity is present in the wild boars from the West Balkan region and we have managed to detect regional unique haplotypes in high frequency. Genetic diversity differences have been found in regional wild boar groups, clustering them in two main clusters, but further speculations on the reasons for the observed clustering are prevented due to restricted informativness of the single locus marker. Obtained knowledge of genetic variation in the wild boar may be relevant for improving knowledge of the phylogeny and phylogeography of the wild boars, but as well as for hunting societies and responsible authorities for the effective control of wild boar populations.Divlja svinja (Sus scrofa) je jedna od najbrojnijih vrsta divljači u lovnim područjima Balkana. Na osnovu velikog broja jedinstvenih haplotipova u populacijama divljih svinja Grčke, zaključeno je da se veliki deo pre-glacijalnog genetičkog diverziteta ovih populacija zadržao na Balkanskom poluostrvu, koje je označeno kao glavni refugijum za divlje svinje. Cilj ovog rada je karakterizacija varijabilnosti kontrolnog regiona mitohondrijalne DNK kod divljih svinja sa različitih lokaliteta Zapadnog Balkana, u svrhu utvrđivanja genetičke varijabilnosti, detekcije jedinstvenih haplotipova i definisanja moguće struktuiranosti populacije. Ukupno su analizirane 163 jedinke sa različitih lokaliteta. Deo kontrolnog regiona mtDNK je umnožen i sekvenciran standardnim metodama. Populaciono-genetička analiza urađena je pomoću programskih paketa za analizu sekvenci: BioEdit, ARLEQUIN 3.5.1.2., Network 4.6.0.0 and MEGA5. Nađeno je jedanaest haplotipova i diverzitet haplotipova je iznosio 0.676, diverzitet nukleotida 0.0026, dok je prosečan broj nukleotidnih razlika bio 1.169. Test unimodalne distribucije i testovi neutralnosti pokazali su ekspanziju svih populacija. Pokazan je visok nivo genetičkog diverziteta u populacijama divljih svinja Zapadnog Balkana i detektovani su haplotipovi jedinstveni za regione u visokoj frekvenciji. Razlike u genetičkom diverzitetu pokazane su u regionalnim grupama, i klaster analiza je pokazala prisustvo dve odvojene grane, ali konačan zaključak o stepenu struktuiranosti nije mogao biti donet, zbog ograničene informativnosti jednog genskog markera. Dobijeni rezultati o genetičkoj varijabilnosti divljih svinja relevantni su za rekonstrukciju filogenije i filogeografije ove vrste divljači, ali i za organizacije odgovorne za efektivnu kontrolu populacija divljih svinja

The Hoverflies of an Oak Dehesa from Spain, with a New Species and Other Insights into the Taxonomy of the Eumerus tricolor Group (Diptera: Syrphidae)

Dehesas are typical Mediterranean habitats for extensive livestock raising. Hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) may act as bioindicators in dehesas, but they are still poorly known in this habitat type. With the purpose of the present study, hoverfly diversity was surveyed in Campanarios de Azaba, a typical oak dehesa in Salamanca province, Spain. A total of 41 species were recorded, including Eumerus azabense sp. nov. This new species was found to belong to the Eumerus tricolor group, both in morphological and genetic terms, and clearly separated (DNA characters) from the similar Eumerus niveitibia, which is redescribed here. Genetic monophyly of the E. tricolor group is confirmed in the present paper. An updated hoverfly checklist of Salamanca province is provided (152 sp.) with indication of the 56 species recorded in Campanarios de Azaba. Obtained results address the importance of dehesa biodiversity, which includes species new to science.Financial support was provided by the project LIFE-NATURE ‘Conservación de la Biodiversidad en el Oeste Iberico’ (LIFE/E/NAT/000762). The current fellowship of Antonio Ricarte at the University of Alicante is supported 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

Integrative taxonomy of the Merodon aberrans (Diptera, Syrphidae) species group: distribution patterns and description of three new species

In this paper, we revise the Merodon aberrans species group of the genus Merodon Meigen, 1803 (Diptera: Syrphidae), providing morphological diagnoses and descriptions, molecular data for three species, as well as an illustrated key and a discussion of the different taxonomic characters used. We also discuss distribution patterns for this species group. The results revealed that the M. aberrans group is composed of five described species (M. aberrans Egger, 1860, M. brevis Paramonov, 1926, M. flavitibius Paramonov, 1926, M. hamifer Sack, 1913, and M. warnckei Hurkmans, 1993) and three new ones, namely M. hermonensis Vujić, Radenković et Likov sp. nov., M. petiolatus Vujić, Radenković et Rojo sp. nov., and M. retectus Vujić, Radenković et Likov sp. nov. Following a detailed study of the type material in different entomological collections, the status of several species is revised, one new synonym is proposed (subspecies M. aberrans isperensis Hurkmans, 1993 as junior synonym of M. flavitibius), lectotypes are designated for M. kneri Mik, 1867 and M. flavitibius, and paralectotypes are designated for M. hamifer and M. flavitibius. Seven out of eight species from the M. aberrans group are distributed in the Asian continent, namely all Caucasian countries, Turkey and Iran, confirming the notion about high diversity of Merodon species in these regions, but also highlighting the need for a systematic faunistic research.The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia (Grant Nos. 451–03-9/2022–14/200125 and 451-03-9/2022-14/200358) and the Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia, #grant No 7737504, project Serbian Pollinator Advice Strategy – for the next normal – spas

Gradual loss of genetic diversity of Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. populations in the invaded range of central Serbia

As an invasive allergenic weed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. causes serious public health and economic problems in invaded ranges of Europe. Over the last two decades, while expanding toward southern parts of Serbia, this common ragweed has become a very troublesome plant species in the whole country. Considering the importance of genetic studies in understanding of invasive species, our main objectives in this study were to analyze the genetic diversity and genetic structure of Ambrosia artemisiifolia populations from Central Serbia, a relatively recently invaded region. Comparing values of genetic measures obtained by microsatellite analyses, a number of differences were detected in genetic diversity between sampled populations. Allelic richness-r (ranged from 5.42 to 7.80), the mean number of alleles per locus-NA (5.8-8.4) and the mean number of rare alleles per locus-NR (2.8-5.8) have quite similar ranges across populations. We observed greater genetic variability in populations from the northern part of investigated area than in southern populations. Based on pairwise Fst values, AMOVA results and PCo Analysis, moderate differentiation among population was detected, while the STRUCTURE analysis clearly separated SR-Kru and SR-Les. Data obtained for analyses of differentiation and gradual losses of genetic diversity of sampled populations provides useful information about invasion dynamics of common ragweed in recently invaded region. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 173002 and the Secretariat for Science and Tehnological Development, Province of Vojvodina (No. 114-457-2173/2011-01

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

figure of habitus (Palma, 1863) fits the concept of Merodon aberrans. in Integrative taxonomy of the Merodon aberrans (Diptera, Syrphidae) species group: distribution patterns and description of three new species

figure of habitus (Palma, 1863) fits the concept of Merodon aberrans.Published as part of Vujić, Ante, Radenković, Snežana, Tubić, Nataša Kočiš, Likov, Laura, Popov, Grigory, Rojo, Santos & Miličić, Marija, 2023, Integrative taxonomy of the Merodon aberrans (Diptera, Syrphidae) species group: distribution patterns and description of three new species, pp. 51-96 in Contributions to Zoology 92 (1) on page 57, DOI: 10.1163/18759866-BJA10037, http://zenodo.org/record/834980