Fine-scale spatial genetic structure and dispersal among Italian smooth newt populations in a rural landscape.

Amphibians are particularly sensitive to habitat loss and fragmentation caused by the intensification and modernization of farming occurring in the second half of the twentieth century in the Mediterranean basin. However, artificial water bodies, associated with traditional husbandry, proved to be important surrogate for amphibian feeding and reproduction. Here, multilocus genotypes were used to investigate the spatial population structure of Lissotriton vulgaris meridionalis and the role of drinking troughs in supporting viable breeding populations within a rural landscape interested by traditional husbandry and agriculture.

Mutual Avoidance in the Spectacled Salamander and Centipede: A Discrepancy between Exploratory Field and Laboratory Data.

Interactions between amphibians and arthropods encompass a wide range of ecological relationships, predominantly characterized by predator-prey dynamics, with adult amphibians as the predators. In some instances, the roles are reversed. This study focuses on the potential predator-prey relationship between the spectacled salamander () and the centipede in Central Italy.

Processes involved in biochemical response to pesticides by lizard Podarcis siculus (Rafinesque-Schmaltz, 1810) - A field study.

Although reptiles are non-target organisms of pesticide applications, their ecological niche and trophic role suggest that the use of these compounds in agriculture can have toxicological effects on them. Our recent field study on Italian wall lizard Podarcis siculus in hazelnut orchards evidenced that the use of pesticides-mixtures, consisting of thiophanate-methyl (TM), tebuconazole (TEB), deltamethrin (DM), lambda-cyhalothrin (LCT), besides copper sulphate, induced an increase of the total antioxidant capacity toward hydroxyl radicals and caused DNA damage; however, it did not cause neurotoxicity, and did not induce the glutathione-S-transferases' activities. These results raised some questions which were answered in this study by carrying out analyses on 4 biomarkers and 5 chemical substances in the tissues of non-target organisms coming from treated fields: cytochrome P450, catalase, total glutathione, and malondialdehyde, TM, TEB, DM, LCT and Cu.

Condition- and context-dependent variation of sexual dimorphism across lizard populations at different spatial scales.

The evolution of sexual dimorphism (SD) is driven by intricate interplays between sexual and natural selection. When it comes to SD variation within populations, however, environmental factors play a major role. Sexually selected traits are expected to be strongly dependent on individual body condition, which is influenced by the local environment that individuals experience.

Linking agricultural practices to lizard trophic behaviour: An ecological approach.

Among intensive agricultural practices, pesticides, mowing, and heavy agricultural machineries have become an important tool to maximize harvesting and secure animal husbandry. However, they are also cause of agricultural ecosystem decline, often leading to degradation of key micro-habitat features for many species, higher predation risk and lower food availability. We investigated the diet and foraging ecology of the Italian wall lizard in agricultural areas to determine whether different management practices (conventional, organic, and control) can affect (i) the structure of the trophic niche of the species; (ii) prey diversity, the degree of individual specialization, and the overall population feeding strategy; (iii) lizards' health status.

Climate change effects on desert ecosystems: A case study on the keystone species of the Namib Desert Welwitschia mirabilis.

Deserts have been predicted to be one of the most responsive ecosystems to global climate change. In this study, we examine the spatial and demographic response of a keystone endemic plant of the Namib Desert (Welwitschia mirabilis), for which displacement and reduction of suitable climate has been foreseen under future conditions. The main aim is to assess the association between ongoing climate change and geographical patterns of welwitschia health, reproductive status, and size.

Biological responses in pesticide exposed lizards (Podarcis siculus).

The release of contaminants as herbicides, fungicides and insecticides into the environment has been listed as one of the six major contributors to the global decline of reptiles. Although reptiles may face severe risk from contaminants due to their ecology and physiology, they are currently less studied than other vertebrate groups. In the present work, we investigated if and how different types of field treatment (conventional and organic) affected the health status of Italian wall lizard (Podarcis siculus) individuals in central Italy.

Status of the largest extant population of the critically endangered Aeolian lizard Podarcis raffonei (Capo Grosso, Vulcano island).

The Aeolian wall lizard Podarcis raffonei is an island endemic that survives only on three tiny islets, and on the Capo Grosso peninsula of the Vulcano island, thus is among the European vertebrates with the smallest range and one of the most threatened by extinction. This species is declining due to competition and hybridization with the non-native lizard Podarcis siculus, but a regular monitoring program is lacking. Here we assessed the size and status of the Capo Grosso population of P.

Fluctuating asymmetry as biomarker of pesticides exposure in the Italian wall lizards (Podarcis siculus).

The extensive use of pesticides in agricultural environments produces drastic effects on wildlife, hence the need for less invasive indicators of environmental stress to monitoring the impact of agriculture treatments on biological systems. Fluctuating asymmetry (FA), as measure of developmental instability, has recently been proposed as reliable biomarker of populations stress due to environmental disturbance. We investigate femoral pores (FP) and dorsal head shape (HS) traits in populations of the Italian wall lizard inhabiting agricultural environments to examine whether different pesticide exposures (conventional, organic and control) can cause distinctive degree of FA.

Segregation structure in Odonata assemblages follows the latitudinal gradient.

Latitude is known to deeply affect life with effects generalizable into ecological rules; the increasing species diversity toward tropics is the most paradigmatic. Several hypotheses tested patterns of biotic interactions' intensity along latitude. Negative interactions (i.

Dragonflies community assembly in artificial habitats: Glimpses from field and manipulative experiments.

Several factors act on community structure, so determining species composition and abundance patterns. Core processes operating at local scales, such as species-environment matching and species interactions, shape observed assemblages. Artificial habitats (simplified structure) are useful systems for assessing the main factors affecting community composition and disentangling their assembly rules.

An improved microsatellite panel to assess genetic variability of the Italian smooth newt ().

Habitat loss and fragmentation are threatening amphibians by increasing population isolation. However, artificial waterbodies created for livestockmay contrast this phenomenon by providing surrogate habitats for amphibians. Here, we performed a genetic study on an amphibian species, , in a rural area in central Italy where natural wetlands are disappearing and drinking troughs for cattle watering are widespread.

Effects of parasitic infection and reproduction on corticosterone plasma levels in Galápagos land iguanas, and .

In vertebrates, one main feature of stress response is the release of glucocorticoids (corticosterone in reptiles), steroid hormones whose synthesis is regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA). In the Galápagos Islands, populations of land iguanas are differentially impacted by a tick-transmitted apicomplexan hemoparasite of genus , which could cause diseases and ultimately reduce fitness. Using competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), we examined baseline plasma corticosterone levels of two syntopic and highly parasitized populations of the land iguana species and in Wolf volcano (Isabela Island).

Least speciose among the most speciose: Natural history correlates of monospecific and bispecific genera of Rodentia and Soricomorpha.

Monospecific and bispecific genera are of special concern as they represent unique phylogenetic/evolutionary trajectories within larger clades. In addition, as phylogenetically older taxa are supposed to be exposed to higher rarity and extinction risk, monospecific and bispecific genera may be intrinsically more prone to extinction risks than multispecies genera, although extinction risks also depend on the ecological and biological strategy of the species. Here, the distribution across biogeographical zones and the levels of threat to 2 speciose orders of mammals (monospecific and bispecific genera of Rodentia and Soricomorpha) are investigated in order to highlight major patterns at the worldwide scale.

Plasma concentrations of progesterone and estradiol and the relation to reproduction in Galápagos land iguanas, Conolophus marthae and C. subcristatus (Squamata, Iguanidae).

In a combined approach, endocrine and ultrasonic analyses were performed to assess reproduction of two syntopic populations of terrestrial Galápagos iguanas the Conolophus marthae (the Galápagos Pink Land Iguana) and C. subcristatus on the Volcán Wolf (Isabela Island). The ELISA methods (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) were used to measure plasma concentrations of progesterone (P4) and 17β-estradiol (E2) from samples collected over the course of three different seasons: July 2010, June 2012-2014.

Dietary relationships among coexisting anuran amphibians: a worldwide quantitative review.

Anuran amphibians have traditionally been considered suitable model organisms for community ecology studies. In this paper, we review and quantitatively re-analyze the original studies published on dietary relationships among anuran communities worldwide. We re-analyzed 33 independent communities from all continents, including data on prey numbers and/or prey volumes.

Integrating remote sensing approach with pollution monitoring tools for aquatic ecosystem risk assessment and management: a case study of Lake Victoria (Uganda).

Aquatic ecosystems around the world, lake, estuaries and coastal areas are increasingly impacted by anthropogenic pollutants through different sources such as agricultural, industrial and urban discharges, atmospheric deposition and terrestrial drainage. Lake Victoria is the second largest lake in the world and the largest tropical lake. Bordered by Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya, it provides a livelihood for millions of Africans in the region.