Mitochondrial DNA of Sardinian and North-West Italian Populations Revealed a New Piece in the Mosaic of Phylogeography and Phylogeny of (Blenniidae).

The genus (Blenniidae) comprises freshwater blenny fish that inhabits Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, and north-east Atlantic areas. Three species were formally described to date: . , and . In this study, 103 individuals were collected from different Italian regions (Sardinia, Liguria, Piedmont, Lombardy) and analyzed using the mtDNA Control Region and the ribosomal 16s gene. We aimed (i) to depict the phylogeographic patterns of in northern Italy and Sardinia and (ii) to compare the genetic structure of Italian samples with those from other Mediterranean regions. Results obtained showed the presence of a well-supported genetic structuring among Italian populations, shedding new light on the phylogeographic patterns of northern Italian populations of across the Ligurian Alpine ridge and the Sardinia Island-mainland dispersal patterns. Furthermore, our species delimitation analysis was consistent in supporting results of previous research about the presence of genetic differentiation among , evidencing: (i) a large group of that includes two sub-groups (Occidental and Oriental), (ii) one group comprising populations from the Middle East of a taxonomic entity corresponding to cf. , and (iii) one group of Iberian individuals from the Guadiana River.