1. Morphometrics of the blue crab Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, 1896 in a Northern Adriatic saline marsh under environmental stressNeven Iveša, Paolo Paliaga, Matej Čief, Petra Burić, Valentina Pitacco, Moira Buršić, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: The Atlantic blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) has rapidly expanded across the Mediterranean, raising concerns over its ecological and economic impacts. This study examines the morphometric characteristics and environmental influences on C. sapidus populations in the Palud-Palù swamp (western Istrian coast) from 2022 to 2024. A total of 203 specimens were analyzed for carapace width, length, depth, and body mass, alongside monthly measurements of temperature, salinity, oxygen saturation, and pH. Statistical analyses (t-tests, ANOVA, PCA, and RDA) revealed pronounced sexual dimorphism, with males consistently larger than females. Interannual differences in size distribution showed larger individuals in 2022, followed by a decline in 2023 and 2024, likely due to environmental stressors (e.g., salinity, temperature, hypoxia) and increased anthropogenic pressures (e.g., trapping and illegal harvesting). RDA identified temperature, oxygen saturation, and pH as key abiotic drivers of morphometric variation. These findings suggest that while C. sapidus demonstrates physiological plasticity, enabling its persistence in estuarine environments, its growth and invasive potential may be constrained under extreme or suboptimal local conditions. This study highlights the importance of long-term monitoring and integrated management to mitigate ecological disruption in sensitive coastal ecosystems.
Keywords: decapods, invasive species, crustacean morphometry, length–weight relationship, population structure, size distribution
Published in DiRROS: 08.09.2025; Views: 371; Downloads: 193
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2. Genomic diversity and population structure of Carniolan honey bee in its native habitatBoris Lukić, Nikola Raguž, Marin Kovačić, Ino Čurik, Jana Obšteter, Janez Prešern, Jernej Bubnič, Ras Lužaić, Ivan Pihler, Goran Mirjanić, Marco Pietropaoli, Zlatko Puškadija, 2024, original scientific article Abstract: Background Research into the genetic diversity of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) populations has become increasingly signifcant in recent decades, primarily due to population declines attributed to human activities and climate change. As a species of great importance, breeding programs that leverage understanding of genomic diversity could ofer solutions to mitigate these challenges. The objective of this study was to examine the genomic diversity and population structure of Carniolan honey bees (Apis mellifera carnica) using the Illumina SNP chip on a large honey bee sample collected from Central and South-Eastern European countries. The study also aims to ofer recommendations for future breeding programs
Keywords: honey bee, Carniolian honey bee, genomic diversity, diversity, population structure
Published in DiRROS: 02.12.2024; Views: 1000; Downloads: 607
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3. Between but not within-species variation in the distribution of fitness effectsJennifer James, Chedly Kastallya, Katharina Budde, Santiago C. González-Martínez, Pascal Milesi, Tanja Pyhäjärvi, Martin Lascoux, 2023, original scientific article Abstract: New mutations provide the raw material for evolution and adaptation. The distribution of fitness effects (DFE) describes the spectrum of effects of new mutations that can occur along a genome, and is, therefore, of vital interest in evolutionary biology. Recent work has uncovered striking similarities in the DFE between closely related species, prompting us to ask whether there is variation in the DFE among populations of the same species, or among species with different degrees of divergence, that is whether there is variation in the DFE at different levels of evolution. Using exome capture data from six tree species sampled across Europe we characterized the DFE for multiple species, and for each species, multiple populations, and investigated the factors potentially influencing the DFE, such as demography, population divergence, and genetic background. We find statistical support for the presence of variation in the DFE at the species level, even among relatively closely related species. However, we find very little difference at the population level, suggesting that differences in the DFE are primarily driven by deep features of species biology, and those evolutionarily recent events, such as demographic changes and local adaptation, have little impact.
Keywords: DFE, deleterious mutations, population structure, forest trees
Published in DiRROS: 12.12.2023; Views: 1427; Downloads: 876
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