Authors discuss the collection of larvae and imagines of Odonata which was collected during hydro... more Authors discuss the collection of larvae and imagines of Odonata which was collected during hydrobiological and acarological studies conducted in Montenegro in 2010 and 2012. The material encompasses 28 dragonfly species of which Ophiogomphus cecilia has been recorded in this country for the first time. The updated checklist of the dragonflies of Montenegro was also provided.
Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting... more Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting a wide range of aquatic habitats. This study provides a first comprehensive DNA barcode library for the water mites of Montenegro. DNA barcodes were analysed from 233 specimens of water mites morphologically assigned to 86 species from 28 genera and 15 families. In the course of the study, four species, i.e. Lebertia reticulata (Koenike, 1919),
Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting... more Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting a wide range of aquatic habitats. This study provides a first comprehensive DNA barcode library for the water mites of Montenegro. DNA barcodes were analysed from 233 specimens of water mites morphologically assigned to 86 species from 28 genera and 15 families. In the course of the study, four species, i.e. Lebertia reticulata (Koenike, 1919),
The main goal of the study was to recognize the mechanisms underlying assemblage structuring of a... more The main goal of the study was to recognize the mechanisms underlying assemblage structuring of aquatic beetle fauna inhabiting a medium-sized, lowland river exposed to anthropogenic pressures. An attempt was made to identify the impact of numerous abiotic factors on how beetle communities are formed, with particular emphasis on geomorphological and landscape-related factors, which tend to be omitted from many studies of aquatic organisms. Our intention was to refer the results of our study to the general assumptions of the River Continuum Concept. Field studies were conducted in 2010, at 13 sites located along the Krąpiel River (north-western Poland). In total, 3,269 beetles were captured, representing 120 species and five ecological groups: crenophiles, rheophiles, rheobionts, stagnobionts a and stagnobionts b, which differ in environmental preferences. The core of the identified fauna was composed of stagnobionts, while rheophiles and rheobionts accounted for only 20% of the enti...
The objectives of our survey were to determine the most important environmental factors within bu... more The objectives of our survey were to determine the most important environmental factors within buffer zones that influenced mollusc communities and to evaluate the ecological conservation value of natural aquatic habitats (NAHs) that support mollusc species. Analysis of the spatial structure of buffer zones and catchments was based on a set of landscape metrics. Land cover classes were determined, and buffer zones within a radius of 500 m from a sampling point were marked out. Mollusc samples were collected from each NAHs. Our results showed that the number of patches and mean patch size were most associated with the distribution of mollusc species. Within patches of buffer zones, the length of the catchment boundaries with low-density housing, an increasing area of forest and pH of the water were also significant. Our results proved that landscape metrics provide essential information about catchment anthropogenic transformation. Therefore, landscape metrics and the designated buff...
Hygrobates specimens with a coarse lineated soft integument generally have been considered as rep... more Hygrobates specimens with a coarse lineated soft integument generally have been considered as representatives of H. calliger Piersig, 1896, regarded as a common and widely distributed species in the Palaearctic. In the present study using an integrative taxonomic approach that combines morphological studies and DNA barcoding we show that Hygrobates calliger-like mites belong to six distinct lineages. Two species, Hygrobates ponticus sp. nov. (East Türkiye, Georgia) and H. tyrrhenicus sp. nov. (Corsica) are described as new to science.
New records of water mites from Iran and Turkey revealed by DNA barcoding are presented. DNA barc... more New records of water mites from Iran and Turkey revealed by DNA barcoding are presented. DNA barcodes were recovered from 44 water mite specimens morphologically assigned to 18 species. The DNA barcoding data for the twelve species were uploaded into the BOLD database. One species of the Hygrobates longiporus-complex, H. thori Pešić & Smit sp. nov. is described as new for science and Hydrodroma persica Pešić & Saboori, 2012 is reported as new for Turkey. We propose to lower the taxonomic status of Hydrodroma golestanica to a subspecies of H. torrenticola, i.e. H. torrenticola golestanica nov. stat.
Aim Sequencing of the mitogenome of Hygrobates turcicus Pešić, Esen & Dabert, 2017 to expand know... more Aim Sequencing of the mitogenome of Hygrobates turcicus Pešić, Esen & Dabert, 2017 to expand knowledge of the polymorphism and cryptic or pseudocryptic diversity within Hydrachnidia. Location Bulgaria, Vidima River near Debnewo, 42°56’41.4“N, 24°48’44.6”E, depth 0.4 m, stones on the bottom, water flow 0.71 m/s, temperature 10oC, pH 8.53, oxygen 110 %, conductivity 279 µS/cm, hardness 121 CaO mg/l; 11 males, 27 females, 2 deutonymphs 12.x.2019 leg. Zawal, Michoński & Bańkowska; one male and one female dissected and slides mounted. Methods DNA extraction, sequencing, assembly and annotation, comparison with other populations of H. turcicus, multigene phylogeny Results The mitogenome is 15.006 bp long and encodes for 13 proteins, 2 rRNAs, and 22 tRNAs. The genome is colinear with those of H. longiporus and H. taniguchii, the difference of size originating from a non-coding region located between protein-coding genes ND4L and ND3. Five genes were found to have alternative start-codon, a...
Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting... more Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting a wide range of aquatic habitats. This study provides a first comprehensive DNA barcode library for the water mites of Montenegro. DNA barcodes were analysed from 233 specimens of water mites morphologically assigned to 86 species from 28 genera and 15 families. In the course of the study, four species, i.e. Lebertia reticulata (Koenike, 1919), Atractides inflatipalpis K.Viets, 1950, A. latipes (Szalay, 1935) and Parabrachypoda montii (Maglio, 1924) were molecularly confirmed as new for Montenegro and three species, i.e. Protzia octopora Lundblad, 1954, Piona laminata (Thor, 1901) and Unionicola ypsilophora (Bonz, 1783) are new for the Balkan Peninsula. Results are analysed using the Barcode Index Number system (BIN) and the Refined Single Linkage (RESL) of BOLD. The BIN assigned sequences to 98 clusters, while the RESL reveal 103 operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Unique BINs were rev...
Until now, very little is known about the ability of adult and deutonymph water mites (Acari, Hyd... more Until now, very little is known about the ability of adult and deutonymph water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) to survive in sub-zero temperatures. Information concerns mainly water mites from vernal astatic waters, and the knowledge has never been experimentally verified. To determine the sensitivity of water mites to freezing, experiments were conducted on (1) the impact of acclimatization, (2) temperature, and (3) duration of freezing on survival, (4) the survival rate of water mites from various types of water bodies, and (5) the survival rate of water mites from different climatic zones. The experiments were carried out in a phytotron chamber, and water mites were placed in containers (10 × 10 × 5 cm) filled with 4/5 of water for 10 specimens each. Water mites were identified to the species level after finishing the experiments. The temperature was lowered 1 °C every hour until the target temperature was reached. After a certain period of freezing (depending on the treatment) the ...
Thirty species of water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) were collected from standing and slowly flowi... more Thirty species of water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) were collected from standing and slowly flowing waters in Bangladesh. These are the first records of water mites from this country. Two species, Neumania nobiprobia and Arrenurus (Rhinophoracarus) smiti are described as new for science; a first description of the male is given for Mamersopsis viridis K. Viets, 1935.
The effect of urbanization is often reflected both in lotic and lentic habitats, through changes ... more The effect of urbanization is often reflected both in lotic and lentic habitats, through changes in diversity and structural and compositional changes in macroinvertebrate communities. In this study, we focused on macroinvertebrate assemblage in lotic and lentic ecosystems of the Krąpiel River catchment area (NW Poland) with the following aims: (1) to determine the main driver in structuring lotic and lentic macroinvertebrate communities and the factors that influence them in urban versus rural landscapes; (2) to test whether the diversity of macroinvertebrate assemblages in urban lotic/lentic ecosystems is lower than that in rural landscapes; (3) to identify characteristic macroinvertebrate species for urban and rural lotic/lentic ecosystems; to (4) determine species tolerance ranges and species optimums, with special emphasis on characteristic “urban” and “rural” species. Distance from study sites to built-up areas and conductivity were the main factors contributing to the separat...
Knowledge & Management of Aquatic Ecosystems, 2021
We investigated the ostracod assemblage structure in springs of a small lowland River Krąpiel val... more We investigated the ostracod assemblage structure in springs of a small lowland River Krąpiel valley. Environmental factors and the potential of ostracods as indicators of spring type were analysed. The analysis involved the type of spring, substrate, physicochemical parameters, and the river valley's hydrological status as environmental factors. A total of thirty ostracod species were recorded. The average count of ostracod individuals in a sample amounted to 100. The assemblages were dominated by juvenile Candona sp., juvenile Psychrodromus sp., Cypria ophtalmica, and Cypridopsis vidua. The spring species accounted for less than 1% of the individual counts, except for juvenile Psychrodromus sp. with 21% and Eucypris pigra with 4%. The average number of taxa per spring was 5. The ostracod assemblages were significantly influenced by limnocrene springs, spring flooding by the river overflow, the presence of coarse leaf litter, the presence of fine organic matter, a high content ...
The genus Torrenticola Piersig, 1896 is a common water mite group in the running waters in all bi... more The genus Torrenticola Piersig, 1896 is a common water mite group in the running waters in all biogeographical regions except Antarctica and Australasia. In the present study we used an integrative taxonomic approach by applying partial COI sequences (DNA-barcodes) to describe a new species of the genus Torrenticola, T. dowlingi Pešić sp. nov. from Iran. Morphologically, the new species is most similar to T. laskai Di Sabatino, 2009 from which it differs by the larger dimensions of idiosoma and genital field. The K2P distance that separated the new species from T. laskai was amounted to 3.98%.
Rivers are one of the most commonly transformed aquatic ecosystems. Most papers present significa... more Rivers are one of the most commonly transformed aquatic ecosystems. Most papers present significantly negative effects of activities such as dredging or channel regulation on the ecological status of rivers. The purpose of this work was to compare the response of various groups of invertebrates (Mollusca, Hydrachnidia, Odonata, Heteroptera, Coleoptera and Trichoptera) to an intervention involving dredging in conjunction with the removal of riparian vegetation. Habitat diversity increased after the dredging, and more individuals and species were caught than before the dredging. The increase in habitat diversity after the dredging translated into an increase in the species diversity of most investigated groups. Individual groups of invertebrates showed varied responses to the dredging, depending on the role of the terrestrial phase in their life cycle: the greater the role of the terrestrial phase in the life cycle, the more the group was affected by changes in the terrestrial environ...
International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife, 2020
This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
Caddisfly larvae were collected in 11 karstic springs located in Lake Skadar drainage basin in th... more Caddisfly larvae were collected in 11 karstic springs located in Lake Skadar drainage basin in the Mediterranean part of Montenegro on May and June 2018. Three species are new records for the caddisfly fauna of Montenegro: Brachycentrus subnubilus, Lepidostoma hirtum, Triaenodes ochreellus lefkas. One is a confirmed record of a previously thought absent species Thremma anomalum. Future caddisfly surveys in the region will contribute significantly to the partially known Trichoptera fauna of Montenegro.
Water mites of the Hygrobates fluviatilis complex are common in Palaearctic inhabiting mainly run... more Water mites of the Hygrobates fluviatilis complex are common in Palaearctic inhabiting mainly running and slowly flowing waters. In this study, we examined the specimens collected in a stream in Golestan Province of Iran which is currently the easternmost distribution limit of the latter species complex. We used a fragment of the mtDNA COI gene and the D2 region of 28S rDNA to test the genetic structure. Molecular analyses revealed presence of two new well-supported species with a mean genetic divergence of 12.80% and 14.66% COI, respectively, from their closest relatives. Phylogenetic analysis based on COI and nuclear DNA data placed H. grabowskii sp. nov. as the sister species of H. persicus, and H. ulii sp. nov. as the sister species of H. turcicus. Discriminant statistical analysis revealed that the two newly discovered species could be separated on the basis of morphometric characters, but robust morphological differences were not found. Yet we were able to show that diversity ...
Authors discuss the collection of larvae and imagines of Odonata which was collected during hydro... more Authors discuss the collection of larvae and imagines of Odonata which was collected during hydrobiological and acarological studies conducted in Montenegro in 2010 and 2012. The material encompasses 28 dragonfly species of which Ophiogomphus cecilia has been recorded in this country for the first time. The updated checklist of the dragonflies of Montenegro was also provided.
Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting... more Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting a wide range of aquatic habitats. This study provides a first comprehensive DNA barcode library for the water mites of Montenegro. DNA barcodes were analysed from 233 specimens of water mites morphologically assigned to 86 species from 28 genera and 15 families. In the course of the study, four species, i.e. Lebertia reticulata (Koenike, 1919),
Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting... more Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting a wide range of aquatic habitats. This study provides a first comprehensive DNA barcode library for the water mites of Montenegro. DNA barcodes were analysed from 233 specimens of water mites morphologically assigned to 86 species from 28 genera and 15 families. In the course of the study, four species, i.e. Lebertia reticulata (Koenike, 1919),
The main goal of the study was to recognize the mechanisms underlying assemblage structuring of a... more The main goal of the study was to recognize the mechanisms underlying assemblage structuring of aquatic beetle fauna inhabiting a medium-sized, lowland river exposed to anthropogenic pressures. An attempt was made to identify the impact of numerous abiotic factors on how beetle communities are formed, with particular emphasis on geomorphological and landscape-related factors, which tend to be omitted from many studies of aquatic organisms. Our intention was to refer the results of our study to the general assumptions of the River Continuum Concept. Field studies were conducted in 2010, at 13 sites located along the Krąpiel River (north-western Poland). In total, 3,269 beetles were captured, representing 120 species and five ecological groups: crenophiles, rheophiles, rheobionts, stagnobionts a and stagnobionts b, which differ in environmental preferences. The core of the identified fauna was composed of stagnobionts, while rheophiles and rheobionts accounted for only 20% of the enti...
The objectives of our survey were to determine the most important environmental factors within bu... more The objectives of our survey were to determine the most important environmental factors within buffer zones that influenced mollusc communities and to evaluate the ecological conservation value of natural aquatic habitats (NAHs) that support mollusc species. Analysis of the spatial structure of buffer zones and catchments was based on a set of landscape metrics. Land cover classes were determined, and buffer zones within a radius of 500 m from a sampling point were marked out. Mollusc samples were collected from each NAHs. Our results showed that the number of patches and mean patch size were most associated with the distribution of mollusc species. Within patches of buffer zones, the length of the catchment boundaries with low-density housing, an increasing area of forest and pH of the water were also significant. Our results proved that landscape metrics provide essential information about catchment anthropogenic transformation. Therefore, landscape metrics and the designated buff...
Hygrobates specimens with a coarse lineated soft integument generally have been considered as rep... more Hygrobates specimens with a coarse lineated soft integument generally have been considered as representatives of H. calliger Piersig, 1896, regarded as a common and widely distributed species in the Palaearctic. In the present study using an integrative taxonomic approach that combines morphological studies and DNA barcoding we show that Hygrobates calliger-like mites belong to six distinct lineages. Two species, Hygrobates ponticus sp. nov. (East Türkiye, Georgia) and H. tyrrhenicus sp. nov. (Corsica) are described as new to science.
New records of water mites from Iran and Turkey revealed by DNA barcoding are presented. DNA barc... more New records of water mites from Iran and Turkey revealed by DNA barcoding are presented. DNA barcodes were recovered from 44 water mite specimens morphologically assigned to 18 species. The DNA barcoding data for the twelve species were uploaded into the BOLD database. One species of the Hygrobates longiporus-complex, H. thori Pešić & Smit sp. nov. is described as new for science and Hydrodroma persica Pešić & Saboori, 2012 is reported as new for Turkey. We propose to lower the taxonomic status of Hydrodroma golestanica to a subspecies of H. torrenticola, i.e. H. torrenticola golestanica nov. stat.
Aim Sequencing of the mitogenome of Hygrobates turcicus Pešić, Esen & Dabert, 2017 to expand know... more Aim Sequencing of the mitogenome of Hygrobates turcicus Pešić, Esen & Dabert, 2017 to expand knowledge of the polymorphism and cryptic or pseudocryptic diversity within Hydrachnidia. Location Bulgaria, Vidima River near Debnewo, 42°56’41.4“N, 24°48’44.6”E, depth 0.4 m, stones on the bottom, water flow 0.71 m/s, temperature 10oC, pH 8.53, oxygen 110 %, conductivity 279 µS/cm, hardness 121 CaO mg/l; 11 males, 27 females, 2 deutonymphs 12.x.2019 leg. Zawal, Michoński & Bańkowska; one male and one female dissected and slides mounted. Methods DNA extraction, sequencing, assembly and annotation, comparison with other populations of H. turcicus, multigene phylogeny Results The mitogenome is 15.006 bp long and encodes for 13 proteins, 2 rRNAs, and 22 tRNAs. The genome is colinear with those of H. longiporus and H. taniguchii, the difference of size originating from a non-coding region located between protein-coding genes ND4L and ND3. Five genes were found to have alternative start-codon, a...
Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting... more Water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) are a significant component of freshwater ecosystems inhabiting a wide range of aquatic habitats. This study provides a first comprehensive DNA barcode library for the water mites of Montenegro. DNA barcodes were analysed from 233 specimens of water mites morphologically assigned to 86 species from 28 genera and 15 families. In the course of the study, four species, i.e. Lebertia reticulata (Koenike, 1919), Atractides inflatipalpis K.Viets, 1950, A. latipes (Szalay, 1935) and Parabrachypoda montii (Maglio, 1924) were molecularly confirmed as new for Montenegro and three species, i.e. Protzia octopora Lundblad, 1954, Piona laminata (Thor, 1901) and Unionicola ypsilophora (Bonz, 1783) are new for the Balkan Peninsula. Results are analysed using the Barcode Index Number system (BIN) and the Refined Single Linkage (RESL) of BOLD. The BIN assigned sequences to 98 clusters, while the RESL reveal 103 operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Unique BINs were rev...
Until now, very little is known about the ability of adult and deutonymph water mites (Acari, Hyd... more Until now, very little is known about the ability of adult and deutonymph water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) to survive in sub-zero temperatures. Information concerns mainly water mites from vernal astatic waters, and the knowledge has never been experimentally verified. To determine the sensitivity of water mites to freezing, experiments were conducted on (1) the impact of acclimatization, (2) temperature, and (3) duration of freezing on survival, (4) the survival rate of water mites from various types of water bodies, and (5) the survival rate of water mites from different climatic zones. The experiments were carried out in a phytotron chamber, and water mites were placed in containers (10 × 10 × 5 cm) filled with 4/5 of water for 10 specimens each. Water mites were identified to the species level after finishing the experiments. The temperature was lowered 1 °C every hour until the target temperature was reached. After a certain period of freezing (depending on the treatment) the ...
Thirty species of water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) were collected from standing and slowly flowi... more Thirty species of water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) were collected from standing and slowly flowing waters in Bangladesh. These are the first records of water mites from this country. Two species, Neumania nobiprobia and Arrenurus (Rhinophoracarus) smiti are described as new for science; a first description of the male is given for Mamersopsis viridis K. Viets, 1935.
The effect of urbanization is often reflected both in lotic and lentic habitats, through changes ... more The effect of urbanization is often reflected both in lotic and lentic habitats, through changes in diversity and structural and compositional changes in macroinvertebrate communities. In this study, we focused on macroinvertebrate assemblage in lotic and lentic ecosystems of the Krąpiel River catchment area (NW Poland) with the following aims: (1) to determine the main driver in structuring lotic and lentic macroinvertebrate communities and the factors that influence them in urban versus rural landscapes; (2) to test whether the diversity of macroinvertebrate assemblages in urban lotic/lentic ecosystems is lower than that in rural landscapes; (3) to identify characteristic macroinvertebrate species for urban and rural lotic/lentic ecosystems; to (4) determine species tolerance ranges and species optimums, with special emphasis on characteristic “urban” and “rural” species. Distance from study sites to built-up areas and conductivity were the main factors contributing to the separat...
Knowledge & Management of Aquatic Ecosystems, 2021
We investigated the ostracod assemblage structure in springs of a small lowland River Krąpiel val... more We investigated the ostracod assemblage structure in springs of a small lowland River Krąpiel valley. Environmental factors and the potential of ostracods as indicators of spring type were analysed. The analysis involved the type of spring, substrate, physicochemical parameters, and the river valley's hydrological status as environmental factors. A total of thirty ostracod species were recorded. The average count of ostracod individuals in a sample amounted to 100. The assemblages were dominated by juvenile Candona sp., juvenile Psychrodromus sp., Cypria ophtalmica, and Cypridopsis vidua. The spring species accounted for less than 1% of the individual counts, except for juvenile Psychrodromus sp. with 21% and Eucypris pigra with 4%. The average number of taxa per spring was 5. The ostracod assemblages were significantly influenced by limnocrene springs, spring flooding by the river overflow, the presence of coarse leaf litter, the presence of fine organic matter, a high content ...
The genus Torrenticola Piersig, 1896 is a common water mite group in the running waters in all bi... more The genus Torrenticola Piersig, 1896 is a common water mite group in the running waters in all biogeographical regions except Antarctica and Australasia. In the present study we used an integrative taxonomic approach by applying partial COI sequences (DNA-barcodes) to describe a new species of the genus Torrenticola, T. dowlingi Pešić sp. nov. from Iran. Morphologically, the new species is most similar to T. laskai Di Sabatino, 2009 from which it differs by the larger dimensions of idiosoma and genital field. The K2P distance that separated the new species from T. laskai was amounted to 3.98%.
Rivers are one of the most commonly transformed aquatic ecosystems. Most papers present significa... more Rivers are one of the most commonly transformed aquatic ecosystems. Most papers present significantly negative effects of activities such as dredging or channel regulation on the ecological status of rivers. The purpose of this work was to compare the response of various groups of invertebrates (Mollusca, Hydrachnidia, Odonata, Heteroptera, Coleoptera and Trichoptera) to an intervention involving dredging in conjunction with the removal of riparian vegetation. Habitat diversity increased after the dredging, and more individuals and species were caught than before the dredging. The increase in habitat diversity after the dredging translated into an increase in the species diversity of most investigated groups. Individual groups of invertebrates showed varied responses to the dredging, depending on the role of the terrestrial phase in their life cycle: the greater the role of the terrestrial phase in the life cycle, the more the group was affected by changes in the terrestrial environ...
International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife, 2020
This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
Caddisfly larvae were collected in 11 karstic springs located in Lake Skadar drainage basin in th... more Caddisfly larvae were collected in 11 karstic springs located in Lake Skadar drainage basin in the Mediterranean part of Montenegro on May and June 2018. Three species are new records for the caddisfly fauna of Montenegro: Brachycentrus subnubilus, Lepidostoma hirtum, Triaenodes ochreellus lefkas. One is a confirmed record of a previously thought absent species Thremma anomalum. Future caddisfly surveys in the region will contribute significantly to the partially known Trichoptera fauna of Montenegro.
Water mites of the Hygrobates fluviatilis complex are common in Palaearctic inhabiting mainly run... more Water mites of the Hygrobates fluviatilis complex are common in Palaearctic inhabiting mainly running and slowly flowing waters. In this study, we examined the specimens collected in a stream in Golestan Province of Iran which is currently the easternmost distribution limit of the latter species complex. We used a fragment of the mtDNA COI gene and the D2 region of 28S rDNA to test the genetic structure. Molecular analyses revealed presence of two new well-supported species with a mean genetic divergence of 12.80% and 14.66% COI, respectively, from their closest relatives. Phylogenetic analysis based on COI and nuclear DNA data placed H. grabowskii sp. nov. as the sister species of H. persicus, and H. ulii sp. nov. as the sister species of H. turcicus. Discriminant statistical analysis revealed that the two newly discovered species could be separated on the basis of morphometric characters, but robust morphological differences were not found. Yet we were able to show that diversity ...
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