The Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) is a strictly protected species of large carnivore in Poland. It inhabits forest complexes in north-eastern Poland and the Carpathian region in southern Poland. The status of the lynx within Poland requires special attention because its range decreased between 1980 and 2001 and has not yet recovered. One of the factors negatively affecting lynx populations is diseases, particularly parasites. The helminth fauna of the Eurasian lynx is not fully known in Poland. Previous coprological studies revealed that Polish lynx have been infected with seven species of nematodes, three species of cestodes, and one species of trematode. In this study, we present new data based on examination of opportunistically collected lynx carcasses. The aim of the study was to complement data on the helminth fauna of Eurasian lynx inhabiting Poland based on morphological and molecular analysis of parasites. Four species of cestodes—Taenia lynciscapreoli, Mesocestoides lineatus, Spirometra sp., and Taenia krabbei—were found for the first time in Eurasian lynx from Poland and three previously reported species of nematodes—Ancylostoma tubaeforme, Toxascaris leonina, and Toxocara cati—were confirmed. Larvae of Trichinella britovi were also detected in Eurasian lynx in Poland for the first time.

The common vole (Microtus arvalis) and the field vole (Microtus agrestis) are morphologically similar species but are ecological distinctive and differ in the details of their evolutionary history as revealed by mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). The aim of this study is to describe patterns of genetic variability using microsatellite markers in populations of the common and field vole in Poland using museum specimens, to assess the degree of congruence with mtDNA variation and thereby determine the factors that influence current patterns of gene flow. We genotyped 190 individuals of the common vole at 11 loci and 190 individuals of the field vole at 13 loci. Overall differentiation based on F ST was higher for the common vole than in the field vole. We detected a significant isolation by distance pattern for both species. Bayesian analysis in STRUCTURE identified Eastern and Western geographic groups in Poland based on microsatellites for both species. The location of river barriers is likely to be the main factor in these partitions. The eastern-western subdivision with microsatellites does not coincide with the distribution of mtDNA lineages for either species. Unlike previous studies in the common and field vole elsewhere in Europe, we found no evidence of reproductive isolation between the mtDNA lineages of these species at their contact zones in Poland. This study highlights the different roles of evolutionary history and landscape in shaping contemporary genetic structure in voles in Poland.

The range of the golden jackal (Canis aureus) in Europe has been expanding in recent decades. We describe the first three records of golden jackal from Poland and attribute them to the natural range expansion of the species. A young male jackal was found dead on a road in western Poland, close to the German border, on 13th April 2015. Morphological examination and genetic analysis confirmed the species identification. This individual had the same mitochondrial DNA haplotype as a comparative individual from the wild population in southern Ukraine. The two other observations of jackals, confirmed from photographs, were reported in May and June 2015 from the Biebrza river valley and the Polesie region, both in eastern Poland. The records suggest a natural expansion of the species into Poland, probably from different source populations, and indicate the urgent need to determine the status of the golden jackal in this part of Europe.