A new cryptic species of pond turtle from southern Italy, the hottest spot in the range of the genus Emys (Reptilia, Testudines, Emydidae)

Abstract

2005). A new cryptic species of pond turtle from southern Italy, the hottest spot in the range of the genus Emys (Reptilia, Testudines, Emydidae). -Zoologica Scripta , 34 , 351-371. Geographic variation in the mtDNA haplotypes (cytochrome b gene) of 127 European pond turtles from Italy was investigated. Thirty-eight of the Italian samples were also studied by nuclear fingerprinting (ISSR PCR) and compared with samples from other parts of the range representing all nine currently known mtDNA lineages of Emys orbicularis . Our genetic findings were compared against morphological data sets (measurements, colour pattern) for 109 adult turtles from southern Italy. Italy is displaying on a small geographical scale the most complicated variation known over the entire distributional area of Emys (North Africa over Europe and Asia Minor to the Caspian and Aral Seas). The Tyrrhenic coast of the Apennine Peninsula, the Mt. Pollino area and Basilicata are inhabited by Emys orbicularis galloitalica , a subspecies harbouring a distinct mtDNA lineage. The same lineage is also found in Sardinia. Along the Adriatic coast of Italy and on the Salentine Peninsula (Apulia, southern Italy), another morphologically distinctive subspecies ( Emys orbicularis hellenica ) occurs, which also bears a different mtDNA lineage. A higher diversity of mtDNA haplotypes in the south of the Apennine Peninsula suggests that the glacial refugia of E. o. galloitalica and E. o. hellenica were located here. A further refuge of E. o. hellenica probably existed in the southern Balkans. The west coasts of the Balkans and Corfu have probably been colonized from Italy and not from the geographically closer southern Balkanic refuge. In Sicily, a third mtDNA lineage is distributed, which is sister to all other known lineages of Emys . Morphologically, Sicilian pond turtles resemble E. o. galloitalica . However, nuclear fingerprinting revealed a clear distinctiveness of the Sicilian taxon, whereas no significant divergence was detected between representatives of the other eight mtDNA lineages of Emys . Furthermore, nuclear fingerprinting provided no evidence for current or past gene flow between the Sicilian taxon and the mainland subspecies of E. orbicularis . Therefore, Sicilian pond turtles are described here as a species new to science. Some populations in Calabria and on the Salentine Peninsula comprise individuals of different mtDNA lineages. We interpret this as a natural contact. However, we cannot exclude that these syntopic occurrences are the result of human activity. For example, in other parts of Italy, the natural distribution pattern of Emys is obscured by allochthonous turtles. This could also be true for southern Italy. The discovery of the complex taxonomic differentiation in southern Italy requires reconsidering conservation strategies.

Geography and host biogeography matter for understanding the phylogeography of a parasite

“…Although the presence of usual phylogeographic breaks does not exclude co-differentiation between Heligmosomoides and its host, co-differentiation might not be the most likely cause of these interruptions. In contrast, other phylogeographic breaks shared by Heligmosomoides and A. sylvaticus in South Western Europe do not correspond to phylogeographic breaks typically found in many other taxa: i.e., the differentiation of Sicily from continental Italy (even if few studies showed that Sicily is a hotspot of biodiversity in Europe (Randi et al, 2003;Fineschi et al, 2005;Fritz et al, 2005)), and the differentiation of Maghreb populations from Spain. These shared specific phylogeographic breaks are, in contrast to usual phylogeographic fractures, good clues arguing for long-term co-differentiation between the two species (Thompson, 2005).…”

Geographic variation of sexual size dimorphism and genetics in the European pond turtle,Emys orbicularisandEmys trinacris, of Italy

“…In our freshwater turtle model, we found that the SSD pattern was differently expressed according to groups and localities (see Figures 2-4). This highlights the presence of different morphological body size architectures (Fritz 1995;Zuffi & Ballasina 1998), and may also confirm some of the differences found at the genetic level (Lenk et al 1998(Lenk et al , 1999Fritz et al 2005). In fact, the significant body size differences among populations of the Eastern Po Plain, the Tyrrhenian coast, Sicily, Corsica and Sardinia support, at least at a certain degree, most previous morphological data (Fritz 1995(Fritz , 1998Fritz & Obst 1995;Zuffi & Gariboldi 1995a;Zuffi & Ballasina 1998;Fritz 2003) that described different subspecies.…”

“…In Corsica and Sardinia two other subspecies were described on the basis of morphological peculiarities: E. o. lanzai, and E. o. capolongoi. All these subspecies are characterised by the same mitochondrial haplotype (Lenk et al 1999), while the Sicilian taxon has been found to show a markedly different mitochondrial pattern (Fritz et al 2005).…”

“…These areas take into account the hypothesised distribution of the hybrid (central Po Plain: E. o. orbicularis6E. o. hellenica) and of the pure subspecies (E. o. hellenica: Eastern Po Plain), according to last revisions of this taxon (Fritz 2003;Fritz et al 2005). Central Italy, south of the northern Apennines, was divided into Ligurian and Tyrrhenian coasts (from Liguria southwards to Calabria: area of E. o. galloitalica), and Adriatic coasts to the East and to the South to southern Apulia (area of E. o. hellenica).…”

“…The Ligurian and Tyrrhenian areas are, for example, characterised by the subspecies E. o. galloitalica inhabiting northern and central Mediterranean areas, from southern France to Liguria, and, along the Tyrrhenian coast, to the Gulf of Sant'Eufemia (southern Italy ;Fritz 2001), but see Jesu et al (2004) for a new subspecies (E. o. ingauna) described for western Liguria. A new species that has just been described for Sicily (E. trinacris, Fritz et al 2005), makes the Mediterranean status of the E. orbicularis group particularly interesting. In Corsica and Sardinia two other subspecies were described on the basis of morphological peculiarities: E. o. lanzai, and E. o. capolongoi.…”