Genetic data support local persistence in multiple glacial refugia in the montane net‐winged midge Liponeura cinerascens cinerascens (diptera, blephariceridae)

Abstract

The Pleistocene glaciations shaped the distribution and population structure of most European species. Some species survived the glacial cycles by shifting their range to Mediterranean refuges, while others endured in central European habitats. It has been argued that certain cold‐tolerant aquatic insect populations were able to persist in non‐freezing rivers close to glaciers. We aimed to identify the Pleistocene biogeographic history of a net‐winged midge (Blephariceridae), a relatively unknown group of Dipteran montane habitat specialists, by inference from its current population genetic structure. We sampled five mountain ranges covering the extent of the species range. We genotyped a novel set of 11 microsatellites and sequenced the mitochondrial cytochrome‐c‐oxidase subunit I region to detect genetic structure within and among five European mountain ranges in the net‐winged midge Liponeura cinerascens cinerascens. Liponeura cinerascens cinerascens shows distinct genetic differentiation between different mountain ranges, coupled, however, with near panmictic gene flow across distances exceeding 100 km within each studied mountain range. Distinct mitochondrial cytochrome‐c‐oxidase subunit I lineages with endemic haplotypes, microsatellite population genetic structure and high levels of regionally private alleles provide evidence that mountain range populations have been evolving independently from each other for a significant number of generations. Liponeura cinerascens cinerascens is able to maintain gene flow between watercourses in highly structured mountain ranges. Lowland regions, however, pose significant dispersal barriers, possibly because high‐gradient stretches with boulders are rare in such landscapes. We posit that each of the studied mountain regions represents an independent Pleistocene glacial refuge, and that L. c. cinerascens was able to persist glacial cycles in extra‐Mediterranean periglacial refugia in the Jura Mountains, Bavarian Forest, and Carpathians.

Taxonomic turnover and northward phylogenetic clustering reveal evidence for environmental filtering in structuring Trichoptera communities across Europe

“…cold-adaptation) to inhospitable high elevation or latitude habitats (Graham et al, 2009). Under this assumption, the distribution of cold-adapted and phylogenetically closely related taxa was probably retracted in extra-Mediterranean refugia during glaciations (Schröder et al, 2021;Sworobowicz et al, 2020). Unfortunately, the phylogenetic signal (the degree to which phylogeny predicts the ecological similarity of taxa) for cold-tolerance could not be tested in the present study due to unavailable trait information for several lineages.…”

Detailed DNA barcoding of mayflies in a small European country proved how far we are from having comprehensive barcode reference libraries

“…Concurrently, up to 36% of European public mayfly BINs contain sequences from our territory (Table 1). Unique BINs obtained in our study may indicate the presence of extra-Mediterranean refugia formed on the mountain slopes of Western Carpathians and along river valleys, where wet conditions prevailed (Schmitt & Varga, 2012;Schröder et al, 2021;Theissinger et al, 2013;Wattier et al, 2020). This area is a potential source of the formation of cryptic diversity, and thus the need for more thorough research is evident.…”

Population genetic structure and connectivity in three montane freshwater invertebrate species (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Amphipoda) with differing life cycles and dispersal capabilities

“…We developed new microsatellite loci for B. seticornis , using the method described in Schröder et al. (2021). We chose 18 (Appendix S1: Table 7) loci for genotyping based on amplification success, peak intensity, the impact of stutter peaks, and the polymorphism of the loci.…”

“…We developed new microsatellite loci for B. seticornis, using the method described in Schröder et al (2021). We chose 18…”