Search

Report of the first observation of scavenging behaviour in the population of Testudo hermanni boettgeri that has been monitored for six years in the village Kunovica near the city of Niš in Serbia. On 31 May 2015 at 10:18 a.m., the adult tortoise was observed while eating a dead European green lizard (Lacerta viridis).

We present here information on some fecundity parameters in local population of Eastern Hermann’s tortoise situated in the area of Kunovica, at the outskirts of the city of Niš. The data were collected in the field and in 97% were based on reconstruction of number and dimensions of eggs in destroyed nests what influenced on quality of information. Only two of 78 nests recorded from 2010 to 2014 were found intact. Other 76 clutches were found destroyed and therefore only some fecundity parameters were measurable, while the others were reconstructed by using formulas proposed in the relevant literature. On the basis of collected data we estimated average clutch size of Hermann’s tortoises in Kunovica as four eggs what was lower than in populations from Greece. However, the most of calculated egg dimensions (e.g. maximal width, volume and mass) were higher than in populations from Greece and France.

Many European frogs and toads are relatively secretive species and except during breeding season, adults can rarely be seen during time-restricted fieldwork. In contrast, their tadpoles are easy to record and could be very useful in a brief biodiversity assessment. It is important to perform quick and accurate taxonomic identification of tadpoles, yet genetic methods are costly and cannot be routinely applied. We tested suitability of morphometric analysis for taxonomical distinction among tadpoles of early breeding local anuran species. Tadpole samples were collected simultaneously at three different locations in Republic of Serbia (South-eastern Europe) in habitats known to be breeding sites shared by brown frogs and the common toad. DNA barcoding verified Rana dalmatina, R. temporaria and Bufo bufo species, each collected in different location. The results of linear morphometric analyses suggested that relative head length and head width could be good discriminative characteristics for tadpoles of these two Rana species and those of B. bufo. To distinguish between tadpoles of two analyzed brown frog species, relative tail length could be used. For further development of the identification procedures for tadpoles of particular species, Applied Ecology and Environmental Research (2016), 14(2): 381-397

Amphibians and reptiles are two large groups of vertebrate animals. Amphibians were the first vertebrates that colonized land. In comparison to fishes, they possess a number of evolutionary advanced traits. These traits enable them to survive in terrestrial environments. Amphibians, however, need various fresh water habitats, at least for their embryonic development and early life history stages. Reptiles were the first group of terrestrial vertebrates to develop adaptations for conducting a complete life cycle on land/in arid environments. Their eggs have solid membrane which protects the embryo from desiccation. Additionally, reptile skin is covered by thickened cell layers in the form of scales and plates which prevent water evaporation from the body. Amphibians and reptiles have been treated by men as secretive and dangerous creatures for a long time, due to their intriguing habitus and life history. On the other hand, the development and popularisation of biological disciplines related to research of amphibians and reptiles (e.g. batrachology and herpetology) have progressed in relatively slowly. As a result, even nowadays in Europe we may face various superstitious beliefs/sayings and mythological tales about amphibians and reptiles which provoke negative or ignorant attitudes toward them. This monograph was written with a desire to provide the reader with useful information about amphibians and reptiles, and to underline their importance in maintaining local biological communities and ecosystems. Moreover, our intention is to warn the readers of potential factors that threaten the survival of amphibians and reptiles, specifically those the species in Đerdap National Park could face. General information about Đerdap National park is presented at the beginning of this monograph, to remind readers about and to emphasise the importance this area has for biodiversity conservation in both the Republic of Serbia and in Carpathian region of Europe. All these facts could contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the importance of representatives of amphibian and reptile fauna for the conservation of overall species diversity in this region. The first part of this monograph is an overview of both amphibian and reptile species whose presence in the National park has been confirmed, and of those that, being common in the broader area of Đerdap, are still not recorded within the borders of the protected area. Species and their higher taxonomic categories were presented using their Serbian names language (and in English), with appropriate scientific names added after, without or in brackets. The second part is a systematisation of the records (both those collected by the authors and those extracted from literature) in a way that enables a quick view into the importance of local amphibian and reptile fauna for the evaluation of Đerdap National Park within a network of protected areas in Serbia. Additionally, there is an overview of national and international legislations that legally protect these species and also of potential threats they could face. Citation of literature units throughout the manuscript has been done in Cirillic letters for those publications written in Serbian and Russian languages. Those references published in other languages (whether by Serbian or foreign authors) have been written in Latin script. Two chapters are dedicated to the topics permanently attractive to humans but which have also often promoted an erroneous image of amphibians and reptiles. We considered them as necessary for inclusion, but with additional explanations where necessary. These topics are somehow related, since species that produce and segregate various active (colloquially „poisonous“) substances have been the subject of many superstitions from a long time. Also, many amphibian and reptiles species have received unfair roles in local beliefs and mythological rituals exactly because of their peculiar habitus and life styles and due to ignorance of local people. We truly hope that this monograph will raise more sympathy for amphibians and reptiles among inhabitants of Đerdap as well as all readers, and that it will contribute to the better understanding of their general importance. In addition, we need to point that the whole content of the monograph was completed and submitted to the management of Public Enterprise Djerdap NP at the end of 2012 and few additions were made in 2013. Due to numerous obstacles, the process of organisation and realisation of publishing took more than two years. In the meantime, at the end of 2015, The Red Book of Amphibians of Serbia and The Red Book of Reptiles of Serbia are published. We recommend them to all those readers interested in current official national conservation status of amphibian and reptile species listed in this monograph. Vodozemci i gmizavci predstavljaju dve velike grupe kičmenjaka. Vodozemci su prvi kičmenjaci koji su naselili kopno. U odnosu na ribe, oni se odlikuju nizom evolutivno naprednih osobina koje su im omogućile život u suvozemnoj sredini. Međutim, vodozemcima je svakako neophodna vodena sredina u vidu raznovrsnih slatkovodnih staništa, pre svega za odvijanje embrionalnog razvića i ranih faza životnog ciklusa. Gmizavci su prvi kopneni kičmenjaci kod kojih se pojavila sposobnost preživljavanja u suvozemnoj sredini tokom celog života. Njihova jaja imaju čvrstu opnu koja štiti embrion od gubitka vlage, a koža gmizavaca je pokrivena rožnim omotačem koji ograničava isparavanje vode iz tela. Specifičan izgled i način života uticali su od davnina na formiranje stanovišta da su vodozemci i gmizavci tajanstvena i opasna bića. Razvoj i popularizacija batrahologije i herpetologije (bioloških disciplina koje se bave proučavanjem vodozemaca, odnosno gmizavaca) odvijali su se relativno sporo, tako da u Evropi još uvek nije u potpunosti poništen uticaj sujeverja i mitova koji su vekovima doprinosili negativnom ili ravnodušnom stavu čoveka prema ovim dvema grupama životinja. Osnovna motivacija za pisanje ove monografije bila je pružanje korisnih informacija o vodozemcima i gmizavcima i isticanje njihovog značaja u održavanju lokalnih bioloških zajednica i ekosistema. Takođe, namera nam je bila i da upozorimo čitaoce na potencijalne faktore ugrožavanja vodozemaca i gmizavaca, putem upoznavanja sa problemima vrsta koje naseljavaju područje Nacionalnog parka „Đerdap“. Opšte informacije o Nacionalnom parku „Đerdap“ navedene su u uvodnom delu monografije. One bi trebalo da obaveste ili podsete čitaoce na značaj koji ovo područje ima za očuvanje biološke raznovrsnosti Republike Srbije i Karpatskog regiona Evrope. Na taj način će i shvatanje važnosti predstavnika fauna vodozemaca i gmizavaca za očuvanje ukupne raznovrsnosti vrsta ovog područja biti unapređeno. Prvi deo monografije sadrži pregled vrsta vodozemaca i gmizavaca čije je prisustvo potvrđeno na teritoriji Nacionalnog parka, ali i onih vrsta koje do sada nisu nađene u okviru granica zaštićenog područja, a naseljavaju širi prostor Đerdapa. Vrste i više taksonomske kategorije kojima one pripadaju predstavljene su pod srpskim nazivima (u engleskom prevodu pod engleskim nazivima), a naučni nazivi navedeni su u produžetku ili u zagradi. Drugi deo monografije predstavlja sistematizaciju podataka prikupljenih tokom terenskih istraživanja i iščitavanja literature na način koji omogućava brz uvid u značaj lokalnih fauna vodozemaca i gmizavaca za vrednovanje Nacionalnog parka „Đerdap“ u mreži zaštićenih područja Srbije, zatim u nacionalne i međunarodne zakonske okvire kojima su ove vrste zaštićene, kao i u potencijalne probleme njihovog očuvanja. Prilikom citiranja literature, ćiriličnim pismom navedene su reference publikovane na srpskom i ruskom jeziku, dok su latiničnim pismom navedene reference naših i stranih autora publikovane na drugim jezicima. Dva poglavlja posvećena su temama koje su oduvek interesovale ljude, ali često dovodile do pogrešnih predstava o vodozemcima i gmizavcima, pa smo smatrali da ih je neophodno pomenuti, uz dodatna objašnjenja gde je potrebno. Obe teme su na neki način povezane: vrste koje proizvode i luče različite aktivne (u običnom govoru „otrovne“) supstance od davnina su predmet praznoverja. Takođe, mnoge vrste vodozemaca i gmizavaca su upravo zbog svog specifičnog izgleda i načina života, a usled neupućenosti lokalnog stanovništva, dobile neslavne uloge u lokalnim verovanjima i mitološkim obredima. Nadamo se da će ova monografija približiti vodozemce i gmizavce stanovnicima Đerdapa kao i ostalim čitaocima i omogućiti bolje sagledavanje njihovog značaja. U skladu sa time, moramo napomenuti da je tekst monografije u potpunosti oblikovan i predat rukovodstvu JP NP „Đerdap“ krajem 2012 godine, a da je neznatna dopuna podataka urađena 2013 godine. Usled mnogobrojnih problema, organizacija i realizacija štampanja monografije trajale su više od dve godine. U međuvremenu, krajem 2015 godine publikovane su Crvena knjiga vodozemaca Srbije i Crvena knjiga gmizavaca Srbije na koje upućujemo sve čitaoce zainteresovane za trenutni zvanični nacionalni status ugroženosti vrsta koje naseljavaju prostor Đerdapa.

In pristine environments, riparian ecosystems are continuously distributed along large river flows. As ecotones, they harbor more species diversity than ecosystems bordering them from both sides. Along the Sava River flow, riparian ecosystems are discontinuously distributed, being preserved mainly in protected areas of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia. Nine riparian ecosystem types could be listed, harboring in total 17 amphibian, 13 reptile, more than 280 bird, and 80 mammal species. Looking at global species conservation status (global IUCN status: 2009, amphibians and reptiles; 2012, birds; 2008, mammals), the highest concerns should be focused on Triturus dobrogicus (NT), Emys orbicularis (NT), Falco cherrug (EN), Aythya nyroca (NT), Rhinolophus euryale (VU), R. ferrumequinum (NT), R. hipposideros (NT), Barbastella barbastellus (VU), Miniopterus schreibersii (NT), Myotis bechsteinii (VU), M. blythii (NT), M. dasycneme (NT), Plecotus macrobullaris (NT), Lutra lutra (NT), and Eliomys quercinus (NT). Most of the vertebrate species occurring along the Sava River are also protected by national legislations. However, it seems that both their populations and native habitats need more appropriate treatment at place. Milačić R, Ščančar J, Paunović M, editors. The Sava River. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag; 2015. p. 401-435.

Vipera ursinii macrops, karst viper inhabits high mountain grasslands in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro and Albania. It is endemic species for Balkan Dinaric mountain range. In recent study it was suggested by molecular data that Croatian populations are distinct as separate subclade, here referred to as V. u. macrops cf. “Croatian subclade”.Our goal was to collect data for 3 populations from 3 different localities:Velebit – Croatia(“Croatian-subclade”), Bjelasica – Montenegro and Bistra - Macedonia(macrops). We wanted to find out if there are some differences in morphological characters and meristic characters of the head that can separate these three populations and two subclades. The data were compared with morphology and meristic values that were used to determinate the subspecies of ursinii complex. Other question was is there intrapopulation and interpopulation variability of characters. We observed and measured 247 individuals for 4 morphological and 17 meristics characters. Results show that there are statistical significant differences in some characters between populations. When we compare population’s descriptive statistics, for Velebit population none of the values are in described range for V. u. macrops but show similarity with values described for V. u. ursinii. Population from Bjelasica has values that are close to described values for V.u.macrops and population from Bistra has values that are between V. u. macrops and V. u. graeca. Also there is sexual dimorphism between males and females in number of pileus scales and in snout to vent length.

Heatwole H, Wilkinson J, editors. Status of conservation and decline of amphibians: Eastern Hemisphere: Southeastern Europe and Turkey. Exeter: Pelagic Publishing; 2014. p. 45-55. (Amphibian biology; vol. 11. part 4).

We analyzed the diet composition of adult Common Toads (Bufo bufo) in Europe to define their general diet preferences with the use of data collected in Serbia and published data from Great Britain, Spain, France, Poland, Hungary, Belarus, and Bulgaria. We also addressed the potential correlation between adult body size and prey size, and sex-based food niche partitioning in adults as suggested by the pronounced sexual size dimorphism in this species. Analysis revealed that European Common Toads feed most frequently on insects, e.g., Coleoptera and Hymenoptera (Formicidae), but food diversity may vary among regions. A number of other invertebrate taxa were included in the diet, though usually in frequencies less than 0.1. The results suggest that the Common Toad is neither a feeding generalist, nor a myrmecophagous specialist, as some bufonids are proclaimed to be. In-depth analysis of samples from Serbia revealed no correlation between the body size of toads and the number of prey ingested, a positive correlation between toad body size and prey size due to sexual size dimorphism, high overlap of dietary preferences, and concordance in the distribution of various prey types between males and females. Furthermore, males consumed small prey items in higher proportions than did females, but the opposite was found for medium-size prey, which suggests possible dietary niche partitioning in prey size rather than in taxonomical composition. Ministry of Education and Science of the Republics of Serbia [173025]; [173038]

The Balkan Peninsula is generally recognized as one of the hot-spots of European biodiversity, where vipers of the genus Vipera are represented by two subspecies of the European Adder, (V. berus), two of the Meadow viper (V. ursinii) and three of the nose-horned viper (V. ammodytes). The available atlases and red data Books do not provide precise information on their present distribution or conservation and threat status. Most available records originate from older literature and remain unconfirmed ; moreover, there are known or supposed distributional gaps, the course and position of which need verification. in particular, conservation measures, priorities and strategies cannot be established without precise faunistic data. However, the three viper species share additional conservation problems in the Balkans, such as lack of systematic study and public interest, “historical and political burdens”, lack of knowledge, superstition and fear among people, increasing urbanization, habitat destruction, illegal collection, as well as lack of adequate legislation (or regulations at all) in various countries. Presented here is a more complete and new data about the distribution of the vipers in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia and FYr of Macedonia.

In most of Palearctic countries ranked as rich in amphibian diversity the global threats to amphibian populations are prominent. The foremost factors are loss, degradation and fragmentation of habitat, followed by pollution, competition from invasive non-native species (Sommerwerk et al. 2009), increased predatory pressure from domestic animals, and emerging infectious diseases. In combination with economic and political transition, these effects could lead to local extirpation of important fragments of European amphibian diversity. Regarding amphibian species richness, Republic of Serbia is one of top 20 countries in Palearctic region. However, with t he country moving toward market economy, a new problem arose – responsibility for environment protection within the context of a process of privatization. Lack of wastewater management plan, uncontrolled long-term population of watercourses with allochtonous invasive fish species, roadkill and illegal collection for commercial purposes influenced negatively on local amphibian populations. Additional and perhaps specific threat for local amphibian assemblages is disappearance of small and moderate water bodies, primarily in the highlands, either through backfilling or turning into fish ponds. Most of efforts concerning aquatic habitat conservation in the country are focused on bird and fish species (ICPDR National Report 2005) and the protection of specific habitats important for the conservation of amphibians are not adequately addressed. Although the general protection of inland water habitats and wetlands contributes to the conservation of amphibians, the specific small-sized habitats of particular importance for amphibians should be identified and protected. Analysis of surveys related to identification, mapping and classification of amphibian important habitats showed apparent degree of their fragility and thus further work in this matter should be carried out in order to propose and implement adequate conservation measures. The monitoring of amphibians is not widespread in the area and must be intensified, together with proper and frequent education about the importance of amphibian conservation, not just through ordinary educational programmes but among citizens in general. Recent history and current problems with political transitions make biodiversity conservation even more difficult than before, and present economic pressures mean that, without direct economic incentive, the people of the area will not be motivated to preserve amphibians‘ breeding sites.

New analytical methods are improving our ability to reconstruct robust species trees from multilocus datasets, despite difficulties in phylogenetic reconstruction associated with recent, rapid divergence, incomplete lineage sorting and/or introgression. In this study, we applied these methods to resolve the radiation of toads in the Bufo bufo (Anura, Bufonidae) species group, ranging from the Iberian Peninsula and North Africa to Siberia, based on sequences from two mitochondria] and four nuclear DNA regions (3490 base pairs). We obtained a fully-resolved topology, with the recently described Bufo eichwaldi from the Talysh Mountains in south Azerbaijan and Iran as the sister taxon to a clade including: (1) north African, Iberian, and most French populations, referred herein to Bufo spinosus based on the implied inclusion of populations from its type locality and (2) a second clade, sister to B. spinosus, including two sister subclades: one with all samples of Bufo verrucosissimus from the Caucasus and another one with samples of B. bufo from northern France to Russia, including the Apennine and Balkan peninsulas and most of Anatolia. Coalescent-based estimations of time to most recent common ancestors for each species and selected subclades allowed historical reconstruction of the diversification of the species group in the context of Mediterranean paleogeography and indicated a long evolutionary history in this region. Finally, we used our data to delimit the ranges of the four species, particularly the more widespread and historically confused B. spinosus and B. bufo, and identify potential contact zones, some of which show striking parallels with other co-distributed species. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion; Universidad de Castilla la Mancha; European Union [HU-TAF-181]; Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion [CGL2008-04271-C02-01/ BOS]; Junta de Comunidades de Castilla la Mancha [PPII10-0097-4200]; Hungarian Sc

One of the most important problems for evolutionary biologists is to investigate the patterns and strength of phenotypic selection acting on quantitative traits in natural populations. Measurement of selection is complicated by the presence of correlations between characters; selection on a particular trait produces not only a direct effect, but indirect effects as well. Despite the growing body of phenotypic selection studies in a variety of taxa, studies on amphibians are still sparse. The aim of this study was to estimate patterns and strength of selection acting on a set of correlated characters in a natural population of Bufo bufo from the vicinity of Belgrade, Serbia. Morphological traits (body length, fore- and hind leg length) were measured, while fitness was assayed as fecundity and gonad weight for females and males, respec­tively. The regression approach was used to estimate selection differentials and gradients. Selection patterns differed between the sexes - linear selection differentials showed significant total directional selection for body size in females, but not in males. In males, differentials were significant for both fore- and hind leg lengths. Sample size did not permit identification of significant nonlinear (quadratic) selection. Jedan od najvažnijih problema za evolucione biologe je procena obrazaca i intenziteta fenotipske selekcije koja deluje na kvantitativne osobine u prirodnim populacijama. Procenu selekcije komplikuje i prisustvo korelacije između osobina; selekcija koja deluje na datu osobinu ima ne samo direktan efekat na tu osobinu, već i indirektan na raspodelu korelisanih osobina. Uprkos rastućoj količini informacija o fenotipskoj selekciji kod različitih taksona, studije na vodozemcima su još uvek vrlo retke. Cilj ovog rada bio je da se procene obrasci i intenzitet selekcije koja je delovala na skup korelisanih osobina u prirodnoj populaciji Bufo bufo iz okoline Beograda. Merene su morfološke osobine(dužina tela, dužina prednjih i zadnjih ekstremiteta); fitnes je procenjen preko fekunditeta kod ženki, odnosno težine gonada kod mužjaka. Regresioni metod je primenjen za procenu selekcionih diferencijala i gradijenata. Obrasci selekcije su se razlikovali među polovima - linearni selekcionih Diferencijali ukazuju na značajnu ukupnu direkcionu selekciju za veličinu tela kod ženki, ali ne i kod mužjaka. Kod mužjaka, diferencijali su bili značajni i za prednje i za zadnje ekstremitete. Zbog veličine uzorka nije bilo moguće naći značajnu nelinearnu(kvadratnu) selekciju. null

Numerous studies have underlined the complex nature of relationship between age, size, and reproductive traits in anurans. One of the most intriguing problems for evolutionary biologists is intersexual difference in body size (SSD). For testing various hypotheses about SSD, we need reliable estimates of its extent (the important issue being the choice of trait for analysis) as well as the accurate determination of individual age. The measures of SSD may be subject to error if estimated from populations with unknown age distribution; amphibians continue to grow throughout their life and SSD is linked to sex differences in traits such as age at maturity and lifespan. In the present paper, we analyze problems involved in accurate determination of age structure and factors that may lead to under- or overestimation of individual age, as well as the problem of appropriate choice of traits, in the light of our experience and results of investigating populations of common toad (Bufo bufo) in the vicinity of Belgrade. Brojne studije istakle su složenu prirodu odnosa između starosti, veličine tela i reproduktivnih osobina kod bezrepih vodozemaca. Za evolucione biologe jedan od najintrigantnijih problema je interseksualna razlika u veličini tela (SSD). Za testiranje hipoteza koje se tiču SSD, neophodne su tačne procene njene veličine (izuzetno je važno pitanje izbora osobina koje se koriste u toj analizi), kao i precizno određivanje starosti. Procena SSD može biti pogrešna ako nije poznata uzrasna struktura date populacije; vodozemci nastavljaju da rastu tokom života, a SSD je povezana sa interseksualnim razlikama u osobinama kao što su vreme polnog sazrevanja i dužina života. U ovom radu analiziramo probleme vezane za tačnu procenu uzrasne strukture i činioce koji mogu da dovedu do precenjenih ili potcenjenih vrednosti, kao i probleme adekvatnog izbora osobina za analizu, s obzirom na naša iskustva i rezultate proučavanja populacija Bufo bufo iz okoline Beograda. Projekat ministarstva br. 1725

The present study investigates the genetic structure of 12 roe deer Capreolus capreolus Linnaeus, 1758 population samples from Serbia, by screening a total of 334 individuals. We examined whether genetic differentiation exists in local populations in Serbia, and addressed the question whether management policies may affect genetic structure. The populations were analysed by multilocus protein electrophoresis, with 33 protein loci examined. Screening of 20 enzymes and one group of general proteins revealed polymorphism at the following 12 loci: Sdh, Mdh-1, Me-1, Idh-2, 6-Pgd-1, alpha Gpd, Ak, Pgm-1, Pgin-2, Ca, Mpi and Gpi. Among samples, the proportion of polymorphic loci varied between 3-15.2% (mean 11.9%), while the average gene diversity was in the range of 1.1-4.2%. The overall genetic differentiation was low (theta = 0.03). The comparison of two regional population groups (northern-southern, separated by the Danube River) showed an absence of genetic differentiation between regions. Gene flow was estimated at 8.96 migrants per generation, and was higher in the lowland than in the highland group. Three loci (Ca, 6-Pgd and Gpd-1) showed clinal variation along a geographical gradient. Additional five alleles of four loci (Ak, Pgin-1, Gpi, 6-Pgd) showed significant spatial autocorrelation. Genetic distances were small (D = 0-0.004). Northern and southern populations clustered separately. For at least three populations game management practices provide evidence for outlying genetic parameters. The observed heterogeneity in the inbreeding level was deemed more under the influence of non-random mating strengthened by game management, than by overall selective pressure. null