scholarly journals Parallel pattern of differentiation at a genomic island shared between clinal and mosaic hybrid zones in a complex of cryptic seahorse lineages

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florentine Riquet ◽  
Cathy Liautard-Haag ◽  
Lucy Woodall ◽  
Carmen Bouza ◽  
Patrick Louisy ◽  
...  

AbstractDiverging semi-isolated lineages either meet in narrow clinal hybrid zones, or have a mosaic distribution associated with environmental variation. Intrinsic reproductive isolation is often emphasized in the former and local adaptation in the latter, although both can contribute to isolation. Rarely these two patterns of spatial distribution are reported in the same study system. Here we report that the long-snouted seahorse Hippocampus guttulatus is subdivided into discrete panmictic entities by both types of hybrid zones. Along the European Atlantic coasts, a northern and a southern lineage meet in the southwest of France where they coexist in sympatry with little hybridization. In the Mediterranean Sea, two lineages have a mosaic distribution, associated with lagoon-like and marine habitats. A fifth lineage was identified in the Black Sea. Genetic homogeneity over large spatial scales contrasts with isolation maintained in sympatry or close parapatry at a fine scale. A high variation in locus-specific introgression rates provides additional evidence that partial reproductive isolation must be maintaining the divergence. Surprisingly, fixed differences between lagoon and marine populations in the Mediterranean Sea belong to the most differentiated SNPs between the two Atlantic lineages, against the genome-wide pattern of structure. These parallel outlier SNPs cluster on a single chromosome-wide island of differentiation. Since Atlantic lineages do not match the lagoon-sea habitat variation, genetic parallelism at the genomic island suggests a shared genetic barrier contributes to reproductive isolation in contrasting contexts -i.e. spatial vs. ecological. We discuss how a genomic hotspot of parallel differentiation could have evolved and become associated either with space or with a patchy environment in a single study system.

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Sánchez-Román ◽  
Simón Ruiz ◽  
Ananda Pascual ◽  
Baptiste Mourre ◽  
Stéphanie Guinehut

Abstract. In this work an Observing System Simulation Experiment (OSSE) approach is used to investigate the Argo array spatial sampling necessary in the Mediterranean Sea to recover the mesoscale signal as seen by altimetry. The monitoring of the mesoscale features is not an initial objective of the Argo network. However, it is an interesting question in the perspective of future network extensions in order to improve the ocean state estimates. A quality assessment of the performances of the altimeter product is carried out to quantify the differences between Argo and altimetry needed to conduct the simulation experiments. The method used here to evaluate the altimeter data is based on the comparison of Sea Level Anomalies (SLA) from altimetry and Dynamic Height Anomalies (DHA) referred to both 400 and 900 dbar computed from the in-situ Argo network. A standard deviation of the differences between SLA and DHA of 4.92 cm is obtained when comparing altimetry and Argo data referred to 400 dbar. The simulation experiments show that a configuration similar to the current Argo array in the Mediterranean (with a spatial resolution of 2° × 2°) is only able to recover the large-scale signals of the basin. On the contrary, the SLA field reconstructed from a 0.75° x 0.75° Argo network can retrieve most of the mesoscale signal. Such an Argo array of around 450 floats in the Mediterranean Sea would be enough to recover the SLA field with an RMSE of 3 cm for spatial scales higher than 150 km, similar to those captured by the altimetry.


Author(s):  
John D. Thompson

Plant Evolution in the Mediterranean: Insights for conservation brings together a diverse literature on the Mediterranean flora in a detailed but synthetic account of plant evolutionary ecology. The central themes of ecological dynamics and evolutionary differentiation are developed at two spatial scales: habitat variation across the landscape and biogeographic processes across the Mediterranean. The history of the Mediterranean region is at the heart of this account and is described within a triptych that links geological and climatic history to the advent and history of human activities. The Mediterranean region is a hotspot of plant biodiversity, a key ingredient of which is its richness in endemic species. A primary question motivating this book concerns the role of historical factors and spatial environmental variation in the evolution of endemism. The Mediterranean landscape is a mosaic of ecological conditions, often with variation over short distances. A second focus is on the ecological and historical factors that mediate dispersal, reproduction, and adaptive trait variation in this mosaic landscape. With an ever-growing human footprint on the Mediterranean region, this book addresses a third major theme concerning the vulnerability and conservation of the flora. Alongside a traditional approach to rare species and protected area management, the book argues for the integration of the loss of evolutionary potential as a priority in conservation policy and practice. This accessible text is aimed at students and researchers in plant evolution, ecology, biogeography, and conservation science. It will be of interest to scientists and natural history societies worldwide.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Giovanni Quattrocchi ◽  
Matteo Sinerchia ◽  
Francesco Colloca ◽  
Fabio Fiorentino ◽  
Germana Garofalo ◽  
...  

AbstractIn the Strait of Sicily (SoS), a wide passage of the Mediterranean Sea, Parapenaeus longirostris, (Lucas, 1846; DPS hereafter) is the main target species of trawl fisheries, with an estimated annual market value of about 80 million euro. The exploitation of this resource is shared between Italian, Tunisian and Maltese bottom trawlers and its management raises social, economic and environmental interests. Recent stock assessment revealed high fishing mortalities and low size at first capture, thus promoting the adoption of a strategic plan for a sustainable management. However, the current knowledge of the geographical boundaries of the stock, supporting  the implementation of such management plan is still poor. In this respect, under different hydrodynamic regimes, particle-tracking modelling was used to explore connectivity between both, known and unexplored, spawning and nursery areas of DPS in the SoS. Ensembles scenarios derived by model outcomes displayed decadal changes in connectivity between spawning and nursery areas in the north side of the SoS, hence confirming the presence of a single stock in this area. Expanding the area of investigation, the model results showed weak connectivity between spawning ground in the north side of SoS and nurseries on the African shelf-break. This method could support the spatial management of the stock, such as the protection of the nursery and spawning areas, by providing estimates of how connectivity is influenced by hydrodynamic regimes at different temporal and spatial scales.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sotiris Orfanidis ◽  
Fabio Rindi ◽  
Emma Cebrian ◽  
Simonetta Fraschetti ◽  
Ina Nasto ◽  
...  

Algal habitat-forming forests composed of fucalean brown seaweeds (Cystoseira, Ericaria, and Gongolaria) have severely declined along the Mediterranean coasts, endangering the maintenance of essential ecosystem services. Numerous factors determine the loss of these assemblages and operate at different spatial scales, which must be identified to plan conservation and restoration actions. To explore the critical stressors (natural and anthropogenic) that may cause habitat degradation, we investigated (a) the patterns of variability of fucalean forests in percentage cover (abundance) at three spatial scales (location, forest, transect) by visual estimates and or photographic sampling to identify relevant spatial scales of variation, (b) the correlation between semi-quantitative anthropogenic stressors, individually or cumulatively (MA-LUSI index), including natural stressors (confinement, sea urchin grazing), and percentage cover of functional groups (perennial, semi-perennial) at forest spatial scale. The results showed that impacts from mariculture and urbanization seem to be the main stressors affecting habitat-forming species. In particular, while mariculture, urbanization, and cumulative anthropogenic stress negatively correlated with the percentage cover of perennial fucalean species, the same stressors were positively correlated with the percentage cover of the semi-perennial Cystoseira compressa and C. compressa subsp. pustulata. Our results indicate that human impacts can determine spatial patterns in these fragmented and heterogeneous marine habitats, thus stressing the need of carefully considering scale-dependent ecological processes to support conservation and restoration.


Author(s):  
S. Schiaparelli ◽  
P. Guidetti ◽  
R. Cattaneo-Vietti

Spatial distribution patterns of two sessile gastropods belonging to Vermetidae, Vermetus triquetrus and Dendropoma petraeum, were studied in June 2001 in north-eastern Sardinia (Mediterranean Sea, Italy). Density of individuals was assessed within quadrats positioned on a shallow (0·1–1 m depth) rocky substrate of different lithological types (limestone and granite), at a hierarchy of spatial scales. Density of D. petraeum is significantly greater on granite than on limestone, while V. triquetrus does not show any differences related to rock type.


Ocean Science ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 223-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Sánchez-Román ◽  
Simón Ruiz ◽  
Ananda Pascual ◽  
Baptiste Mourre ◽  
Stéphanie Guinehut

Abstract. In this work a simplified observing system simulation experiment (OSSE) approach is used to investigate which Argo design sampling in the Mediterranean Sea would be necessary to properly capture the mesoscale dynamics in this basin. The monitoring of the mesoscale features is not an initial objective of the Argo network. However, it is an interesting question from the perspective of future network extensions in order to improve the ocean state estimates. The true field used to conduct the OSSEs is provided by a specific altimetry-gridded merged product for the Mediterranean Sea. Synthetic observations were obtained by sub-sampling this Nature Run according to different configurations of the ARGO network. The observation errors required to perform the OSSEs were obtained through the comparison of sea level anomalies (SLAs) from altimetry and dynamic height anomalies (DHAs) computed from the real in situ Argo network. This analysis also contributes to validate satellite SLAs with an increased confidence. The simulation experiments show that a configuration similar to the current Argo array in the Mediterranean (with a spatial resolution of 2°  ×  2°) is only able to recover the large-scale signals of the basin. Increasing the spatial resolution to nearly 75 km  ×  75 km, allows the capture of most of the mesoscale signal in the basin and to retrieve the SLA field with a RMSE of 3 cm for spatial scales larger than 150 km, similar to those presently captured by the altimetry. This would represent a theoretical reduction of 40 % of the actual RMSE. Such a high-resolution Argo array composed of around 450 floats, cycling every 10 days, is expected to increase the actual network cost by approximately a factor of 6.


2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 589 ◽  
Author(s):  
SIMONE MARIANI ◽  
OSCAR OCAÑA VICENTE ◽  
PAULA LÓPEZ-SENDINO ◽  
MARÍA GARCÍA ◽  
AURORA MARTÍNEZ RICART ◽  
...  

The zooxanthellate scleractinian coral Oulastrea crispata, a widely distributed species across central Indo-Pacific nearshore marine habitats, has been first reported from the Mediterranean Sea (Corsica) in 2014. Here we report on two new sites for this species in the NW Mediterranean Sea and provide a general description of external morphological characters of the colonies and a detailed account of the cnidom to help future identifications. Living specimens may appear virtually identical to small colonies (~5 cm) of the Mediterranean zooxanthellate scleractinian Cladocora caespitosa. While this species shows long, ramified, independent corallites, with cylindrical calices, O. crispata has enlarged, cup-like calices, which can be joined by the coenosteum. It also shows clear differences among several groups of nematocysts, principally the presence in the filaments of large penicilli (p-mastigophore) of one type, which are absent in C. caespitosa. Identifications based on underwater observations or even the analysis of photographs may easily lead to misleading identifications. We hypothesize that O. crispata may have gone unnoticed because of misidentifications as C. caespitosa. More detailed research is needed to get reliable maps of the actual distribution of this apparently non-indigenous species in the Mediterranean Sea.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierpaolo Consoli ◽  
Maria Cristina Mangano ◽  
Gianluca Sarà ◽  
Teresa Romeo ◽  
Franco Andaloro

In this work the influence of habitat complexity on fish assemblages associated with extractive platforms in the Mediterranean Sea was investigated. More specifically, at large spatial scale we tested the differences in fish assemblage between 4-legs vs 8-legs platforms, whereas at medium scale we evaluated, within each platform, the differences between internal structures with increasing complexity degrees (respectively: the water volume without any pillar - complexity “0”; the junction of two pillars - “1”; the junction of four pillars - “2”). Both univariate and multivariate analyses showed highly significant differences for each of the tested factors, as well as for their interaction. In general, at both medium and large spatial scales, mean species richness and abundance were positively correlated with the increasing habitat complexity with the highest values associated with 8-legs platforms and with the most complex internal structures within each platform. According to our findings, a more complex structure is able to attract more fish species and specimens than a less complex one, supporting previous studies carried out on different man-made structures outside the Mediterranean Sea. The study will integrate the still poor available knowledge baseline on the attractive potential of extractive platforms with strong implications for the environmental management under the incoming light of decommission in the basin.


2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 5465-5479 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Bianchelli ◽  
C. Gambi ◽  
M. Mea ◽  
A. Pusceddu ◽  
R. Danovaro

Abstract. Understanding biodiversity patterns and how they are driven at different spatial scales is a crucial issue in ecological studies. This is particularly evident for the deep sea, the largest biome of the biosphere, where information on the scales of spatial variation is very scant. Here, we investigated deep-sea nematodes species richness, turnover and functional diversity, and life strategies at different spatial scales (from local to macro-regional) to identify the factors that shape regional (γ) and macro-regional (ε) deep-sea diversity. This study was conducted in several deep-sea habitats (canyons, open slopes, deep-water corals, and bathyal plains) over > 2000 km across the whole Mediterranean Basin, at a bathymetric range comprised between ca. 600 and 1300 m. Our results indicate that the patterns of local (α) diversity across the deep Mediterranean follow the gradients of the trophic conditions, which decrease from the western to the eastern basins. For all of the sites and habitats, the α diversity is generally low. Conversely, the turnover diversity changes significantly among habitats (β diversity) and between regions (δ diversity), showing values of dissimilarity (based on species presence/absence matrixes) between 59 and 90% for β diversity and between 81 and 89% for δ diversity. This suggests that patterns and values of γ and ε diversities in the deep Mediterranean Sea are related to turnover diversity among habitats and between regions (β and δ diversities), rather than to the local biodiversity (α diversity). These results indicate also that the differences in β and δ diversities are even more important than those in α diversity for the comprehension of the drivers of biodiversity in the deep Mediterranean Sea. We conclude that the presence of different habitats and gradients in environmental conditions, by promoting a high turnover diversity across the Mediterranean Sea, may play a crucial role in the levels of γ diversity of deep-sea nematodes.


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