Was the Balkan peninsula a glacial refugium for the Mediterranean horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus euryale (Blasius, 1853)
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2019
Authors:
Budinski, Ivana![](/themes/MirageIBISS/images/orcid.png)
Jovanović, Vladimir
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Bajić, Branka
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Blagojević, Jelena
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Rajičić, Marija
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Paunović, Milan
Presetnik, Primož
Vujošević, Mladen
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Contributors
Vasiljević, BrankaPatenković, Aleksandra
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Nikolić, Nađa
Document Type:
Conference object (Published version)
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© 2019 by the Serbian Genetic Society
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract:
Large Mediterranean peninsulas of Europe like the Balkans, Italian and the Iberian Peninsula
have been recognized as Pleistocene glacial refugia for many temperate species. The aim of
this study was to investgate demographic history and genetc structure of Mediterranean
horseshoe bat populatons on the Balkan Peninsula. R. euryale is a cave-dwelling species
distributed throughout the Mediterranean region. We collected 82 samples from 20
localites in the Balkans and Italian Peninsula and analysed genetc diversity of mitochondrial
D-loop sequences. Our results revealed low nucleotde but high haplotype diversity, and 20
haplotypes were reported for the frst tme. Phylogenetc reconstructons showed that all
haplotypes obtained from both Peninsulas belong to the same lineage together with the
previously published samples from Turkey, southern France and North Africa. All haplotypes
from the current study represent single haplogroup and haplotype network had a star-like
topology that is indicatve of recent populaton expansion. Scenario of sudden demographic
expansion was also supported by shallow genetc differentaton and mismatch distributon
analysis, and we estmate that expansion within this lineage started afer the last glacial
maximum. We present the new data on genetc variaton in this species, and highlight the
importance of the Balkans in the demographic history of Mediterranean horseshoe bat. The
obtained results support the hypothesis that the Balkan Peninsula was a glacial refugium for
R. euryale during the Pleistocene.
Keywords:
D-loop; Expansion; mtDNA; RefugiumIn:
- Vasiljević B, Patenković A, Nikolić N, editors. 6th Congress of the Serbian genetic society: Book of abstracts; 2019 Oct 13-17; Vrnjačka Banja, Serbia. Belgrade: Serbian Genetic Society; 2019. p. 151.