The genus Muticaria Lindholm, 1925 (Pulmonata: Clausiliidae) represent xerotolerant and calcicolous mollusks, widespread in central-eastern and southern-eastern parts of Sicily and the Maltese Islands with eight taxa of species or sub-species rank. Muticaria macrostoma (Cantraine, 1835) is endemic to the Maltese Islands where it occurs with four subspecies, M. macrostoma macrostoma, M. macrostoma scalaris (L. Pfeiffer, 1850), M. macrostoma oscitans (Charpentier, 1852) and M. macrostoma mamotica (Gulia, 1861). The results of a molecular study on the populations of Muticaria from the Maltese Islands that was carried out on partial sequences of the mitochondrial genes 16S rDNA and cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) will be presented in this communication. The present work shows a considerable diversification, even at species level, in populations of Muticaria from Sicily and Malta. A good differentiation at species level was also found in the genus Lampedusa Boettger, 1877, present in Malta and the island of Lampedusa (205Km south of Sicily), and this was used for comparison with results obtained for the genus Muticaria.
Molecular studies on the genus Muticaria (Pulmonata: Clausiliidae) from the Maltese Islands.
Colomba M.;Gregorini A.;
2017
Abstract
The genus Muticaria Lindholm, 1925 (Pulmonata: Clausiliidae) represent xerotolerant and calcicolous mollusks, widespread in central-eastern and southern-eastern parts of Sicily and the Maltese Islands with eight taxa of species or sub-species rank. Muticaria macrostoma (Cantraine, 1835) is endemic to the Maltese Islands where it occurs with four subspecies, M. macrostoma macrostoma, M. macrostoma scalaris (L. Pfeiffer, 1850), M. macrostoma oscitans (Charpentier, 1852) and M. macrostoma mamotica (Gulia, 1861). The results of a molecular study on the populations of Muticaria from the Maltese Islands that was carried out on partial sequences of the mitochondrial genes 16S rDNA and cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) will be presented in this communication. The present work shows a considerable diversification, even at species level, in populations of Muticaria from Sicily and Malta. A good differentiation at species level was also found in the genus Lampedusa Boettger, 1877, present in Malta and the island of Lampedusa (205Km south of Sicily), and this was used for comparison with results obtained for the genus Muticaria.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
