Vulture Safe Feeding Sites (VSFS) provide diclofenac-free food and create an ideal environment for long-term ecological research on vultures. This study determines the population status and investigates the diurnal behavior White-rumped Vulture (Gyps bengalensis) at the Ghachowk VSFS in Kaski, Nepal. We deployed the absolute count method to determine population of White-rumped Vulture (Gyps bengalensis), while scan sampling was applied to investigate their diurnal behaviour. The observed population of Gyps bengalensis ranged from 34 to 65 individuals (with an average of 50±10, based on a sample size of 9). Throughout the daytime, a total of 1651 instances of 11 distinct activities were recorded for the species in 729 separate observations. The most frequent daytime behaviour observed was perching (28%) followed by preening (14%), basking (13%), scratching (13%) flapping (10%), flying (9%) and disturbance (7%). Other behaviors, like feeding, sleeping (roosting), fighting (competition), and bathing, were observed less frequently (<2% each). Perching occurred most frequently during heavy rain, accounting for 66% of the observations, and in the late afternoon, representing 36% of the instances. Basking was most commonly observed during partly sunny conditions, comprising 26% of the observations, and in the noon hours, representing 20% of the instances. Scratching behavior was most frequently observed during clear weather, accounting for 16% of the observations, and during cloudy conditions and in the morning, accounting for 14% of the instances. In the Ghachowk VSFS, other associated species with White-rumped Vulture were Red-headed Vulture Sarcogyps calvus, Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus, and Slender-billed Vulture Gyps tenuirostris. This study plays a pivotal role in uncovering the conservation requirements especially in reducing social taboos of the tradition communities regarding this critically endangered species which needs strong social support for its long-term conservation.
Guilan province, located in northern Iran and surrounded by the Caspian Sea to the north and the Hyrcanian forests to the south, boasts the most diverse habitats in the country. However, there is a lack of information on bat fauna in the caves of Guilan province, with all existing records limited to artificial roosts, foraging individuals or echolocation calls. Despite this, available data suggests that 13 species of bats have been reported in the region. In this study, 12 caves throughout the province were observed, resulting in the identification of five bat species, namely Miniopterus pallidus, Pipistrellus pipistrellus, Myotis blythii, Rhinolophus hipposideros, and R. ferrumequinum. One colony and two individuals in separate localities were also identified at the generic level as Rhinolophus sp., while two cave roosts with large populations and considerable number of species were described in detail. Furthermore, this study encompasses data on five new sample records, comprising three from Pipistrellus kuhlii, one from Rhinolophus sp., and one from Rhinolophus hipposideros, from foraging individuals and artificial roosts. Overall, these findings contribute to our understanding of the diversity and distribution of bats in Guilan province, particularly within its caves.
Marsh frog, Pelophylax bedriagae tadpoles habituate in temporary wetlands where intraspecific aggression has been observed. In this study, we examined the independent and interactive effects of predator cues, water level and density on head width size and head, tail and whole body cannibalism of larval P. bedriagae. We designed a 2×2×3 factorial experiment, by crossing two levels of predatory cues (presence/absence), two levels of density (low/ high) and three levels of water (low/ high/ decreasing) that were carried out within 29 weeks. Despite using conditions that might facilitate cannibalism (i.e., the presence of predator cues, low water level, and high density), a low rate of cannibalism was observed in all treatments. Independently, the highest percentage of total cannibalism was indicated in the presence of predator cues (2.26 %), high water level (2.04 %) and high density (2.24 %). Interactively, the highest rate of total cannibalism was recorded for larvae reared in the high density/absence of predator cues/low water level treatment (3.55%). In contrast, the lowest rate of total cannibalism was observed in the both the low density/presence of predator cues/decreasing water level and low-density/presence of predator cues/high water level treatments (0.44%). The results of the MANOVA indicated that predator cues, water level and density independently and interactively had not significant effect on rate of total cannibalism. At the end of experiment, the maximum size of head width was measured in low-density/absence of predator cues/high water level treatment (9.60±0.39mm), and there was no significant relationship between the maximum head width and the highest rate of cannibalism. According to the results of this experiment, it seems that P. bedriagae larvae may function to avoid the risk of cannibalism by conspecific.
Climate change is an important growing threat to biodiversity and ecosystems. Previous studies have shown that climate change will negatively influence on Iran’s biodiversity. Reptiles are among the most vulnerable group to climate change. Until now, more than 80 snake species have been recorded in Iran in which 16 are terrestrial venomous. In the present study, we predicted the impacts of climate change on distribution of the genus Macrovipera in Iran. We applied an ensemble approach, using five distribution modeling methods (Generalized Linear Models, Generalized Additive Models, Generalized Boosted Models, Maximum Entropy Modelling and Random Forest) to predict the impacts of climate change on distribution pattern of the genus. We also estimated protected areas coverage for the suitable habitat of the genus under current and future climatic conditions. We found that the genus will lose 11% of its suitable habitat under the worst-case scenario (2071-2100SSP585). Results also showed that only around 8% of the genus suitable habitat is covered by protected areas under current and future climatic conditions. Stable suitable but not protected habitats have high priority for conservation of the genus in Iran.
Saw scaled vipers of the genus Echis belong to the family Viperidae and subfamily Viperinae. These vipers are widely distributed from East Africa to Southwest and Central Asia. Echis bite is one of the major causes of mortality in the world. Different populations of these medically important snakes have different venom composition, and the relevant antivenom is highly species-specific. Echis has a complex taxonomic history. For many years, only two species were recognized (i.e., Echis coloratus and E. carinatus). Over the past 50 years, the number of species have been raised to 12, of which six species reside in the Middle East. Phylogenetic studies show that the genus Echis fall into four species groups: the E. carinatus, E. coloratus, E. ocellatus and E. pyramidum groups. Until recently, only E. carinatus in Southwest Asia and India and E. coloratus in Arabia were assigned to the Middle East. Several morphological and phylogenetic studies raised the number of Echis species in the Middle East from two to six. These Middle Eastern vipers belong to three different species groups. An Asian, an Arabian and an African group. Distribution and basal split of the genus Echis, likely have been shaped by vicariance and tectonic events, which have separated or connected the land masses. In this study, a brief review on biogeography, taxonomy and distribution of the genus especially in the Middle East is presented.
Haemosporidians are a diverse group of vector-borne parasitic protozoa that have a global distribution and some of them live in the avian body as a benign parasite, with no symptoms. Avian Haemosporidians, include three main genera, Plasmodium, Haemoproteus, and Leucocytozoon. These blood parasites are transmitted across different regions through migratory birds. We studied the prevalence of avian haemosporidian parasites in both resident and migratory birds in the central and southern regions of Iraq. Our study represents pioneering research on Haemosporidian parasites in a wide range of avian species, including 248 samples from 47 species of both resident and migratory birds, collected from five cities in central and southern Iraq. We identified and determined the prevalence of three distinct haemosporidian genera, Haemoproteus spp., Leucocytozoon spp., and Plasmodium spp. Overall parasite infection was higher in resident hosts than in migrants. The prevalence of Plasmodium spp. was found to be highest among resident birds, with a rate of 20.1%, while the highest rate of Leucocytozoon spp. was observed in migratory birds, with a rate of 8.2%. Our study holds promising opportunities for understanding the impact of migratory and resident hosts on the dynamics of infectious diseases in wildlife.
The eyelid bearing geckos Eublepharidae including six widely disjunct genera and 45 species which are distributed in tropical to temperate habitats of Eurasia, North-Central America and Africa. One of the eublepharid genera is the fat-tailed geckos of the genus Eublepharis Gray, 1827. The specific characters of Eublepharis involves flat basioccipital bone, deep axial pockets (armpit), eyelids well developed and movable, pupil vertical, dorsal small scales juxtaposed larger tubercles. The fat-tailed geckos as a vicariant group, encompass seven secretive, and nocturnal species: E. angramainyuAnderson and Leviton, 1966, E. fuscus Börner, 1974, E. hardwickii Gray, 1827, E. macularius (Blyth, 1854), E. satpuraensis Mirza, Sanap, Raju, Gawai and Ghadekar, 2014, E. pictus Mirza and Gnaneswar, 2022), and E. turcmenicus Darevsky, 1977 which are distributed from Turkey through the Iranian Plateau to India as following: south-eastern Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and north-eastern and central India in a variety of habitats from dry karst topography regions with gypsum deposits and clay-gravel soil to stony foothills. The data used for the distribution maps were based on all available bibliographic records, and personal field observations. The results showed that among the three species located in Iran, E. angramainyu has the most widespread distribution and habitat diversity, and E. macularius has a very limited distribution in the border of Iran and Afghanistan. The range of species distribution depends on various factors including behavioral mechanisms of superior habitat selection, interactions with other living organisms and physico-chemical factors.
Many studies conducted on range of animals showed that morphology is related to habitat. In the present study, we aimed to examine the morphological characteristics of species assigned to the genus Ophiomorus in Iran. Seventy-one specimens from throughout the range of distribution in the central plateau of Iran were investigated. Eleven morphometric and four meristic variables were analyzed independently. Multivariate analyses were performed using canonical variate analysis (CVA) and principal component analysis (PCA). The results showed that there is significant morphological differentiation between three species groups brevipes, tridactylus, and punctatissimus in this genus in relation to habitat choice. ANOVA results showed that 14 morphological characters (SVL, HL, HW, HH, SL, LF, LA, LFL, LFH, LHF, NSL, NDSB, NMC, and NIL; 10 metric and four Meristic) were significantly different among all Ophiomorus species, which based on this, TL did not show a significant difference among species. Finally, we assigned three species groups based on limb reduction (especially fingers), and habitat surface (comparison based on habitat observations) for all Ophiomorus species in Iran. In addition, using newly applied morphological characteristics we proposed an updated identification key for the genus.
Calomyscidae is a monotypic family of muroid rodents with nine valid allopatric species distributed in southwestern Asia of which seven species have been so far recognized from Iran. The western and southern Zagros Mountains were thought to be home to a single species, Calomyscus bailwardi, but new researches revealed that the region is also home to four highly divergent molecular lineages. One of them was recently described as a new species (C. behzadi) but the taxonomic position of the other lineages remained unclear. Here we did an extensive sampling in southern Iran (2017-2018), during which 99 Calomyscus specimens were collected. Based on an integrated approach including karyotypic, mitochondrial as well as morphological data, we describe Calomyscus kermanensis sp. nov. as a new endemic species from the southern Zagros Mts (including Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Fars, Kerman, Yazd and Hormozgan provinces), in the region that was previously thought to be occupied by C. bailwardi. The new species emerged as a new lineage with high intraspecific mtDNA and chromosome variations. The multivariate and univariate statistical analyses of craniodental measurements also separated C. kermanensis sp. nov. from other examined Calomyscus species with the highest maximum cranial height being the most distinctive of its craniodental features.
Hottentotta Birula, 1908 is one of the most widely distributed buthid scorpions, with more than 40described species from Africa, across the Middle East, to India. Currently, this genus is representedby ten morphological species in Iran (H. akbarii, H. jayakari, H. juliae, H. khoozestanus, H.lorestanus, H. navidpouri, H. saulcyi, H. schach, H. sistanensis and H. zagrosensis), all of which areendemic or subendemic in Iran. The members of this genus have not been properly studied from thetaxonomic point of view. A tool that could contribute to scorpions' taxonomic studies is geometricmorphometry, which is defined as the fusion between geometry and biology. In this study, the sizeand shape variations in sternocoxal structure in Hottentotta populations have been examined usingthe geometric morphometric method. The goal was to analyze the isometric size and conformation innine species of Hottentotta. 100 individuals of Hottentotta, collected from different parts of Iranduring 2018-2020, were photographed. Coordinate (x, y) configurations from landmarks wereregistered in sternocoxal structures. Geometric morphometric analyses were performed using Rlanguage. The results clearly showed divergence in the shape and size of sternocoxal structureamong the studied taxa. However, the major shape changes were associated with H. akbarii whichhas a larger size of sternocoxal structure and a narrower sternum, shorter coxa II-III, and longercoxa IV.
The Bombyliidae family with around 5382 described species is one of the most important families in order Diptera considering their remarkable roles in biological pest control. Species of the family Bombyliidae were monitored in Guilan province in 2019 and 2020. We aimed to evaluate their biodiversity in the grasslands along with the determining Simpson and Margalef indexes. Totally 20 species from 11 genera in 2019 and 17 species from 10 genera in 2020 were identified in eight selected stations. The highest numbers of Bombyliids individuals were observed in Heiran pass station in 2019. Surprisingly the lowest number of individuals also was present in Heiran pass station in 2020. The results of ecological indices also showed the highest Margalef index in Darestan station (2.18) in 2019 and the lowest observed in Bivazen station (0) and Rudbar- Loockhee (0) in 2019 and 2020 respectively. Also, the highest values for the Simpson index were recorded in Bivazen (1) in 2019 and Rudbar- Loockhee (1) in 2020. The lowest values of the Simpson index have been recorded for Amlash (0.13) stations as well. It seems that climate and ecological condition changes in different years clearly affect the insect biodiversity indexes via making changes in their population dynamics.
Iran is a large country with diverse and unique climate and ecology; therefore, it is expected to discover an exceptional fauna with high species diversity by carefully examining the unknown areas. A few taxonomic studies have been so far conducted on the genus Pholcus in Iran. Taxonomic and preliminary phylogenetic evaluation of widespread species of the genus Pholcus from Iran is considered in the present study, based on specimens collected from northern and southwestern parts of the country. A molecular study was undertaken on some representatives of species of the Pholcus phalangioides species-group (cellar spiders) using newly designed primers with 350 bp of partial fragments of mtDNA gene, cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI). These preliminary molecular data in line with morphological identifications using characters related to the copulatory organs presented a total of five distinct clades of Pholcus that four clades were contributed with formerly identified species and one represented a distinct lineage unknown for science.
Ongoing investigation into Chironomidae specimens collected from the Sirwan River watershed in 2020 resulted in two new faunistic records for Iran, and new range extensions for the Palearctic region. Two species, Paramerina divisa (Walker, 1856) and Xenochironomus xenolabis (Kieffer, 1916) are diagnosed and reported for the first time from Iran. This contributes to establishing baseline data about the diversity and distribution of freshwater flora and fauna of this region. Key words: Chironomidae, Iran, faunistic records, Palearctic, Middle East, Kurdistan Ongoing investigation into Chironomidae specimens collected from the Sirwan River watershed in 2020 resulted in two new faunistic records for Iran, and new range extensions for the Palearctic region. Two species, Paramerina divisa (Walker, 1856) and Xenochironomus xenolabis (Kieffer, 1916) are diagnosed and reported for the first time from Iran. This contributes to establishing baseline data about the diversity and distribution of freshwater flora and fauna of this region. Key words: Chironomidae, Iran, faunistic records, Palearctic, Middle East, Kurdistan
Mollusca are the second-largest phylum of invertebrates after Arthropoda and may play a role as an intermediate host for parasites. To determine the morphological features of land snails (including Assyriella ceratomma, Jaminia isseliana, Helix lucorum and Euomphalia pisiformis) from North-west of Iran (Urmia city), the specimens were collected during 2015-2017. After extraction, the radulas were stained using Mallory II and the shell morphology and teeth formula were studied. A significant correlation was found between the mean length of radula and their body size. In addition, snails with bigger shell size, had a larger teeth size and more lateral teeth. The longest and the shortest central tooth belonged to Helix lucorum and Jaminia isseliana, respectively. The length of the central teeth in the Helix lucorum and Assyriella ceratomma differed significantly from other species. Furthermore, the shape of the central tooth in all examined snails was triangular. The lateral teeth in the Helix lucorum and Assyriella ceratomma species had one mushroom-like cusp with two short sharp cusps. The lateral teeth in Jaminia isseliana contained blade like cusps at the middle. Helix lucorum snails had more marginal teeth compared to others.
We studied inter and intra-specific morphometrical variability across six species/subspecies of Chrotogonus Serville, 1838 (Orthoptera: Pyrgomorphidae) consisting on Chrotogonus homalodemus homalodemus (Blanchard, 1836), C. homalodemus (Blanchard, 1836), C. trachypterus trachypterus (Blanchard, 1836), C. trachypterus robertsi Kirby, 1914, C. trachypterus (Blanchard, 1836), and C. turanicus Kuthy, 1905 from Sindh, Pakistan. The investigation was based on a comparative study of external morphological measurements of the six major body parts including: Antennal segments, length of head, length of pronotum, length of tegmina, length of wings, and total body length. Interspecific morphometric variation showed highest variation as 16.00 ± 04.33mm in the length of tegmina of C. homalodemus and lowest variation 01.98 ± 00.05mm in length of pronotum of C. trachypterus robertsi while intraspecific morphometric variation amongst females was highest than males. The species of Chrotogonus are closely similar and no satisfactory field characters exist by which may be distinguished. This study will fill the specific identification gap amongst this taxon.
The myrmecofauna of Azerbaijan is not studied well enough. Coverage on this family of insects is very few and far between. Most thoroughly studied are the ants of Talysh (Arnol'di, 1948). Information on some species can be found in the works of Ruzsky (1902, 1905), Karavaiev (1926a, b, 1929 a,b, 1932), Arnol'di (1930, 1964, 1968, 1970, 1977 a,b), Radchenko (1997). The catalog of Borowiec (2014) contains generalized data on Azerbaijan. Some data may also be gathered from the catalog of Dubovikoff, Yusupov (2017). New information on the ants of Azerbaijan was revealed by Bračko (2019), with data provided on 73 species of ants, 30 of which are new to the fauna of Azerbaijan. Provided below is a general checklist of the ants of Azerbaijan, based on all the currently available information. Messor laboriosus Santschi, 1927 is recorded for the first time for Azerbaijan. In this checklist 128 ant species belonging to 28 genera that have been recorded from Azerbaijan are presented.
Stylocheilus longicauda (Quoy & Gaimard, 1825) is a pelagic species in the Aplysiidae family that well distributed in the circumtropical region. In this study, S. longicauda is reported from the Persian Gulf for the first time.
Platyceps rhodorachis (JAN, 1863) and P. karelini (BRANDT, 1838) are both members of the P. rhodorachis complex species, which is widely distributed in Iran and includes many local populations in the country. These two species are molecularly and to some extent morphologically valid. However, hybrids between P. karelini and P. rhodorachis have been described, but so far their ecological differentiation have not been evaluated. In this study, the ecological niche models was predicted for these two members of the P. rhodorachis complex using bioclimatic layers and geographical coordinates. Possible habitat models show the distribution density of these two species in the southern (including some islands in the Persian Gulf) regions, and some areas in northeastern Iran. The results of niche similarity tests (identity and niche overlap tests) based on the criteria of environmental species, in order to assess the degree of species differentiation, indicate the degree of differentiation between these two sister species and raises the possibility of a hybrid belt in southern Iran.
Landmark-Based Geometric Morphometric Methods were used for the first time to quantitatively assess shape variations of the third epimeral plate (Ep3) of six Gammarus species (G. lordeganensis, G. parthicus, G. pretzmanni, G. pseudosyriacus, Gammarus sp1 and Gammarus sp2.) from five different localities in Iran. Two landmarks and 10 semi-landmarks on the posterior, anterior and inferior margins of the Ep3 were digitized on 78 adult male specimens. Shape diversity of samples and discrimination of all species were analyzed with Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and Canonical Variates Analysis (CVA). The results strongly supported the distinction in the posterior margin of Ep3 shape of the six species, while the inferior margin clearly showed similar morphological structure. A remarkable separation of G. lordeganensis as a distinct group from the rest of the species was found in both CVA and PCA analyses of anterior margin of Ep3 shape, while other species had overlaps with each other. Based on these findings, geometric morphometric data, could be used to identify diagnostic morphological traits. The shape of the Ep3 could be used as an appropriate character for separating closely related amphipod species of the genus Gammarus.
This is particularly apparent within the insects that show high variations in genitalic form between closely related species. Static allometry is one of the effective approaches for quantification of such variation. Despite the crucial roles of the parasitic Hymenoptera in the ecosystems, little is known about the sexual selection in this order, compared with other insect orders. We examined the allometry of different morphological traits in 35 males and 35 females of Habrobracon hebetor (Say, 1836) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from a laboratory colony reared in Mashhad city, for the first time. The aim was the investigation of allometric relationships of different body traits as a way for quantification of the natural selection impacts on the different body parts. 12 genitalic and non-genitalic body parts of H. hebetor males and females were photographed and measured. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to explore the variance of the traits and two regression analysis methods to obtain the allometric slopes. All the non-genitalic traits in male and female wasps showed isometry except pterostigma width in male wasps which showed positive allometry. In male genitalia, two traits showed strong negative allometry and one trait showed isometry. Our findings showed that in this species males with an average size of genitalia were more successful in generating viable offspring than males with relatively smaller or larger genitalia sizes and this is irrespective of the overall body size. Our results showed for the first time that such stabilizing sexual selection might operate on genital size in the braconid wasps.
