Dataset Information

Biocomplexity in Populations of European Anchovy in the Adriatic Sea.

ABSTRACT: The sustained exploitation of marine populations requires an understanding of a species' adaptive seascape so that populations can track environmental changes from short- and long-term climate cycles and from human development. The analysis of the distributions of genetic markers among populations, together with correlates of life-history and environmental variability, can provide insights into the extent of adaptive variation. Here, we examined genetic variability among populations of mature European anchovies (n = 531) in the Adriatic (13 samples) and Tyrrhenian seas (2 samples) with neutral and putative non-neutral microsatellite loci. These genetic markers failed to confirm the occurrence of two anchovy species in the Adriatic Sea, as previously postulated. However, we found fine-scale population structure in the Adriatic, especially in northern areas, that was associated with four of the 13 environmental variables tested. Geographic gradients in sea temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen appear to drive adaptive differences in spawning time and early larval development among populations. Resolving adaptive seascapes in Adriatic anchovies provides a means to understand mechanisms underpinning local adaptation and a basis for optimizing exploitation strategies for sustainable harvests.

SUBMITTER: Ruggeri P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4830579 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Biocomplexity in Populations of European Anchovy in the Adriatic Sea.

Ruggeri Paolo P Splendiani Andrea A Occhipinti Giulia G Fioravanti Tatiana T Santojanni Alberto A Leonori Iole I De Felice Andrea A Arneri Enrico E Procaccini Gabriele G Catanese Gaetano G Tičina Vjekoslav V Bonanno Angelo A Nisi Cerioni Paola P Giovannotti Massimo M Grant William Stewart WS Caputo Barucchi Vincenzo V

PloS one 20160413 4

The sustained exploitation of marine populations requires an understanding of a species' adaptive seascape so that populations can track environmental changes from short- and long-term climate cycles and from human development. The analysis of the distributions of genetic markers among populations, together with correlates of life-history and environmental variability, can provide insights into the extent of adaptive variation. Here, we examined genetic variability among populations of mature Eu ...[more]

PMID: 27074008

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Project description:Genetic connectivity studies are essential to understand species diversity and genetic structure and to assess the role of potential factors affecting connectivity, thus enabling sound management and conservation strategies. Here, we analyzed the patterns of genetic variability in the marine snail Gibbula divaricata from five coastal locations in the central-south Adriatic Sea (central Mediterranean) and one in the adjacent northern Ionian Sea, using 21 described polymorphic microsatellite loci. Observed and expected heterozygosity varied from 0.582 to 0.635 and 0.684 to 0.780, respectively. AMOVA analyses showed that 97% of genetic variation was observed within populations. Nevertheless, significant, although small, genetic differentiation was found among nearly all of the pairwise F ST comparisons. Over a general pattern of panmixia, three groups of populations were identified: eastern Adriatic populations, western Adriatic populations, and a third group represented by the single northern Ionian Sea population. Nonetheless, migration and gene flow were significant between these groups. Gibbula divaricata is thought to have a limited dispersal capacity related to its lecithotrophic trochophore larval stage. Our results indicated high levels of self-recruitment and gene flow that is mainly driven through coastline dispersion, with populations separated by the lack of suitable habitats or deep waters. This stepping-stone mode of dispersion together with the high levels of self-recruitment could lead to higher levels of population structuring and differentiation along the Adriatic Sea. Large effective population sizes and episodic events of long-distance dispersal might be responsible for the weak differentiation observed in the analyzed populations. In summary, the circulation system operating in this region creates natural barriers for dispersion that, together with life-history traits and habitat requirements, certainly affect connectivity in G. divaricata. However, this scenario of potential differentiation seems to be overridden by sporadic events of long-distance dispersal across barriers and large effective population sizes.

Project description:The strongest episodes of extremely high sea levels in the Mediterranean are regularly observed in the Adriatic Sea, where they can cause substantial damage and loss of human lives. In this study, episodes of positive and negative sea level extremes were extracted from hourly series measured at six tide gauge stations located along the Adriatic coast (Venice, Trieste, Rovinj, Bakar, Split, Dubrovnik) between 1956 and 2019/2020. The time series were first checked for spurious data and then decomposed using tidal analysis, least-squares fitting and filtering procedures into (1) trend; (2) seasonal; (3) tide, (4) longer than 100 d (> 100 d), (5) 10-100 d, (6) 6 h-10 d, and (7) < 6 h components. These components correspond to sea level oscillations dominantly (but not exclusively) forced by (1) climate and isostatic change; (2) seasonal changes in thermohaline properties and circulation patterns, (3) tidal forcing, (4) quasi-stationary atmospheric and ocean circulation and climate variability patterns, (5) planetary atmospheric waves, (6) synoptic, and (7) mesoscale atmospheric processes. Significant differences exist between (1) the northern and middle/southern Adriatic extremes and (2) positive and negative extremes. The heights and return levels of positive (negative) extremes are 50-100% higher (lower) in the northern than in the middle/southern Adriatic. The northern Adriatic positive sea level extremes dominantly occur due to the superposition of the 6 h-10 d component and tide (contributing jointly to ∼70% of the total extreme height), whereas the middle/southern Adriatic positive extremes mostly occur due to the superposition of the 10-100 d component, 6 h-10 d component, and tide (each contributing ∼25% on average). The negative sea level extremes are explained as a combination of the 10-100 d component and tide: in the northern Adriatic tide provides the largest contribution (∼60%), while in the middle/southern Adriatic, the impacts of the two processes are similar (each contributing an average of ∼30%). Over the entire Adriatic, the < 6 h and seasonal components contribute the least to both positive and negative extremes. Sea level trends at all stations are positive; however, the observed sea level rise did not contribute significantly to the total height of extremes. Extreme episodes tend to occur simultaneously over larger parts of the coast and are often clustered within a few days. Both positive and negative extremes have a strong decadal variability, whereas trends of their number, duration and intensity point to shortening of negative extremes and prolonging and strengthening of positive extremes.

Dataset Information

Biocomplexity in Populations of European Anchovy in the Adriatic Sea.

Publications

Biocomplexity in Populations of European Anchovy in the Adriatic Sea.

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