Species richness in springs is fostered by this high biological niche availability and is, among other taxa, extensively described for Hydrachnidia (Blattner et al., 2019 Gerecke et al., 2018 Pozojević et al., 2020), Diptera (Lencioni, Marziali, & Rossaro, 2011, 2012), Ostracoda (Rosati et al., 2017), diatoms (Cantonati et al., 2012 Lai et al., 2020 Pascual et al., 2020), and fungi (Wurzbacher et al., 2020).īeing biodiversity hotspots (Cantonati et al., 2012 Cartwright et al., 2020) and given their vulnerability to changing environmental conditions and human impact (e.g. As interface ecosystems between groundwater aquifer and surface streams (Manenti & Piazza, 2021 Stevens et al., 2021), springs show highly heterogenous microhabitat structures and steep environmental gradients on a small spatial scale (Di Sabatino et al., 2021 Reiss et al., 2016 Spitale et al., 2012). Headwater stream sections and particularly springs, so-called crenic habitats, feature distinct environmental conditions and are inhabited by characteristic species assemblages (Cantonati et al., 2020 Di Sabatino et al., 2021 Glazier, 2014). Our results support the concept of spring habitat isolation and highlight the importance of alpine protected areas to conserve springs as substantial components of freshwater biodiversity. Our findings indicate strong insularity of freshwater springs and headwater areas, likely caused by intra-alpine Pleistocene isolation and limited dispersal abilities of strictly spring-bound species like P. Effective population size estimates and standing genetic variation within springs were generally low. Furthermore, we found subtle shared genetic structure among springs within the same area, and a southwestern genotype associated with the Rhône catchment that extended into eastern populations. Water mites from each spring qualified as well-delimited distinct populations with only little intra-spring migration, even when these were located in close geographic proximity. We observed strong genetic differentiation between individuals from different springs. We assessed genomic admixture, the phylogenetic relationship, isolation by distance, contemporary migration, effective population sizes, and genetic diversity among individuals from different springs. Population genomic structure was inferred with 2263 polymorphic restriction site-associated DNA (RADseq) loci of 256 individuals. Partnunia steinmanni populations were sampled by hand-net from 12 springs. Protected areas across the Alps, Central Europe. Therefore, we investigated the population genomic structure of Partnunia steinmanni Walter, 1906, a strictly spring-dwelling water mite (Hydrachnidia) species, to shed light on the degree of interconnection among freshwater spring habitats. This presumption, however, is insufficiently supported empirically and conclusions about spring isolation have been based on indirect evidence. Alpine spring ecosystems have long been considered as highly isolated, island-like habitats.

Geodist bioinformatics 2016 novembre