Page 2 - Ecologya_distribution_2006

F. Marrone et al., Ecology and distribution 2ts1

Table 1. List of species and their chorological categories (from Vrc;Na TaclraNrr et al. 1992, modified).
Species Chorology
Family PSEUDODIAPTOMIDAE G. O. Sars, 1903
Calanipeda aquaedulcls Kritschagin, 1873 Turanic -European- M editerranean

Family DIAPTOMIDAE G. O. Sars, 1903
Subfamily DIAPTOMINAE Kiefer, I 932
Diaptomus (Chaetodiaptomus) serbicus Gjorgewi6, 1907 Eastern-Turanic-European
Diaptomus (Chaetodiaptomus) cyaneus Gurney, 1909 Mediterranean
HemidiaptomLts (Hemidiaptomus) gurneyi (Roy, 1927) Mediterranean
Hemidiaptomus (Occidodiaptomus) ingens (Gurney, I 909) West Mediterranean
Copidodiaptomus numidicus (Gurney, 1909) West Mediterranean
Arctodiaptomus (Arctodiaptomus) stephanidesi (Pesta, I 935) E astern-Turanic-European
Arctodiaptomus (Arctodiaptomus) kerkyrensis (Pesta, 1935) South-eastern European
Arctodiaptomus (Rhabdodiaptomus) salinus (Daday, I 885) Palearctic
Mixodiaptomus kupelwieseri (Brehm, 1901 ) South European

nificance with which environmental variables ex- Sicilian calanoid species that show a higher
plain the variance of species data was tested using predilection for permanent, large and highly
Monte Carlo methods, testing with 99 unrestricted mineralised water bodies. They successfully
permutations. Variables were considered to be signif- colonised most of the dam reservoirs built up in
icant when p < 0.01.
the last decades.
When two or more species coexist synchron-
Results and discussion
ically in a pond they show a remarkable differ-
Recorded species ence in size; the most common assemblage is
Calanoid copepods were found in 65 (37 tem- composed by Hemidiaptomus gurneyi (te-
porary and 28 permanent) of the 256 studied placed in one pond by H. ingens), Diaptomus
water bodies. Of the 10 species collected (Table cyaneus and a third, smaller species (Mixodiap-
l), four (Diaptomus serbicus, Arctodiaptomus tomus kupelwieseri or Arctodiaptomus stepha-
kerlqtrensis, Hemidiaptomus gurneyi, Hemidi- nidesi) in relation to altitude, conductivity and
aptomus ingens) were never recorded before on landscape context of the pond. Moreover, in
the island. D. serbicus and H. gurneyi were pre- one site it was observed the coexistence of two
viously known in Italy from Latium only (Srrr-- congeneric species (D. cyaneus and D. ser-
LA 1979). MoreoveE H. ingens and A. kerlqtren- bicus).
sis were recently recorded for the first time in Diaptomus serbicu,s was collected in four
Italy (LrccHalr-r et al. 2003, MnnnoNp & small (8-20 m2), temporary ponds always lying
NnsEllr-FLoRES 2004). on a noncarbonatic substratum and located be-
The most common calanoid occurring in the tween 680 and 1300m a.s.l. Sicilian popula-
island (Fig. 1) is Copidodiaptomus numidicus, tions represent the south-westernmost records
which was collected in about 24o/o of the 65 of this species, which is common in the Balkan
sites, where it is the only calanoid present. The Peninsula, Armenia and Latium (Pnrrovsrr
occurrence of a single calanoid species per 1983, Srnlla 1984, Dussnnr & DEpnyp 2002).
pond is the most common feature in Sicilian Diaptomus cyaneus was collected in 13 water
water bodies; two or more co-existing species bodies characterised by significant differences
were found in less than20o/o of the sites. In par- in water turbidity, altitude, presence of macro-
ticular, permanent water bodies never hosted phytes, basin size and substratum nature. The
more than one species. Sicilian sites where it has been collected are al-
Calanipeda aquaedulcis, Copidodiaptomus ways temporary and show conductivity values
ntrmidicus and Arctodiaptomus salinus are the ranging between 65 and 430 pS cm l. It is quite