Page 10 - Muscarella_Baragona_2017

258 CALOGERO MUSCARELLA & ALESSANDRO BARAGONA

square km wide, while Linosa is only 5.43) whose ancient connection between Lampedusa and North-
calcareous nature seems to offer higher colonization ern Africa, too, derive the Orthoptera Brachyptera
possibilities to several species of Arthropods Omocestus lopadusae (La Greca, 1973) and
(Massa, 1995b) and land Molluscs. This last point Pamphagus ortolaniae Cusimano & Massa, 1977
is evident if we consider that on 5 endemic taxa (Massa, 1995b; Massa, 2011) and the Buprestid
present on the Italian island in the Strait of Sicily - Beetle Julodis onopordi lampedusanus Tassi, 1966.
Lampedusa lopadusae lopadusae (Calcara, 1846) Particularly interesting under the biogeographical
[Lampedusa], L. lopadusae nodulosa Monterosato, profile is Leptotyphlopsis lopadusae Bordoni, 1973,
1892 [Lampione], Oxychilus (Oxychilus) diductus an underground Staphylinidae belonging to a group
(Westerlund, 1886) [Lampedusa], Trochoidea cumiae revolving around the Northern Mediterranean but
(Calcara, 1847) [Lampedusa and Linosa], Cernuella also present is Tunisia, and well differentiated both
metabola (Westerlund, 1889) [Lampedusa] - none from African and Italian congeners. According to
is present in Linosa and Pantelleria. The paleogeo- Bordoni (1973) it is a species belonging to a very
graphic vicissitudes lead to the inevitable conclu- old phyletic lineage, which differentiated after the
sion that the endemic fauna of Lampedusa and climate changes of the Quaternary.
Lampione is prevalently relictual, while that of For the terrestrial molluscs, it is of particular
Linosa is invasive. In both cases, they are neo- biogeographical importance the presence of the
endemic species of recent formation, evolved from genus Lampedusa Boettger, 1877 including L.
species characterized by a high colonizing capa- lopadusae (Calcara, 1846) endemic of Lampedusa
city and a marked evolutionary speed. This phe- island, L. lopadusae nodulosa Monterosato, 1892
nomenon is observed, as formerly said, in Tenebri- endemic of Lampione island, L. imitatrix Boettger,
onids, present in the islands with 9 endemic species 1877 e L. melitensis (Caruana-Gatto, 1892) en-
(see figure 5) on 37 known ones, with a rate of demic of Maltese Island. Lampedusa is akin to
endemism of 24.3% (Lo Cascio, 2002). In particu- Muticaria Lindhol, 1925 of South-eastern Sicily
lar, the presence in Lampione of 4 endemic taxa, and Maltese Islands. Both these genera have affin-
with 2 exclusive subspecies Opatrum (Colpo- ities with species of groups which are originated in
phorus) validum rottenbergi Canzoneri, 1972, the Balkans and in north-eastern Mediterranean,
Alphasida puncticollis moltonii Canzoneri, 1972 - and colonized these more western territories prob-
and a species being described (Tentyria n. sp., see ably during Messinian Age (Giusti et al., 1995).
Lo Cascio & Pasta, 2012), is symptomatic both of Here, the only endemic vertebrate is Podarcis
the differentiation speed of some species of this filfolensis laurentiimulleri (Bedriaga, 1876) which,
family from the founding population and of their according to recent molecular and biochemical
capacity to colonise isolated and insular territories survey, differentiated from stocks of populations of
(Aliquò, 1995). The insular differentiation is Podarcis sicula which colonised Pelagie Islands
certainly a rather quick phenomenon also among and Maltese Islands during pleistocenic regressions
Curculionoidea if, as Osella & Riti (1995) have ob- (see La Mantia & Lo Cascio, 2008; Sciberras &
served, they are present in Pelagie with 9 endemic Schembri, 2008 - see also note 16 of figure 6)
species. Of these, 1 species from Lampedusa
(Torneuma clandestinum) and 1 of Linosa (Otio- Island of Pantelleria
rhynchus (Arammichnus) linussae A. Solari et F.
Solari, 1922) have connections with Tyrrhenian Pantelleria is a volcanic island, emerged approx-
species, while 4 of Lampedusa (Alaocyba lampedu- imately 324,000 years ago, and since then it has
sae Dodero, 1916; Neumatora annamariae (Mag- never had contacts with emerged land (Agnesi &
rini et al., 2013; Torneuma extinguendum; Federico, 1995). The most relevant event, which de-
Otiorhynchus (Arammichnus) lopadusae A. Solari termined the actual faunistic composition, was the
et F. Solari, 1922), 1 of Linosa (Chiloneus (Chi- eruption that about 45 thousand years ago entirely
loneus) solarii Pesarini, 1970) and 1 of Lampione, covered the island with a layer of stone 5 metres
Otiorhynchus (Arammichnus) poggii Di Marco, thick (“green ignimbrite”). It is highly likely that
Osella et Zuppa, 2002, show northern African af- this destroyed the most part of the existent flora and
finities. From relictual populations witnessing the fauna. Most of the endemic species of Pantelleria