Myotis alcathoe has been recorded in the territory of Slovakia for the first time. On 2 August 2001, two individuals of the species were netted at the entrance to the Stĺpová jaskyňa cave in the basaltic plateau of the Cerová vrchovina Mts (48° 12’ 23” N, 19° 54’ 37” E; 525 m a. s. l; ca. 2 km south of the village of Šurice). The species identification was confirmed by sequencing part of the mitochondrial gene ND1 in two specimens. Measurements and description of external and cranial characters, as well as description of the baculum of these two reference specimens are given for further comparisons of this poorly known species.
In this study we are adding further information to phylogeography of Pipistrellus pipistrellus complex by discovery of isolated mitochondrial lineages in Europe, from the island of Crete (Greece) and central Mediterranean (Sicily, Corsica) and by adding new data about geographic distribution of clades within the complex. We performed phylogeographic study with aid of partial sequence of cytochrome b and with focus to the radiation centre of this group in the Mediterranean Basin. Within the clade P. pygmaeus s.l., we have discovered isolated lineage from Crete, which is sister taxon to P. hanaki from Libya. We have detected the occurrence of P. pygmaeus s.str. in northern Iran. In the clade P. pipistrellus s.l. we have discovered isolated cluster represented by populations from Sicily and Corsica, with phylogenetic relation to Moroccan lineage. This is a first evidence of separated phylogroup within the complex from central Mediterranean. We refer the occurrence of P. pipistrellus s.str. from the island of Cyprus. These data represent further arguments for importance of the Mediterranean region in phylogeny of the P. pipistrellus species complex. Proposed allopatric speciation scenario considers the role of environmental fragmentation during the Messinian Salinity Crisis, strengthen by preference of mountain habitats in Mediterranean populations. The species status of Cretan and central Mediterraenan forms is also discussed.
Among populations of the Miniopterus bats of western Palaearctic, intraspecific variation has not been well documented. Herein we investigate sexual and age variation of these populations using two approaches – linear and geometric morphometrics. We analysed Moroccan (M. maghrebesnis), western and eastern European (M. schreibersii), Levantine (M. schreibersii), and east-Afghanistani (M. cf. fuliginosus) specimens; variation was compared between sexes of the particular specimen sets of three above mentioned Miniopterus spp. and between four age cohorts of
M. schreibersii samples. The results showed in all examined population sets males to be generally larger in size than females, the exception being the east-European animals. Significatly the most divergent sexes were those from eastern Afghanistan, the Levant and eastern Europe. The differences found between sexes in as well as between examined population sets can
be attributed to different life histories and/or to food competition. Weak correlations between patterns of sexual dimorphism and the newly proposed western Palaearctic classification of the Miniopterus bats suggest only a limited contribution of sexual variation to morphological variation in general. Certain aspects of age variaton were found in all examined morphological characters except the non-metric traits, which in turn indicates the importance of these traits for identification of the particular taxon across age categories.