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Contributions to the taxonomy, biogeography, ecology and pathogens of parasites (Diptera, Acari) of Old World bats
Ševčík, Martin ; Benda, Petr (advisor) ; Stanko, Michal (referee) ; Bartonička, Tomáš (referee)
The dissertation thesis presents contributions solving several faunistic, biogeographical, taxonomic, and phylogenetic problems of selected groups of bat parasites together with surveys of potential pathogens in some representatives of these parasitic groups linked to the bats of the Old World. In the first part of the thesis, the taxonomy of prostigmata mites - chiggers (Trombiculidae) - coming from Eurasia and Africa is elaborated. Results of a detailed morphological and morphometric study are the descriptions of five new taxa belonging to four genera: Chiroptella, Grandjeana, Rudnicula, and Trombicula. At the same time, the results revise the differentiation within the group Trombicula sensu stricto, summarize the findings of species of individual genera and correct the inclusions of the originally described species within individual genera, with the final output of creating identification keys to the genera. The first sketch of the results of the study of the relations between chiggers and bats is included in this section, representing the description of the specific links among individual segments of both groups. In addition, there are studies presenting new findings and morphometric examinations of velvet mite nymphs collected from bats in Indonesia, as well as morphometric data and...
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Phylogenomics, genome size evolution and repeat dynamics in the genus Amomum Roxb. (Zingiberaceae)
Hlavatá, Kristýna ; Fér, Tomáš (advisor) ; Haevermans, Thomas (referee) ; Zedek, František (referee)
Amomum Roxb. s.l. (black cardamom) is a complicated genus in the ginger family Zingiberaceae (subfamily Alpinioideae) that according to some definitions includes groups of species recognized as separate genera, e.g. genus Elettariopsis Baker. Phylogenetic studies have so far failed to elucidate both the position of Amomum within Alpinioideae and the relationship between Amomum and other genera like Elettariopsis. In this work, Amomum was subjected to a detailed morphological analysis of the largest possible sampling, together with a phylogenetic analysis. Amomum was recircumscribed, Amomum s.s. and three new genera were established, three genera were resurrected, and genus Elettariopsis was merged into Amomum. Meanwhile, new species were described and others epitypified. A well-resolved nuclear-gene phylogeny of Amomum s.s. was obtained using next-generation sequencing (Hyb-Seq) and showed the existence of four clades (A, B, C, D) within the genus. Clade D, the former genus Elettariopsis, was further divided into three subclades (D1-D3). A chloroplast DNA-based phylogeny supported this structure, but additional phylogenies based on ribosomal DNA were incongruent with it, indicating that the frequently used ITS marker and other rDNA markers may not be suitable for reconstructing deeper phylogenetic...
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Long-distance migrations of hover flies (Diptera: Syrphidae)
Hlaváček, Antonín ; Hadrava, Jiří (advisor) ; Černý, Martin (referee)
Long-distance migration of insects is well-known phenomenon, studied especially in butterflies and locusts. Until now, the migration of hover flies (Diptera: Syrphidae) was considered a rather marginal issue and not much attention has been given to it. However, billions of hoverflies take part in the spring and autumn migration every year, transferring hundreds of tonnes of biomass and nutrients. The aim of this thesis is to review an existing knowledge on the migration of hoverflies in context of their ecology and evolution. In the first part, I discuss the biogeography and diversity of migratory hover flies, methods for studying migration and the application of such methods in hover flies migration. In the following chapters, I focus on the migration of particular species in context of their ecology and evolution, especially on population dynamics, phenology, orientation, and dimorphism in the migratory generation.
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Diversity and phylogeny of the lacertid lizards (Lacertidae) with emphasis on the tribe Eremiadini
Hlaváč, Denis ; Šmíd, Jiří (advisor) ; Chmelař, Jan (referee)
The family Lacertidae (lizards) belongs to the class Reptilia (reptiles) and the order Squamata (scaly reptiles). This family consists of two subfamilies, Lacertinae and Gallotinae, which are diversified into 45 genera and approximately 368 species. The subfamily Lacertinae is divided into two tribes, namely the tribus Eremiadini and Lacertini. The tribe Lacertini can be further divided into two clades: the Ethiopian and the Saharan-Eurasian clade. The subfamily Lacertinae, with approximately 354 species, is much larger than the subfamily Gallotinae, which consists of only 14 species. From the subfamily Lacertinae, the larger tribus Eremiadini is formed by 215 species classified in 22 genera. Representatives of this family can be found in Europe, Africa and Asia, but the center of origin is Europe. They belong to the dominant species of herpetofauna in Europe. The Eremiadini tribe separated from the rest of the Lacertidae family in the past and migrated to Africa, where it diversified into its present form. Currently, the diversity of the Eremiadini tribe is concentrated in Africa, but a large number of species also occur in Asia. The body is small to medium in size, which usually does not exceed 90 mm without the tail. The body shape is slender and the tail is relatively long compared to the body...
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Integrovaná výuka vzdělávacích oborů zeměpis a přírodopis na 2. stupni ZŠ (s praktickou ukázkou výuky tematického obsahu biogeografie)
HŘAVOVÁ, Michaela
This diploma thesis deals with integrated teaching, its application both in our country and abroad and with its possible uses when teaching Geography and Natural History. The aim of the thesis was to create teaching activities connecting those two subjects with biogeographical content. Three teaching activities focusing on distribution of organisms in the area of Africa, Australia and Oceania and America had been created in total. Two of the activities had been designed to incorporate another subjects, namely Art and Czech Language. A conception of teaching of biomes and biogeography and a suggested arrangement of educational content in Geography and Natural History at second stages of elementary schools are also included in the thesis.
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Trends in tree-ring width of treeline trees along latitudinal gradient from subtropics to the Arctic.
Zborníková, Kateřina ; Treml, Václav (advisor) ; Mašek, Jiří (referee)
This bachelor thesis is interested in a tree ring of trees at the treeline from subtropics to the arctic and the main aim of this work is to find if there is a trend in the tree ring width at the treeline along the latidunial gradient. The work/thesis focuses on conifers. The data were obtained from International Tree-Ring Data Bank database, article searches and from the internal workplace database. A total of 9859 annual ring samples were obtained from 153 localities in Europe. Trees of the genus Pine (Pinus), Spruce (Picea) and Fir (Abies) were selected, which dominate the europeans ecotones of treeline. After removing the age trend, the regression of tree ring width and the latitude, were calculated. The results showed that in most cases the tree ring width decreases with higher latitude. However, a small number of tree ring samples from latitudes around 55ř north latitude adds to the uncertainty of this claim.
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Evolution of vipers and the role of key innovations in their diversification
Waldhauser, Vojtěch ; Šmíd, Jiří (advisor) ; Gvoždík, Václav (referee)
The family Viperidae consists of 36 genera, containing more than 350 species in total. The family is distributed throughout Africa and most of Eurasia, however the greatest diversity is located in North and South America, where more than 40 % of the viper species can be found. The family is thus missing only in Australia, New Guinea, Madagascar, New Zealand and a number of other islands and archipelagos. As with most reptiles, they are also almost completely absent from polar regions, with the exception of Vipera berus, the only snake that has ventured north of the Arctic Circle. Their relative evolutionary success is attributed to many so called "key innovations", which include solenoglyphous dentition, viviparity of many genera or heat- sensing pits in the subfamily Crotalinae. Vipers are not only interesting because of their evolutionary history, but they are also subject of important medical studies regarding their venom and toxicity. WHO estimates that around 100,000 people worldwide may die from snake bites each year. This thesis presents a summary of our current knowledge of the evolutionary history of this family, including phylogeny and biogeography, and contemplates the mechanisms behind its amazing diversity.
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Ecology of yeasts in forest soils
Mašínová, Tereza ; Baldrian, Petr (advisor) ; Marečková, Markéta (referee) ; Kolařík, Miroslav (referee)
Microbial communities inhabiting upper soil horizons represent an important component of forest ecosystems. However, despite the evidence that yeasts represent an integral part of topsoil fungal communities, their role in forest ecosystems received so far little attention. The aims of my PhD thesis were to describe yeast communities in soil and litter of a temperate forest using high- throughput sequencing of environmental DNA, identify dominant yeast species and to explore how the composition of yeast communities reflects the biotic and abiotic factors of the environment. I also aimed to isolate yeasts from forest topsoil, describe novel yeast taxa abundant according to the environmental DNA survey and screen representative isolates for the traits relevant to their involvement in organic matter transformation. I have demonstrated that in forest topsoil, yeasts represent a substantial proportion of fungal communities with higher relative abundance in soil than in litter. In litter, yeast communities differ significantly among beech, oak and spruce-dominated stands. Drivers of community assembly are probably more complex in soils and comprise the effects of soil chemistry and vegetation. Even though there are similarities in the response of the communities of yeasts and filamentous fungi to...
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Genetic variability of the genus Alburnoides in Azerbaijan
Omelchenko, Dmytro ; Švátora, Miroslav (advisor) ; Vukićová, Jasna (referee)
The Caucasus region is characterized by high rate of endemism and taxa richness of fishes. Azerbaijan is a country situated on the border between Europe and Asia with rivers flowing in the Caspian Sea. Natural environment of this country is represented by various habitats with diverse ichthyofauna. This region is very attractive for biogeographical studies because it lays on the border of two different ecoregions. Even on the modern stage of scientific cognition, there is still lack of data about freshwater fishes from that region. Spirlins or rifle-minnows (Alburnoides Jeitteles, 1861, Actinopterygii, Cyprinidae) is a genus of small freshwater fishes and it has been chosen as a focus of this thesis because of numerous reports of new species from surrounding countries. The presented thesis is one of the seldom molecular studies trying to reveal the taxonomical situation within the genus Alburnoides, describe the phylogenetic relationships between geographically isolated populations, and provide biogeographical implications for fishes in the Caspian Sea river basins. Both mitochondrial (cytochrome b, cytochrome oxidase subunit I) and nuclear (RAG1, rhodopsin) markers were used in the study and the Maximum Likelihood, Maximum Parsimony and Bayesian phylogenetic analyses were performed. Further, the...
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