ARI Biennial Review for 2018-2019

Spiny mice of the Acomys cahirinus group display a complex geographic structure in the Eastern Mediterranean area. In order to better elucidate the evolutionary relationships of insular populations from Crete and Cyprus with the continental ones from North Africa and Cilicia in Turkey, genetic and morphometric variations were investigated, based on mitochondrial D-loop sequences, and size and shape of the first upper molar. Due to its isolated distribution and morphological characteristics, the Cyprian spiny mouse Acomys cahirimus nesiotes was characterised and maintained as separate subspecific evolutionary unit. The complexity of house mouse ( Mus musculus domesticus ) population genetics and its value as a bioproxy for studying modern human movement was investigated. The analysis was performed using 221 new mitochondrial D - loop sequences and assessed the fine - scale population genetic structure using 18 autosomal microsatellite loci from 191 modern house mice specimens. Two main waves of mouse introductions were tentatively identified based on coalescent and mismatch analysis. The first is apparently related to the Bronze Age expansion and the second one to more recent human movements. ( E. Hadjisterkotis ) The vultures ( Gyps fulvus ) of Sardinia, Crete and Cyprus The islands of Sardinia, Crete and Cyprus are hosting the last native insular griffon populations in the Mediterranean basin. The study of D-loop region sequence was carried out on the vultures of the above islands to estimate the genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationship within and among these three populations. Strong genetic variability was observed, which is influenced by isolation leading to the appearance of island variants. This research lays the foundation for griffon vulture conservation and restocking programmes. ( E. Hadjisterkotis ) Identification of an ancestral haplotype in the mitochondrial phylogeny of the ovine haplogroup B Following the first complete sequence of Cypriot mouflon ( Ovis gmelini ophion ) mtDNA and phylogenetic analyses using a large dataset of whole Ovis mitogenomes, the first complete mtDNA sequence of the long- time isolated Sardinian mouflon ( Ovis gmelini musimon ) was performed. Applying Bayesian inference, we identified an early split (110,000 years ago) of the Sardinian mouflon haplotype from both sheep and mainland European mouflon belonging to haplogroup B, the latter two sharing a more recent common ancestor (80,000 years ago). The results suggest the Sardinian mouflon haplotype as the most ancestral in the HPG-B lineage, hence partially redrawing the known phylogeny of the genus Ovis. E. Hadjisterkotis ) Cyprian mouflon 57 NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT