Elisabeth Haring

Naturhistorisches Museum Wien · Laboratory of Molecular Systematics (DNA laboratory)

The advent of third generation sequencing technology has revolutionized parallelized sequencing of DNA fragments of varying lengths, such as PCR amplicons, which provides unprecedented new opportunities for large-scale and diverse DNA barcoding projects that, for example, aim to quantify the accelerating biodiversity crisis. However, the broad-scal...

Until the professionalisation of science at the end of the 19th century, it was almost exclusively private individuals who shaped both the progress of our understanding of biodiversity as well as the development of natural history collections. The formation of scientific societies in the 18th century and the emergence of public museums promoted thi...

During several excursions in the framework of the MoFA conference 2023 in Lunz am See, 109 mollusc species were recorded at 38 study sites, including 10 bivalve species, 17 freshwater snail species and 82 land snail species. Among sites, the number of species collected varied from two to 50 species. Non-metric multidimensional scaling based on Søre...

This issue 11 of ARIANTA has once again succeeded in presen�ting a colorful mixture of malacological topics. We would like to thank the authors of the texts and illustrations as well as the reviewers for their efforts and commitment. The fact that our journal and its topics are not only frequented by mollusc ex�perts is also shown by the contrib...

Die Rolle biologisch ausgerichteter Plattformen, Fachgesellschaften und Vereine in Österreich wurde in Session 3 der "Tage der Biodiversität 2023" beleuchtet. Im Vor-feld der Tagung ausgesendete Fragebögen sollten die Situation der Fachgesellschaften beschreiben und als Diskussionsgrundlage dienen. Es wurden auch Plattformen oder Institutionen eing...

Fish were sampled at nine locations of the upper Neretva River, upstream of Glavatičevo. Evidence of the endangered softmouth trout (Salmo obtusirostris) was obtained as well as the presence of other native and non-native salmonids. Genetic analysis suggests that the native brown trout (Salmo trutta) in the upper Neretva is homogeneous with no sign...

During a survey taking place from 29.6.2022–2.7.2022 in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the river-floodplain system of the upper Neretva River around Ulog, 51 species of molluscs were found at 12 sampling sites. Besides manual sampling in the water bodies, the main sampling technique consisted of sieving of river deposits, to maximise the coverage of spe...

In the Falconidae, the genus Falco comprises species of large birds of prey with wide distribution worldwide. However, the European lanner falcon Falco biarmicus feldeggii is rapidly heading for global extinction following a dramatic decline caused by anthropogenic interference. Conservation projects are currently underway with the main purpose of...

Wolbachia is one of the most common bacterial endosymbionts, which is frequently found in numerous arthropods and nematode taxa. Wolbachia infections can have a strong influence on the evolutionary dynamics of their hosts since these bacteria are reproductive manipulators that affect the fitness and life history of their host species for their own...

Wolbachia is one of the most common bacterial endosymbionts, which is frequently found in numerous arthropods and nematode taxa. Wolbachia infections can have a strong influence on the evolutionary dynamics of their hosts since these bacteria are reproductive manipulators that affect the fitness and life history of their host species for their own...

The mollusc fauna of the Lobau, a forest and floodplain area of the National Park Donau-Auen, which is situated in large part within the municipal borders of Vienna (Austria), underwent several changes since the Danube regulation around 1870. After the regulation, many side arms, oxbow lakes, and backwaters, which were originally running waters, be...

The Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) is widely distributed in the northern Hemisphere and is thus an ideal candidate to explore large-scale biogeographic patterns. In recent years, Golden Eagle population genetics has gained considerable attention. However, the Eastern Palearctic region, a numerical stronghold for the species, is one of the least g...

In 2021 and 2022, qualitative studies on the species spectrum of the mollusc fauna were carried out at the Bisamberg hill and the "Alte Schanzen" (rests of a historical military fortification) up to the Marchfeldkanal (an artificial channel for soil irrigation), which is partly located in the Vienna area for "rural development". The aim of these in...

Journal of MoFA (Mollusc Research Austria)

Monitoring of odonates has become an important instrument for ecological status assessment of (semi-)aquatic habitats. Besides information on presence and abundance, knowledge about a species´ autochthony at the surveyed waterbody is a significant information within the assessment process. Here, the finding of exuviae represents the ultimate proof...

The door snail genus Montenegrina (subfamily Alopiinae) is comprised of rock-dwelling species specialised on limestone, distributed in the western parts of the Balkan Peninsula. In previous years, several studies on the genus dealt with genetic and morphological diversity, phylogeography and taxonomy of the taxa cumulating finally in the latest rev...

We designed and tested species-specific PCR primers to detect Trichobilharzia species via environmental DNA (eDNA) barcoding in selected Austrian water bodies. Tests were performed with eDNA samples from the field as well as with artificial samples from the lab, where snails releasing cercariae were kept in aquariums. From two localities, Trichobil...

In this study, the ecological status of the water bodies in the Viennese part of the Danube Floodplain National Park, the Viennese Lobau, was assessed from a dragonfly ecology perspective. The surveys for this were conducted in 2017, 2018 and 2020. The assessment was based on the comparison of the status quo with the water body type-specific refere...

Zones of secondary contact provide a good opportunity to investigate the origin and dynamics of reproductive isolation between related populations. We analyzed genetic and phenotypic patterns and gene flow between two subspecies of the Eurasian magpie Pica pica s.l. which recently came into contact after presumably long periods of isolation. We des...

The mollusc fauna in the rural green belt of Vienna belonging to areas subjected to the agricultural and rural development program of the European Union was studied in the years 2020-2021. In total, in the course of the study, 165 species of molluscs could be documented in this area as living animals or empty shells. Out of these, 98 were land snai...

Bei den 10 ABOL-BioBlitz-Aktionen im Rahmen der Tage der Artenvielfalt 2019 und 2020, die großteils in Schutzgebieten stattfanden, wurden DNA-Barcodes von Or-ganismen erstellt, die im Zuge der Veranstaltungen gesammelt und bestimmt wur-den. Im Rahmen dieser Publikation werden insgesamt 2.172 Datensätze bzw. 1.750 DNA-Barcodes von 1.040 Arten veröff...

Scientific Journal of Mollusc Research Austria

Urgent requirements for the conservation and support of Austrian biodiversity: A position paper of conservation experts. The Zoological-Botanical Society sent out a questionnaire regarding biodiversity con�servation in Austria to a number of colleagues. The initiative was inspired by an in�ternal discussion on the question of conservation of proces...

In the years 2020 and 2021, new detections of four invasive gastropod taxa were reported in Vienna. Three of them, Tandonia kusceri, Cernuella virgata and Cernuella cisalpina were recorded in Favoriten. For T. kusceri this was the first record in Austria. Cernuella cisalpina, which differs morphologically only by a smaller size from C. virgata sens...

extended): The village of Bad Fischau-Brunn is located on the southern edge of the Vienna Basin (Lower Aus-tria) at the border of two ecoregions, the Alps and the Pannonian Plains. Geologically, different limestone formations, sandstones and conglomerates dominate. The area is characterised by outlets of thermal springs and the existence of numerou...

The mating behaviour (from courtship to copulation) of two morphologically distinct populations of Arianta arbustorum from two geographically distant regions were compared under laboratory conditions. The individuals of the two populations (A, B), representing the two subspecies Arianta arianta arbustorum and Arianta arbustorum styriaca, significan...

The taxonomy and systematics of the door snail genus Siciliaria was revised based on an integrative ap- proach including a comprehensive genital anatomical investigation, which was combined with shell mor- phology and DNA sequence data (mitochondrial COI, nuclear ITS2 sequences). The genital morphology of 120 specimens of 22 taxa from 44 population...

The systematics and taxonomy of the scorpion family Euscorpiidae are still unresolved, and, within it, the eastern Adriatic scorpiofauna is largely unknown and under-researched. Based on two mitochondrial sequences (COI and 16S rRNA) and one nuclear marker sequence (ITS1), we put 107 newly analyzed samples originating from the Alps, the Eastern Adr...

Several species of avian schistosomes are known to cause dermatitis in humans worldwide. In Europe, this applies above all to species of the genus Trichobilharzia. For Austria, a lot of data are available on cercarial dermatitis and on the occurrence of Trichobilharzia, yet species identification of trematodes in most cases is doubtful due to the c...

Glossiphoniid leeches are a diverse group and sometimes abundant elements of the aquatic fauna inhabiting various types of freshwater habitats. In this study, we sampled leeches of the genus Glossiphonia from the Western Balkan in order to test the suitability of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) marker sequence for species del...

Background. Dragonflies and damselflies (Odonata) are important components in biomonitoring due to their amphibiotic lifecycle and specific habitat requirements. They are charismatic and popular insects, but can be challenging to identify despite large size and often distinct coloration, especially the immature stages. DNA-based assessment tools re...

The taxonomy and systematics of the door snail genus Siciliaria was revised based on an integrative approach including a comprehensive genital anatomical investigation, which was combined with shell morphology and DNA sequence data (mitochondrial COI , nuclear ITS2 sequences). The genital morphology of 118 specimens of 21 taxa from 43 populations w...

The use of non-invasively collected DNA source material for genetic and genomic applications is usually characterized by low target DNA concentration and quality, genotyping errors and cost-intensive lab procedures. However, for otters (Lutrinae) as elusive species of conservation concern, genetic non-invasive sampling has become an important tool...

Dragonflies inhabit a wide range of habitats, with different species having different species-specific habitat requirements and corresponding niches. Therefore, they are very well suited as indicator species for habitat quality and conservation. Especially in the fields of taxonomy and phylogenetics new insights in odonatology have been gained thro...

Warmblood fragile foal syndrome (WFFS) is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by a single nucleotide variant in the procollagen-lysine-2-oxoglutarate-5-dioxygenase 1 gene (PLOD1:c.2032G>A, p.Gly678Arg). Homozygosity for the PLOD1 variant causes an Ehler-Danlos-like syndrome, which has to date only been reported in warmblood breeds but the WFFS a...

ARIANTA is the journal of Mollusc research Austria (MoFA). Volume 8 contains 5 scientific articles and one book review.

A molecular systematic analysis based on the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene as well as a morphometric analysis was performed in Clausilia dubia in eastern Austria. Altogether 170 individuals of C. dubia were analysed (142 included in the morphometric analysis, 143 in the molecular genetic analyses) representing 12 sub-speci...

Avian schistosomes are of medical and veterinary importance as they are responsible for the annually occurring cercarial dermatitis outbreaks. For Austria, so far, only Trichobilharzia szidati Neuhaus 1952 was confirmed on species level as causative agent of cercarial dermatitis. Here we present the first record of Trichobilharzia franki Müller & K...

Organisms inhabiting extreme habitats are exposed to many threats. Consequently, they are especially prone to extinction in changing environments. In this study, the genetic variation and phylogeographic pattern of the cyprinid freshwater fish Garra barreimiae Fowler & Steinitz (1956) from Northern Oman was examined and compared with other species...

Rock‐dwelling gastropods are usually patchily distributed in limestone habitats, presumably have low active and passive dispersal ability and often represent narrow‐ranged endemic taxa. Their current taxonomy is predominantly shell morphology based, and it remains unknown whether the morphologically differentiated and geographically separated popul...

The taxonomy and systematics of the door snail genus Montenegrina are revised based on an integrative approach including, for the first time, a comprehensive genital–anatomical investigation, which is combined with shell morphology and DNA sequence data. The reference molecular genetic data were published in Mason et al. (Journal of Zoological Syst...

Acanthocephalans are obligate parasites of vertebrates, mostly of fish. There is limited knowledge about the diversity of fish-parasitizing Acanthocephala in Austria. Seven determined species and an undetermined species are recorded for Austrian waters. Morphological identification of acanthocephalans remains challenging due to their sparse morphol...

Growing human-wildlife conflicts and legal conservation obligations increased the need for precise information on Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) population parameters for species status assessment and wildlife management measures. Scat surveys have become the method of choice to monitor species distribution range, abundance and habitat use. Although...

DNA barcoding is a promising identification tool in many organismal groups, especially where larval stages can hardly be identified to species level based on other approaches and expertise is restricted to few persons. The quality standards for building up a reference database, however, are strict and difficult to achieve in small animals such as p...

The Austrian endemic land snail species Noricella oreinos (formerly Trochulus oreinos) occurs in the Northeastern Calcareous Alps at high elevations. Two morphologically highly similar subspecies N. o. oreinos and N. o. scheerpeltzi have been described. First analyses of mitochondrial and nuclear marker sequences indicated a high genetic divergence...

Background. In this study a population of the rock dwelling terrestrial gastropod Montenegrina subcristata was monitored over one season and data about life cycle, population density and dispersal were gathered. Three study sites (A, B, C) near Virpazar, Montenegro were selected. Snails were categorized into three size classes. (1) The smallest juv...

The land snail genus Schileykula Gittenberger, 1983 is distributed in arid limestone areas from western Turkey to north‐western Iran. It comprises eight species, which display high variation in shell size and morphology. The cylindrical shells are 5–12 mm in height and the last shell whorls bear several inner lamellae and plicae. Two taxa differ in...

Arianta 7 is the first volume of Arianta published in form of the Society Journal of MoFA (Mollusc Research Austria). Arianta was first published in 1995 as a booklet containing the documentation of a Workshop on Alpine land snails which had taken place in July 1994 in Johnsbach, Styria. It was followed by five more issues which were irregularly pu...

Abstract The malacofauna of the Natura 2000 site Lendspitz-Maiernigg (Klagenfurt, Austria) was investigated in 2017 on two days in July. The investigated area is one of the last remaining silting zones on the Lake Wörthersee. In total 40 species of molluscs could be recorded, 19 of them water molluscs and 21 land snail species. Six of the latter we...

Connectivity between golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) populations is poorly understood. Field studies exploring natal dispersal suggest that this raptor is a philopatric species, but with the ability to roam far. However, little is known about the population structure of the species in Europe. Our study is based on 14 microsatellite loci and is com...

Connectivity between golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) populations is poorly understood. Field studies exploring natal dispersal suggest that this raptor is a philopatric species, but with the ability to roam far. However, little is known about the population structure of the species in Europe. Our study is based on 14 microsatellite loci and is com...

The cover image is based on the Original Article Witnessing extinction: Population genetics of the last European Rollers (Coracias garrulus) in Austria and a first phylogeographic analysis of the species across its distribution range, by Carina Nebel et al., https://doi.org/10.1111/jzs.12256. Cover image © Mag. Michael Tiefenbach.

The Northern Goshawk Accipiter gentilis is a medium-sized bird of prey inhabiting boreal and temperate forests. It has a Holarctic distribution with 10 recognized subspecies. Traditionally, it has been placed within the Accipiter [gentilis] superspecies, together with Henst's Goshawk A. henstii, the Black Sparrowhawk A. melanoleucus, and Meyer's Go...

Viele Millionen Sammlungsobjekte in den Depots des NHM Wien dokumentieren die Vielfalt des Lebens und das Schaffen ver-gangener Kulturen. Sie sind eine unbezahl-bare Informationsquelle für Forscherinnen und Forscher aller Nationalitäten und Dis-ziplinen. Die Wissenschafterinnen und Wissenschafter des Museums, Studierende und Lehrende der österrei-c...

Volume rendering of a confocal laser scan of the back-side of the proboscis of P. tereticollis. Legend: Red arrow = last circle of hooks; green arrow = extensions on basal hook roots; orange arrow = posterior furcation on basal hooks number 6 and 7.

Species of the genus Pomphorhynchus Monticelli, 1905 (Acanthocephala: Pomphorhynchidae) are obligate endoparasites infesting mostly freshwater fish. Morphological identification is challenging due to high intraspecific variations. The use of molecular analyses enabled new insights into the diversity and revealed high cryptic presence and unknown di...

Objective: In the Bronze Age Hallstatt metropolis ('Salzkammergut' region, Upper Austria), salt richness enabled the preservation of pork meat to sustain people's livelihood suggesting an organized meat production industry on a yearly basis of hundreds of pigs. To pattern the geographic and temporal framework of the early management of pig populat...

Due to broad-scale habitat loss, European Rollers (Coracias garrulus) have been decreasing in numbers rapidly during the 20th century in parts of their European distribution range. In Austria, as of 2017, only a completely isolated relict population of two breeding pairs and a few non-breeders remained in Styria compared to about 270 pairs in the 1...

The taxonomic status of the Austrian endemic Helicopsis austriaca has changed several times since its first description. Originally described at species level, it was later treated as a subspecies of H. striata or more usually as a junior synonym of the latter species. The same applies to H. hungarica. Despite the unclear tax-onomy of these taxa, H...

During a survey from 24.–26.04.2017, 36 species of molluscs were found in the riverfloodplain system of the Vjosa at Poçemi (see Schiemer et al. 2018 this volume). Regarding the terrestrial snails, a total of 28 species was found. Living specimens were mainly recorded at higher areas of slopes adjacent to the floodplain, which are neither affected...

A species list of gastropods on several mountain summits in the Gesäuse region was generated, as the knowledge of the species composition of alpine areas will serve as valuable reference for further surveys and monitoring in the view of global warming. During the Workshop Alpine Landsnails 2017, the participants spent two days at the alpine refuge...

A pilot study was carried out at three adjacent rock faces at a location in the Northern calcareous Alps (Johnsbach,Styria, Austria) to estimate population sizes, densities, activity range and small­scale distribution patterns of selected rock­dwelling snails. The study site was a about 15 m long rock face naturally divided into three parts. These...