Marina Vilenica

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Verified

Marina verified their affiliation via an institutional email.

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• PhD
• Professor (Associate) at University of Zagreb

Large rivers are complex freshwater systems with high habitat heterogeneity providing home and resources for numerous species. Even though they are considered biodiversity hotspots, our knowledge about the ecological requirements of inhabiting biota is still not sufficient. In this study, we investigated mayfly assemblages along the course of a lar...

Context Floodplains play an important role in regulating regional water and nutrient cycles in riverscapes, also supporting high biodiversity. However, ecological requirements of aquatic macroinvertebrates in such habitats are still not sufficiently studied. Aims We analysed mayfly assemblages in two habitat types (near natural and anthropogenicall...

Intermittent rivers are hydrologically extreme freshwater systems that periodically cease to flow. Such habitats occur worldwide, but they are most common in semi-arid regions of the world, such as the Mediterranean region. Trichoptera are frequently used in biomonitoring programmes worldwide. However, their biodiversity and ecological requirements...

1. Dragonflies (Odonata) are ancient and familiar insects with a deep and strong cultural association with humans. They have an aquatic larval stage and an aerial adult stage, meaning that they respond to ecological conditions in both freshwater and the adjacent land surface. 2. Currently, 16% of dragonflies are threatened. Overall, they face sever...

Dispersal, either active or passive, plays a key role in community assembly during the colonisation of newly available habitats such as the dry riverbeds of intermittent rivers. These unstable environments are exposed to an ongoing colonisation process, often from adjacent riparian habitats that are local biodiversity hot spots. We aimed to identif...

This report identifies a set of priority actions needed to reverse the declines of thirty threatened dragonfly species in the European Union. It is based on data from the latest European Red List of Dragonflies and Damselflies (2024) and employs the “Assessment to Plan” methodology of the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) with a specific focus...

Functional diversity is a key component of biodiversity that reflects various dimensions of ecosystem functioning and the roles organisms play within communities and ecosystems. It is widely used to understand how ecological processes influence biotic assemblages. With an aim to increase our knowledge about dragonfly ecological requirements in tufa...

Barrage-lake systems are a rare natural phenomenon with specific ecological characteristics that are greatly affected by tufa formation. Our main goal was to investigate benthic macroinvertebrate communities and their longitudinal variations within the lakes arranged in cascades in the Dinaric karst hydrosystem. Each lake within the Plitvice Lakes...

Floodplains are heterogeneous systems adjacent to large rivers periodically flooded by water originating from the river’s lateral flow. During floods, the water flows into the surrounding channels, ponds and lakes, creating an integrated dynamic system characterized by a mosaic of lotic and lentic habitats and by the exchange of nutrients and inhab...

As the human population in urban areas is continuously growing, urbanization is one of the greatest threats to biodiversity. To mitigate the negative effects, the inclusion of blue zones (aquatic habitats) in modern urban development practices is strongly recommended, as they could be beneficial for the local biodiversity conservation. Odonata are...

Temporary pools are small and shallow freshwater habitats with a recurring dry phase and intermittent stagnant water. They are particularly well represented in semiarid and karstic regions of the world, where they form during the lentic phase of intermittent rivers and streams. Despite the increasing research interest in such habitats, community ec...

Freshwater snails inhabit a wide range of freshwater habitats, including the intermittent ones, specific adaptations enabling them to survive the dry phase for an extended period of time. Despite an increasing scientific interest in biota occurring in intermittent freshwater habitats, our knowledge about environmental factors shaping freshwater gas...

Hydromorphological degradation is one of the most common stressors to freshwater ecosystems nowadays. Rivers lose riparian vegetation, habitat heterogeneity, natural flow velocity, etc., due to hydromorphological alterations. We analyzed macroinvertebrate communities in a wide range of hydromorphological conditions – from near natural sites to sign...

Intermittent rivers are dynamic habitats that seasonally cease to flow, resulting in a dry phase suitable for colonisation by terrestrial invertebrates. This study aimed to identify dispersal patterns of flying and ground-dwelling invertebrates during the dry phase of the intermittent karst Krčić River in the Mediterranean region of Croatia. Flying...

Dry riverbeds are seasonally occurring habitats in most intermittent rivers, yet terrestrial invertebrates are still rarely considered in their ecological status assessment. Spiders play a vital role in the ecological dynamics of riparian habitats and are among dominant taxa in dry riverbed communities alongside ants and beetles. This study aimed t...

Odonata are amphibious insects widely used as bioindicators of freshwater ecosystems' health. Their assemblages at lotic and lentic habitats in the area of the Drava River basin are still not completely known. Therefore, we surveyed Odonata fauna at two Drava River oxbows and the Drava River lower reaches in Croatia and Hungary. We recorded a total...

Aquatic insects are the most species-rich group that inhabit freshwaters. They are connected to water by at least one life stage, usually that of the larvae, and some spend their entire life in freshwater habitats. The majority of aquatic insects’ larvae develop in water; while adults emerge and spend their lives primarily in terrestrial environmen...

Human activities such as logging, agriculture, and urbanization can drastically change and limit Odonata species distributions in aquatic and terrestrial environments. These modifications may culminate in extirpations of rare and resident species and homogenization of community composition across space. This chapter reviews how human land use is (r...

Intermittent rivers, common in dry parts of the world, such as the Mediterranean region, are hydrologically harsh habitats characterized by periodical flow cessation. Ephemeroptera are aquatic insects common in both lotic and lentic waterbodies, where they show a high sensitivity to anthropogenic modifications of their habitat. Therefore, they are...

Here we present the results of a mayfly study conducted on a hydromorphologically altered lowland river in Croatia, the Bednja River. Twenty-two mayfly species were recorded, Baetis fuscatus (Linnaeus, 1761) and Serratella ignita (Poda, 1761) being the most widespread and Paraleptophlebia submarginata (Stephens, 1836) and Cloeon dipterum (Linnaeus,...

Odonata is an amphibious insect order constituting an important link between aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Members of the group are widely used as bioindicators of freshwater habitat health. The Odonata fauna of a total of 44 freshwater habitats in the wider area of Papuk Nature Park was investigated in the spring and summer of 2017 and 2019. T...

Dry riverbeds are, in addition to lotic and lentic habitats, a phase of the intermittent river cycle. These hydrologically dynamic ecosystems are defined by flow intermittence and characterized by the variability of aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial communities. This study aimed to identify dispersal patterns of flying invertebrates during the...

Lotic freshwater ecosystems are among the most threatened ecosystems worldwide due to the effects of multiple stressors, such as intensive land use in their catchments, morphological alterations, flow regulation, pollution, and climate change. Odonata are often used as valuable indicators of ecological integrity and anthropogenic disturbance of fre...

In non-marine environments, insects comprise one of the most species-rich and abundant groups of organisms [...]

European lowland rivers are extensively impacted by hydromorphological pressures, and the relationship between individual benthic macroinvertebrate groups and these degradations are insufficiently investigated. Therefore, we studied distribution and ecological traits of Odonata inhabiting a lotic system in the Pannonian lowland ecoregion (ER 11) in...

Intermittent rivers, lotic habitats that cease to flow during the dry periods of the year, make up a large proportion of the world’s inland waters and are an important source of water in arid regions such as the Mediterranean. Yet, water resources and riparian habitats in the Mediterranean regions are under diverse anthropogenic pressures, includin...

Historically, rivers have been anthropogenically modified for different purposes worldwide (e.g., flood control, drinking water abstraction, and land drainage). Although the majority of European lowland rivers are under the impact of multiple stressors (water quality, hydromorphological alterations, land-use), the consequences of these influences o...

Environmental fate of emerging contaminants such as pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds at the aquatic terrestrial boundary are largely unexplored. Aquatic insects connect aquatic and terrestrial food webs as their life cycle includes aquatic and terrestrial life stages, thus they represent an important inter-habitat linkage not only...

Although intermittent rivers are present in all climate regions, their biodiversity and ecosystem functions were largely overlooked in the past. Recently, considerable effort has been made to improve our understanding of these, however, many data gaps still remain. We conducted a study to improve knowledge of the community patterns and processes in...

Assemblages of adult Odonata were studied in four intermittent karst rivers encompassing macrophyte-rich (MRH) and macrophyte-poor habitats (MPH) in southern Europe, where temporary lotic habitats are the predominant freshwater type but are still understudied. With a total of 25 recorded species, the studied habitats support species-rich Odonata as...

Mayflies are amphibious insects which represent an important link in food and energy transfer from aquatic to terrestrial habitats. They constitute a large proportion of the aquatic ecosystems’ biomass. Although our knowledge about mayfly (bio)diversity in the Balkan Peninsula is still far from complete, more extensive systematic studies have been...

While investigating the aquatic macroinvertebrate fauna of four intermittent Dinaric karst rivers in Croatia, we confirmed or recorded new distribution data and ecological features for several mayfly species rare in Croatian freshwater habitats: Nigrobaetis niger (Linnaeus, 1761), Procloeon pennulatum (Eaton, 1870) and Paraleptophlebia werneri Ulme...

More than a decade of field surveys of Caliaeschna microstigma (Schneider, 1845), at the north-western edge of species’ distribution in Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, and Montenegro recorded its presence at 135 localities, of which 107 were previously unknown. Our sampling located populations north-west of the species’ previously known range limit....

More than a decade of field surveys of Caliaeschna microstigma (Schneider, 1845), at the north-western edge of species' distribution in Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, and Montenegro recorded its presence at 135 localities, of which 107 were previously unknown. Our sampling located populations north-west of the species' previously known range limit....

Here we present a first record of Baetis vardarensis Ikonomov, 1962 in Croatian freshwater habitats. The species was collected in February and March 2020 at two sites in the Sava River. With this record, Croatian mayfly species richness increased to a total of 85 species. In addition, one of the species previously known only from literature, Kagero...

A wide range of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds enter freshwaters globally. As these contaminants are transported through aquatic food webs, understanding their impacts on both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems remains a major challenge. Here, we provide the first direct evidence of the transfer of pharmaceuticals and endocrine...

Increasing human pressures have a negative impact on freshwater habitats and their biota worldwide. To protect habitats and the species contained within them, ecological assessments over a gradient of near natural to degraded freshwater habitats are essential. Odonata assemblages were investigated at 46 study sites in Croatia encompassing slightly...

Caddisfly faunistic and ecological features were studied at 14 sampling sites along the catchment area of the Dobra River. Adults were collected monthly, over a period of 13 months (from early November 2009 until the end of November 2010), using ultraviolet (UV) light trap and entomological net. Physico-chemical parameters of water and air were als...

Freshwater ecosystems are endangered worldwide by various human pressures, resulting in dramatic habitat and species loss. Many aquatic invertebrates respond to disturbances in their habitat, and mayflies are among the most sensitive ones. Therefore, we investigated mayfly response to anthropogenic disturbances at 46 study sites encompassing slight...

Mayfly assemblage structure, microhabitat preference and emergence patterns were studied over a decade in two types of karst freshwater habitats, namely, a spring and two tufa barriers. Mayfly adults were collected using pyramidal emergence traps. A total of nine species was recorded. Tufa barriers had a higher species richness but a lower abundanc...

Many studies have reported a negative impact of freshwater habitat modification on biota. Nevertheless, some man-made water bodies have proven to be valuable for biodiversity conservation as they can harbour many species. We investigated 36 man-made water bodies to determine their suitability as habitats for Odonata. Larvae were sampled in littoral...

Data related to the 41 species of the dragonfly fauna of central and southwestern Republic of North Macedonia and nearby Albania, gathered during the post European Congress on Odonatology 2012 fieldtrip on July 6-13th, 2012 are presented. The Ohrid-Prespa region was particularly investigated. The majority of previous data available for this area is...

Man-made freshwater habitats have been widely used to successfully modify the environment for human benefit, including purposes of irrigation, flood control or electricity generation. Over the past decade, our knowledge about the mayfly fauna and its ecology in South-East Europe has been growing, yet the data related to lentic assemblages remain ve...

Despite the recent increase in the number of mayfly studies in karst freshwater habitats, their biology and ecology in springs are still poorly characterized. Therefore, we studied mayfly assemblages in a European karst rheocrene spring at five microhabitats monthly over a one-year period. Three species were recorded: Baetis alpinus (Pictet, 1843),...

Stoneflies are among the most sensitive aquatic insect taxa and therefore arguably the best indicator of the excellent, i.e. pristine, ecological status of surface streams. Karst habitats are one of the most exciting freshwater habitats in terms of biological-geological interplay. They, in turn, support a biodiversity far superior to surrounding fr...

A total 1,545 Odonata specimens stored in the collection of the Croatian Natural History Museum in Zagreb have been examined. The specimens were collected in the period between 1869 and 2011, mainly in Croatia, but also in the surrounding countries (Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia) and Switzerland. An overview o...

Even though alderflies, as well as many other aquatic macroinvertebrates, are widely used as indicators of freshwater quality, the knowledge of their distribution, biology and ecology in karst freshwater habitats is still very scarce. Aiming to fill this gap, we investigated alderfly assemblages along an oligotrophic karst hydrosystem. Sampling was...

Research examining mayfly ecology in karst streams and rivers has increased in recent years, though microhabitat preferences remain poorly characterized. We examined mayfly assemblage taxonomy, functional feeding groups and microhabitat preferences in two contrasting lotic Dinaric karst catchments, one pristine and one anthropogenically impacted. A...

The objective of this chapter is to present the data on aquatic macroinvertebrate communities along the Sava River, based on investigation performed during 2011 and 2012 at 12 sampling sites within the sector between Vrhovo (Slovenia) and Belgrade (confluence to the Danube). During our study 227 macroinvertebrate taxa were recorded in the Sava Rive...

Despite increasing numbers of studies on aquatic insects in South-East European streams, there are still gaps in the knowledge about their distribution and assemblage composition in many regions. As one of the most abundant and sensitive aquatic insects, mayflies are widely used as bioindicator taxa. With the main goal of improving the knowledge of...

Ecological traits of dragonfly larvae in tufa-depositing habitats of the Dinaric karst were studied monthly over a one-year period (2007-2008). The study encompassed various lotic karst habitats (springs, mountainous rivers, streams, tufa barriers) and microhabitats (angiosperms, mosses, cobbles, sand, silt with leaf litter). The aims of the study...

Mayfly emergence was studied in the Plitvice Lakes National Park (Croatia) monthly over a 2-year period in four habitats (springs, streams, mountainous rivers, tufa barriers) using monthly collections of emergence traps. A total of 12 mayfly taxa were recorded. Almost half of the collected specimens belonged to the genus Baetis Leach, 1815, which w...

Remarkably, unlike other parts of Europe, the ecology of mayflies in the southeastern regions is still poorly known. Here we present the first comprehensive study of Ephemeroptera in the tufa-depositing habitats of the Dinaric Karst. The study was conducted in Plitvice Lakes National Park monthly during a one-year period (2007–2008) in different ty...

Mayfly ecological traits are studied in relation to diverse type of habitats.

A total of 12 dragonfly species were recorded at Vlačine Reservoir in the Dinaric Western Balkan region (ER 5) in Croatia. Habitat conditions, i.e. vegetation structure and physico-chemical water properties of the reservoir, are presented and discussed. Habitat conditions were suitable for life cycle completion of Mediterranean species such as Lind...

Peat bogs are unique wetland ecosystems of high conservation value all over the world, yet data on the macroinvertebrates (including mayfly assemblages) in these habitats are still scarce. Over the course of one growing season, mayfly assemblages were sampled each month, along with other macroinvertebrates, in the largest and oldest Croatian peat b...

Peat bogs are unique wetland ecosystems of high conservation value all over the world, yet data on the macroinvertebrates (including mayfly assemblages) in these habitats are still scarce. Over the course of one growing season, mayfly assemblages were sampled each month, along with other macroinvertebrates, in the largest and oldest Croatian peat b...

Mayflies are one of the most important orders of freshwater inhabiting insects and they are widely used in ecological studies. Mayfly ecology and distribution in the Mediterranean part of the Western Balkans are insufficiently investigated. Our study encompassed 9 sampling sites along the course of the Cetina River, the longest Mediterrranean river...

The influences of river regulations on aquatic biota are insufficiently investigated. We assessed the level of ecological disturbance of the mayfly assemblages through the damming and flow alterations at two highly regulated Mediterranean rivers in Croatia: the Cetina River and its tributary, the Ruda. Contrary to our hypotheses, species richness,...

Knowledge of the mayfly biodiversity in the Balkan Peninsula is still far from complete. Compared to the neighbouring countries, the mayfly fauna in Croatia is very poorly known. Situated at the crossroads of central and Mediterranean Europe and the Balkan Peninsula, Croatia is divided into two ecoregions: Dinaric western Balkan and Pannonian lowla...

The objective of this chapter is to present the data on aquatic macroinvertebrate communities along the Sava River, based on investigation performed during 2011 and 2012 at 12 sampling sites within the sector between Vrhovo (Slovenia) and Belgrade (confluence to the Danube). During our study 227 macroinvertebrate taxa were recorded in the Sava Rive...

The mayfly fauna of Plitvice Lakes NP was investigated at 14 sampling sites representing different types of karstic freshwater habitat (springs, streams, tufa barriers and lakes). Specimens were sampled from February 2007 to February 2009 using different methods and 19 taxa were identified. Lotic habitats supported more mayfly species than lentic h...

The invasive fish species Neogobius fluviatilis was recorded at one locality on each of the two investigated rivers, Una and Kupa. The expansion of this species in Bosnia and Herzegovina is presented, as well as the habitat characteristics of the locality on the Una River. Additionally, a list of the associated fish fauna at both localities is give...

The distribution of Caliaeschna microstigma (Schneider,1845) in Europe is small and restricted to the Balkans. As in the last years its populations are declining, the species is classified as Near Threatened (NT) in the European and the Mediterranean Red Lists. It occurs only in the Mediterranean region inhabiting springs, brooks and small rivers....

Regional biodiversity and distribution surveys are of a great importance for determining conservation status of species and in studying factors that influence diversity. Due to the very limited available data considering distribution of many dragonfly species, Balkan Penninsula is still one of the poorest investigated areas in Europe. With the aim...

45 original scientific paper / izvorni znanstveni rad In all, 32 dragonfly species were recorded between August 2010 and September 2011 at 21 localities in the Banovina region of Croatia, almost half of the total number known in Croatia. The most abundant species was Platycnemis pennipes while the rarest was Coenagrion ornatum. Ten of the recorded...

original scientific paper / izvorni znanstveni rad CONTRIBUTION TO The mORphOlOgy Of The BalkaN lOaCh, Cobitis elongata heCkel & kNeR, 1858 In Croatia, the Balkan loach, Cobitis elongata inhabits the Sava River basin. We found significant morphological differences between specimens inhabiting the Kupa River and those from its right tri-butary the P...

In Croatia, the Balkan loach, Cobitis elongata inhabits the Sava River basin. We found significant morphological differences between specimens inhabiting the Kupa River and those from its right tributary the Petrinjčica River. Results of ANOVA analysis were statistically significant for 17 measurements and all statistically significant parameters w...

In the period of 1st to 6th August 2013 during the third Balkan OdonatOlogical Meeting, held in Croatia, 57 sites were investigated for dragonfly presence. We recorded 44 dragonfly species and recovered 372 faunistic data.

First finding of Coenagrion scitulum in present days Albania. Finding of Lindenia tetraphylla, Cordulegaster insignis, Gomphus schneideriii and other Odonata in Macedonia

The distribution of Caliaeschna microstigma in Europe is small and restricted to the Balkans only. As its populations have been declining over the past years, the species is classified as near threatened (NT) in the European and Mediterranean Red Lists. In Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia, the species reaches its north‐western edge of distributio...

This study presents the results of dragonfly fauna research in the Turopolje region of Croatia. Faunal analyses were conducted in the period from 1986–2009, with some interruptions, while an ecological analysis (composition of dragonflies according to habitat characteristics such as vegetation structure, air temperature, cloudiness) was conducted i...

Wetland habitats are the most threatened ecosystems due to water-drainage, excessive exploitation and pollution, which is why they are increasingly disappearing all around Europe. To maintain the high species richness, it is essential to maintain a variety of biotopes. Therefore, wetland area of Turopolje is an important habitat for biodiversity co...