Vukica Vujić

• PhD
• Research Associate at University of Belgrade

Three modes of postembryogenesis are recognized in millipedes: telo-, hemi- and euanamorphosis. Aims of this study were to determine: 1) the mode of postembryonic development, 2) the number of postembryonic stadia, 3) the first postembryonic stadium when males and females can be distinguished and 4) when the adulthood is reached in Megaphyllum bosn...

Although morphological variation may have an effect on behaviour, there are only a few studies on julid millipedes in which the influence of the variability of some morphological traits on mating success has been explored. Hence, objectives of this study were to investigate mating behaviour in laboratory conditions and identify traits that could po...

Covariation of multiple morphological traits and modularity have been widely studied in the field of evolutionary developmental biology. Subunits of a morphological structure can evolve separately from each other in a modular fashion. The aims of our study therefore were: i) to test the hypothesis of modularity in the dorsal part of the head capsul...

Here we describe in detail the late post-embryonic development of the common European scolopendromorph centipede Cryptops parisi. Canonical variate analyses of two groups of external morphological characters, viz., cephalic capsule characters (head length, length of the anterior and posterior paramedian cephalic sutures) and coxopleuron surface cha...

Until now, morphological trait variation has been investigated in several millipede species using geometric morphometrics. The present study is the first attempt to explore sexual shape and size dimorphism (SShD and SSD) of morphological structures in Polydesmida. We here analyse antennal, head, and leg SShD and SSD in Brachydesmus troglobius Daday...

In biostratigraphic research of the Upper Miocene of the Pannonian Basin System, one of the frequently detected and important ostracod genera is Hemicytheria. Among more than 20 species of this genus, Hemicytheria setosa is present in sandy facies of the Lake Pannon sediments in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The aims of this study were to desc...

Sexual size and shape dimorphism (SSD and SShD) are understudied phenomena in millipedes. In the present study, we investigated both kinds of sexual dimorphism in some morphological traits, as well as whether shape of the morphological traits varied more than their size. Three julidan species, viz., Pachyiulus hungaricus (Karsch, 1881), Megaphyllum...

The operculum morphology of neritid snails of genus Theodoxus Montfort, 1810 yields important species-specific taxonomic characters. This study is the first attempt to describe morphological differences in snails based on operculum shapes using a geometric morphometric approach. We examined the variability of opercular shapes between sexes and amon...

Natural selection can lead to speciation, but its effects depend on amount of morphological variation within populations. In Ostracoda, the appendages enclosed within the calcified carapace are less influenced by environmental conditions in comparison with carapace valves. Here, we explored morphological variation of appendages and labrum in cosmop...

Sexual selection can be a major driving force that favours morphological evolution at the intraspecific level. According to the sexual selection theory, morphological variation may accompany non-random mating or fertilization. Here both variation of linear measurements and variation in the shape of certain structures can significantly influence mat...

Sexual selection can be a major driving force that favours morphological evolution at the intraspecific level. According to the sexual selection theory, morphological variation may accompany non-random mating or fertilization. Here both variation of linear measurements and variation in the shape of certain structures can significantly influence mat...

The relationship between fluctuating asymmetry (FA) as an indicator of developmental instability and herbivore damage is a topic of growing research interest, the question becoming more complex in dioecious species and contrasting environments. Here, we explored the patterns of herbivore damage and developmental instability in natural populations of...

Light environments can influence variation in plant morphology, development and susceptibility to herbivores. Our research interest was to investigate the patterns of herbivore damage and developmental stability in dioecious understory forb Mercurialis perennis in contrasting light habitats, located at 1700 m a.s.l. on Mt. Kopaonik. Male and female...

Interactions between plants and herbivorous insects can be shaped by light environment, resulting in differential herbivory in sun and shade. In dioecious species, the combination of plant sex and light-induced changes in defense traits and nutritive value can alter the patterns of foliar damage. We explored the combined effects of light environmen...

Plant-herbivore interactions can be mediated by plant apparency, defensive and nutritional quality traits that change through plant ontogeny, resulting in age-specific herbivory. In dioecious species, opposing allocation patterns in defense may lead to sex-biased herbivory. Here, we examine how onto stage and plant sex determine levels of herbivore...

Nutrition is one of the most important environmental factors that influence the development and growth in Drosophila. The food composition strongly affects their reproduction, welfare and survival, so it is necessary for flies to search for a mixture of macronutrients that maximizes their fitness. We have five D. melanogaster strains, which were re...

Although millipedes (Diplopoda) represent one of the most diverse classes of arthropods, data concerning details of their mating behaviour are very scarce. In this work, we explored mating behaviour of the European millipede Pachyiulus hungaricus under laboratory conditions, and its relationship with the size and shape of certain morphological trai...

These substances also effected several morphological changes as indicated. Pre-adult stages of D. melanogaster are particularly susceptible as this is the time of active growth and development. Nutri-C showed the least effect on morphology. This was not the case for Sari-C and Eve exposed flies, which showed more abnormal phenotypes. Wing and abdom...

Plants are exposed to increasing levels of diverse human activities that have profound effects on their overall morphology and, specifically, on leaf morphology. Anthropogenic disturbances in urban and suburban forest recreational sites are attracting growing research interest. To explore the persisting recreational impact on leaf shape and size, w...

The function of flowers, as the reproductive organs of plants, can be altered by changes in the size and shape of their constituent parts in traffic-related air polluted areas. The aim of this work was to compare the length, width, centroid size and shape (using a set of shape variables - partal warps) of Iris pumila standards (petals) from an urba...

In this work, we investigated the suitability of the threatened species, Iris pumila L., as a possible bioindicator of traffic pollution in its natural habitats (mostly protected areas and natural reserves). We examined its potential to accumu-late lead (Pb) and nickel (Ni) in polluted habitats, and the genetic variability for this capability, sinc...

2013): Between-clone, between-leaf and within-leaf variation in leaf epidermis traits in Iris pumila clones.Genetika, Vol 45, No. 2, 297-308. The goal of this study was to analyze variation and covariation in epidermal characteristics (epidermal cell density -ECD, stomata density -SD, and stomata index -SI) on Iris pumila clones on between-clone, b...