[Differentiation of tortoises of the genera Testudo and Agrionemys (Testudinidae) based on the polymorphism of nuclear and mitochondrial markers].

Based on polymorphism of the 12S rRNA gene and RAPD markers, differentiation of 122 tortoise individuals belonging to the three species of genus Testudo (T. kleinmanni, T. marginata, and T. graeca), six subspecies of T. graeca (T. g. nikolskii, T. g. pallasi, T. g. armeniaca, T. g. zarudnyi, T. g. terrestris, T. g. ibera), and two subspecies of the Central Asian tortoise Agrionenemys horsfieldii (A. h. horsfieldii, A. h. kazakhstanica) was performed. For comparison, 32 known sequences of 12S rRNA gene (392 bp) from tortoises of the two genera inhabiting the territories of Europe, Asia, and Africa were used. In the populations of A. horsfieldii, a total of six haplotypes; including three newly described variants, were identified. In the examined tortoises of the genus Testudo, eleven 12S rRNA haplotypes were identified. One new haplotype was detected in T. kleinmanni. Among the eight subspecies of T. graeca, eight haplotypes were identified, with four newly described ones. The reported RAPD markers generally supported the reconstructions obtained with the use of the mitochondrial marker. Similarly to the 12S rRNA-based reconstructions, two independent clusters included representatives of the two genera, Agrionemys and Testudio. Among the latter, representatives of T. marginata and T. kleinmanni, as well as T. graeca, with high statistical support values, formed two reciprocally monophyletic groups. Compared to the mitochondrial markers, RAPDs more statisticallysignificantly discriminated the sample of T. g. terrestris and the four subspecies, T. g. ibera, T. g. armeniaca, T. g. pallasi, and T. g. nikolskii. In almost all cases except the representatives of T. g. ibera, the representatives of each of four subspecies formed individual subclusters. The geographical haplotype distribution patterns and possible evolutionary scenario of the origin and dispersal of tortoises of the two genera are discussed.

First records of Hyalomma aegyptium (Acari: Ixodida: Ixodidae) from the Russian spur-thighed tortoise, Testudo graeca nikolskii, with an analysis of tick population dynamics.

During the fall of 1995 and the spring of 1996, 77 statistically comparable tick collections, comprising 792 specimens, were made from adults of the Russian spur-thighed tortoise, Testudo graeca nikolskii, at 4 sites along Russia's Black Sea coast. These are the first tick collections reported from T. g. nikolskii since its recognition as a taxonomic entity. All ticks were determined to be Hyalomma (Hyalomma) aegyptium, a common tortoise parasite in southern Russia that in 1930 was erroneously designated the type of subgenus Hyalommasta. Male ticks were recovered from more tortoises (67) than were females (57) or immatures (14), and nymphs were seen only in the fall. Significantly more ticks parasitized male tortoises than females, perhaps because males of T. g. nikolskii have larger home ranges. However, no functional relationship was found between tortoise ventral surface area and degree of tick infestation. Like other tortoise ticks, H. aegyptium is expected to decline in concert with its increasingly threatened hosts.