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Romanian Journal of Biology - Zoology ROMANIAN ACADEMY Institute of Biology - Bucharest |
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2005, VOLUME 50, 1-2
TAXONOMIC COMPOSITION, NUMERICAL DENSITY AND BIOMASS OF THE ZOO BENTHOS IN THE DAM LAKE IRON GATES II (ROMANIAN STRETCH), IN 2002 pp. 3-16 VIRGINIA POPESCU-MARINESCU In the paper, the composition, variability and frequency of taxa, as well as the numerical density and biomass on taxonomic groups, and the spatial and seasonal variability of total numerical density and biomass of the zoobenthos organisms in the damlake Iron Gates II, in 2002 are presented. The analysis of data in the tables and figures shows that: a) Hypania invalida, Limnodrilus hoffmeisteri, Tubifex tubifex and Sphaerium sp. were the constant-dominant taxa; b) the taxonomic groups, dominant as numerical density, were polychaetes and oligochaetes, while bivalves were dominant as biomass; c) generally, the highest values of the numerical density and biomass were found during summer, usually in the middle navigable zone; d) significant spatial variations were evidenced both in summer and autumn, in 2002. THE ZOOPLANKTON STRUCTURE IN THE IRON GATES II RESERVOIR (DANUBE KM 863-942), IN 2002 pp. 17-27 VICTOR ZINEVICI, LAURA PARPALA The dam Lake Iron Gates II reservoir represents a young anthropic ecosystem, having less than two decades of existence. It includes within its perimeter almost 80 km of lower Danube sectiop. It is located far downstream of the Lake Iron Gates I, from which differ by its size and slope clearly reduced. Its shoreline is more uniform, while its affluent network is poor represented. The river, implicitly the lake, shows an asymmetric transversal profile; it has higher depths along the right bank and low deep zones, populated with submerged and emerged macrophytes along its left bank. The maximum depth is of 18 m, and the water flow rate varies around 1 m/s. In downstream extremity, just against Drobeta-Turnu Severin town there exists a significant source of domestic and industrial wastewater pollution. The analyses evidenced that the zooplankton was characterized by low values of species diversity (L = 70 taxa), numerical density (X. = 24.5 ex/I) and biomass (X. =51.2 μg wet weight/I). The species with the most significant role in the dynamics of the zooplankton ecological equilibrium was Dreissena polymorpha, in the plankton larva stage, having the highest values of constancy, numerical and gravimetrical dominance. FRESHWATER OLIGOCHAETA (ANNELIDA) OF THE SOMEŞUL MIC RIVER DRAINAGE IN ROMANIA pp. 29-39 CLAUDIA PAVELESCU, CLAUDIU TUDORANCEA
This study is a contribution to the knowledge of the aquatic Oligochaeta (Annelida) fauna of Romania. Freshwater oligochaetes were sampled quantitatively at eight sites on the Someşul Mic River and on headwater streams of one of its main tributaries, the Someşul Cald, in 2000. Thirty-eight species of oligochaetes belonging to seven families and twenty-two genera were recorded during this study. The family Naididae had the highest species richness (18 species) followed in decreasing order by Enchytraeidae (8 species), Tubificidae (5 species), Lumbricidae and Lumbriculidae (2 species each), and Propappidae and Haplotaxidae (one species each). In general, species richness and density increased on the longitudinal gradient of the river, although the highest number of species occurred in the middle stretches of the river. Several species of Nais appeared to be tolerant to organic enrichment of the river. Nais a/pina along with Pristina foreli, Pristina sp. and Specaria josinae occurred in the headwaters and in the middle transitional zone of the river from clean towards more organically polluted stretches. The tubificid Rhyacodrilus coccineus proved to be an indicator for pristine waters of the headwaters zone. CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE COGNITION OF GROWTH OF CERTAIN POPULATIONS OF AQUATIC GASTROPODS ACCORDING TO AGE AND SEASON pp. 41-46 OLIVIA CIOBOIU
By analysing a number of 4,000 individuals we succeeded in emphasizing the specific features of growth of the aquatic gastropods populations according to body dimensions and age categories. These parameters vary also according to seasons. Thus, it resulted that there is a close correlation among the body dimensions, age categories and growth rate, fact that allows to estimate the ecological characteristics of the aquatic gastropods populations. NOTES UPON THE HERPETOFAUNA OF THE SOUTH-WEST AREA OF THE COUNTY OF CARAŞ-SEVERIN, ROMANIA pp. 47-56 SEVERUS-DANIEL COVACIU-MARCOV, ISTVÁN SAS, ALFRED CICORT-LUCACIU, IUSTINA PETER, HORIA BOGDAN We studied the composition and the geographical distribution of the herpetofauna of the South-West area in the County of Caraş-Severin. We identified 236 new herpetological localities in the South-West of the County of Caraş-Severin for the 26 species and a hybrid form. We identified 12 species of amphibians, hybrids between Triturus cristatus and Triturus dobrogicus and 14 species of reptiles. Five species of amphibians and four species of reptiles are identified in the investigated region for the first time. Our results indicate the fact that Testudo hermanni is spread on a continuous area in the zone of the slopes that are contiguous to the Danube in the County of Caraş-Severin. BIOGEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF GAMASINA MITES FROM ROMANIA (ACARI-MESOSTIGMATA) pp. 57-74 MINODORA STĂNESCU, ILINCA JUVARA-BALŞ
The paper presents a list of the gamasina mites (Acari; Mesostigmata) from Romania with species of two suborders: Epicriina and Gamasina. The order Epicriina , family Epicriidae, has 6 species. The suborder Gamasina has the following families: Parasitidae, Veigaiaidae, Ameroseiidae, Aceosejidae, Phytoseiidae, Antennoseiidae, Podocinidae, Rhodacaridae, Ologamasidae, Macrochelidae, Pachylaelaptidae, LaeJaptidae, Eviphididae, Haemogamasidae, Zerconidae; with 58 genera and 273 species. A number of 34 species are identified only for Romania. These species are found in the Eastern area of Romania in 26 regions, in the South area in 14 regions, in the West area in 24 regions, in the North area in 6 regions and in the central area in 20 regions. AN OVERVIEW OF THE OLDER AND RECENT CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE FISH FAUNA OF THE BANAT pp. 75-82 PETRU M. BĂNĂRESCU
Two species af lampreys (both mis-identified ), one sturgeon and 37 bony fishes have been recorded prior to 1918 from the sector of the Banat province, now belonging to Romania, most of them from a single or a small number of localities or rivers. Field investigations, most of them made by the authors of the present paper, carried on from 1943 till 1998 resulted in the addition of two lampreys (others than those mis-identified by older authors), three sturgeons and II species of bony fishes priorly not recorded from one province. For 36, out of the 37 native of bony fishes recorded earliest, numerous new localities have been signalled. The status of three species has recently been modified through molecular investigations. Nine non native species were introduced. EURYGASTER SPECIES (HETEROPTERA - SCUTELLERIDAE) ATTACK ON WHEAT PRODUCTION, IN ONE LOCALITY OF BRAILA DISTRICT (1996-2003) pp. 83-89 MARIA-ELENA TEODORESCU, VIOLETA POPESCU, IRINA TEODORESCU
Following the examination of the grains in the wheat stores, carried out between 1996 and 2003, we estimated the degree of wheat grains "stinging", produced by Eurygaster species. The total production of wheat harvested in Braila district during the eight years showed no or low intensity attacks. The non-attacked wheat quantity increased from 44% in 1996 to 71 % in 1998, and then it decreased significantly in the 1999-2001 period and especially in 2002 (0.02%) and 2003 (0.12%). Except for 2003 (11.44%), the quantities of wheat grains with 2%-4 % attack intensity were very low (under 1 %). THE MAIN ALIEN/INVASIVE NEMATODA AND ACARINA SPECIES IN ROMANIA pp. 91-97 IRINA TEOOORESCU, TRAIAN MANOLE, MARIA IAMANDEI, ANGHELUŢĂ VĂDINEANU
The paper is the result of the authors' observations in the orchards, vineyard plantations, field crops, and also of an elaborate study concerning the nematoda and acarina alien/invasive species introduced in Romania. The data refer to 22 species of invertebrates belonging to Nematoda (9 Tylenchida and 5 Dorylaimida) and Acarina (1 Eriophyiidae, 1 Bryobiidae, 4 Phytoptipalpidae, 1 Tarsonemidae, 1 Phytoseidae). A number of 8 species are considered invasive (Heterodera schachtii, Globodera rostokiensis, Meloidogyne incognita, M. hapla, M. arenaria, Ditylenchus destructor, Polyphagotarsonemus latus, Bryobia rubrioculus) and at present time 14 are considered non-invasive, but with a future potential of turning into invasive species. AN ULTRASTRUCTURAL STUDY OF CARTILAGE ALTERATIONS IN HUMAN OSTEOARTHRITIS pp. 99-105 ANIŞOARA CIMPEAN, OTILIA ZĂRNESCU
In this study, we describe the ultrastructure of chondrocyte subpopulations from hip cartilage of patients with clinical characteristics of osteoarthritis (OA), emphasizing the specific morphological features of cells which are localized in nonlesional and lesional OA areas. The articular cartilage is characterized by the presence of cells with a variable phenotype depending on the cartilage layer in which they are distributed. In the lesional cartilage areas were noticed cell alteration phenomena and modification of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Thus, a common characteristic of the OA lesional cartilage is the presence of chondrocyte clusters or "clones" that can represent the final attempt of chondrocytes to repair the ECM. Some chondrons are degenerated, their cells showing different features of the cell death. A hallmark of the lesional OA cartilage is represented by high frequency of the necrotic cells that could explain the reduction of the OA cartilage cellularity with the evolution of the degenerative process. The alteration of the ECM was more evident at the pericellular and territorial matrix levels where collagen network was disorganized or interrupted with the appearance of short fibrillar fragments. This finding suggested that chondrocytes represent the source of this alteration. FLOW CYTOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF HUMAN CHONDROCYTE VIABILITY AND APOPTOSIS IN OSTEOARTHRITIS pp. 107-114 LUMINIŢA BUIA, MARIA CALOIANU, JEAN MONTREUIL, DANIELA BRATOSIN
Osteoarthritis (OA) is an age-related disorder generally affecting articular cartilage. The ageing of whole organisms is linked to cellular senescence and parallels apoptosis as a cellular response to stress. To understand the mechanisms underlying the process of cell death in cartilage destruction, we investigated by flow cytometry cellular viability and apoptosis of human chondrocytes isolated from normal and osteoarthritic (OA) cartilage. Cell viability was evaluated by applying an original calcein-AM assay we recently proposed (Bratosin et aI., Cytometry A, 66A, 78-84, 2005) and apoptosis was quantified by changes in Light Scatter Properties, Annexin V-FITC/Propidium Iodide test and caspase-3 activity measurement using PhiPhiLux G1D2 as substrate. The results we obtained show that in this context apoptotic phenomena appear to be consistent and relevant and could contribute to cartilage degeneration. COMPTE RENDU pp. 115-116 LILIANA VASILIU-OROMULU THE BIODIVERSITY OF THE SUBTERRANEAN ENVIRONMENTS OF ROMANIA. Introduction to the biology, ecology, conservation and protection of the terrestrial and aquatic subterranean environments. Short dictionary of terms ALEXANDRA NEGREA, ŞT. NEGREA, A. ARDELEAN |
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