Guest Speakers
Asst. Prof. Ivana Maguire, PhD and Assoc. Prof. Göran I.V. Klobučar, PhD
Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Croatia
Dr. Ivana Maguire is zoologist with expertise in astacology. Her scientific work includes different aspects of freshwater crayfish research: biology, ecology, distribution and conservation. At the moment her research focuses on the phylogeny and phylogeograpy of native European freshwater crayfish species. She has published over 20 peer-reviewed papers on various aspects dealing with freshwater crayfish research.
Dr. Göran I.V. Klobučar is zoologist with a keen interest in monitoring biological effects of pollution as well as in freshwater crayfish and their epibionts. At the moment his research focuses on the short and long term genotoxic effects of freshwater pollution and on the molecular phylogeny of the freshwater crayfish genus Austropotamobius. He is presently an associate professor in zoology, ecotoxicology and biomonitoring at the Department of Zoology, University of Zagreb. He has co-ordinated several national and international projects related to environmental impact of pollutants in freshwater and seawater ecosystem and published over 30 papers in peer-reviewed literature and proceedings of international conferences.
Invited talk title:
Endangered freshwater crayfish in Croatia: past, present and future
Abstract
Native European freshwater crayfish are an endangered group of aquatic macroinvertebrates, and for their efficient protection (management) a sound knowledge of their biology, ecology and distribution is needed. During the last decade of crayfish research we have established the presence and distribution of four native European crayfish species and two non-native invasive species in Croatian freshwater habitats. We have also studied the life history characteristics and population dynamics of different crayfish species as well as their ecological demands towards habitat. Lately our research has focused on the phylogeny of different native species with the aim of revealing evolutionary relatedness among the various populations using molecular sequencing data and morphological data matrices. Results taken from our phylogenetic analyses, offer us insights into the genetic characteristics / uniqueness of certain populations that need special protection treatment, while the knowledge of their biology and ecology will provide appropriate guidelines for its implementation. This lecture will offer an overview on freshwater crayfish research in Croatia with a special focus on stone crayfish.