mansour aliabadian

Climate change alters their distribution across a wide geographical range by impacting habitats and bird populations. For the first time globally, this pioneering research integrates climate data; species presence points from field observations, and the international bird data registry. Utilizing various modeling algorithms, it scrutinizes the distribution changes of Aegithalos caudatus across a significant portion of its Palearctic biogeographical range across five distinct periods: the Last Interglacial, the Last Glacial Maximum, the mid-Holocene, the present, and future scenarios, encompassing both an optimistic outlook with sustainable development policies and a pessimistic projection with ongoing greenhouse gas emissions. The findings revealed that three algorithms, random forest, support vector machine, and maximum entropy, outperformed other modeling methods in discerning suitable and unsuitable habitats for Aegithalos caudatus. Evaluation using these models highlighted that the peak of species distribution, reaching 40%, was observed during the Last Glacial Maximum period. Conversely, its favorable habitat decreased by 29% during the Last Interglacial period. Moreover, climate amelioration during the mid-Holocene and present times has increased the habitat suitability of Aegithalos caudatus t across the Palearctic region to 36% and 35%, respectively. In the optimistic scenario for the year 2080, where sustainable policies are adopted to mitigate climate change, there is a notable increase in the distribution and habitat suitability of the long-tailed tit, covering 47% of the Palearctic biogeographical range. Conversely, in the pessimistic scenario, the distribution of this species diminishes to 35%. Across various periods, the annual temperature range emerges as the most influential climatic factor affecting the habitat suitability of this species.

Distribution of Persian fallow deer (Dama dama mesopotamica Brooke, 1875) as an endangered species is limited to captive breeding sites in Iran for more than six decades. The conservation program was relatively effective in some sites, but unsuccessful in other sites. This research aimed to evaluate habitat conditions, challenges, solutions, human-induced and environmental threats, as well as management efficiency in fallow deer breeding sites in three provinces including Ilam, Fars and Yazd using a combined methodology. Data were collected during two years of field surveys in the regions and in provincial offices. Challenges were observed in two major groups, habitat threats (small area of sites, resource poverty and environmental crises), and population threats (predation, male conflict, disease and inappropriate population structure) which was not significant despite the positive correlation (P-value>0.27). The average level of threats around the sites was high. The level of environmental and human-induced threats was estimated 52% and 55% in Arjan and Parishan protected areas, 43% and 50% in Manasht and Ghalarang, 41% and 56% in Koh Khom, and 29% and 47% in Bagh-e Shadi, respectively. The management effectiveness in all protected areas was at a basic level with many limitations. Management opportunity scores were 50% in Ilam and Arsanjan, 46% in Bagh-e Shadi and 44% in Arjan and Parishan protected areas. Suitable solutions involve site area expansion, vegetation restoration, establishing standard feed mangers and water troughs, establishing an earthen pond or reservoir for swimming and repelling annoying insects, providing supplemental food, controlling predators, improvement demographic structure with appropriate sex and age ratios, educating local communities, keeping livestock away for preventing disease transmission, installing closed-circuit television cameras, improving conservation level in protected areas, and releasing in the wild, which is the ultimate goal of breeding in captivity.

The man-made farm dam surrounding the Kashaf-Rud Protected Area has created artificial wetlands, providing an ideal habitat for various bird species. One such species is the Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus), which has made the dam its breeding ground. A total of 42 nests of black-winged Stilts were investigated during the study period from early May onwards in the Kashaf-Rud Protected Area. Our study revealed that nests were built on small patches near the water's edge without aquatic plant incorporation. The mean distance between nests was 3.97±3.281 m, with a mean distance from nests to water of 2.76±1.866 m. We found differences in the mean of clutch size and nest depth compared to previous research in Guilan province of Iran and southern part of Spain highlighting the influence of environmental conditions on nesting attributes within the species. Our results underscore the significance of wetlands in northeastern Iran as favorable habitats for a variety of waterbird species.

Wild birds as source of pathogenic microorganisms infecting livestock and humans are an interesting topic that has received increased attention in recent years. Here we study occurrence of pathogenic bacteria in birds in north-east Iran with focus on to identifying virulence gene in wild and domestic birds. Wild birds were trapped and sampled in different localities in north-east Iran from April to September in 2018 and 2019. From 184 birds representing 32 species of wild passerine birds, potentially pathogenic bacteria were isolated from 171 samples (92.9). Escherichia coli was the most frequently isolated bacterium with a prevalence of 70.1%, followed by Enterobacter spp. (53.8%) and Salmonella spp (3.2%) isolated from 129, 99 and 6 wild birds, respectively. In total 79.6% of the isolates carried virulence factors. A higher frequency of virulence genes was detected in domestic birds (88.6%) than in wild birds (76%). The results showed that birds in north-east Iran can serve as a potential source of bacterial pathogens and virulence factors that may cause disease in both humans and birds. Furthermore, our results introduce new host birds as source of pathogenic microorganisms that can carry and disseminate them in the environment.

Haemosporidian parasites, which encompass Haemoproteus, Plasmodium, and Leucocytozoon, are intracellular parasites commonly found in the blood and other tissues of birds worldwide. The prevalence of these parasites can vary depending on the bird species and the habitats they inhabit. Notably, the highest diversity of Haemosporidian parasites has been observed within the Passeriformes order of birds. In our study, we collected 145 blood samples from wild songbirds in the western region of Iran during the period from April to November 2021-2022. Blood smears were prepared using the push-slide method and subsequently stained with Giemsa. The stained smears were then examined under a light microscope, and all samples were screened using a nested PCR protocol that targeted a 479-base-pair segment of the mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) gene of Haemoproteus, Plasmodium, and Leucocytozoon species. Among the seven songbird families we sampled, we detected blood parasites in 31 individuals, representing an infection rate of 21.4% (95% CI: 0.1501 to 0.2896). These infected individuals belonged to five different families, and a total of 21 lineages were identified, including thirteen for Leucocytozoon spp, seven for Haemoproteus spp, and one for Plasmodium spp. Notably, the highest infection rates were observed in the Paridae family (9.7%, 95% CI: 0.0537 to 0.1567) and the Motacillidae family (4.8%, 95% CI: 0.0196 to 0.0970), while the lowest infection rates were recorded in the Corvidae family (1.4%, 95% CI: 0.0016 to 0.0490) and the Acrocephalidae family (1.4%, 95% CI: 0.0016 to 0.0490). Additionally, our study documented two new host species for Leucocytozoon spp. (Motacilla flava and Acrocephalus melanopogon), marking the first such observations globally. We also established five new host records (Motacilla flava, Pica pica, Acrocephalus melanopogon, Poecile lugubris, and Acrocephalus agricola) for avian haemosporidian parasites in the western region of Iran. These findings underscore the remarkable lineage diversity within the Leucocytozoon genus compared to other haemosporidian parasites in songbirds in western Iran, setting our study apart from previous research in Iran.

The subfamily Leuciscinae,within Cypriniformes, consists of many species distributed widely in Eurasia. During numerous ichthyological field expeditions between 2015-2019, we collected the available species of this subfamily from different parts of Iran. Based on previous reports, and our field-collected material, the spatial distribution patterns of the Leuciscinetaxaare described and mapped in the country. According to the results, the Iranian diversity of Leuciscinaeconsist of 42 species in 15 genera, which are distributed in 13 out of 19 Iranian drainage basins,with the highest diversity in the Caspian, Tigris and Urmia basins. We also documented the first occurrence of Alburnoides holcikiand Squalius turcicusin the Caspian and Kavir basins, respectively. In addition, two new localities were discovered for Alburnushohenackeriand Squaliusturcicuswithin the Esfahan and Caspian basins, respectively. The Iranian Leuciscinespecies are partly known; apart from the fact that their conservation status has been incompletely assessed, the known genetic, biological, ecological and distributional data on these species are also insufficient and systematic observations are needed for taking steps towards their conservation.

Haemosporidians are a diverse group of vector-borne parasitic protozoa that have a global distribution and some of them live in the avian body as a benign parasite, with no symptoms. Avian Haemosporidians, include three main genera, Plasmodium, Haemoproteus, and Leucocytozoon. These blood parasites are transmitted across different regions through migratory birds. We studied the prevalence of avian haemosporidian parasites in both resident and migratory birds in the central and southern regions of Iraq. Our study represents pioneering research on Haemosporidian parasites in a wide range of avian species, including 248 samples from 47 species of both resident and migratory birds, collected from five cities in central and southern Iraq. We identified and determined the prevalence of three distinct haemosporidian genera, Haemoproteus spp., Leucocytozoon spp., and Plasmodium spp. Overall parasite infection was higher in resident hosts than in migrants. The prevalence of Plasmodium spp. was found to be highest among resident birds, with a rate of 20.1%, while the highest rate of Leucocytozoon spp. was observed in migratory birds, with a rate of 8.2%. Our study holds promising opportunities for understanding the impact of migratory and resident hosts on the dynamics of infectious diseases in wildlife.

The genus Hottentotta Birula, 1908 is one of the most widely distributed buthid scorpion, with more than 40 described species from Africa, across the Middle East, to India. Currently, the genus is represented by ten morphological species in Iran (H. akbarii, H. jayakari, H. juliae, H. khoozestanus, H. lorestanus, H. navidpouri, H. saulcyi, H. schach, H. sistanensis and H. zagrosensis), all of which endemic or subendemic in Iran. The members of this genus have not been properly studied from the taxonomic point of view. A tool that could contribute to studies scorpiones taxonomic is the geometric morphometry, which is defined as the fusion between geometry and biology (Bookstein, 1982). In this study to the size and shape variations in sternocoxal structure in the genus Hottentotta has been examined using geometric morphometric method. We photographed 100 individuals of Hottentotta genus in Iran. Coordinate (x, y) configurations from landmarks were registered in sternocoxal structures. The results clearly showed divergence in the shape and size of sternocoxal structure among the studied taxa.

Calomyscidae is a monotypic family of muroid rodents with nine valid allopatric species distributed in southwestern Asia of which seven species have been so far recognized from Iran. The western and southern Zagros Mountains were thought to be home to a single species, Calomyscus bailwardi, but new researches revealed that the region is also home to four highly divergent molecular lineages. One of them was recently described as a new species (C. behzadi) but the taxonomic position of the other lineages remained unclear. Here we did an extensive sampling in southern Iran (2017-2018), during which 99 Calomyscus specimens were collected. Based on an integrated approach including karyotypic, mitochondrial as well as morphological data, we describe Calomyscus kermanensis sp. nov. as a new endemic species from the southern Zagros Mts (including Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Fars, Kerman, Yazd and Hormozgan provinces), in the region that was previously thought to be occupied by C. bailwardi. The new species emerged as a new lineage with high intraspecific mtDNA and chromosome variations. The multivariate and univariate statistical analyses of craniodental measurements also separated C. kermanensis sp. nov. from other examined Calomyscus species with the highest maximum cranial height being the most distinctive of its craniodental features.

The aims of this study were to testify a phylogenetic hypothesis for the genus Rutilus in the Southern Caspian Sea using sequence variation of mitochondrial and nuclear genes and to define the taxonomic status of phylogenetic clades represented in this region. Phylogenetic analysis was based on the variability of mitochondrial genes cytochrome b and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I and nuclear recombination activating gene 1 and inter-photoreceptor retinoid-binding protein. Compared to previous studies, this phylogenetic analysis included significant material from the South Caspian, both from the collected samples and from GenBank data. As a result, only two species of Rutilus were confirmed in the ichthyofauna of the studied region. The first of them corresponds to R. lacustris, therefore, materials from the South Caspian can be included in genetically identified vouchers of this species to determine its morphological diagnostic features. The second species represented separate sister phylogenetic lineage for the Pontic populations of R. frisii sensu lato. Due to the low genetic distance between the Caspian and Pontic lineages and the strong overlap of their morphological features, but previously proven divergence in separate Pleistocene refugia, the Caspian populations are classified in this study as a subspecies R. frisii kutum.

The present study investigates the occurrence and the identification of tick species infesting wild songbirds in northern Iran. During the period from 2015 to 2016, 342 songbirds belonging to 15 families and 37 species were captured and examined for tick infestation. Of which, 70 specimens were infested by ticks representing a 20.46% infestation rate. Four tick species detached from examined birds and identified as follow: Ixodes ricinus (Linnaeus, 1758), I. lividus Koch, 1844, Hyalomma sp., and Rhipicephalus sp. The most common one was I. ricinus. In all infected birds, collected ticks were in immature stages and the number of specimens of the larval stage was more than in the nymphal stage, and no adult tick was found. Following songbirds were introduced as new hosts: Rock Sparrow Petronia petronia (Linnaeus, 1766), Chestnut-shouldered Petronia Gymnoris xanthocollis (Burton, E, 1838), Eastern Olivaceous Warbler Hippolais pallida (Hemprich & Ehrenberg, 1833), Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra Linnaeus, 1758, Common Mynah Acridotheres tristis (Linnaeus, 1766), Eastern Pied Wheatear Oenanthe picata (Blyth, 1847), Pied Wheatear O. pleschanka (Lepechin, 1770), Desert Finch Rhodospiza obsoleta (Lichtenstein, MHC, 1823), Fire-fronted Serin Serinus pusillus (Pallas, 1811), and Red-breasted Flycatcher Ficedula parva (Bechstein, 1792) for I. ricinus.

Biodiversity is one of the key components of environmental sustainability and its conservation is very important. To conserve biodiversity, both its management and measurement management are necessary. Biodiversity measurement means some quantitative value that can be ascribed to the various measurements so these values can be compared. With its geographic and climatic variety, Iran has a valuable biodiversity, which includes about 1,130 and 8,000 species of vertebrates and flora, respectively. Due to the large amount of data (occurrence points) and complexity of calculations, utilizing computer programs is essential. Though numerous software have been developed in this field, Iran has no exclusive software. Therefore, we here present BDI v. 1.0.0 (BioDiversity of Iran), a user-friendly software utility which facilitates the calculation of the most commonly used biodiversity indices and then spatially visualizes the results on a map with high precision and resolution.

In this research, the genetic peculiarities of the common partridge (Alectoris chukar) have been investigated using a non-invasive sampling method and microsatellite markers in six loci. During 2014 and 2015, one hundred feather samples have been collected from four northwestern provinces of Iran. Our findings indicated that in Ilam, Kermanshah, and Hersin, two distinct subpopulations have diverged from other populations (Fst = 0.1). The highest diversity was recorded among the Kordestan populations, which can be related to the traditional culture of target species relocation, releasing in different places by the locals. The highest allelic frequency of 13.15 (and effective allelic frequency of 20) was recorded in Marivan subpopulation, which can be related to winter sampling along with the species' narrow migration routes to a warmer region. Because of this, the later subpopulation also showed deviation from the Hardy-Weinberg equation as well. Finally, two stepwise and two steps mutation models didn’t indicate any historical bottleneck, then the species currently face no serious threats.

The meiobenthic harpacticoids of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman has been almost unknown. During October 2014 to September 2016, interstitial and phytal harpacticoids were collected from tide pools in 30 different localities along the Iranian coast of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. The new information on the distribution of 26 species and 12 families is provided, here. The most species-rich family was Laophontidae with seven species, followed by Miraciidae with four species. In this paper, all the species were considered new records for the area. Furthermore, the first checklist of meiobenthic Harpacticoids is provided.

An updated checklist of the scorpiofauna of Iran is presented. The checklist is based on records of scorpion species which their presence have been confirmed in Iran through field expeditions, examination of scorpion collections, literature review, and personal communications with researchers. According to the presented checklist the scorpion fauna of Iran consists of 68 valid species (41 endemic to Iran) belonging to 19 genera and four families and 6 doubtful reports (belong family Buthidae). Hemiscorpius gaillardi (Vachon, 1974) and Compsobuthus jakesi Kovařík, 2003 reported for the first time from Hormozgan province. Odontobuthus tavighiae Navidpour et al., 2013 collected for the first time from Fars province. Kraepelinia palpator (Birula, 1903) and O. tirgari Mirshamsi et al., 2013 were new record for South Khorasan province fauna. The list is dominated by members of the family Buthidae (58 species) with 85.3% of total species. The level of regional endemism exceeds 60.3%. A dichotomic identification key to the Iranian species on the basis of a DELTA database has been provided.

The Sexual dimorphism (SD) in body size is very common among the scorpions. In this study, the SD was investigated in two aspects of size and shape in the genus Odontobuthus Vachon, 1950 as a small genus of the family Buthidae. This genus has six fossorial species of which four are distributed in Iran. For this purpose, 43 morphometric variables, consisting of 38 metric measurements and five meristic characters were digitized in the six species, O. bidentatus, O. doriae, O. tavighiae, O. tirgari, O. sp.1 and O. sp.2. The results show that Sexual Size Dimorphism (SSD) were significant in three species: O. doriae, O. tavighiae and O. sp.2. While O. sp.1 represented a SD for more aspects of shape, O. bidentatus did not show a significant SD for all studied traits. The amount of SD in size and shape were not the same in different species. The results showed that males have larger metasoma than females even when they are pulled to the same size. Having larger metasoma may correspond to a more efficient performance during mating, predation or combat with other males, so it should be under a high sexual selection. Type II ANOVA showed a significant interaction between species and sex for shape, but not for size. It suggests that the evolution of SD for size has been in parallel for all studied species, while it has been in different directions for shape. Among meristic variables, only the number of pectin denticles were sexually dimorphic, with males having more denticles than females in all studied species.

Dams can potentially affect the size of populations and their connectivity, reduce genetic variation and increase genetic differences among isolated riverine fish populations. Therefore, in this research, the effect of Shahid Rajaee dam on the genetic variation of Capoeta capoeta gracilis in the Tajan River was investigated using sequences of cytochrome b gene. The Capoeta capoeta gracilis samples were collected from upstream and downstream of the dam. Sequence and analysis of this gene showed 11 haplotypes in the samples. Nucleotide diversity and haplotype diversity were 0.00062, 0.00939, 0.37778 and 0.70526 for upstream and downstream populations, respectively. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) showed that 88.45% of genetic variation contained within population and 6.21% of genetic variation among groups. The analysis of the FST showed that there is a significant genetic difference between the studied populations. In total, it can be concluded that there was a significant genetic differentiation between the upstream and downstream populations of the Capoeta capoeta gracilis in the Tajan River (P = 0.05). However, this conclusion should be cautious, because only one gene was used in this research. For better results, it is recommended to use other genes as well as other genetic indexes such as microsatellite and in addition, similar studies need to be performed in other rivers.

The largest genus in the Sylviidae family is Sylvia, which is the archetype for warblers. It contains up to 28 species that are distributed in the Old World. Here, we study Iranian Sylvia using cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) and cytochrome b (cytb) mitochondrial markers to identify them and place them in a phylogenetic context using all available GenBank samples of sufficient length. Bayesian trees for both cytb and cox1 mitochondrial markers are compatible. Previous results suggesting that the Sylvia curruca complex is separated into two major clades with high support are corroborated, as our results show two main clades, one that includes Sylvia atricapilla and Sylvia borin plus Pseudoalcippe atriceps and Lioptilus nigricapillus, and the remainder of the Sylvia species in the other one. Our study did not support the geographical groups: The West-Mediterranean group, the Central-Mediterranean group, and the East-Mediterranean or the African-European species, the African-Asian species, and the Mediterranean species inferred on molecular evidenced by previous studies. Sylvia cantillans is divided into three clades, corroborating previous studies. All Iranian samples were conclusively identified to species level, and none of them give rise to any further taxonomic inquiry.

In the study on biodiversity and systematics of meiobenthic copepods from northern coastline of the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, a canuelloid species, Canuellina insignis Gurrney, 1927 was found. This is the first report of the species in Iranian waters and also in the area.

The Afghan pika (Ochotona rufescens) is a small mammal in the family Ochotonidae. This small mammal occurs in Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, and Turkmenistan. Here, we investigated the helminth infections among the Afghan pikas from northeastern Iran.
Fourteen Afghan pikas were entrapped from Bojnord, Mashhad, Birjand, and Tandoureh in the northeast of Iran during 2013-2015. The animals were euthanized, dissected, and their gastrointestinal tracts were removed, which were then cut longitudinally, and inspected under a stereomicroscope for the presence of helminths. Also, using the formalin-ether concentration technique, the intestinal contents of the animals were examined microscopically for helminths eggs.
Out of 14 pikas examined, 11 (78%) harbored at least one helminth species and mixed infections with two helminths were observed in 3 (21%) animals. Four oxyurid species including Cephaluris chabaudi, Cephaluris akhtar, Fastigiuris prudhoei, and Dermatoxy schneider were identified. Also, the Oxyurid eggs were recovered from the intestinal contents of four pikas. No significant difference (P>0.05) was observed in infection rate between male and female animals and between the areas. Oxyurid worms were the only prevalent infection among the Afghan pikas in northeastern Iran. The absence of other helminthic infections in pikas of the study area might be attributed to various factors like the lack of hosts species, high-elevation, and adequate moisture which facilitate the life cycle of many helminths species

Avian haemosporidians are able to parasitize numerous bird species all over the world. The extensive range of blood parasites infection rate is between 50% and 100% or less percentage. Haemoparasites with major effects on physiology, ecology, health, population dynamics, sexual selection and production success of avian hosts may promote species extinction.
To evaluate haemosporidians infection rate in Iranian birds, 136 individuals were examined by microscopic observation of stained blood smears under light microscope. These samples belonged to 10 different families of Songbirds from the east of Iran from April to August 2014-2016.
Fifty-one passerine birds were detected as harboring Haemoproteus spp. Furthermore, we recorded Haemoproteus spp. infection of Granativora bruniceps, Oenanthe pleschanka for the first time in the world and eight more species for Iran.
Age and sampling localities do not influence the infection rate of Haemoproteus spp. from the eastern provinces of Iran. The relative high infection of avian haematozoa revealed this region might provide suitable sites for future studies on these parasites and the relationship with their hosts and vectors.

Birds as a vertebrate which showed a high variety of sounds have a specialized organ sound production, the syrinx. Muscicapidea as one group of Songbirds of Passeriformes are seen in the diverse habitats which have a high ability not only in learning but also in imitating sounds. Surely acoustic studies beside the molecular studies would be useful for clarifying the phylogenetic relationship among the members of this problematic family. In this study, we analyzed the Song of 40 species of this family using Raven Pro version 1.5 software. For this dataset seven vocal characters were defined and finally the NJ and UPGMA were constructed using the Phylip 3.60 and PAUP 4.0 software respectively. The results almost demonstrated total incongruence between vocal and molecular phylogeny. In general, we find 62 and 45 percent congruence between constructed tree of NJ and UPGMA and accepted molecular phylogeny respectively.

A survey of species belonging to Pardosa monticola species group from Iran showed a new report. A detailed study reveals that the only female specimen from West Azerbaijan Province belongs to P. colchica Mcheidze, 1946. Characters for distinguishing P. colchica and morphologically similar P. pontica (Thorell, 1875) are given and illustrated. The two species differ in colour and spination.

New advances in molecular techniques are substantially reshaping our understanding of taxonomy. However, combining molecular and morphologic data is a prevailing trend towards integral taxonomy. In a genetic frame, two nominal species, Crocidura gmelini and C. suaveolens have recently been lumped into one species. This study aimed to evaluate this hypothesis morphologically. For this, 42 specimens from northern Iran classified either as C. gmelini or C. suaveolens were subjected to the geometric morphometrics analyses. Landmark based method on labial side of mandible along postcranial morphology showed profound resemblance, provide further supports for genetic results.

In order to resolve ambiguities at interspecific levels, supertrees are used by taxonomist as a combining method in large scale to reconstruct the phylogenies. In this study we construscted a unique supertree comprising peresent molecular data of mitochondrial and nuclear sequences from Genbank and Ferdowsi university of Mashhad lab datasets. This study was executed on the Matrix Representation with Parsimony (MRP) with 15 recently published source trees for 166 bird species of Muscicapidae. The Muscicapidae supertree had two main clades and in total, about 82% of the nodes were resolved completely. Duo to relative resolve in supertree nodes and clades arrengment according to recent molecular results with different mitochondrial and nuclear genes, final supertree has not a certain result for Muscicapidae relationships it might confirm recent surveys. In fact, this method beside comparative taxonomy using primary data from molecular and morphological analysis, could lead to the most reasonable taxonomic relashionships among Flycatchers taxa.