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Hirudinea: Taxonomy, Faunistics, Biology “: an Overview Editorial ISSN 2336-9744 (online) | ISSN 2337-0173 (print) The journal is available on line at www.ecol-mne.com Fifth International Conference “Hirudinea: taxonomy, faunistics, biology “: an Overview VLADIMIR PEŠI Ć Department of Biology, University of Montenegro, Cetinjski put b.b., 81000 Podgorica, Montenegro. E-mail: [email protected] This review article summarises the contributions presented at the 5th International Conference „Hirudinea: taxonomy, faunistics, biology“ held in Tivat, Montenegro, 8-10 October 2014 . The current issue of Ecologica Montenegrina , comprises 5 contributions presented at the Conference. Montenegro had the honour to host the 5th International Conference „ Hirudinea: taxonomy, faunistics, biology “. The conference was held on 8-10 October, 2014, in Tivat, Montenegro, and it was the fifth conference organised, after those held in Karnin (Germany) in 2001, in Leipzig (Germany) in 2003, in Bad Bevensen (Germany) in 2008, and the last one in Wierzba (Poland) in 2011. The Conference was organised by the Department of Invertebrates and Ecology of Animals of the University of Montenegro. The 5th Leech Conference provided a forum for the presentation of long-term multidisciplinary research activities and discussions on various topics of the leech faunistics, taxonomy and biology. The current issue of Ecologica Montenegrina , comprises 5 contributions presented at the 5th meeting in Tivat, organised by Dr. Vladimir Peši ć of the Montenegrin University. The current meeting was attended by 15 delegates who gave 10 lectures and presented 5 posters. The lectures at this meeting were divided into two days covering a wide range of topics, with much overlap between subjects. Phylogeny, systematics and morphology of the leeches included presentations on a phylogenetic discussion on the progress in erpobdellid leeches; on the phylogenetic utility of the geometric model of the body form in leeches; description of a new fish leech of the genus Piscicola from Poland; on the morphology of the Codonobdella truncata with a detailed description of morphometry and structure of the digestive and reproductive systems; and an discussion on the first results of the barcoding Dutch leeches. The problem of identification of epbobdellid species, was discussed in relation to the use of anatomical features in their taxonomy (Grosser 2015). In honour of his contribution to leech studies, the latter paper was tribute for Prof. Veniamin Mironovich Epshtein who had died recently. There was also a presentation on opsin gene expression in photoreceptor cells of the leech eye. Geographical distribution and fauna papers included an up-dated check-list of the leeches of Tunisia (Ben Ahmed et al . 2015); a check-list of the leeches of Montenegro (Grosser et al . 2015); a pilot research on the distribution of Trocheta cylindrica ; and the paper on the distribution of the leeches in the brackish water of the Baltic sea in Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany (Jueg and Zettler 2015). Presentations discussing behaviour and ecology of leeches included one on the hermaphroditism in two freshwater leeches from Tunisia, one on some biological aspects of the leech Hirudo orientalis in Iran, and another one discussing the use of an artificial substrate device for sampling leeches in the shallow eutrophic lakes. The habitat preferences and variability of ventral coloration was discussed in the medicinal leech (Glombova and Schenkova 2015). Ecol. Mont., 2 (1), 2015, 1-2 1 FIFTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON LEECH STUDIES References Ben Ahmed, B., Romdhane, Y. & Tekaya, S. (2015) Checklist and Distribution of Marine and freshwater leeches (Annelida, Clitellata, Hirudinea) in Tunisia with identification key. Ecologica Montenegrina , 2 (1), 3−19. Glombová, J. & Schenková, J. (2015) Habitat preferences and ventral color variability of Hirudo medicinalis (Clitellata: Hirudinida). Ecologica Montenegrina , 2 (1), 51 −61. Grosser, C. (2105) Differentiation of some similar species of the subfamily Trochetinae (Hirudinida: Erpobdellidae). Ecologica Montenegrina , 2 (1), 29 −41. Grosser, C., Peši ć, V. & Gligorovi ć, B. (2105) A checklist of the leeches (Annelida: Hirudinea) of Montenegro. Ecologica Montenegrina , 2 (1), 20 −28. Jueg, U. & Zettler, M.L. (2015) Distribution and ecology of leeches (Hirudinea) in brackish waters of the German Baltic. Ecologica Montenegrina , 2 (1), 42 −50. Ecol. Mont., 2 (1), 2015, 1-2 2 .
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