This institute is the successor of the institute underneath Onderzoeksgroep Evolutionaire Biologie (UA), more
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English name: Evolutionary Ecology group Parent institute: Universiteit Antwerpen; Faculteit Wetenschappen; Departement Biologie (UA), more
Thesaurus terms (8) : Behaviour; Conservation; Ecology; Ecotoxicology; Indicator species; Molluscs; Phylogeny; Systematics Taxonomic terms (3) : Littorina striata P. P. King, 1832 [WoRMS]; Littorinidae Children, 1834 [WoRMS]; Mollusca [WoRMS] Geographical terms (7) : Africa, East [Marine Regions]; ANE, North Sea [Marine Regions]; Azores [Marine Regions]; Belgium [Marine Regions]; Belgium, Flanders [Marine Regions]; Belgium, Schelde R. [Marine Regions]; Europe, West [Marine Regions]
Address: Campus Groenenborger Groenenborgerlaan 171 2020 Antwerpen Belgium | | Tel.: +32-(0)3-265 34 69 Fax: +32-(0)3-265 34 74 E-mail: ![](https://www.vliz.be/email.php?id=e16420b5a759e02ea3512a81f0023f6c) |
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1 Director: Head of the department 2 Marine scientist: Works in this research group and acts as (co-)author in at least one marine publication in the last 5 years. 3 Specialized personnel: Provides administrative or technical support to marine scientific research.
Persons formerly associated with this organization (2) | |
Abstract: | Our research group focuses on the study of variation in morphology, behaviour and life-history characteristics of vertebrates (birds, mammals) and invertebrates (insects, molluscs). Specifically, the patterns and processes of speciation and adaptation at different levels of organisation (individuals, species, communities) are studied.
1. On an evolutionary time-scale the relations among individuals and taxa are investigated from a morphological, karyological, ecological and biochemical point of view.
2. The population ecology and life-history strategies of different species are studied and compared on an ecological time-scale.
3. Knowledge from the above mentioned research topics is used to develop mathematical models that are used for the management of species with economical value, the study of the ecology of diseases, and the conservation of biodiversity.
In particular the following topics are investigated:
Behavioural ecology and fitness Molecular taxonomy and systematics Population-ecology and pest management |
Publications (56) | Top | Persons | Projects | ( 55 peer reviewed ) split up filter McClain, A.M.; Field, C.L.; Norris, T.A.; Borremans, B.; Duignan, P.J.; Johnson, S.P.; Whoriskey, S.T.; Thompson-Barbosa, L.; Gulland, F.M.D. (2023). The symptomatology and diagnosis of domoic acid toxicosis in stranded California sea lions (Zalophus californianus): a review and evaluation of 20 years of cases to guide prognosis. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 10: 1245864. https://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2023.1245864, more Mariën, J.; Laurent, L.; Smitz, N.; Gombeer, S. (2022). First observation of Aedes albopictus (Skuse, 1894) (Diptera: Culicidae) in Tshuapa province (Boende), Democratic Republic of the Congo. Afr. Entomol. 30: e11932. https://dx.doi.org/10.17159/2254-8854/2022/a11932, more Mariën, J.; Laurent, N.; Smitz, N.; Gombeer, S. (2022). First observation of Aedes albopictus in the Tshuapa province (Boende) of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Afr. Entomol. 30: e11932. https://dx.doi.org/10.17159/2254-8854/2022/a11932, more Mayk, D.; Harper, E.M.; Fietzke, J.; Backeljau, T.; Peck, L.S. (2022). 130 years of heavy metal pollution archived in the shell of the intertidal dog whelk, Nucella lapillus (Gastropoda, Muricidae). Mar. Pollut. Bull. 185(Part A): 114286. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114286, more Mayk, D.; Peck, L.S.; Backeljau, T.; Harper, E.M. (2022). Shell thickness of Nucella lapillus in the North Sea increased over the last 130 years despite ocean acidification. Commun. Earth Environ. 3(1): 158. https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s43247-022-00486-7, more Aydin, M.; Biltekin, D.; Breugelmans, K.; Backeljau, T. (2021). First record, DNA identification and morphometric characterization of Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas (Thunberg, 1793) in the southern Black Sea. Bioinvasions Records 10(4): 838-852. https://dx.doi.org/10.3391/bir.2021.10.4.08, more Budiarsa, A.A.; de Iongh, H.H.; Kustiawan, W.; van Bodegom, P.M. (2021). Dugong foraging behavior on tropical intertidal seagrass meadows: the influence of climatic drivers and anthropogenic disturbance. Hydrobiologia 848(18): 4153-4166. https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10750-021-04583-0, more de Souza, E.M.S.; Freitas, L.; Ramos, E.K.S.; Selleghin-Veiga, G.; Rachid-Ribeiro, M.C.; Silva, F.A.; Marmontel, M.; dos Santos, F.R.; Laudisoit, A.; Verheyen, E.; Domning, D.P.; Nery, M.F. (2021). The evolutionary history of manatees told by their mitogenomes. NPG Scientific Reports 11(1): 3564. https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-82390-2, more Koudenoukpo, Z.C.; Odountan, O.H.; Agboho, P.A.; Dalu, T.; Van Bocxlaer, B.; Janssens de Bistoven, L.; Chikou, A.; Backeljau, T. (2021). Using self-organizing maps and machine learning models to assess mollusc community structure in relation to physicochemical variables in a West Africa river–estuary system. Ecol. Indic. 126: 107706. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.107706, more Telesca, L.; Peck, L.S.; Backeljau, T.; Heinig, M.F.; Harper, E.M. (2021). A century of coping with environmental and ecological changes via compensatory biomineralization in mussels. Glob. Chang. Biol. 27(3): 624-639. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15417, more Tessens, B.; Monnens, M.; Backeljau, T.; Jordaens, K.; Van Steenkiste, N.W.L.; Breman, F.C.; Smeets, K.; Artois, T.J.; Breman, F.C. (2021). Is 'everything everywhere'? Unprecedented cryptic diversity in the cosmopolitan flatworm Gyratrix hermaphroditus. Zoologica Scri. 50(6): 837-851. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/zsc.12507, more Whitmer, E.R.; Borremans, B.; Duignan, P.J.; Johnson, S.P.; Lloyd-Smith, J.O.; McClain, A.M.; Field, C.L.; Prager, K.C. (2021). Classification and regression tree analysis for predicting prognosis in wildlife rehabilitation: a case study of leptospirosis in california sea lions (Zalophus californianus). J. Zoo Wildl. Med. 52(1): 38-48. https://dx.doi.org/10.1638/2020-0111, more Clark, M.S.; Peck, L.S.; Arivalagan, J.; Backeljau, T.; Berland, S.; Cardoso, J.C.R.; Caurcel, C.; Chapelle, G.; De Noia, M.; Dupont, S.; Gharbi, K.; Hoffman, J.I.; Last, K.S.; Marie, A.; Melzner, F.; Michalek, K.; Morris, J.; Power, D.M.; Ramesh, K.; Sanders, T.; Sillanpaa, K.; Sleight, V.A.; Stewart-Sinclair, P.J.; Sundell, K.; Telesca, L.; Vendrami, D.L.J.; Ventura, A.; Wilding, T.A.; Yarra, T.; Harper, E.M. (2020). Deciphering mollusc shell production: the roles of genetic mechanisms through to ecology, aquaculture and biomimetics. Biol. Rev. 95(6): 1812-1837. https://hdl.handle.net/10.1111/brv.12640, more Horsák, M.; Naggs, F.; Backeljau, T. (2020). Paropeas achatinaceum (Pfeiffer, 1846) and other alien subulinine and opeatine land snails in European greenhouses (Gastropoda, Achatinidae). Malacologia 63(1): 123-130. https://dx.doi.org/10.4002/040.063.0112, more Koudenoukpo, Z.C.; Odountan, O.H.; Van Bocxlaer, B.; Sablon, R.; Chikou, A.; Backeljau, T. (2020). Checklist of the fresh and brackish water snails (Mollusca, Gastropoda) of Bénin and adjacent West African ecoregions. ZooKeys 942(942): 21-64. https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.942.52722, more Bendif, E.M.; Nevado, B.; Wong, E.L.Y.; Hagino, K.; Probert, I.; Young, J.R.; Rickaby, R.E.M.; Filatov, D.A. (2019). Repeated species radiations in the recent evolution of the key marine phytoplankton lineage Gephyrocapsa. Nature Comm. 10(1): 9 pp. https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-12169-7, more Beninger, P.G.; Backeljau, T. (2019). Understanding taxonomic and nomenclatural instability – a case study of the Manila clam. Aquaculture 504: 375-379. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2019.02.016, more Fourdrilis, S.; Backeljau, T. (2019). Correction to: Highly polymorphic mitochondrial DNA and deceiving haplotypic differentiation: implications for assessing population genetic differentiation and connectivity. BMC Evol. Biol. 19(1): 103. https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12862-019-1428-x, more Fourdrilis, S.; Backeljau, T. (2019). Highly polymorphic mitochondrial DNA and deceiving haplotypic differentiation: implications for assessing population genetic differentiation and connectivity. BMC Evol. Biol. 19: 92. https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12862-019-1414-3, more Morris, J.P.; Backeljau, T.; Chapelle, G. (2019). Shells from aquaculture: a valuable biomaterial, not a nuisance waste product. Reviews in Aquaculture 11(1): 42-57. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/raq.12225, more Fourdrilis, S.; de Frias Martins, A.M.; Backeljau, T. (2018). Relation between mitochondrial DNA hyperdiversity, mutation rate and mitochondrial genome evolution in Melarhaphe neritoides (Gastropoda: Littorinidae) and other Caenogastropoda. NPG Scientific Reports 8: 17964. https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-36428-7, more Lange, M.K.; Penagos-Tabares, F.; Hirzmann, J.; Failing, K.; Schaper, R.; Van Bourgonie, Y.R.; Backeljau, T.; Hermosilla, C.; Taubert, A. (2018). Prevalence of Angiostrongylus vasorum, Aelurostrongylus abstrusus and Crenosoma vulpis larvae in native slug populations in Germany. Veterinary parasitology 254: 120-130. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.vetpar.2018.03.011, more Barasa, J.E.; Mdyogolo, S.; Abila, R.; Grobler, J.P.; Skilton, R.A.; Bindeman, H.; Njahira, M.N.; Chemoiwa, E.J.; Dangasuk, O.G.; Kaunda-Arara, B.; Verheyen, E. (2017). Genetic diversity and population structure of the African catfish, Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) in Kenya: implication for conservation and aquaculture. Belg. J. Zool. 147(2): 105-127. https://dx.doi.org/10.26496/bjz.2017.9, more Barasa, J.E.; Mdyogolo, S.; Abila, R.; Grobler, J.P.; Skilton, R.A.; Bindeman, H.; Njahira, M.N.; Chemoiwa, E.J.; Dangasuk, O.G.; Kaunda-Arara, B.; Verheyen, E. (2017). Genetic diversity and population structure of the African catfish, Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) in Kenya: implication for conservation and aquaculture - Corrigendum. Belg. J. Zool. 147(2): 171-172. https://dx.doi.org/10.26496/bjz.2017.14, more Engler, J.O.; Stiels, D.; Schidelko, K.; Strubbe, D.; Quillfeldt, P.; Brambilla, M. (2017). Avian SDMs: current state, challenges, and opportunities. J. Avian Biol. 48(12): 1483-1504. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jav.01248, more Steeman, R.; Vanreusel, W.; Barendse, R.; Verloove, F.; Wysmantel, N.; Van den Bussche, W.; Gyselinck, T.; Hendrickx, P.; Zwaenepoel, A.; Van Vooren, P.; Jacobs, S.; Desmet, P.; Gielen, K.; Herremans, M.; Swinnen, K. (2017). Waarnemingen.be – Plant occurrences in Flanders and the Brussels Capital Region, Belgium. PhytoKeys 85: 1-10. https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.85.14925, more Verheye, M.L.; Backeljau, T.; d'Udekem d'Acoz, C. (2017). Locked in the icehouse: evolution of an endemic Epimeria (Amphipoda, Crustacea) species flock on the Antarctic shelf. Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. 114: 14-33. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2017.05.013, more Fourdrilis, S.; Mardulyn, P.; Hardy, O.J.; Jordaens, K.; de Frias Martins, A.M.; Backeljau, T. (2016). Mitochondrial DNA hyperdiversity and its potential causes in the marine periwinkle Melarhaphe neritoides (Mollusca: Gastropoda). PeerJ 4: 33 pp. https://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.2549, more Morris, J.P.; Wang, Y.; Backeljau, T.; Chapelle, G. (2016). Biomimetic and bio-inspired uses of mollusc shells. Marine Genomics 27: 85-90. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.margen.2016.04.001, more Verheye, M.L.; Backeljau, T.; d'Udekem d'Acoz, C. (2016). Looking beneath the tip of the iceberg: diversification of the genus Epimeria on the Antarctic shelf (Crustacea, Amphipoda). Polar Biol. 39(5): 925-945. https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00300-016-1910-5, more Decraemer, W.; Backeljau, T. (2015). Utility of classical alpha-taxonomy for biodiversity of aquatic nematodes. J. Nematol. 47(1): 1-10, more Raeymaekers, J.A.M.; Backeljau, T. (2015). Recurrent adaptation in a low-dispersal trait. Mol. Ecol. 24(4): 699-701. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/mec.13081, more Armenteros, M; Rojas-Corzo, A; Ruiz-Abierno, A; Derycke, S.; Backeljau, T.; Decraemer, W. (2014). Systematics and DNA barcoding of free-living marine nematodes with emphasis on tropical desmodorids using nuclear SSU rDNA and mitochondrial COI sequences. Nematology (Leiden) 16: 979-989. dx.doi.org/10.1163/15685411-00002824, more Verreycken, H.; Belpaire, C.; Van Thuyne, G.; Breine, J.; Buysse, D.; Coeck, J.; Mouton, A.; Stevens, M.; Van den Neucker, T.; De Bruyn, L.; Maes, D. (2014). IUCN Red List of freshwater fishes and lampreys in Flanders (north Belgium). Fish. Manage. Ecol. 21(2): 122-132. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/fme.12052, more Iserbyt, A.; De Schutter, P. (2012). Quantitative analysis of Elasmobranch assemblages from two successive Ypresian (early Eocene) facies at Marke, western Belgium. Geol. Belg. 15(3): 146-153, more Fraaije, R.H.B.; Van Bakel, B.W.M.; Iserbyt, A.; Jagt, J.W.M. (2011). New extinct Paguroidea (Crustacea, Decapoda, Anomura), with the first example of capsulated setae from the fossil record. N. Jb. Geol. Paläont. Abh. 262(2): 247-255. https://dx.doi.org/10.1127/0077-7749/2011/0199, more Pétillon, J.; Lambeets, K.; Ract-Madoux, B.; Vernon, P.; Renault, D. (2011). Saline stress tolerance partly matches with habitat preference in ground-living wolf spiders. Physiological Entomology 36(2): 165-172. https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3032.2011.00778.x, more Puzin, C.; Acou, A.; Bonte, D.; Pétillon, J. (2011). Comparison of reproductive traits between two salt-marsh wolf spiders (Araneae, Lycosidae) under different habitat suitability conditions. Anim. Biol. 61(2): 127-138. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/157075511X566461, more Derycke, S.; Vanaverbeke, J.; Rigaux, A.; Backeljau, T.; Moens, T. (2010). Exploring the use of cytochrome oxidase c Subunit 1 (COI) for DNA barcoding of free-living marine nematodes. PLoS One 5(10): e13716. dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0013716, more Fazalova, V.; Nevado, B.; Peretolchina, T.; Petunina, J.; Sherbakov, D. (2010). When environmental changes do not cause geographic separation of fauna: differential responses of Baikalian invertebrates. BMC Evol. Biol. 10: 320. https://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2148-10-320, more Pétillon, J.; Erfanzadeh, R.; Garbutt, A.; Maelfait, J.-P.; Hoffmann, M. (2010). Inundation frequency determines the post-pioneer successional pathway in a newly created salt marsh. Wetlands 30(6): 1097-1105. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13157-010-0115-x, more Pétillon, J.; Lambeets, K.; Montaigne, W.; Maelfait, J.-P.; Bonte, D. (2010). Habitat structure modified by an invasive grass enhances inundation withstanding in a salt-marsh wolf spider. Biological Invasions 12(9): 3219-3226. dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10530-010-9714-y, more Slabbekoorn, H.; Bouton, N.; van Opzeeland, I.; Coers, A.; ten Cate, C.; Popper, A.N. (2010). A noisy spring: the impact of globally rising underwater sound levels on fish. Trends Ecol. Evol. 25(7): 419-427. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2010.04.005, more Casteleyn, G.; Evans, K.M.; Backeljau, T.; D'hondt, S.; Chepurnov, V.; Sabbe, K.; Vyverman, W. (2009). Lack of population genetic structuring in the marine planktonic diatom Pseudo-nitzschia pungens (Bacillariophyceae) in a heterogeneous area in the Southern Bight of the North Sea. Mar. Biol. (Berl.) 156(6): 1149-1158. https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00227-009-1157-6, more Fichet-Calvet, E.; Lecompte, E.; Veyrunes, F.; Barrière, P.; Nicolas, V.; Koulémou, K (2009). Diversity and dynamics in a community of small mammals in coastal Guinea, West Africa. Belg. J. Zool. 139(2): 93-102, more Guerra-Varela, J.; Colson, I.; Backeljau, T.; Breugelmans, K.; Hughes, R.; Rolan-Alvarez, E. (2009). The evolutionary mechanism maintaining shell shape and molecular differentiation between two ecotypes of the dogwhelk Nucella lapillus. Evolutionary Ecology 23(2): 261-280. https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10682-007-9221-5, more Van Dongen, S.; Lens, L.; Pape, E.; Volckaert, F.A.M.; Raeymaekers, J.A.M. (2009). Evolutionary history shapes the association between developmental instability and population-level genetic variation in three-spined sticklebacks. J. Evolution. Biol. 22(8): 1695-1707. dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1420-9101.2009.01780.x, more Derycke, S.; Remerie, T.; Backeljau, T.; Vierstraete, A.; Vanfleteren, J.; Vincx, M.; Moens, T. (2008). Phylogeography of the Rhabditis (Pellioditis) marina species complex: evidence for long-distance dispersal, and for range expansions and restricted gene flow in the northeast Atlantic. Mol. Ecol. 17(14): 3306-3322. dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-294X.2008.03846.x, more Van den Broeck, H.; Breugelmans, K.; De Wolf, H.; Backeljau, T. (2008). Completely disjunct mitochondrial DNA haplotype distribution without a phylogeographic break in a planktonic developing gastropod. Mar. Biol. (Berl.) 153(3): 421-429. dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00227-007-0820-z, more Derycke, S.; Backeljau, T.; Vlaeminck, C.; Vierstraete, A.; Vanfleteren, J.; Vincx, M.; Moens, T. (2007). Spatiotemporal analysis of population genetic structure in Geomonhystera disjuncta (Nematoda, Monhysteridae) reveals high levels of molecular diversity. Mar. Biol. (Berl.) 151(5): 1799-1812. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00227-007-0609-0, more Derycke, S.; Backeljau, T.; Vlaeminck, C.; Vierstraete, A.; Vanfleteren, J.; Vincx, M.; Moens, T. (2007). Spatiotemporal analysis of population genetic structure in Geomonhystera disjuncta (Nematoda, Monhysteridae) reveals high levels of molecular diversity. Mar. Biol. (Berl.) 151(5): 1799-1812. dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00227-007-0609-0, more Virgilio, M.; Backeljau, T.; Abbiati, M. (2006). Mitochondrial DNA and allozyme patterns of Hediste diversicolor (Polychaeta: Nereididae): the importance of small scale genetic structuring. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 326: 157-165. dx.doi.org/10.3354/meps326157, more Voets, J.; Talloen, W.; De Tender, T.; Van Dongen, S.; Covaci, A.; Blust, R.; Bervoets, L. (2006). Microcontaminant accumulation, physiological condition and bilateral asymmetry in zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) from clean and contaminated surface waters. Aquat. Toxicol. 79(3): 213-225. dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.aquatox.2006.06.001, more Bruyndoncx, L.; Jordaens, K.; Ysebaert, T.J.; Meire, P.; Backeljau, T. (2002). Molluscan diversity in tidal marshes along the Scheldt estuary (The Netherlands, Belgium). Hydrobiologia 474(1-3): 189-196. dx.doi.org/10.1023/A:1016539905812, more Verdyck, P.; Desender, K. (1999). Hierarchical population genetic analysis reveals metapopulation structure in a phytophagous Galápagos beetle. Belg. J. Zool. 129(1): 95-104, more- Derycke, S.; Backeljau, T.; Vlaeminck, C.; Vierstraete, A.; Vanfleteren, J.; Vincx, M.; Moens, T. (2007). Spatiotemporal analysis of population genetic structure in Geomonhystera disjuncta (Nematoda, Monhysteridae) reveals high levels of molecular diversity, in: Derycke, S. Patronen en processen in de genetische structuur van twee mariene nemarodentaxa Rhabditis (Pellioditis) marina and Halomonhystera disjuncta): een moleculaire, morfologische en experimentele benadering = Patterns and processes in the genetic structure of two marine nematode taxa (Rhabditis (Pellioditis) marina and Halomonhystera disjuncta): a molecular, morphology and experimental approach. pp. 65-87, more
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Projects (7) | Top | Persons | Publications | - Geïntegreerde, multidisciplinaire studie van speciatie en adaptatieve radiatie aan de hand van enkele zoölogische probleemgroepen uit terrestrische en lacustriene milieus. I, more
- Geïntegreerde, multidisciplinaire studie van speciatie en adaptatieve radiatie aan de hand van enkele zoölogische probleemgroepen uit terrestrische en lacustriene milieus. II, more
- Macrogeografische variatie en populatiegenetica van Littorina striata en Melarhaphe neritoides (Mollusca : Prosobranchia), more
- Phylogeography, population and eco-genetics of European marine and terrestrial molluscs, more
- Population genetics and morphological variation of Littorinidae, more
- Population genetics and phylogeny of periwinkle (Littorinidae, Gasteropoda), more
- Population genetics of European periwinkles (Mollusca, Gastropoda: Littorinidae), more
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