Taxonomic and genetic diversity of leeches on the Solovetsky Islands (White Sea, Northern European Russia)

Recent research on the Solovetsky Islands reveals that freshwater leeches found there share genetic similarities with populations from continental Europe and Siberia, suggesting subrecent immigration after the retreat of the last ice sheet. Seven leech species were identified, all common in the Arctic Region. Genetic analysis using COI haplotype networks showed that island leeches either matched continental haplotypes or differed by one to three nucleotide substitutions, indicating limited genetic divergence. This implies that leeches dispersed to the islands relatively recently, likely during the first half of the Holocene as sea levels rose and habitats became accessible.

Eliseeva, T. A., Bespalaya, Y. V., Gofarov, M. Y., Kondakov, A. V., Kropotin, A. V., Sokolova, S. E., & Bolotov, I. N. (2025). Taxonomic and genetic diversity of leeches on the Solovetsky Islands (White Sea, Northern European Russia). Ecologica Montenegrina, 88, 63–70. https://doi.org/10.37828/em.2025.88.6