Molecular phylogeny of Eastern African gerbils (Gerbilliscus) reveals the history of Somali-Maasai Savannah

0431894 - ÚBO 2015 PT eng A - Abstrakt
Aghová, Tatiana - Lavrenchenko, L. A. - Šumbera, R. - Bryja, Josef
Molecular phylogeny of Eastern African gerbils (Gerbilliscus) reveals the history of Somali-Maasai Savannah.
14th Rodens et Spatium - Book of abstracts. Lisbon: -, 2014. s. 27.
[Rodens et Spatium /14./. 28.07.2014-02.08.2014, Lisbon]
Institucionální podpora: RVO:68081766
Klíčová slova: genus Gerbilliscus * Eastern Africa
Kód oboru RIV: EG - Zoologie
http://rslisbon2014.wix.com/conference

The gerbils of the genus Gerbilliscus are widespread rodents in savannahs in whole sub-Saharan Africa and represent one of the main components of the rodent fauna of arid open habitats. We provide here a detailed phylogenetic analysis of Eastern African clade of the genus Gerbilliscus (called also G. robustus group) that is distributed predominantly in Somali-Maasai savannah. The multilocus phylogeny was based on two strategies: concatenating all loci into a supermatrix and multigene coalescent-based species-tree methods. The combination of four molecular markers, one mitochondrial (cytb) and three nuclears markes (BRCA1, βVfibrinogen, IRBP), provides evidence for presence of five major genetical lineages that correspond to four described species (G. robustus, G. vicinus, G. nigricaudus, G. phillipsi) and another potentially new species from eastern Ethiopia. With molecular dating and new statistical phylogeography approaches we provide a biogeographical model of the evolution of Somali-Maasai savannah habitats in PlioVPleistocene. It seems probable that climate fluctuations in last 5 Mya played a significant role in diversification of the G. robustus group. Using this group as a model, we were able to identify and locate probable long-term refugia for organisms living in the arid habitats (e.g. South Kenya, South Sudan). Important intraspecific diversity (five well supported clades) was detected in G. nigricaudus, with presumably important role of the East African Rift valley in diversification processes during humid periods of Plio-Pleistocene.
Trvalý link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0236431