1. Mediterranean populations of the lesser white-toothed shrew (Crocidura suaveolens group): an unexpected puzzle of Pleistocene survivors and prehistoric introductions
- Author
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Vladimír Vohralík, Peter Vogel, Daniel Frynta, Jean-François Cosson, Rainer Hutterer, Petr Benda, Valérie Vogel, Sylvain Dubey, Elodie Magnanou, Department of Ecology and Evolution, Université de Lausanne = University of Lausanne (UNIL), Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations (UMR CBGP), Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud])-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Modèles en biologie cellulaire et évolutive (MBCE), Observatoire océanologique de Banyuls (OOB), Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Department of zoology, Charles University [Prague] (CU), Department of Zoology, Natural History Museum [Oslo], University of Oslo (UiO)-University of Oslo (UiO), Section of Mammals, Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum Alexander Koenig, Université de Lausanne (UNIL), and Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)
- Subjects
0106 biological sciences ,Pleistocene ,Biogeography ,PLEISTOCENE ,010603 evolutionary biology ,01 natural sciences ,Mediterranean Basin ,Time ,03 medical and health sciences ,Species Specificity ,Crocidura ,biology.animal ,MIDDLE EAST ,HOLOCENE ,Genetics ,Animals ,[SDV.BBM]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Biochemistry, Molecular Biology ,14. Life underwater ,Endemism ,Ecosystem ,Phylogeny ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Holocene ,030304 developmental biology ,0303 health sciences ,Geography ,biology ,Fossils ,Mediterranean Region ,Ecology ,Shrews ,Shrew ,Gene Amplification ,Genetic Variation ,Paleontology ,DNA ,ENDEMISM ,MEDITERRANEAN ISLANDS ,biology.organism_classification ,MAMMALS ,CROCIDURA SUAVEOLENS ,Mediterranean Islands ,DNA/genetics ,DNA/isolation & purification ,Shrews/classification ,Shrews/genetics - Abstract
mail: sylvain.dubey@unil.ch; International audience; An earlier study revealed the strong phylogeographical structure of the lesser white-toothed shrew (Crocidura suaveolens group) within the northern Palaearctic. Here, we aim to reconstruct the colonization history of Mediterranean islands and to clarify the biogeography and phylogeographical relationships of the poorly documented Middle East region with the northern Palaearctic. We performed analyses on 998-bp-long haplotypes of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene of 143 samples collected around the Mediterranean basin, including islands and the Middle East. The analyses suggest that the Cypriot shrew belongs to the rare group of relict insular Pleistocene mammal taxa that have survived to the present day. In contrast, the Cretan, Corsican and Menorcan populations were independently introduced from the Middle East during the Holocene. The phylogeographical structure of this temperate Palaearctic species within the Middle East appears to be complex and rich in diversity, probably reflecting fragmentation of the area by numerous mountain chains. Four deeply divergent clades of the C. suaveolens group occur in the area, meaning that a hypothetical contact zone remains to be located in central western Iran
- Published
- 2007