When gaps really are gaps: statistical phylogeography of hydrothermal vent invertebrates

The statistical approach to test the significance of phylogeographic subdivisions and assess the power to detect the genetic isolation by distance pattern was used to understand the specific case of hydrothermal vent invertebrates. The low statistical power associated with the sampling effort explained the failures to detect evidence for isolation-by-distance (IBD) and the simulation methods proposed could also find potential application for testing the significance of inferred phylogeographic gaps in other species.